Growing water lilies doesn’t require a large pond. You can start small, for instance with an above-ground ‘patio pond’. All you need is a watertight container that is at least 12” deep and holds at least 20 gallons. Next, choose a waterlily cultivar that doesn’t get terribly big. Some of my personal favorites are ‘Sunfire’, ‘Colorado’ and ‘Helvola’.
keeping the lily, and any other aquatic plants you might add, in their own planting pot inside the container will make it easy to keep the plants pruned and fertilized, and to keep the pond clean.

You can add a small pump with a little fountain or bubbler, but keep in mind that waterlilies don’t like to get splashed all the time.
This photo shows 2 small patio ponds. The larger has a Colorado waterlily, a pickerel rush and some parrots feather. The smaller just has water poppy and a corkscrew rush.