Hockessin Athletic Club

Very disappointed to see how they treat their workers especially the lifeguards. Have openly seen managers scream at teenage life guards who already do more work than 99% of their peers. Wish this would change.

Club confirmed that membership would be frozen for medical. I checked my bank and of course the gym has continued to rob me and take funds out. 58 staples later and crutches I have to argue with membership department. To top it off the membership staff were as rude as any one person could be. Disrespectful

Pros:
Nice facility; always clean.
Lots of amenities (most are included with the price of your membership): indoor and outdoor pools, lots of variety of workout classes, café with decent food and pre-​paid club bucks to use each month anywhere in the club.
I’ve had multiple good experiences getting massages at their spa.
I don’t have kids, but it seems like they have plenty of activities and day care options for them (if you’re not a «kid» person, however, you should probably add this point to the Con list).
Cons:
Public Wifi but it doesn’t always work.
Some of the equipment doesn’t get fixed for one or two weeks at a time.
I had a bad experience with one of the instructors that has kept me from going back to the bike-​2-​mat class: he was very condescending to me and my friend.
They just expanded the physical therapy office (summer 2015), which now means there are only 3 mats in the entire facility to use for stretching/​other exercises. Another area with just mats would be nice.
The guest fee is ridiculously high ($ 25 pp). I understand that they don’t want a lot of non-​members using the club all the time, but it would be nice if each member could get one free guest pass a month; or maybe even just a special guest pass to use the pool. You can pay $ 20/​month more in your membership fee which gives you extra guest passes, among other benefits, but the original membership already seems expensive enough.
General Suggestions:
If you’re not going to utilize all of their extra amenities, it isn’t worth the membership price.
It would be nice if more of the workout classes were offered after 630 pm on weeknights for those who don’t work «9−5» and can’t get there much before 7 pm.
An «adults only» pool area would be a great add-​on in the future. Doesn’t need to be huge, but sharing the outdoor pool with all the kids in the summer isn’t very relaxing.
Don’t bother going during «rush hour» (5 – 6:30 pm on most weekdays, 8:30−11 am Saturday mornings); between limited parking (especially if there are soccer games or a swim meet going on) and general congestion (e.g. stalking people waiting to get on the cardio equipment) it usually turns out to be a frustrating experience. I prefer going a little later in the evening so there is more open equipment to use.

Came online to update with the resolution, and I would bet that the review from «Cassandra K. In Landenberg» is a fake one written by someone at the Hac! Lol, goes to show you who you are dealing with there. If not, I’d love to meet my namesake for a workout or a cup of coffee in the café sometime if she reads this.
But having said that they did comp my husband a month when he went in to speak with someone about the situation. Who also said Nancy never should have gotten involved. So you either need to speak with the right people or be a man to be treated with respect. Apparently I am neither, but I wish my clone who is contradicting my reviews better luck than I.

Feel energized as soon as you enter the club! State-​of-​the-​art equipments, inspiring trainers, challenging classes and continuous facility upgrades! The friendly staff go above and beyond to help the members. The gym is clean, well lit, ventilated, and well maintained. The dry sauna, steam room and the Jacuzzi are outstanding and the aquatics complex is amazing! Positive energy flows though out the club. Best kept secret of Hockessin, DE :-)

Has a lot of opportunities to train. Also a big pool, sauna or a lot of classes. It also has a café, which I like. But had there a smoothie, which was not really liquid, and one, where I had the night after really stomach pains. Otherwise it was always good.

This is probably the nicest gym I have ever visited (although, I usually don’t visit these types of gyms because they’re too expensive for me, and why tempt myself). The pools and the selection of fitness classes and other amenities are really incredible. If I weren’t just visiting the area, I would’ve wanted to spend more time in the free weights area, but they only allow one free trial day for those not living in Hockessin. It’s a fairly expensive gym, but given everything that they have, I would say it’s appropriately priced.

This is a really nice gym and what I call the poor mans country club. It has nearly everything you need to get in shape, relax, and socialize sans a golf course and tennis courts. Where else can you crush some deadlifts, get amped doing Bodypump class, shed tears trying to bend your legs into Happy Baby Pose during Yoga class, swim laps in their salt water or regular pool, decompress in the hot tub or sauna, then end the day with a frosty beer all at one place in the same day? Its only expensive if you do not take advantage of everything they offer. Parking is convenient with an open lot and garage. They have classes and sports options for both kids and adults. The facility is always clean and the staff are friendly. A wonderful place to get or stay in shape alone or with your family/​friends.

I have been to this place a lot like almost every day for 5 years all the way back to Pike Creek. And i got to say this place sucks

Large facility but still lots of personal attention. Lots of fitness classes. Also lots of kid activities. Great swimming pools too! A premium club and the membership fee is in line with that.

my parents are members and i come here from time to time.
there are so many positives:
1) the spin options are great– they had a 3 hour super cycle class that is UNHEARD OF anywhere in philadelphia. while i didn’t *love* the instructor i think it was because she was older and the other people in the class were older and i just didn’t like the music (like led zeppelin and stuff) BUT i cant even fault them b/​c the whole rest of the class was so into it!!! the spin bikes are new and have great tech features.
2) the café has vegan options which i LOVE.
3) the locker room area is immaculate.
4) there are so many class options and many available times — all the instructors have been top notch
5) indoor /​outdoor pool!
6) empowered yoga — a delaware yoga chain i adore — has a location here. what a great touch for something extra special.
7) love the lululemon in the gift shop. got some nice stuff on sale!
thennnn here are the negatives:
1) its always crowded — granted i’ve only been on weekends but really — its always, always been crowded.
2) the work out floor is lame — i mean it has no personality all the machines are in lines kind of like in rows … so impersonal and almost factory like. plus its almost a haphazzard dash to fight for the machine you want. last time i was there i was walking to a treadmill when i was cut off by a vicious old lady wearing leg warmers.
3) so many annoying kids — i get it — this is a family spot — if i had a family I’d probably list this as a positive. but i cant with all those rug rats around. they do make attempts to separate the areas but its unavoidable.
4) the staff seem overwhelmed, over worked, and often times misinformed. i had to call the main number 3 separate times to find out details about that super cycle class. honestly every time i come here i’m like lost or going the wrong way, or looking for help — and i can never find someone to help me and if i do find someone they usually do not know the answer.
5) there are no towels anywhere– what kind of gym has no towels. i’ve been to like 1,000 different gyms in my life and have never been to a gym that doesn’t offer towels.
either way if you’re the parent of some annoying kids, or live in the neighborhood and *need* premium options — this place is for you!
for me i am glad HAC is around for my weekend drop ins i just have to remember to bring my own towels next time.
i have no idea what this place costs, as everytime i come here i have a guest pass.

H.A.C. and I didn’t seem to be a match. I took a tour of the entire facility but things just seemed too impersonal and big. It was like the Wal-​mart of gyms is how I refer to it and I don’t shop at Wal-​mart. Another reviewer mentioned snobbiness; I’ve gotten that before (when I was over weight) but now that I’m not it was a different vibe from people. I feel like the demographic is white comfortably wealthy republicans.

Pilates, yoga and body pump classes are awesome. You can always find an open treadmill or walk outside around Tweed Park.
The little restaurant is surprisingly good and they serve wine. I recommend the Kobe beef burger or the buffalo chicken panini.

I love this gym but a lot of the members are snobby and it’s just unreasonably expensive. I stopped my membership for several months bc it was just too pricey. Luckily they offered me a good deal to rejoin and hopefully I will be able to swing it for as long as possible!

Um, Wow.
This is how I might have pictured an athletic club in Beverly Hills. I took my son to a birthday party here (the kid is popular) and when I approached the place, the scale of it overwhelmed me. A fitness club with a giant glass pyramid and a its own parking garage?
The glass pyramid turned out to be our destination for the first half of the party. It was an indoor swimming park. «Pool» doesn’t capture it, because of all the things the kids can do, while the adults lounge in chairs, all under a towering glass ceiling. It reminded me of water park areas in Sesame Place, but bigger. There was also a lap pool and a big hot tub nearby, with concession booths.
The locker rooms were impressive, with indiviual shower and changing rooms. We left there to go to the party room, which was average, I suppose. They had party organizers who scrambled around with hgh energy, refilling drinks and food for about 30 kids. Outside that area was an indoor play park with one of those hamster tube things that rose a few stories up, a huge multi-​tiered enclosed netted climbing thingy that rose several stories up, smaller little-​kid friendly play areas, and a large screen TV so the other dads and I could watch St Mary’s beat Villanova (WTF!!!).
Up above I could see exercise studios, indoor golf places, massive gym areas, rehabilitation areas, and any other gym accoutrement you could imagine. Clean and stunning. There was a pro shop, and a coffee/​protein bar that was as nice as any upscale coffee joint. Outside were walking trails and soccer fields, and outdoor pools as well, not yet opened. I have no idea how much it costs to be a member, and refuse to look. I shall just encourage my kids to maintain friendships with rich families, and restrict myself to the humble JCC.