Planet Fitness

Horrible customer service! First time coming here and last time. I walk in the gym around 12:26 am Tuesday may 10,2016. There was no greeting when I entered the gym. There was one guy standing at the front desk. He was in the phone talking and ignoring everyone entering and exiting. He is working, he shouldn’t be on his phone talking to God knows who. I’ve never seen such bad customer service. I don’t understand how these people get hired. The guy’s name is Jonathan. I went to use the treadmill and wanted to watch a basketball on tnt. So I go to the front desk and I see Jonathan still on his phone talking to someone. I wait a good 5 min to see if he says if I needed help. He didn’t bother to ask me anything. He just went on talking in the phone. Then I just ask him politely. Hey, are you able to change the channel on the tv. He looked at me while on the phone and said no. I then looked around the gym. The gym looked very nice but I wanted to run and watch the game. So then I just left. And while I was leaving Jonathan was still on his phone talking. And didn’t even bother to say anything. I am very frustrated and angry.

I really like that this gym is close to home. It is very spacious with two levels and friendly staff. Parking is very very difficult so I usually walk to the gym. Difficult to get a machine during peak hours (weekdays after work) but if you go in before work or after 10 pm it is fine.

Planet fitness on Jamaica avenue is a perfect place to workout. The environment in there is always clean and well kept organize.

The location is very convenient for me, only 20 minutes from my house. Whenever I do come here which is around 11am its a small crowd which I love! The staff is cool. My complaints would be dirty bathroom that smells and always runs out of tissue, some of the female customers there are rude nasty and ghetto and some men look at you like a delicious dish of food and the music sucks! I just put on my headphones and block all that out. I will continue to come back because of location, 24hrs open, and very small crowds in a.m.

This place SHOULD get 5 stars because it is huge and has the best music I have encountered of the 5 Planet fitness franchises I’ve frequented. But it has WAY too many other issues.
The staff are terrible: Lazy, rude and mostly useless. After two years of living in Queens, I have only had one pleasant staff member talk to me and that was the last day I went and lost my temper on him over how awful my experience there has been.
The downstairs is a bit messy, staff needs to get down there more often to clean, replace toilet paper, fill the spray bottles and paper, ect.
The customers are insanely RUDE, worse than the staff. No matter what time I go they are using the place as a social spot to chat/​horse around or using the weight machines as lounge chairs while they play on their phones and/​or people watch. Some of these patrons will literally stare people down like they are Hannibal Lecture planning their next meal. It is SUPER creepy whether it’s me being eyeballed or some else, just icky. I even went at 2 am and stayed through 330 am once and that was my best visit but it was still overrun by loungers forcing me to wait for machines.
The place is crowded all the time. As giant a space as this is, you would think there would be enough space and machines to go around, but it is always full and there are hands down ALWAYS people just sitting on machines, particularly the express section machines (too annoying to be ironic). Back to these patrons being generally scummy; they won’t move, even if you stand right next to or in front of them and wait they just ignore you. If the staff got down there, maybe they could ask people to respect each others time, but I doubt these lazy employees would bother. Though the 2 am crowd took less urging to get them off machines I needed.
The tanning and ‘beauty angel’ rooms are hit or miss. The doors often won’t lock without a lot of maneuvering the handle and the machines often won’t turn on. When I ask for assistance the staff tries very hard to brush me off as if 2 minutes of doing their job is too much to ask.
It really is too bad, every time I go I get so frustrated but the place is so pretty and the music is so good I have kept giving it ‘second chances’ for 2 years. But I am done, I waste more time circling machines than ANYTHING else. Will cancel my membership for the new year.

Well, I was planning on checking Planet Fitness out today, but based on the reviews about the bad customer service and a rogue manager that they seem to refuse to put in check, I won’t be checking them out. On to the next! Thank you Unilocal and all those who posted a review.
PF my advice: get rid of the «out of line, overweight» manager. Smh!

I’m a member of this gym. The gym itself is big and clean. My issue is with their policies. I recently went to Barbados, and forgot to inform my bank that I would be out of the country. I used cash while I was in Barbados, but the day before I left I used my debit card in the duty free. After my purchase, without me knowing my bank put a block on my account. So therefore, any bills that usually draft from my account were not paid. So Planet fitness was one of those bills. Once I realized my bank account was blocked, I contacted my bank and paid all my bills online. Planet fitness happened to bill my annual fee of $ 40.76 during that time, and like I mentioned above I went online and paid it. So I went to the gym, and when I scan my keycard, I get the loud message «go see a manager». The girl at the desk tells me I have a balance of 40.76 that is unpaid. I showed her my receipt that was emailed to me and said I paid it, as well as my bank statement. She said she would look into it. I called today, and they tell me the money was applied to November’s and December’s bill, not the past due. Does that make sense??? So after back and forward, I said I just want to cancel my membership. She tells me that will be $ 60.00. Ok fine, I was expecting a fine for cancellation. Then she says plus the past due balance of $ 40.76. Are you kidding me??? I paid it, and you even acknowledged that it was paid, it was their fault that they didn’t post it to the past due amount, but posted it to future bills. I have been doing accounting for over 20 years, and I have never seen where someone would post money to a future bill, instead of a past due bill. Once again, does that make sense? I knew I shouldn’t have changed my previous gym, but no listening to my cousin
. SMH.

Fairly new location, spacious, 2 levels, new equipment I usually come here during non busy hours after 12am. It’s usually clean when I get here

I have no other choice but to write this review about planet fitness on Jamaica avenue. I have been going here for about a year now and it hasn’t been a positive experience. Positives: it is a clean gym a lot of space and I met my workout buddies. As for the Negatives there is so many but: First of all you can’t bring in any of your personal workout gear like in other gyms for example: jump rope elastic bands or anything else to enhance your workout. Another reason why I am not happy with this gym is the way me and my workout buddies are consistently harass by the manager of this location. She is about 5’6 light skin and heavyset. We have constantly harassed by the staff members who told to do so by the manager. Whether we are benching a large amount of weight we are told not to do so and we are told that we are being loud when we aren’t being loud at all. even when we are just laughing and joking we are still being harass. Yes LAUGHING AND JOKING!
I think it is a shame we are supposed to be working out in the gym and we aren’t able to do things that is acceptable in other gyms. I mean we get harassed for LAUGHING we being harassed for WORKING OUT HARD. Mind you we aren’t disturbing anyone and we aren’t being loud. Think about it if you are benching over 225 plus pounds you are going to make a sound. It’s not going to be loud but yes you are going to make a sound. This is beyond absurd to me and I thought that’s the whole purpose of a gym is to work out hard to see results and to reach you goals to live a healthier life.
Not only to motivate yourself but to motivate others around or others in general. SILLY ME On top of that at times we bring our wives or girlfriends to the gym to help them workout and workout with us. So they can learn the proper form and know how to execute the exercises without hurting themselves, and this manager has the nerve to call this personal training NO ITS NOT «PERSONAL TRAINING» ITS CALLED HELPING YOUR PARTNER OUT TO WORKOUT PROPERLY. Now one of my workout buddies got his membership cancelled out yesterday because he was supposedly «Pesornal Training his wife» which is ridiculous he was simply there helping his wife workout so she can have her technique down packed. There was no money exchanged or contracted signed. You can’t assume that someone is training another person unless you have CONCRETE PROOF. You just can’t assume that someone is training another person just cause you are helping them workout or they are working out with you. That would mean all the members of this gym are personal trainers cause everyone helps everybody with workouts all the time. As you can clearly see this manager is not professional at all and with all due respect the manager who did this clearly doesn’t workout based on her appearance and if she did she would know the difference between training someone and helping someone workout to perfect the technique.
In closing If you are serious about your workouts and want to see seriously results and take your body to the next level I do NOT recommend this gym because you will be either harassed for working out too hard or harassed because you are lifting too much weight, because you can’t bring «outside equipment» to this gym and because you are laughing. This location isn’t bad at all but the way it is being ran is obscene and isn’t worth it. It’s beyond disgusting that someone could get their membership cancelled just because you are helping your spouse workout. That within itself is obscene but hey when you have a manager who is unprofessional and doesn’t understand fitness running a location, this is exactly what you get members voicing their opinions on forums like I am because their is no other option.
Enjoy Your Workouts Folks

Worst place ever the customer serivice ever

This planet fitness location is big. It has a variety of exercising machines which I love. The upstairs has mostly cardio while downstairs has weights. Usually is clean.

This month makes one yr since I joined planet fitness on Jamaica ave. I have since had friends and family members joined. I also, meet some great workout buddies (male and female). We meet every morning M ~ F between 8 – 8:30 and leave by 10am.
Our work outs never comes without a little excitement from the manager. Either we’re to loud or hissing when benching or squatting for her. (Try doing these exercises with good weight and don’t make a sound).
But my most embarrassing moment was on the 10/13’15 around 7:40pm. My wife and I was doing jumping jacks and abs. 5mins into the routine two young women ask if they can join us, I said yes, not knowing that when Im leaving the gym at 8pm to confronted by the gym manager in front of a crowded entrance of the gym to be told, «I need to speak to you… what you were doing with those 3 women is personal training and we don’t allow personal training».
Mind you ~ 1. I don’t know the two women that joined us and they only stayed 5mins if so long
2. I left with my wife only
So, if you observed the work out common sense should of explained everything to you. But, instead, you try to embarrass a member of planet fitness in front of a crowded gym and accusing me of being a ‘personal trainer’.
I feel harassed at this gym by its manager and believe our community deserves to be treated with a more professionalize manager at this location… like the one given to planet fitness members in Great Neck…
Enjoy your workouts

i like this planet fitness. i come here at around 6:30 am to work out every so often. this is a pretty big planet fitness so you shouldn’t have a problem looking for machines early in the morning. only downside i have is when guys take a few weights and keep it in the corner for themselves and dont use it for a while.
the machines are usually good and work and not down and out like other planet fitnesses i have been too. the staff is very nice as well i never had a problem with anyone who worked there. they all seemed very nice.
only downside i have is sometimes the cleaning towel is out or it doesn’t come down or they run out and they have to replace it. other than that this is cool spot.

The gym itself, is one of the better Planet Fitness places as far as space, big and a good bit of equipment. The workers behind the desk could be a little bit professional and friendly. What is it with Jamaica and the people who work in the service industry in this area, for the most part they are unfriendly (compared to Manhattan’s Planet Fitness), sometimes unprofessional and rude. This is a running theme at many stores and businesses in Jamaica. Also the gym tends to be too ghetto and by that I mean the behavior of many of the people. Equipment is never put back where it belongs and paper towels and other garbage items are never thrown out. This of course is due to the types of people in that area, but also management should make sure rules are followed. I am not a big fan of any Planet Fitness, but they are cheap.

I’d just like to say, EVERYONE, no matter how they live, where they live, or social class deserves to same the same amenities of good quality afforded to them, NO MATTER WHAT. This recent gym location is a staple for a community other wise passed over by common «luxuries» afforded to others. A positive addition to an area littered with liquor stores, corner delis, and fried chicken chains. ~a community can only become more once it afforded to the chance to experience more~
Review
My boyfriend (BF) has always attended the Van Wyck location as it was close to his job. We witnessed the entire development of that strip on Jamaica Avenue and 168^th (Family Dollar, Planet Fitness) and were excited that we’d have a gym so close to home. He’s had a membership with Planet Fitness for about ⁵⁄₆ years, and his only/​minor complaint was waiting for equipment (but that’s life and he eventually got the hang of going at the «right» times).
Its almost been a year since attending this Planet Fitness location (Jamaica Ave & 168^th St), and his only grip was rude, inattentive, poorly trained staff. About 1 – 2 wks ago he went to this gym (as is his normal routine after work) with the usual, sweats, sneakers, and water. He is absolutely a weight lifter and (depending on your body, diet, and workout) brings a gallon bottle of water with him to drink.
On entering a «heavyset» female staff member informed him he was NOT ALLOWED to bring his GALLON of WATER into the gym. He was confused b/​c he had never read or heard such a rule, and had never approached about his water… I mean hello it’s WATER. When he asked why, there was not reason given or written rule shown, he was just told «he couldn’t». He was upset b/​c it’s an inconvenience that you are being LIMITED on the AMOUNT of WATER your BODY NEEDS to get through your workout. He reluctantly complied and threw away the water right outside of the doors.
He returned for her to hand him a regular size bottle of water. he refused and asked her to refrain from speaking to him, He was over it and just wanted to get his workout done. 30 mins into the workout she approaches him with 2 other staff telling him to leave and his membership is going to be canceled b/​c he insulted her (the «heavyset» female staff) by calling her a «fat bitch».
**This is downright bullshit. My boyfriends mother who passed recently was a heavy set woman (ovarian cancer, r.i.p.) his younger sister and step-​father are heavy set people. To be told those words came from him was truly absurd **
Bf had no choice to leave, was given the district manager’s (Peter Calandrino) number. This district manager also had no clear explanation why the gallon water was «not allowed» and instead chose to say my Bf could not return until further notice (4 – 6 days). This manager claimed he would check the cameras for the exchange and make a decision then.
His staff had «informed» him of who supposedly heard the remark and where it took place. Inaccurate at the fact that where/​when she claimed Bf said it, they were on TWO DIFFERENT FLOORS. Yet, the district manager decided to side with this lying deceitful, incompetent, staff member and canceled my Bf’s membership, only 2 weeks into August where he was ALREADY CHARGED for the month. They of course waived to $ 200+ cancellation fee b/​c no way in hell was he paying to be kicked out.
He was able to find new membership in the Blink of an eye, where he was informed he can cup, gallon, or barrel of water so long as it is water and not alcohol of course.
…seems like the staff will be the downfall of this Planet Fitness gym location.

Planet Fitness overall is the worse gym to me because they claim to promote a judgement free zone but go out of their way to insult people who have big muscles and want an intense workout. I understand some people want a less intense workout and some of those guys can get annoying with their grunts but don’t call it a judgement free zone. Then they give out free pizza and bagels once a month. I like free food but this is a gym and they know most people coming to this gym have low self control. They give out the food so you will sign up to the gym, eat and then gain weight and keep your membership to try and lose the weight. Also they require a checking account to pay. In this day and age almost every company accepts a debit or credit card but they want direct access to your account.
Now this particular gym i didn’t like the first time i took a tour through it because there are so many cardio machines compared to the weight machines and the unwelcoming attitude from the guy giving the tour. I went back a few months later because i had some friends who joined and i wanted to workout with them. Also it was much closer to me than my previous gym, and for me getting in the mood to going to the gym was the biggest challenge and this distance and friends made it easier.
The second time i went there were different people at the counter and they were more welcoming. But they need to add more machines, benches, and dumbbells to the free weight section because it is always crowded since it is the smallest area. In the past month i haven’t seen more than 50% of the cardio machines used at once and they take up almost all of the main floor. They should scale that back and expand the free weight section. Someone also broke one of the chest press machines a couple weeks ago and at the time i’m writing this it hasn’t been fixed.
The staff restocks the cleaning supplies maybe once an hour but i rarely see them cleaning. At my previous gym they were almost constantly cleaning. This wouldn’t be as big as a problem if a significant amount of people didn’t clean the machines at this gym. This is the cheapest gym in the area so you see types of people you might not see at other gyms. For example there was this one lady who was using the assisted pull up machine to work her legs while dancing. There is also no parking lot and this area doesn’t have a lot of street parking. They have added more apartment buildings but no parking lots and at worse you have to drive around for half hour to get parking.
I have been mostly negative in this review because there is a lot they could improve on but if you just want a cheap gym that is open a lot of hours, don’t need a car to get here, don’t mind needing a checking account, and don’t care about using free weights then join. The locker rooms have a security camera as you walk out, and the bathroom isn’t nasty so those are some positives. Not the worst gym you could go to but there are better gyms. There are 3 gyms around the movie theater 10 blocks down.

I attend this gym only because my best friend lives in Queens and I attend York College, which is a 10 or 15 minute walk from this location.
This location is big juxtaposed to the one where I live near Prospect Park. There’s more equipment and an entire section dedicated to ab workouts.
There’s one obese woman who I belive is a manager. Again, my issue with PF, why do you hire overweight people at a gym? It defeats the purpose of the message you’re trying to send.
Jamaica, Queens is an urban neighborhood. It does attract low hanging fruit and I recall waiting to use a hip extension machine when two hood rats were standing on them basically acting a fool.
Around the afternoon, which is the time I’d attend, this gym gets very very crowded. I mean you have to wait and forget about coming here around 4, 5 or 6 pm. You will wait. I believe this gym attracts ex cons and gang members because I have heard strange words from the males and females alike. You will be hard pressed to find a large available locker. This gym is big but too crowded. I prefer the crowd of people at the one where I live. They’re more civilized and not as ghetto.
It’s a cool gym, but thank God I don’t live in Queens.

This planet fitness is a step up from the other location. It’s a lot bigger and seems to have more equipment than the one by Jamaica hospital. It’s also cleaner and the equipment doesn’t break down as often as the other location.
If you are looking to sign up make sure you come prepared with a blank check, ID, and your debit card. Cash and credit cards are not accepted here as forms of payment. The staff here can get very impatient and bothered when they explain this to you. For the most part they are pleasant but there have been quite a few times where they’ve gotten rude with members.
It gets crowded here during the late afternoon/​early evening, and there is no parking lot. This Is not an easy area to find parking in so get here earlier if you are on a schedule. The problem is they said they would have parking available when they first opened this location but that seems to have gone out the window. Good place to go if you are sick of the planet fitness by Jamaica hospital.

Came here for the first time last week, seeing as how it’s closer to my job than the one in Canarsie.
Staff is pretty ehh… they’re not that friendly (no surprise though, I’m not here for you anyway… and I’m on a guest pass, so who cares).
OMGGGG. It’s friggin huge! And NEW! And I like new. I thought Canarsie was pretty new but not compared to this! Brand new tvs, more channels, and free wifi. There’s 2x as many machines and 3x as much space than Canarsie. On the upper lever, it’s cardio equipment: treadmills, ellipticals, bikes. The only thing I don’t like is that the a/​c is a little wonky upstairs… it’s definitely pretty warm. I get it, heat rises, but still. Downstairs is much cooler. of course. That’s where they have the strength training area and the weight machines. They had a few new machines that Canarsie didn’t have. They should definitely have more machines downstairs though, there’s more than enough space.
Pros: Lots of space, bigger, brighter, cleaner, newer.
Cons: Not enough floor exercise mats, so go to Marshalls, spend the $ 20, and bring your own. A lot less hassle and headache waiting for one to free up (especially when the trainers decide to hog them all for their group workout sessions).

Best PF I have been to yet! Even more than my home location in Manhattan. The staff were friendly and helpful, the gym was clean except for an occasional piece of paper towel or rag lying about, and there was SPACE. Granted, I didn’t go during gym rush hour. And I never will. If you are able to go at off-​peak hours, you will be more than satisfied with this location. Love the open floor plan and bi-​level setup. And the stretching cage! None of the other locations I’ve been to had one. Love it.
Re: someone else’s tip, it is unfortunate but true that they have stopped accepting cards as a form of payment for new members. I’ve been a member forevs so I didn’t know until I tried to sign my cousin up and they asked for her routing and bank account numbers. That’s ratchet! Not sure what I’d do in that situation. Thankfully I’m not in it :) Good luck, cousin. I love this gym!