Gymbox Elephant & Castle

The gym itself is amazing, in terms of equipment, hygiene and classes. It is also very aesthetically pleasing to the eye. The only issue I had as being a straight male is that the gym itself is quite gay based and some members are quite predatory, and therefore I experienced a couple of uncomfortable moments. I decided to cancel my membership because of this ,even though I had already signed a contract for a few months in advance. I sought help from a member of staff as I knew it would be difficult to get a refund, a big thank you to Peter who went out of his own way to help when it came to this situation, he was very professional and friendly, took the matter seriously and dealt with it as soon as possible in order to help me. Big thanks to Peter!

This is the closest gym to my house, so it was a natural choice for me to join, but here's why I didn't (this is my experience, and my opinion): You're expected to join without trying the gym first, if you want to try it, you can pay for a £20 day pass which they will take off your joining fee. To get the day pass online you need to fill in all your personal details. When I arrived, I then had to fill in all those details again on a sheet of paper. That was mildly irking. Then I was sent in, no mention of anywhere I couldn't use, or if towels were included or not (as a result I didn't take a towel). I was then trying different machines, and while on the treadmill, I was told by a trainer that was being used by a class and I had to get off. There was no sign or anything to say this before I got on, and it was not inside the studio. In the defence of the trainer, he was very polite, and as soon as the class was over, he came and found me to say I could use it now. What bothers me is how was I to know it was being used by a class in the next room? I was then phoned a week later to ask if I'd like to join. I expected more from a Gymbox, and so did not join.

Amazing settings!! Great staff!! Peter has been so helpful from start to finish. He explained everything and made me feel welcome before I’d even completed my sign up. Having come from a tiny gym I was quite nervous about stepping into such a huge gym but the blonde guy with glasses at the reception was extremely helpful. Genuinely think I’ve found my second home :)

I was paying a pretty high price and the quality doesn’t compare to cheaper gyms. The equipment and facilities just aren't what I expected for the price. I'd like to point out however, this issue is more specific to the Elephant and Castle branch. - The issue starts with the gym opening late, the correct time is 6:00 and it ends up opening later. It might not seem like a big deal, but it's annoying, especially when it's cold or raining outside. - Then the air conditioning isn't great. It often feels too hot, almost like a sauna. A more consistent temperature would be nice. - The music is always extremely loud, which doesn't make sense because most of us have our earphones in trying to listen to our own stuff. It just adds to the noise (and chaos). - For a few days we even got the great sewage aroma. By then, the workout hasn’t even started and it’s already a bad experience. - In terms of the workout, the gym feels too crowded most of the time, and there's never enough equipment, especially for leg workouts, and the area for weights is really cramped. It's frustrating not to have what you need and even when it's not super busy, I find myself waiting for machines or weights. - If the gym didn’t have space it would be fine, but there's a lot of empty space that's not being used well. It could be organised way better. Honestly, the only reason I continued going for as long as I did was the PTs and the quality of the showers/towels. Though the price x quality wasn’t there and I felt scammed. The gym has this upscale look but the actual experience doesn't match up. It feels like I'm paying for the look rather than the quality. It's clearly the owner(s) being stingy and not wanting to elevate the quality to obtain a significant profit.

This gym is hugely overcrowded and under-equipped. The weight areas are often packed to the point where it's impossible to properly work out. There's very limited leg equipment and not enough pin or plate-loaded machines for other body parts. The endless functional training spaces frequently sit empty while people desperately wait turns for the traditional workout equipment. The gym is large enough to install much more kit, which at least would bring this branch in line with other Gymbox branches such as Bank or Farringdon which have almost double the amount. Classes are impossible to book with such high demand. The loud, blaring music adds to the chaos, especially at peak hour when they often have an DJ, even though most of the membership is wearing AirPods and trying to listen to their own music. For the premium price, facilities and equipment are sorely lacking. Management is well aware of these significant issues from endless member complaints and reviews, yet does nothing to rectify the problems. An endless frustration rather than a place to productively train.

This is the closest gym to my house, so it was a natural choice for me to join, but here's why I didn't (this is my experience, and my opinion): You're expected to join without trying the gym first, if you want to try it, you can pay for a £20 day pass which they will take off your joining fee. To get the day pass online you need to fill in all your personal details. When I arrived, I then had to fill in all those details again on a sheet of paper. That was mildly irking. Then I was sent in, no mention of anywhere I couldn't use, or if towels were included or not (as a result I didn't take a towel). I was then trying different machines, and while on the treadmill, I was told by a trainer that was being used by a class and I had to get off. There was no sign or anything to say this before I got on, and it was not inside the studio. In the defence of the trainer, he was very polite, and as soon as the class was over, he came and found me to say I could use it now. What bothers me is how was I to know it was being used by a class in the next room? I was then phoned a week later to ask if I'd like to join. I expected more from a Gymbox, and so did not join.