Honouring the age-old school holiday tradition of jumping into cool water on a hot day, spending time with friends and devouring a quick-melting ice cream.

It's been a tough few years for Dickson Aquatic Centre.

First smoke from bushfires in 2019 put people off going to the pool, then COVID-19 restrictions in 2020 and 2021 halved the number of swimmers.

This summer, pool spokesperson Taryn Langdon hopes the popular pool can get back to normal.

In a busy year, the Dickson pool sees more than 100,000 people walk through the door. For the past few years that number has halved.

At the moment, pool staff are keeping their fingers crossed for sunny days and warm weather over the next few months.

"Summer has been very slow in arriving. The first month at the pool has been very quiet, it has been a struggle to make sure we keep things ticking over," she said.

"We're really looking forward to a summer without restrictions, where we can genuinely get people back to the pool to celebrate events, learn to swim and to really utilise our facility as their own community pool.

"We've managed the Dickson pool facility for 25 years and over that time we've seen families grow up. We've seen people use the facility as their backyard pool, they come regularly, they drop in after school, they come throughout the summer holidays, they can relax, they can enjoy the outdoor environment, the barbecues, the grass and the facility."

Over the winter period, the ACT government completed upgrades to the aquatic centre including a ramp into the pool for increased accessibility.

While the cold has kept many people away, some die-hard swimmers have logged an impressive amount of pool-time since it re-opened on October 26.

As part of the Lap Legends program, one swimmer has so far completed around 2000 laps of the pool, coming in at more than 100km in total distance.

"We can't wait to really get back to that genuine community use of of the pool where people can just come and drop in and swim on a warm afternoon," Ms Langdon said.

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Last summer, strict COVID-19 limitations were imposed on ACT pools. For lessons, a maximum of 25 swimmers and one parent for each minor were permitted.

A total of 25 swimmers were allowed in venues for laps. Organised sport was not permitted and change rooms closed.

This season Dickson Aquatic Centre will be offering holiday intensive programs throughout January.

Each program consisting of 30 minute lessons each morning for five consecutive days.

With 21 public and privately-run swimming pools across the ACT, swimmers will be spoilt for choice over the coming months.

Meanwhile, the pool at Phillip Swimming and Ice Skating Centre remains closed as repairs continue.

It comes after the privately-run pool was closed for the 2020-21 season, blaming COVID lockdowns.

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