Ymca

This is a cheap gym, and thus very poor service, and disrespectful attitude. The pool is awful. It is small, dark, located in a closed basement of the building, so there is no direct light, and an air interchange system barely works, if you stand there you breath clear chloric vapors. The free Family Swim program on Fridays is so crowded your child will not be able to lie horizontally on the water. Pool classes are so chaotic, you will wonder when your child is going to have an accident in there. Pool and gymnastic trainers simply count down the time when the class is over, the program stays the same forever, no differentiated approach whatsoever. Out of 30 your child will wait for a turn 20 min. Both adult and family lockers stinks urine. Sauna and steam room almost permanently malfunction or do not work. When work they are programmed to too low temperature, so there is no reason to use them. Sauna is very small, dark, and the wood needed to be replaced about 5 years ago. The heater is falling apart. There is a waiting list for permanent lockers, however there are plenty of free lockers at the same time; people use them with no payment, but management lies you have to wait for a locker to become available. Machines are new, but they are so packed in a room that you feel claustrophobic. You have to be very cautious to not hurt your neighbor when you are working out in a free weights room. The worst part is the management?s attitude. If your child is not a member you will spend whole day in a lobby area just to have a chance speaking with an office staff. They will find a trillion of reasons to refuse your child a readmission to the next class. They do not inform you about anything ? when the upcoming class is being cancelled, your membership is about to expire, or that you child?s class renewal day is approaching. Their irreverent attitude is clear YOU ARE NOT WELLCOME + THE LESS MEMBERS THE BETTER. Consider different YMCA location, or more expensive gym. Pros: New Equipment Cons: Unfriendly attitude. Stuff lie. Small dark pool. Overcrowded. Tiny sauna, needs a complete reconstruction. Lockers stink. Fitness rooms packed with machines. more

Prospect Park is probably one of the smallest YMCAs in NYC, but for me, it's still one of the best. Granted, it doesn't have as many machines as the other YMCAs, yet it's the one I keep returning to. (I have a CityWide membership, so I can go to any YMCA in the city if I choose.) \r \r The facility just got renovated. The upstairs cardio room has been expanded to add more machines, plus the walls are now painted in neon green and the purple horizontal ceiling lights are arranged in slants. The cozy stretch room was moved during the renovation but is now back in service. The two dance studios are still there; the spinning and yoga classes are extremely popular. There are also new CYBEX machines in the good ol' weight training room. \r \r My only complaints are: 1) the place is packed right after work and you may have to wait a while before getting onto your machine; and 2) some of the new machines have TVs with terrible reception, so if you want to listen to something, either go on one of the other machines near the window (their TV connection is different) or bring your own iPod, as no radios are allowed. (Of course, bring your headphones.) I also wish the pool was larger. It's also old. Nevertheless, Prospect Park is planning to renovate the pool area. It's also nice and warm.\r \r What I really like is the stuff you don't expect in a small gym that only charges $40/month for membership (or about $80/month for CityWide): a nice sauna, steam room, and lots of towels (OK, they've put in a two-towel limit). A Super C grocery store and a CVS pharmacy are also nearby. \r \r Best of all are the people: the staff are very friendly and helpful, and there are lots of 20- to 30- somethings and young families. In fact, at a Manhattan charity, my friends (who live in different parts of the city) and myself recently discussed our gyms--and were surprised to learn that out of the 10 people working at my table, four of us are Prospect Park YMCA members. How cool is that? Pros: Friendly staff, cool Cardio Room decor, great place to meet 20-40 year olds, great value for money; pool is nice and warm Cons: One of the smallest NYC YMCAs; not enough machines after work, some with bad TV reception; pool is small more