24 Hour Fitness

Pros: near freeway
Cons: read the review

I'm not quick to complain as I have been a member of 24 Hour for over 12 years. But I have had enough. I have put up with the foul bathrooms and broken equipment. But today took the prize. I wanted to have my just turned 13 year old son join me at the gym. I used my free guest pass to get him in the door, but thats as far as we got. The staff wanted to question my son and put him through a tour. (this is after he has spent 8 years in day care!!!) I said no to the questioning as I am not going to let a minor be sold to. The reply was I can pay $10 and avoid the whole issue. Even the club manager was rude and uncaring. Most of the people I used to work out with are now at a near by Bally's.

Pros: Absolutely none.
Cons: Read review please.

I was a member for over 2 years when after medical problems I asked for my membership to be cancelled. After 3 months, I realize theyve been charging me STILL through easy pay. When I called to ask for a refund and an explaination please, I had to wait for 3 hours and speak with 6 different people. Imagine my surprise when not only did they continue charging me but refused to acknowledge that I had repeatedly asked for my membership to be cancelled.

Throughout the situation, not once did I get to speak to a supervisor- they were always 'busy assisting other customers'. Also, the customer service folks got especially nasty (specifically a laurisa) when I demanded a refund.

It ended with me asking my bank to stop all payment to these crooks. Imagine what this is going to do to my credit.


I definitely suggest everyone be very careful with 24 hour fitness. Theyre quick to take your money and offer you a membership but its all downhill from there on.

Pros: Many clubs so that you can work out in different clubs and cities.
Cons: Once they get your money, they don't care about you or the facilities.

I've been a member of the 24 hour chain for about 5 years and have witnessed it deteriorate from a cheap club to an often run down, dirty, club that continues to cut member services. There are some nice clubs, often the newer ones, but many of the clubs are dirty, the exercise machines are neglected and often broken, and the staff is incompetent and turns over quickly.
When I first began going the clubs had a full class schedule. They have cut the number of classes almost in half and anyone can be an instructor with no previous experience.
My local club does little if any maintenance and, for example, out of about 20 exercises bikes only about half work properly.
Some may say you get what you pay for but with 24 hour fitness you don't even get that.

Pros: Facility and equipment very nice.
Cons: Management non-existing, employees brain-dead.

Nobody wipes off the equipment, nobody re-racks the weights, the TV's never work an worst of all you get to listen to terrible rap music so loud you can't think. It is a horrible horrible place to go relax, de-stress and workout. Buy a Bowflex and work out at home.

Pros: Great equipment, nice locker rooms, nice pool area.
Cons: Snobby, rude employees, high membership fees, TAKE OUT DUES MORE THAN ONCE A MONTH!

Great gym, but not great enough to have your membership dues withdrawn two to three times a month! They took out our membership dues three times one month, we called them and they said "well sometimes the computers make mistakes." This caused our account to go negative and caused overdraft fees. We told them they were going to have to cover those because it was their fault and they said they could refund the two extra dues, but not the overdraft fees. We finally had to send our complaints to the BBB and ended up getting our money back. Membership there was outrageous anyways!

Pros: Membership fees are reasonable, gym is clean, equipment new and in good repair.
Cons: Robs you going in and leaving. Check out the lawsuits against them.

When I ran into trouble with my Personal trainer at 24-Hour Fitness I thought she was just a greedy monster for trying to force me into taking more sessions per week. Not so. Apparently Personal Training contracts are a scam. There is a six month time limit within which all the training sessions must be taken and the goal is to sign people up for 60 sessions for $3,000.00. That means over two sessions a week for six months. Any bonus sessions, or sessions cancelled because your trainer was sick or on vacation are money out of your pocket. And, of course, if you only want one session a week you lose your money for all 34 that were paid for and not used. We won't even talk about the meal bars, powdered drinks, and vitamin supplements they tack onto the $3,000.
They will tell you they will extend your contract. They lie. They won't. Plus the contract says you can't sue.

Pros: Close to home.
Cons: Dirty, cramped, cluttered, low standards (see above).

Club is generally dirty, equipment is never cleaned, free weight area poorly designed, cramped and cluttered, water fountain is duct taped together (for more than a year), front desk attendent asleep when you arrive (on multiple occasions).  This place has to be a health hazard.  You are much better off going to the 24 hour in Ladera Ranch.     

Pros: Open extended hours, accessible to the common man,
Cons: NOT Clean, cheesy sales practices

I've been a member of 24 hour fitness since 1995. The clubs in the San Francisco Bay Area are getting progressively worse over the years.
The Club at Van Ness is so nasty smelling. I fear getting foot fungus a treatment that would cost more than a years membership.
You truly get what you pay for. I gladly only pay $12 per month but even at that rate I dread going to the gym at this location.

They should be ashamed of their establishment.

Golds Gym has people walking around really cleaning all the time and great sanitary sprays and towels.

Pros: NONE
Cons: Rip off. Flawed website and order processing system.

Charged me 4 times when i tried to get one membership. Now 900 of my money is beheld hostage, 5 days before Christmas, and according to there "Contract" I have to submit a written notice mailed to them, with in 3 days. 3 days isn't the problem, its the fact that according to that "Contract" It will take them 30 days to mail me a check. What every you do don't use 24 hours fitness online ordering system. I know how to use computers I'm a Management Information System major, and The web site and process is flawed! It has the potential to submit one order many times. I think the only reason it stoped at the 4th is because i ran out of money in my account for it to charge me a 5th, 6th, and so on.

Pros: Its a place to work out, if you don't mind broken equipment and unsafe surroundings.
Cons: Massive lack of maintenance, no reinvesting in their locations.  Watch deterioration creep.

OMG Nice razamataz sales pitch.  If only they maintained their clubs as well as their trainers ask us to maintain our bodies.

Broken equipment and broken swimming pool heaters (Ice-Cold Pool!!!) for weeks on end seem to be their corporate operating standard.  Our local maintenance guy does his best with bandaids, but Corporate 24 Hour Fitness just does not give him the resources to accomplish much.  He is reluctant to complain, but if I ask the right questions, I can clarify where the breakdown is. I heard someone is putting together a class action lawsuit because stuff is so bad.  I watched as a Fire Inspector recently discovered broken and inoperative sprinkler heads in one facility's fire suppression system.

If you care for your safety and life, stay away from 24 Hour.....

I'm always amazed at the loud (so loud it drowns out my MP3 earbuds), Rappa, Dappa, Crappa music on the PA.

If you enjoy really loud Rappa, Dappa, Crappa music, bad maintenance, and dangerous equipment and facilities, stay with 24 Hour Fitness.

How can I give less than 1 Star?  It really deserves a Minus 3.

Pros: I have no pros.....You want sarcasm great place to go.
Cons: Too many to list. Money, non supportive staff, non supportive environment, intimidating for the novice.

I take kenpo karate about 4 times a week and needed to supplement my routine. I joined 24 hour fitness thinking it would be a supportive environment. WRONG... well it is if you have money to pay for their trainers to even show you how to correctly use the machines. If you have a question about a machine or anything else for that matter they tell you to get a trainer. Now I do not expect to not pay for a service but if you are not sure how to use a machine, you can possibly injure yourself. I actually heard a staff member say to another staff member how people where using the machines wrong.... well show them. Oh that's right that will be 75.00 dollars please.They take your measurements and find your BMI tell you can lose the weight you need to lose in a time frame and them tell you that would be 300.00 for the diet and trainer for 6 sessions.

Pros: It's cheap, There are a lot of members to complain to
Cons: Dirty, overcrowded, high pressure sales, no parking, locker rooms are a disgrace

There is one way to describe the experience "pressure". Its not about you the member and what is best for you. It is about what is best for the sales person trying to push a membership and 24 personal training sessions on you. If you do fall into the trap and you do make it to your first training session the disappointment just keeps going. The only trainers that would train there are inexperienced just looking to get some training under there belt using it as a stepping stone. I know I used to work there and it inspired me to open my own Health club. My goal is to be the exact opposite, customer service, no pressure, experienced trainers. Getting you to your goal should be the focus of all clubs not just getting your money!

Pros: none
Cons: I have been trying to contact the manager for months and he is never avaliable.

Don`t ever do the same mistake I did.
It is inpossible to cancel the membership.
I canceled mine 3 months ago and they are still taking money from my account

Pros: It's a gym.
Cons: Buying into a membership has become a circus.

"What's it gonna take for me to get you into a gym membership today!?" That's nearly how it went with the gym salesman.
Trying to find out information on monthly rates was a nightmare. I've had less stress with car salesmen! They would not tell me rates over the phone: I had to make an appointment, at which time the "Fitness Trainer" only provided options that I didn't want. He pressured me with statements like, "Why on earth would you NOT want to have your own personal trainer?" or "You don't take our vitamin supplements?" (paraphrased for brevity)
He would not let me leave without providing him another contact, so he pressured my friend as well as me, trying to get us both to sign up for a fitness product neither of us wanted. I eventually (and after a number of phone calls by this "Trainer") did join at a monthly rate - what I wanted in the first place - but only after the salesman had exhausted all other attempts at selling me white elephants.
The sales pressure from 24-Hour Fitness is unparalleled.

Pros: Convenient Locations
Cons: Sleazy Business Practices. Indifferent employees. Wannabee personal trainers.

Sleazy business practices.

When I canceled my membership a few years ago, they wouldn't take the cancellation over the phone. As a result, I couldn't get to the closest club for 3 months and so they got another $45 dollars.

Just cancelled my daughter's membership and saw a charge on my credit card the exact day that I cancelled.

Called 24 hour and was told to check my membership agreement as their policy is that you have to cancel 10 days before the billing cycle. OK, then can you just eliminate the charge as a friendly consumer gesture since you didn't provide any service?

Of course their response was "NO" and they defended it over and over because "That's our policy."

I personally had been a member since 1978 (back to the Family Fitness days) until 2002 with a few missed years in between but they still wanted that last $19 from me.