—Chasing waterfalls? Natural rock can dramatically enhance your backyard oasis

A natural rock waterfall delivers unique sights, pleasant sounds, and a greater sense of serenity around your backyard swimming pool. These delightful custom features fit a range of swimming pool budgets, and they’re worth considering as part of your design plans for a new pool or remodel.

—How to protect against cryptosporidium and other chlorine-resistant organisms in your pool 

Have you noticed more news reports chronicling outbreaks of dangerous microorganisms in public swimming pools? One pathogen, in particular, cryptosporidium, has been rearing its ugly head with greater frequency, passing along—yuck—gastrointestinal distress and other aggravating side effects.

—Decorative and functional design elements to include in your backyard resort

Would you like to make the experience around your backyard pool the most enjoyable one possible for your family? When you’re ready to design a new concrete (gunite or shotcrete) swimming pool, don’t forget about great options that deliver added comfort and convenience.

Toward that end, here are three leisure-oriented pool features to consider: an umbrella-covered pool ledge for tanning and lounging, a built-in table and seating area inside your pool, and an activity-oriented, shallow-depth pool design.

Affordable pool sports, floating board games, and gear that turns your backyard into the most-used pool in the neighborhood. Most picks under $100.

Your pool is gorgeous. It cools you off, it raises your home value, and it makes your backyard the envy of the cul-de-sac. But after a few weeks of summer, even the most beautiful pool can start to feel like a one-trick amenity. Swim. Float. Repeat.

The fastest way to fix that is also the cheapest. Pool toys and games. Real ones, built for adults as much as kids. At Blue Haven, we have spent more than 65 years designing backyard pool resorts, and the pattern is the same every summer. Pools with a basketball hoop and a volleyball net get used more often. Family game night moves outside. Adult dinner parties end in a pool joust bracket. Kids invent rules and stick with them all summer.

Below are 10 of our favorites. Most are under $100, none require a contractor, and every one of them is built to make your pool the place everyone wants to be.

—Negotiate a better home purchase price with an in-depth pool inspection

Seeking a new home with outdoor space for keeping cool, entertaining, and exercising? Many people are, and for these reasons, some house hunters see the advantage of buying a home with an existing inground swimming pool. With a ready-made backyard resort, you can begin enjoying a private aquatic leisure center on move-in day.

—Make the right picks to create a lasting, comfortable setting for backyard meals

For enjoying meals and conversation, what better place is there other than poolside in your own backyard?

Whether it’s a sit-down family barbeque, to a romantic moonlit meal for two, or outdoor bash with several dozen friends and a spread of fun finger foods, sunshine or a starlit sky make private alfresco dining a special experience for everyone. It’s even better with the right mix and type of outdoor tables and seating that accommodates your diners.

You priced the family vacation. Flights, hotel, rental car, eating out, the whole thing. Then you looked at the backyard and realized you already paid for the resort. It just needs the features that make a resort feel like one. Below are 10 staycation upgrades that handle shade, dining, warmth, and fun, so the backyard finally earns its keep.