I suggest trying Patti's Swim School in Castro Valley. It's been worth the drive (from Berkeley) for my family. Not sure what current availability looks like but they do a fantastic job teaching kids to swim!
Our kids go to Aquatech in Concord. It's about $25 a lesson and has been great so far. Wasn't an issue getting them in. There's a waitlist but it goes very fast.
The Hills Swim & Tennis Club in Oakland, off Skyline, does lessons for non-members starting in September - https://hills.caclubs.com/aquatics/private-lessons. We are members and have been very happy with the instruction our child has gotten in the past.
We tried a number of swim schools, and by far had the best experience at Ohana up in the Oakland Hills. I know they are open and teaching, but don’t know about their availability.
Big fans of Ohana swimming, off Redwood Road. Pack a lot into 30 min lesson, also have private options. Was recommended by family friends, my son enjoyed it.
We found openings for private lessons at Strawberry Canyon Pool (UC Berkeley). Sadly our experience was sub-par. We had a different instructor almost every week, zero communication between instructors, no apparent curriculum, and a general lack of professionalism. We spoke with both the coordinator and the program director but nothing changed. We won't be going back.
Parent Replies
I suggest trying Patti's Swim School in Castro Valley. It's been worth the drive (from Berkeley) for my family. Not sure what current availability looks like but they do a fantastic job teaching kids to swim!
Our kids go to Aquatech in Concord. It's about $25 a lesson and has been great so far. Wasn't an issue getting them in. There's a waitlist but it goes very fast.
The Hills Swim & Tennis Club in Oakland, off Skyline, does lessons for non-members starting in September - https://hills.caclubs.com/aquatics/private-lessons. We are members and have been very happy with the instruction our child has gotten in the past.
We tried a number of swim schools, and by far had the best experience at Ohana up in the Oakland Hills. I know they are open and teaching, but don’t know about their availability.
Big fans of Ohana swimming, off Redwood Road. Pack a lot into 30 min lesson, also have private options. Was recommended by family friends, my son enjoyed it.
We found openings for private lessons at Strawberry Canyon Pool (UC Berkeley). Sadly our experience was sub-par. We had a different instructor almost every week, zero communication between instructors, no apparent curriculum, and a general lack of professionalism. We spoke with both the coordinator and the program director but nothing changed. We won't be going back.
I wish you luck in finding a top-notch program.