Gold’s Gym

7 day VIP pass — FRAUD.
I was told I needed to present a local ID to use the 7 day VIP pass posted on the website. I just moved here and haven’t had time to get a new driver’s license. Nothing in the «terms and conditions» says anything about a local ID.
They were willing to sign me up for a 2-​week paid membership though… FAIL. They just lost 2 memberships, not one.

I love this location. Super low key! Omer that works the front desk is friendly, always smiling and helpful. The showers are clean! The reason why I didn’t give this review 5 stars is because the cardio equipment needs some updating. The treadmills are loud as heck! And the elipitical machines needs replacing. Parking sucks in the evening. But that doesnt apply to me really beause I clock in the gym around 6am haha.

Hi
It was the worst experience by far i ever had, the front desk guy send me to a sales guy by the name of Ethan. He started nice hi hello the first thing he pulled this form and said we have this deal if u sign up today we will give a free Tshirt to your Girlfriend since she is a member, i said let me try it out today see if i like it here then i will sign up by tomorrow and i mentioned i have the 7 day free trail, he totally flipped and change his attitude become very rude and said i cant let you work out either i have to sign up or pay for today I got pretty surprised asked for the manager and he escort me so we don’t have a manager he’s out anywhere it was a very bad experience finally I have to leave without work out and then i try to call the corporate but no one help over there as well i was very disappointed about this customer service and since I already have the pass and it was just a bad experience should be a better customer service specially the sales Guy can be that pushy try to make you sign or get out and being rude and disrespectful like that when I checked on Unilocal they already had a lots of complaints about the same thing well good luck with everything … !!!
Thanks

I used this gym for over a year and I have to say that I did not expect the outright fraud that occurred after I cancelled my membership. I have continued to be charged several months after I cancelled my membership even though I was told several times by employees that the charges would stop after two more payments. I had to report this fraud of a business to my credit card company. This is why I am giving it one star. Sadly, the bad taste this experience left in my mouth has more than outweighed my many good memories there.
As for the gym itself, the staff was always very friendly and nice. The gym is small but hey, this is DC. It comes with the territory. Aside from some constantly leaky pipes above the smith machine and smelly sinks I have no complaints about the equipment or facilities. It was a convenient place for me to work out.

The staff is very nice, the location is perfect. Only issue for me are free weights, they are never organised and some specific poundages are missing, for example, there are 2 sets of 25 lbs. but only one of 35 lbs.

Definitely the rudest staff I ever experienced in my life. Bored, clueless, unhelpful and on top of that with a stinky attitude. Was is that so?

DO NOT JOIN!!! I have been a member of multiple gyms and have never had any issues with cancellation or staff. First off, when I joined I signed up for month to month membership but a few months later when I called they said my contract was for a year. The month before my year membership was up, I called to tell the staff I wanted to cancel my membership as soon as my year was up. The gym then informed me I could ONLY cancel online. I tired canceling my membership 10 – 12 time online but I was still being charged. So, I proceeded to call the gym (5 times) to cancel. They said they would call me back several times– but never called. When I finally talked to someone at the gym they said the only way to cancel was by calling corporate («apparently» they can’t do cancellations at the gym or online). I then called cooperate and talked to an extremely rude employee who threatened to not cancel my membership– she said she was doing me a favor she didn’t have to do. To ensure they didn’t keep charging me I called my bank and they blocked Gold’s Gym from making anymore future withdrawals from my account (because I heard even when you cancel they still try and charge you). It sounds like this is a very popular issue at this gym. It is also very outdated and small.

There are several good things about this place. The people are generally nice to everyone as far as I can tell after several months of being a member. There is always space on the cardio equipment, especially in the cinema room which is a fun spot to work out. It’s a great location close to Van Ness Metro. And the price is the cheapest in town from what I could tell.
On the other hand, this place is dirty to gross. Spots in the locker room look like nothing has cleaned it in years let alone months. Same goes for some of the equipment like the Bosu balls; the indent where one would blow it up is dark green and furry. Lots of old equipment and several pieces are not bolted down property. And the air conditioning was out for several weeks.
The real reason to join is for the access to all the other Gold’s in the country. Free access to almost all of the ones in a 50 mile radius and you just need a travel pass for any other location in the country. But I would avoid this location if you are able to.

I love this gym. The staff are friendly as are the other gym members. There are enough treadmills and bikes so that I’ve never had to wait. The class instructors are very professional.
They have a white board where they write the current status of any maintenance activities or feedback to customer suggestions. This way you get the feeling they care about keeping the gym in good condition.
I’ve worked regularly with Caitlin, a personal trainer there and she is excellent. She has a degree in a related field, and has worked for a physical therapy office so she understands how to protect the body from injuries. Often, she does the exercises with you so you feel motivated to work hard.

Golds is a bare bones gym for a reasonable price. If you live in the area, and are looking to just workout, this is a great option. If you are looking for something fancy, this is not for you. The ventilation is terrible and gym gets muggy once there are a bunch of folks running on the treadmills.

We were with Peter Harvey (FITNESS FIRST) for years very fair business man I left GOLDS GYM For unethical business practices. If you sign up ask about there triple billing cycles and the ability to hit your credit card at that leisure. Just say no to GOLDS GYM!!!

After my wife received her instructions from the head of the department for sports and rehab from Georgetown as to what equipment and exercises she could do, she went back to this location. My wife has never used the 3 personal training sessions that came with her membership. She has tried several times to ask which the equipment were she was told to use. The front desk folks told her they would get her assistance. They were helpful and never implied they knew. They tried to get her assistance. She never could get one of the trainers to show her the equipment either. She goes during the day and there were trainers standing around.
The TVs do not line up with the cardio equipment.
We will be cancelling her membership.

My experience at Gold’s was what I expected (clean enough, equipment available, etc) but I am completely enraged by their billing and membership practices. When I joined, I knew I was moving out of state in 6 months and specifically asked if that would be an issue. I was told by a membership guy named Ethan no, it’s easy to cancel, here’s how you do it. A month before I moved, I provided documentation, filled out a form and was told my cancellation was complete (although through some clever maneuvering in their contracts, I somehow still had to pay for 2 more months… WTF?) Anyway, that was all fine and good.
A month ago I noticed I am STILL being billed. When I called the Van Ness branch, they gave me the number for «Customer Care.» What a joke. They told me that the documentation of my move that I provided MONTHS AGO was not valid and therefore my contract had never been cancelled. FYI, the documentation was an offer letter for my current job. The guy on the phone told me it had to be an ACCEPTANCE letter, not just an OFFER letter. Again, that would have been fine IF ANYONE HAD EVER TOLD ME THAT. But instead, they had told me verbally in-​store that my cancellation was complete and I was good to go. No one ever followed up and said I needed more proof, or told me that my cancellation was «pending» in any way and I needed to follow-​up down the road. So, once I sent the new documentation to the guy at «Customer Care,» he tells me he can make the cancellation effective that date, but can’t back-​date it — read: I STILL have to pay an additional 2 months’ fees because they won’t honor the May cancellation date. So, after I thought I canceled my membership in May, it turns out I will be paying through October.
I have a few words for the shady staff at Golds… although conveniently, I don’t live there anymore and can’t go down to confront the membership guy I first talked to who promised me it would be easy to cancel. I know this membership is cheap, but I’m on a tight budget and the principle of the thing kills me. Don’t go to this gym if you think you may EVER need to cancel your account. They are shady, misleading and once they have your credit card info, good luck convincing them to ever stop billing you.

Solid gym option for around $ 16-​$ 20 bi-​weekly. Gives you access to the other golds locations in the DMV metro region. Parking on roof for $ 10/​month, cardio cinema, good sized sauna, and expansive weights area.

I have been a member of this gym since the 90s and witnessed the many versions and transformations through the years. NOW this is the best and only bodybuilding gym left in DC. Gyms suited for bodybuilders are an endangered specie in this city. Management heard the customers and updated the equipment and upgraded customer service. The only thing to upgrade is customer gym etiquette. Members need to understand and learn that benches are not for reading and checking emails on their phones. Members attempting to do crossfit training and trainers/​fitness experts need to learn to put the dumbells and bars back in their place once they are done. Most of all, everyone must use towels while using the benches.

This has got to be the rudest, most abrasive staff in any gym I have ever been to. I wanted a price to join — so the salesmen starts with his spiel and I cut him off and say I would like the price. Then he says, well, if you want to know the price you need to talk to a manager, the manager says he is not allowed to give out a price before arranging a tour, etc. horrible

The operations manager at the gym scammed me out of money at the front desk. Charged me an egregious amount for a supplement drink and additional money for a «free» guest pass. In all, he swindled me out of about 11 bucks. I should have said something, but I was meeting my friend on a guest pass and didn’t want to create a stink. Managers there were surly and unfriendly. I would never return to this establishment.

This place is awful. They do not secure your personal information. All of your credit card numbers and billing addresses are stores on site in a file cabinet. How do I know? Because someone charged $ 1200 on my debit card. Sure it could have been anyone anywhere but they actually used my billing address! The only thing wrong was the apartment number, which, was the same apartment number I wrote on the golds membership form. Coincidence? Hmm. When I went to the manager to suggest they shred this information, he was belligerent, threatened to hang up on me, and refused to even discuss the possibility of a breech. Guard your Information! They’re just plain sloppy.

I would say that I love this place, but there are certain things that can definitely change my mind:
a) I decided to join because I wanted to use the cardio cinema on a regular basis. The problem is that the audio is not great and they quite often forget to put subtitles (I’ve had to ask them to put them 80% of the time).
This morning, cardio cinema was completely off. Lights went on, no movie was playing. I knew I could have asked for them to turn off the lights and play the movie, but it would have just taken so much more time.
b) When I first went to check it out, they were also pretty aggressive about it. They first offer you an outrageously expensive package, but you can always get the «unique discount for friends.» I was a bit upset over the fact that they gave me a one-​day pass to check it out and when I tried using it, they gave me an attitude over who had given it to me and took them a while to determine whether I could actually use it.
My roommate wanted to use their 7-​day pass and, even if the website does not say anything about it not applying at Van Ness, they told her the manager had given instructions that it could not be used.
c) I tried using the free session with the instructor, but she initially stood me up. I rescheduled and, after telling her I just needed to know details on cardio, she kept insisting I needed a trainer. I felt pushed to say yes for a second appointment, but canceled it as soon as I got home.

I’m pretty bummed out that the staff hits on people. Someone asked me out the other day after I’d been to this location three or four times previously. I don’t know if men have any idea how uncomfortable it is to be asked out, but the last thing I want when I’m at the gym.
If I could shoot people with ink or projectile vomit as a defense mechanism, Gold’s Gym would be a mess right now.
I go to the gym when I do so it’s less busy and so I can work out without being bothered, not so I can get stared at across the room from the desk jockeys.
Super bummed that I don’t feel comfortable returning to this gym again.