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The Sun
24-06-2025
- Lifestyle
- The Sun
I tested paddling pools from £10 – the winner comes with unique feature and will keep kids entertained for hours
CHILDREN love water play and splashing around in a paddling pool will keep them cool and burn off excess energy on hot days. There are paddling pools to suit all ages, budgets and gardens - but if you don't want to spend a fortune, then you are in luck. 8 We have tested the best pools you can buy for £40 or less and there are lots of fun ones to choose from. From fast set options to a pool with basketball hoops for extra fun, here are my favourites: Intex Swim Centre Rectangular Inflatable Paddling Pool £24.99, Smyths Toys Age: 6 plus 8 This Intex pool is a good size and can hold a whopping 749 litres of water, so it's big enough for the whole family to enjoy. I liked the extra wide walls too, as you could lounge back on it and watch the kids play on a hot sunny day and it felt very comfy. It also comes with a repair patch in case of puncture. Overall, I thought this pool is a good option that would suit pretty much anyone and all for a wallet friendly price. Funsicle Turtle QuickSet Pool £30, Argos Age: 6 plus 8 A super cute pool, the kids were really excited when they saw the turtle blown up and ready for action. It's a quick set so super easy to get ready. You simply inflate the top ring and the pool rises as it fills with water. It took a minute to inflate and though the box says it takes ten minutes to fill, it definitely took a little longer than this - probably more like 25, but it was easy to do. It seems durable and is made from three-ply puncture resistant material. It can hold 757 litres of water and there's probably enough space for three kids to play in the water. It has a built in water sprayer too which provided hours of fun. For £30 I thought it was fun and good value. Performance: 5/5 Total: 10/10 Bestway Family Paddling Pool with Basketball Game £39.99, Amazon Age: 3 plus 8 The basketball hoops added a whole new layer of fun to my kids' excitement when I blew up this paddling pool. They couldn't wait to jump in and were immediately diving in and scoring hoops whilst they played. Handy that it came with two blow up balls as well. Although this pool is one of more expensive ones in our test, it did keep the children entertained for longer. My eldest son Jacob, 10, was also more entertained in this than he was in the plain pools. This also comes with a repair patch, which I think will come in handy as they were jumping around in a lot so probably only a matter of time before there is a puncture. Performance: 5/5 Price: 4/5 Total: 9/10 Home Swimming Pool £21.26, Temu Age: 6 plus 8 This two-ring rectangular pool was easy to blow up and it was put up and filled with water in less than half an hour. It's a decent size for the price, though it did sag a bit quite quickly. After a couple of hours quite a bit of air had come out and I had to pump a bit more in. However, the two large outer rings were super comfy to relax against and it's a great price." Performance: 3/5 Price: 4/5 Total: 7/10 Intex 1.8m Easy Set Paddling Pool £29.99, The Range Age: 3 plus 8 Simply blow up the ring and this pool builds as it fills with water. It's not so labour intensive as others but it did take longer to fill - around 30 minutes from start to finish and whilst waiting, the kids were desperate to jump in. It feels robust. The idea walls are made with three separate layers for strength. It's good for smaller children, you can probably get two or three playing in it at once, and it measures around 20 inches deep. It also stayed up in the garden for several days with no maintenance required, other than fishing out grass and leaves. Performance: 4/5 Price: 4/5 Total: 8/10 Polar Pals Inflatable Pool with Play Centre £29.99, Bestway Store Age: 2 plus 8 What a fun looking pool. There's only a little bit of water in the pool area but it's ideal for smaller kids who prefer running in and out of the water than fully submerging themselves. It has a couple of games to keep little ones entertained too - there's a ring toss game using the narwhal's horn and seal's nose and you can move the seal around to make it harder or easier. Thee's also an inflatable penguin and two foam fish toys for kids to splash with or they can try and feed them into the dolphine's mouth. Super cute and not to huge to store. Great option for smaller gardens too. Performance: 5/5 Price: 4/5 Total: 9/10 Bestway 40inch Safari Themed Kids Inflatable Paddling Pool £9.99, Bestway Store Age: 2 plus 8 Small and without the bells and whistles of some of the others, but for less than a tenner it's a cute design and it held up well. The three ring construction increases stability and reduces the risks of the sides buckling in and it comes with a repair patch, though it seemed reasonably sturdy. Easy to put up and filled in a matter of minutes. Great option for the price and for smaller gardens - little children are sure to love the cute safari design.
The Sun
13-06-2025
- Lifestyle
- The Sun
Shoppers go wild for ‘excellent' paddling pool for less than a tenner and perfect for the hot weather
SHOPPERS are going wild over an 'excellent' paddling pool selling for less than £10 which is perfect for the hot weather this weekend. Brits will be looking for ways to cool down as the country is set to sizzle in temperatures of up to 29C from today and into next week. With the hot weather likely on their minds, shoppers are rushing to John Lewis to snap up a children's paddling pool selling for just £8.99. The Funsicle Colour Pop 4ft Paddling Pool is proving a big hit customers, with those who have already bought it giving it a five-star rating. One review on the John Lewis website reads: 'Excellent quality. We purchased this to use in our home as a ball pit, after our 8 month old son punctured the last one with his teeth! 'So far it's passed the strength test. He loves it! Easy to blow up with the device supplied. 10/10.' Another shopper described it as a 'great little paddling pool'. They wrote: "Good quality. Quick to fill. We purchased for our seventh month old grandson and he absolutely loves it. "Perfect size and reasonably sturdy.' The retailer's website says it's a 'trending' product, with a surge in the number of people adding it to their basket in the last 48 hours. The pool measures 45 x 12 inches, and is available to buy both in-store and online. However, customers who purchase online may be charged a £4.50 delivery fee, as free delivery is only available for orders over £50. Other bargain hot weather buys If you're looking for other ways to cool down as the temperatures ramp up, we've recently rounded up the cheapest places to buy fans, with prices starting at £1.50. Poundland is selling a 4-inch desk fan for just £3 - one of the cheapest options around. Asda has handheld fans for £1.50 and 9-inch desk fan for £15 if you're after something bigger. Elsewhere, Lidl is selling a £4.99 flower that will bloom even in a drought. The French Lavender plant is set to arrive in stores on June 19, and is perfecting for attracting bees and butterflies to your garden while being able to withstand the hot summer temperatures. If you're shopping for any heatwave-proof products, remember to shop around to make sure you're getting the best deal. You can use comparison sites like Trolley and Price Spy to cross-check prices on thousands of products. The Google Shopping/Product tab will show you what different retailers across the internet are selling a product for too. How to stay safe in hot weather The UK Health Security Agency advised you follow these tips to reduce your risk of dehydration, heat exhaustion and heatstroke: Keep out of the sun at the hottest time of the day, between 11am and 3pm If you are going to do a physical activity like exercising or walking the dog, plan to do these during times of the day when it is cooler such as the morning or evening Keep your home cool by closing windows and curtains in rooms that face the sun If you go outside, cover up with light clothing, a hat and sunglasses and slather on sun cream Drink plenty of fluids but limit booze Know the symptoms of heat exhaustion and heatstroke and what to do if you or someone else has them Check on family, friends and neighbours who may be at higher risk of becoming unwell, and if you are at higher risk, ask them to do the same for you Source: UKHSA .
