Gymboree Play and Music

My 3 year old twin daughters have been attending Gymboree classes since they were 9 months old. They have thrived in the classes here and continue to do so now that they at school skill set, which is a two hour drop off program. Teachers Amanda and Carolyn are the BEST! They are knowledgeable, kind, and fun. My experience of 2.5 years of regular attendance has been nothing but positive. The place is clean and equipment new, parking is easy and free, and priced reasonably.

Horrible… even after cancelling their stupid classes and program (boring and unattractive) they kept on automatically deducting money from my card… outrageous !! Don’t go ppl if you want to be mugged !!

I’ve been going with my LO for level 1 & 2, all the teachers are very great!

Came here with the babe for a free trial class! The staff was friendly and now it seems they have a «no shoe» policy for EVERYONE including the teachers here so that was great! Unfortunately when the class started, I found the «activity of the day» to be very slow which couldn’t keep my babes attention. In fact, this happened with a few babies there. My little one often ventured away and crawled around the gym. I could see this class better suited for a tiny non-​mobile infant, not so much for older babies.
But perhaps my biggest issue was how HOT it was in the gym. Now during summer time Id expect the gym to have its AC constantly running. I was in a tank top and shorts myself and I walked out of there with my HAIR SWEATING– which really only happens after I attend a soul cycle class– it shouldn’t happen after a baby gym class! My babe also had sweat beads on his nose. Sad face.

So disappointed with them. My daughter is 6 months and 3 weeks old and they were really not willing to let her attend one last class on Level 1– which she was technically allowed to because she’s still 6 months. Long story short, I just wanted to dress her up and take some pictures for Halloween, not a big deal but one of the instructors made such a big drama about it that I just gave up. I’m looking for another place to bring my baby after reading another review about this same issue.

We brought our son here from around 10 months until he just about turned 2! We loved it and had a blast playing during the classes. He still to this day remembers Gymbo the clown and will recognize that we are going past «Gymbo» if we drive by Westside Pavilion! So cute! All the teachers are super friendly and class was always so fun. They are very flexible on making up classes, so you don’t need to worry if you miss one. The open gym time is awesome too, they have a lot of times available and it’s nice to go pop in and play for 30 – 45 minutes if we are in the area.
We are even thinking about going back to classes soon! They have age groups up to 5 (I think) so we have some time still. It was really fun and a great way for babies/​toddlers/​kids to interact and have fun with their parents and each other.

I signed online for the free trial class on this location, I have a boy he is 25 months, he came prematurely so his correct age is 22 months. I tried to enroll him on the level 4^th in a class and I couldn’t because of his age??? They sent me a email saying basically assuming the reason why I wanna my child in the lower level class was that the time didn’t suit my schedule. This is just bad business skills from them, and when I replied tell them about my kids limitation due to had been 3 months premature I got no response back.

I wish the location was bigger but it’s overall a very organized and clean place. My daughter loves coming to the classes and I found getting the unlimited class option has worked great for us especially on these super hot days where it’s nice to go indoors in air conditioning and play

My daughter is 12 months old and I’ve been taking her to the play classes since she was 6 months old. She loves it, especially our teacher Gaby! I tried out a few other Mommy & Me classes before deciding to sign up for Gymboree, including My Gym and Music Together. I chose Gymboree because their facility is extremely clean, they are very organized and professional (e.g., classes always start and end on time), and the play class is a good balance of free time for my daughter to explore the gym equipment and structured activities like parachute and bubbles. I also like that our class is relatively small (though I think some of the other classes are bigger — depends on which day and time you go). I’ve already recommended Gymboree to a few friends who take their children there now.

Took my 10 month old son there this past Saturday. We did the music class. I was not impressed at all. The staff was very nice. But the class itself awful. The curriculum wasn’t that great. The music selection didn’t have the children that entertained. I’ve been a member of another studio in Culver City and done classes with my son there and it was much more engaging, exciting and more involved for the kiddos. Just thought I’d try a competitor out, it was a free class. Like will not be back.

I have been taking my son here for the play & learn class since he was 10 months old. The girls who work there are just wonderful, they are so friendly and energetic and awesome with the kids. I could not have made a better choice when picking a mommy & me class, and now that my son is turning three I am sad that he is growing out of the play & learn class but I am also excited to start something new with one of their drop off classes for the older kids.

My daughter loves the music classes. Haven’t yet tried the rest, as she’s too young.
I want to take my daughter there more often, but the billing policies are an issue. We commute back and forth monthly from Oregon, so a subscription/​membership doesn’t make sense.
I’ve requested, and it’s been refused, to do a one-​month-​only billing. They will take my credit card, but can ‘only’ auto-​bill. It’s up to me to remember to cancel 5 days before the next month’s bill. Kind of inconvenient.
Now, I get it… auto-​bill subscription models are the ultimate dream business (I once owned one). But to have no option whatsoever for single classes or single months is a detractor for kids like my daughter who are gone every other month.
I’ll be interested to see if management responds to this… perhaps I have been misled about your billing policies?

Horrible experience both times. I enrolled my son when he was 6 months the first time and he seemed to like if the first few times we went then became uninterested because if was the same routine every time. The second time I enrolled him was when he was 3. The class he was in had an instructor that had no business being around kids. She lacked patience and didn’t take the time to get to know the new kids. I would not make the same mistake the third time.

My 3 month old has been enrolled in the level one class for about a month now, and I’m very happy with our experiences at Gymboree. My little man is too small to play on the equipment but they have an excellent age appropriate program for him. They also have parent discussion questions which I truly enjoy. I’ve seen my son develop so much during the past few weeks of Gymboree, and it’s awesome to celebrate hitting milestones with other parents.
I’d also like to mention that the staff is fantastic. The teachers are great, the staff is accommodating, kind, and friendly. Little dude and I are big fans!

We stopped by here for our free class and the workers are nice.
The facility is blocked off by a plexiglass wall so you can see what’s going on, but the outside noise isn’t distracting.
Most the play leaders do their role well. They’re energetic, over enthusiastic and never forget a chance to market their classes at the right time.
I like how they put a star on your kids name tag when it’s their first time. Note to self: be extra nice to them so they will join!
The facilities are pretty clean, the kids have fun and there are restrooms close. Can’t say a lot if dad’s show up, so I’m trying to represent for them.

My son just turned 12 months. We take the level 3 play&learn class with Christy. He loves going to class! She is so sweet and great with the babies. She comes around encouraging each baby to challenge themselves little by little/​step by step. It’s helped my son a lot when he is on his own! This location is clean and convenient. :)

Hi,
Our son was enrolled at the Westside Pavilion Gymboree and takes the Play and Learn class.
All the staff at Gymboree (Westside Pavilion) is very professional, caring, and engaged with all the kids. This includes: Jennifer, Kathryn, Jaclyn, Gaby, Christy, (and others I may have not met yet… my apologies!) They usually have at least 2 to 3 in attendance.
His teacher is Christy — she is very friendly, entertaining, and energetic with not only our child, but all the students in the class.
Our son looks forward to every session. We ask him if he’s ready to play, and he always answers with a big smile and Yes! with a laugh.
At first, he seemed overwhelmed by all the other children and activities. But, he quickly picked up on instructor Christy’s warm and kid-​friendly skills and activities, and was playing with the other kids.
We are so glad that Christy is his teacher!
Oh yeah, they also have several «free play» sessions, and those are also fun. The kids go wild during Bubble Time… Thanks to Jennifer and Kathryn for keeping all the kids entertained: wandering toddlers, giggling sitters, and inquisitive crawlers!
PS — this location has plenty of space (classes do not get overcrowded, however I think interaction is good for children!), is relativity clean (we don’t want a 100% germ free vaccuum) and is a great alternative to the various hazards lurking in the kids’ play areas in most malls. icky sticky stuff, hyper kids much taller than the limit line, inattentive parents taking a break from shopping, bloodthirsty sharks,.OK, maybe I’m slightly exaggerating…

Great place for a toddler to go and learn how to socialize with other kids. Fun, safe and rewarding. You will go home singing the sing-​along songs in your head.

I’ve been taking my daughter here for a year or so, and we look forward to it every week. She has an amazing time, has made lots of great friends and simply adores her teachers and all the staff members. We sing the songs all through the week, too.
I’m a stickler for cleanliness, and this place is nothing but immaculate.

I can understand the former reviewer’s issues. However, I really like the experience in Gymboree Play and Music in general. The staff here is very nice. As a professional musician, it may not be the highest music experience here, but it is more about interaction, good structure and in getting the kids to participate. Are the instructors musicians? No, but they have nice enthusiasm and make it fun for the kids. Also, there is manipulation of simple instruments, too (drums, shakers, etc). The design of Gymboree is very safe, architecturally speaking, and the play program has a nice, free-​flow structure to it.
Look, I can understand the other person’s concerns and maybe they could be cleaning the place up more often. But, heck, this place must be 10X more safe disease-​wise than any Chuckie Cheese! Can you control all disease? No. Would I be alarmist if someone I knew came down with some nasty infection? I guess so, so I can’t blame her/​him in their rage.
I personally like the staff here and they have bonded really nicely with my daughter and the other kids in her class. I’m glad she’s coming here. It is helping her to begin to socialize in a nice, safe environment that fosters care and concern from all who go there.