Columbia Athletic Clubs

When I joined, CAC provided a better experience than chain gyms at a price point well below luxury athletic clubs. Since then, CAC has raised its prices to the point that I think it's worth considering other options. Here's what you won't hear on the tour at CAC, starting at the entrance. CAC has always employed a lot of young staff, but the current employees seem checked out to the nth degree. They rarely look up from their laptops or phones, treating the front desk as a study hall where folding towels is about the only work getting done. People often walk right through without checking in, leaving me to wonder if some of them are even members. The fitness equipment, which is spread out across two floors, was replaced a few years ago. While it's quiet in the summertime, the club can get crowded during the cooler months, especially around the winter holidays when lapsed members return and new ones join. Most of the equipment is in good condition, but some could use more regular maintenance. For example, a few of the recumbent bikes sound like they're broken when you start pedaling. And bring sunglasses if you're using the upstairs cardio equipment around sunset. The light through the unshaded, west-facing windows is blinding. The pool was remodeled with the addition of a kids' pool, hot tub, and family changing rooms. However, the pool locker rooms were left unchanged and are in dire need of a refresh. Most people change in the main locker rooms and walk through the fitness area to the pool. Swim lessons were expanded and the club started subletting the pool to outside groups (like Water Babies) when the remodel was finished, so you'll often find non-members using that area. The main locker rooms are in better shape than the ones by the pool, but they aren't maintained throughout the day. They only appear to be cleaned once a day when the club is closed and often look dirty by evening. When they're not simply discarded on the benches or floors, used towels are collected in large, cheap rolling Rubbermaid bins placed inside each entrance. This seems to be because the club doesn't schedule enough staff for coverage in both locker rooms, leaving a single employee unable to enter or maintain the opposite gender's facility. The hygiene in the co-ed sauna, steam room, and hot tub area between the locker rooms is questionable. Members routinely wear underwear in the hot tub, and dirty gym clothes are a common sight (and smell) in the sauna and steam room. If that doesn't deter you, expect to be frequently subjected to teenagers having inappropriate conversations or playing videos on their phones. CAC is the only place I know of that interprets "adults-only" as 16+. Sound from the centrally located squash courts carries throughout much of the club. It can get especially loud in the downstairs cardio area, where the treadmills and step machines are situated. To their credit, the full-time staff (management, membership, and fitness personnel) are always friendly. They readily agree with you, empathize, and assure you an issue will be fixed ASAP. But when nothing changes, you are stuck in the uncomfortable position of having to nag the well-liked staff, only to realize they are just defusing complaints rather than resolving them. Replies to other reviews here follow this exact formula, and I have no doubt you'll see a similar response below. CAC isn't the biggest or most state-of-the-art facility. Attention to detail is what sets it apart from budget options, so it's disappointing when that's lacking. A lot of these problems could be fixed without monumental effort: staff could be better trained and motivated, maintenance could perform routine equipment checks, towel drops could be moved into the locker rooms, and staff could walk the floor more frequently to actively enforce policies. Instead, CAC seems content to be a middling club at a premium price. Spend a bit more to join a much nicer club, or save your money and stick with a chain gym.

The gym is super clean, amenamites on par with most gyms, it gets 3 stars cause the personal trainers are not personable at all. I saw someone get a phonecall and one of the trainers pulls away from his session just to tell him to leave. It wasnt bothering anyone and he was across the room, no need to use that energy. All I know is if I'm paying for a premium experience I expect and I have to feel anxious about receiving phone calls.

The gym and sauna are top tier and Felipe is an absolute gem to deal with!