Gold’s Gym

I had a terrible experience here today. Came in with a friend who’s a member, I’m moving here in a month and planned on joining. The two nice ladies at the front desk said I could have a free guest pass, I thanked them, got changed, and started working out. Then a woman who worked there named Susan tracked me down and forced me to pay $ 20 for a guest pass after giving me some sob story about her having to pay for the guest pass out of pocket if I didn’t. It was uncomfortable and embarrassing. Well I hope that was worth it Susan, cause you definitely lost your gym some customers.

Elite gym? Ha. Well their «management» certainly believes it and you are probably not on that level in their eyes. I agree with one of the previous reviewers about the management’s weirdly bad demeanor. I have been a member of this gym for a few months now definitely paying an «elite» membership fee of around $ 100 and had mixed feelings about it until last week when I received a rare treat — an interaction with one of the «managers» in this place, some tool called Dave Carnes.
So I was in the boxing room relaxing after my workout and using the speed punching bag when this guy stormed in with a very strong and abrasive «aha, I got you now punk» attitude as if he had caught me naked taking a giant crap in the middle of the floor. Apparently, I was being too loud and not using the punching back «correctly» and he had replaced it before (I am glad he didn’t go as far as to blame me for that, although wouldn’t be surprised). So ok, maybe I was too loud, it most certainly was not on purpose. I gladly stopped but the issue was this guy’s attitude and our conversation. There was no excuse me or anything. This guy talked to me as if he owns me. To his surpise I tried having a normal conversation about this bc I didn’t think I had committed a heinous crime. I tried to explain myself and ask what his «expert» opinion is of how to correctly use the bag without making much noise etc. but he continued with his tone saying stuff like «I don’t care» (what you say) etc. I don’t remember the last time when anyone allowed themselves to talk down to me like that and frankly I am pissed off at myself for being civil about it and letting this guy do that, even if I wasn’t a client. I was really caught off guard by the sheer rudeness of this simpleton. I look forward to our next interaction for sure. Anyway, if this is the «manager» of this place, imagine dealing with him if you have an issue and what else could be wrong at this place…

This is one of two «Elite» Golds Gym’s in the country. What makes it «elite» I’m not certain; neither was the front desk rep. However it is pretty unique in design, setup, and equipment selection. I’ll run a list for the sake of time (I’m short on it)…
No pool
No b-​ball court
Plush lounging
Cycling studio
Cardio Cinema
Group training studio
Functional training area (cables/​cross fit)
Boxing studio
Psychedelic lighting
Contemporary décor (I’m a softy for cool décor)
Smoothie bar
Towel service
Hot sauna & steam room
Private restrooms
Frosted glass showers with glass tile interior
On-​site massages
Stupendous view
and Christy!

This is the greatest fitness center I’ve ever been a member of. The equipment is very modern. The staff is incredibly helpful & friendly. Especially on the weekends. I really enjoy going here & I always look forward to chatting with the staff & the other members

This review is about the inept business practice of this Gold’s Gym. The facility is marvelous, the staff is attentive, except in matters of finance. I signed a one year agreement and paid in full. A job change caused me to leave Charlotte two months before my agreement expired. The club manager at the time said it was nigh impossible to get a refund for the remaining two months on the contract. I instructed the manager to CANCEL my agreement on it’s end date. He did not. Thus, I was billed for a month AFTER my agreement expired. I called ABC Financial who handles billing. Sent them a certified letter explaining my circumstances and disputed the $ 60.66 charge with my credit card company. Now in mid July 2015 I get a notice from a collection agency stating that I owe a balance of $ 242.64 and if I don’t work to resolve this «obligation» I’ll be reported to the credit bureau. Obviously, the club decided to continue to try and charge me for the next 3 months, gave up, when the charges didn’t process, assumed I was a deadbeat, and sent my account to collections. An aggravating time dump for me to attempt to resolve and why I will never darken a Golds Gym again.

Well, I just joined the club. Being around gyms the better part of my life I must say that this gym and location is one of the most top notch gyms I have ever been to. The staff was not only helpful but very knowledgeable about the equipment. I have only trained at the Harrisburg Golds for now. But will be training downtown Charlotte with in the month… and I can’t wait to. I go to the gym to workout and look at what I like as far equipment and selection of weights, not a cold room or saunas. Those are extras and would be nice but not a necessity

As a member of the YMCA and also the Gold’s Gym at the Epicentre, I have experienced the good, bad, and ugly of both. I joined Gold’s a few months ago at the request of a colleague who needed a workout partner, and I have been underwhelmed with the overall experience.
Pros:
— Great location
— Great selection of equipment
— Pretty good hours
— Parking validation
Cons:
— Demeanor of management is arrogant, and they couldn’t care less about providing great service
— Lack of value for membership cost
— If an amenity is out of order, it takes FOREVER to be fixed. The steam room has been out of order for the past 2 months
— Extremely small, and limited, locker space. Full sized lockers are only available at extra monthly costs, and there are literally only 2 rows of half size lockers in a very small space.
— No swimming pool, basketball court
— Exercise groups/​classes rarely start on time and the instructors could be better

World class Group Fitness instructors. Amazing Les Mills classes. Beautiful facilities and super friendly members and staff.

I guess this review is really for Venus Beach tanning but it’s not really a separate business. Same amazing employees greet you as you walk in. They are always so darn happy.
The beds are clean. I go on my lunch break which I would think would be prime time and I’ve almost never had to wait. Even when There isn’t a clean bed they quickly clean one with the same pleasant smile they greeted me with.
They check to insure I have my goggles but have never tried to pressure me into expensive lotions like a lot of other tanning salons do.
Oh and I almost forgot to mention that I’m going as part of a groupon! They treat me as well as any other customer that paid full price. I can’t say enough about their customer service!

This gym is over priced, poor customer service, lack of equipment and did I mention poor customer service? I was told that I would receive a month free of membership for every person I referred. I referred two folks and have inquired about my free membership several times to no avail. Additionally, I have sent 5 emails to them, emails they were quick to respond to when I was a pending member, again, to no avail. I have been trying to cancel my membership for over a week now and the past few days their phone has not even worked «we are unable to take your call.» I then called the corporation that handles their payments «ABC Financial» for whom I will be filing a claim with the better business bureau. Avoid at all costs, mentally and financially.

Moved to South End in June from Florida and I love working out so I needed to find a gym. Parking is easy at Epicenter (people tend to forget that it has 4 levels that go down and get mad if the first level is completely filled). It still has the new feel and isn’t ever really dirty. I mainly stick to the free weight area which could use a touch up on which machines need to stay and to create a little more space. Sometime’s they don’t have towels available for members which is annoying and unsanitary but at least 90% they do. I signed a 2 year contract and plan on staying for the full 2 years so I can’t really comment on the cancellation policy yet. The people that work the front counter are always nice to me and say hello when arrive and goodbye when I leave. A lot of the TV’s screens are very whitewashed due to either them being on constantly or a bad cable connection but I’m there to workout, not watch TV. The only things I don’t like about the gym mainly revolves around the other members. Some people just don’t have proper gym etiquette. i.e. — standing in front of all the dumbells while you curl so other people can pick up/​place back dumbells. re-​racking their weights when they are done with equipment, wiping off equipment, etc. Other than that, I have been very pleased with Gold’s so far and will continue to go.

So I had things that I liked about this gym (location, new equipment, locker rooms, friendly staff) and things I didnt like about this gym (not female friendly, basically the entire free weights area, lack of tv channels on machines, and the stupid high price). However, after my year membership was up, I decided to cancel. (Note: I currently have two gyms and I simply use the other one more and couldnt justify the price I was paying at Golds for just a few visits a month). Wish I knew the extensive process in order to cancel a membership… If i would have known, I would have never joined in the first place.
I was told to call a company called ABC Financial Services to cancel my membership cause Gold’s wanted to eliminate the middle man in the process, which was themselves. Huh? That literally makes no sense. Anyways, called the company, no biggie, what’s a phone call. Found out I have to mail a handwritten letter to the company by certified mail (yes, certified). Once they receive my letter, it’ll be 30 days until they cancel my membership. 30 days… how convenient for Gold’s cause that means that I will have to pay for another whole month of service that I dont need. This whole process has been such a turn off to me towards the gym. Through all the things I didnt like about the gym, I really have enjoyed my year there. However, I have know left on a bad note because of their practices and will not return (even though I am paying for another month). I plan on not reccommending this gym to my co-​workers in Uptown because of all this.

THIS GYM SUCKS. I saw on google that there are more than 500+ complaints about their contract that they make you sign.
Their contract is so unreasonable and scamming. They’re such nazi’s about how their contract works and are so douchey about it too. I tried to freeze my membership and they tell me i should’ve give them a written notice a month ahead. And then since I’m calling on the 1^st day of the month, they can’t give me a refund for the whole month. It’s the 1^st… and I won’t be using the gym for a whole month. but they can’t give me refund? Plus they have this ABC financial department they keep forwarding you to deal with money related problems, so they won’t have to deal with the complaints.
Why is the contract for a GYM worse than signing a contract for a job? I need to give them special notices a month before freezing my account or canceling my account. This guy I talked to on the phone told me «Well there’s people who pay 2year membership prior and still don’t use the gym and have no complaints. So what are you saying?»
And if I were to cancel the gym membership due to moving, than I have to give them a PROOF of change in residency somehow. really? Who are these people!
CLEARLY, this gym is a corporate that are for themselves and nothing about the customer’s satisfaction. They don’t care wether you like the gym or not. They don’t care for you to like their product and stay a loyal customer or comeback to them. THEY DON’T CARE. They just want that money you pay for the membership and the cancelation fee in the end. Bet I could quit a job faster than quitting this gym.
ALSO, your membership AUTOMATICALLY renews after your year-​long contract ends. If you don’t want this to happen. guess what you have to do? MAIL the ABC office. The lady I spoke to at ABC told me that this specific Gold’s Gym location doesn’t allow any adjustment or cancellation of your membership to be done via E-​mail. what is this, the 80’s? So you HAVE to send COPIES of your proof/​documents via MAIL. They just made it almost impossible for you to quit. Bravo, well done slavery contract Epic center gold’s gym. I was a member of the Rhode Island location but it wasn’t THIS bad. Joining this gym was probably the biggest mistake i’ve ever made.

While this gym looks quite nice, I wish I had not joined, as it’s been a waste of money. I was told at my walk-​through that the cardio machines all had full cable tv access. This was a lie. They get 5 channels, and they aren’t even good ones (one of them being the gym channel). The few large tvs are positioned in such a manner that you can’t see them from many of the cardio machines, and I never got the sound to work to actually listen to them, despite my asking for assistance. This is a big deal for me, because it’s hard to stay on a cardio machine for too long without anything to keep you entertained. And of course, there are no magazines.
The theatre room also sounded very promising, until I discovered it was all extremely loud action movies. Other people have complained about that, and it’s still not been addressed. It’s also quite odd that the only weight machine missing from downstairs (where more women work out) is the inner/​outer thigh machine… for some reason, they placed this upstairs around the free weights. Perhaps for gawking reasons?
Basically, this gym is for ‘bros’. My last payment will be next month, and I plan to buy my own elliptical and weight items.

I was a member for nearly two years. This is more expensive than your typical gym and is sold as a luxury gym. At first glance it seems to be very nice; however there are some major problems here that make this price tag not much of a value.
1) In a major lapse of judgment, whoever decided on the equipment determined that it was a good idea to only have one squat rack in the entire gym. The space is instead used up with countless machines, many of which are rarely used. It seems that the designer of this gym probably doesn’t work out much. Members constantly complain about this.
2) The water in both water fountains is always warm, I wonder if this increases sales of the overpriced Gatorade/​water that they sale up front.
3) The steam room has been broken for months and has a sign on the door blaming the members for covering the thermostat (something that I have not seen done in two years of being there). It seems that the gym cannot afford to fix it and is instead blaming the members.
4) The trainers (when working with a client) do not re-​rack the weights when they are done with them. This is universally considered bad gym etiquette.
5) be careful of the contracts, understand what you sign. I did not have a problem with this because I read my contract and knew that I was locked into a year contract. But I have talked to several people who were not aware of what they signed and it is nearly impossible to get out of it early. (Many large gym chains are like this though).
6) In one case 10 minutes into my morning workout, a group of movers came in and kicked everyone out of the free weight area so they could re-​arrange the equipment which took a couple of hours. When I plan my day around getting a before-​work workout in and it gets interrupted, I don’t feel respected as a member. This type of thing should be done before or after the gym opens for business.
7) I too was told about an ICE-​room when I was sold my membership. The room is and always has been a storage closet.
All in all– the Gold’s gym in Epicentre is NOT a good value for the price and although it attempts to be a luxury gym — it is not. A great deal of poor decision making is evident at this Gold’s location. I don’t even think it is an issue with management but more likely ownership and high level poor decision making.

The look of the gym is very nice, but after being a member of over a year, you start to see some issues and concerns.
–When I joined, they were telling everyone that an ice-​room was being installed; however, it has been 1.5 years and still nothing
–There are issues with the consistency of amenities. They are out of towels, or in the locker rooms they will have shave gel, lotion, Q-​tips, but then will be out for the next few months
–The locker room cleanliness is sporadic and very cramped. They rent all of the lockers except one row, so everyone is in a very tight space.
–The equipment and cinema room is nice, but some of the maintenance is lacking
–The training is probably the worst of everything. I have had 6 trainers in 1.5 years, because they are always fired or leave. Each time, the manager says that this new person is 100% better than the one that left, which really makes me questions the management’s decision in quality of trainers. I would NOT recommend, or if you do, only buy a small amount of sessions at a time.
–Overall, there are some very annoying things about the gym, but it is not horrible, just not what someone should expect from a gym calling themselves «Elite.»

I have been a member of gold’s gym for over a year and a half now. I have decided to cancel my membership and go elsewhere for the following reasons:
1. There is only one squat rack but two smith machines. Seriously… Come on. If you are a serious weight lifter you know how annoying this is. During peak hours there will be several people waiting on the squat rack. Why have two smith machines but one squat rack?
2. Sales staff comes across as dishonest and shady. When I joined I joined at $ 70/​month (very expensive I know!), plus they are going to nickle and dime you with a start up or initiation fee (total BS). I got my monthly rate knocked down to $ 60 since my company had a corporate rate with Gold’s. It seems every one is paying a different rate from $ 50/​month on up to $ 70. When questioning the sales staff and management about this, they acted like they had no clue what I was talking about that everyone paid the same rate (I know that’s not true).
3. You can’t cancel your membership while you have an active contract with Gold’s Gym, and I get that; that’s not the problem. After my one year contract ran up, my membership was on a month to month plan. To cancel my membership I had to call the company that handles the finances for Gold’s Gym (ABC Financial Company). After telling the customer service rep I wanted to cancel, she then put me on hold for 15minutes. Next step is I have to WRITE A HAND WRITTEN LETTER to ABC Financial explaining that I want to cancel my membership. On top of that it takes 30 DAYS TO PROCESS! So it’s July 22^nd. and I want to cancel TODAY but I have to pay August’s membership dues since it takes them 30 days to process. Total BS and shadiness. Gold’s loses big points for this one.
4. I joined this gym in December of 2012. One of the perks was an «Ice room» in the Men’s locker room where you can cool down after working out. Well it’s July 2014 and this still has not been implemented. Sales staff keeps saying, «We’re getting around to it».
That’s it for the negative reasons. I give this gym 3 stars because I have enjoyed my time here for the most part. The weight room, cardio cinema and cardio equipment is nice. The location is prime as well. My only advice is GET ANOTHER SQUAT RACK! If you do decide to join this gym (or any gym for that matter), make sure you read the contract and do your research before hand. I would not put that much stock into the trustworthiness of the sales staff. Remember, they get paid by comission!

Nice and upscale gym with beautiful town views. Very friendly staff. Few negatives:
1. Showers are often dirty
2. AC problems in the Summer– too hot inside
3. They bill via ABC — we hate ABC financial and if you ever deal with them, you will hate them too. On that note– do not sign membership with Susan. She will promise everything, and you will find the does not care about customer service after that.
4. The Epicentre parking is very bad. It stinks and the staff there is super rude. The parking company does not care the least bit! They do not honor your ticket if you forgot to validate it and will be nasty to you without a fail.

I recently moved to South Park area and needed a nice gym to work out at. I’ve been a member at the Harrisburg location so I decided go give the Epicentre a try.
I fell in love the second I walked in! Very modern, contemporary, and chic feel.
Plenty of cardio equipment, boxing room, cardio cinema, and big weights section. The locker rooms are big and inviting. The whole feel of this gym is that of an upperclass lounge.
Give this gym a try, you won’t regret it!

Gotta say, so far so good! I’ve been a member here for just a short while but I’ve been nothing less than impressed thus far.
The facility is super chic and very sexy inside. The main lobby hosts large white leather couches and bright colors along with decorations like a bubble wall to really set off the interior.
Cardio machines, EVERYWHERE! I highly doubt you could come here and have to wait on a machine, they have tons of equipment and in multiple locations depending on what you are feeling. For instance, there is a Cardio Cinema room where you are in a dark lit room and surrounded by Bose sound equipment and entertained by a large projection screen playing a movie.
The weight room is also very spacious and is located on the second level where you will find free weights, circuit machines and the like. There is also a training studio with some unique peices of equipment to use as well.
One thing to note that I’ve come to realize quickly is this isn’t your YMCA style place. People come here to workout and majority of those people are obviously in great shape so that can be a bit intimidating.
Final note I have to touch on the niceness of the locker rooms. They really are country club level and style. They have a nice sauna, steam room and a sweet artic room to cool you down once you’ve dressed out from your shower.