Rockreation

I’ve been climbing at Rockreation for more than 15 years. It’s a great gym for beginners and advanced climbers alike. The new boulder area is state of the art, the arch is a really unique feature and the route setting is world class. I especially would like to comment on the new manager, Jen, who is amazing. She’s approachable, friendly, professional and really organized. She has made Rockreation great.

I’ve been climbing here for almost a year and I love it. The gym isn’t the largest, but the density of technical routes is impressive. The ratings are a little tougher here too. If I can do a certain level climb at Rockreation then I know I can easily do that same level anywhere else.

Rockreation rocks! I recently worked with the team at Rockreation LA to organize a fundraising event for a climbing organization that I volunteer with. Everything went very smoothly and all of the staff members were extremely friendly and easy to work with. I only have good things to say about booking them for a private event.
The gym offers a variety of classes for both new and experienced climbers. They have plenty of climbing routes along with bouldering, self-​belaying, and both cardio and weight lifting equipment. They even have a small studio for yoga and exercise classes! Rockreation feels like a really community, and I imagine that people who climb here regularly climb together outside of the gym as well.
I would definitely consider signing up for a membership here in the future. It’s so close to UCLA and I like that they have exercise equipment and classes in addition to climbing. I can’t wait to come back soon!

Let me start this off by saying that I am a fairly new climber. From the second I walked in the staff were extremely friendly and helpful. They showed me the ropes (literally) right off the bat. If you’re a new climber looking to get into the sport, this place is for you. I can’t explain enough how warm and friendly the staff are, they were so happy to answer all of my stupid questions and making sure I was always safe and still having a good time. I had so much fun that I can’t see myself going to another gym. What a cool place!

Great gym for inexperienced to advanced. They even offer fitness and yoga classes. And have weights and fitness machines upstairs.

I went here for one of their beginner’s classes and had a great time. The instructors were very knowledgable and were really helpful (I had never been to a place like this before and had no idea what I was doing). It was really fun and I can’t wait to go back!

Honestly, this place was really disappointing if you don’t know what your getting yourself into. We initially came in and were greeted very warmly. For three people it came to almost 80 dollars including everything (harness, chalk, shoes) but they didn’t tell us that we would need to take paid classes and pass a profiency class to do 95% of the bouldering, now thats some bullshit and I go bouldering all the time in OC and have never had to deal with this. Anyways, Christina helped accomodate us and she was very nice about everything. I really was thankful that she was there.

My family and I were so excited to visit this place since it was something different! I have an 8 year old and 5 year old both are regular rock climbers at Hanger 18 in Hawthorne. I was told over the phone that this place was child friendly but was sadly disappointed after I arrived. When I walked up to the counter I was greeted by a Filipino male with a shaved head. The guy says sorry the 5 year old cannot go, you have to be 6! There is a course you can take to allow you to accompany your child, but it’s not available on Saturdays. Sorry! I explained to him that my husband called and they said that they would allow the 5 year old to climb. Mind you we drove all the way from Manhattan Beach to try this place out! I understand that there are rules however all could have been said minus the facetious, crass tone. This guy has no business dealing with customers!!!
What an @ss! If you want to enjoy a day of climbing with an establishment that is family friendly and welcomes everyone, SKIP this place all together and visit HANGER 18 in Hawthorn
I strongly encourage the management at Rockcreation to contact me so I could share my experience in detail so others won’t have to go thru the horrific customer service my kids I endured.

There are now other better gyms in la.

My kids discovered rock climbing here, and soon moved from casually interested to enthusiastic members of the Rock Warriors climbing team. The gym has a wonderfully laid back clubhouse vibe, and even on crowded weekends with kids birthday parties, there are always plenty of great bouldering routes free to work on. The recently remodeled changing rooms and exercise areas are top notch.

Ive notice a huge improvement in the setting department and its baseline. The new posters for the setting schedule were a great idea and look fabulous.
I notice in the alcove an AC climb which is a good warmup and has lots of good holds.
Also in the bouldering section I notice a CL, good sets. Nice and easy yet still really fun.
Look forward to seeing more from these people.

I took the Fight Gravity series. Super helpful for my noobie self, and basically started my most recent obsession with rock climbing. I learned to belay and some general climbing techniques from class, but am finding it all comes with more practice.
The staff here is wayyyyy cool and the community is also friendly. My only issue is the equipment is a bit old but I hear there are renovations coming shortly.

Just signed up at Rockreation. They have an great Black Friday deal where you save $ 100 on the initiation fee. With unlimited family memberships of $ 150 per month, including yoga, meditation and cardio classes plus use of gym equipment it really doesn’t get any better!
Rockreation is very well maintained and conveniently located. And the staff is friendly and helpful.
I’m so excited to master this new sport!

Rockreation is where my boyfriend taught me how to climb, so I obviously feel sentimental about it… which is why I am giving it three stars. I’ve only been climbing for about 6 months and try to go at least twice a week, so my review is given through the eyes of a newbie trying to transform into a legit climber.
Few quick notes:
1. I know my review below may sound critical, but I think due to the fact that climbing CAN be a very dangerous activity, it’s ESPECIALLY pertinent to be proactive about everyone’s safety.
2. Climbers I’ve met here are some of the most supportive and friendly people I’ve met. It will probably be really easy for a newbie to come in and make friends/​climbing partners.
3. Staff members are generally friendly — ask them questions if you aren’t sure about something.
4. All the roped routes seem very bouldery… but that’s probably to make up for the short wall. Other gyms with tall walls I’ve been to have settings that are mellow until you get to the 4^th/​5^th clip (safe to fall at that point).
5. Dirty carpet and feet smell? That seems unavoidable at any climbing gym. I just try to wipe my feet before leaving and have a separate pair of flip flops for my gym days.
#1 annoying + dangerous thing about this gym:
— Rockreation has kids’ classes couple days out of the week… which coincide with the time when people are getting out of work and start coming into the gym (hectic!). As a fee paying customer, I don’t like how climbers have to wait around for the kids’ warm-​ups and give up the main space so they can conduct their class. I don’t remember agreeing to this inconvenience when I signed up. It’s a SMALL space to begin with, and it’s really awful because a lot of the kids don’t know how to behave in a climbing gym.
— I’ve had TOO MANY instances where kids (early teens — are they still kids?) bumped into me while I was belaying or they would trip over my rope. I even actually had a kid throw a shoe and hit me while I was belaying my partner as he was climbing the arch. What makes me angry is that some of the staff seem so lackadaisical about this type of unruliness. UNACCEPTABLE. I understand that they are kids, but they are under the gym’s supervision… SO SUPERVISE THEM!
Just a quick note to parents who bring in their young children into the gym: PLEASE DON’T LET THEM RUN AROUND WHILE YOU ARE CLIMBING. It is DANGEROUS. Supervised or not, they shouldn’t be roaming around the gym where they can be a danger to climbers. I’ve actually seen a toddler in a diaper roam around willy nilly as the parents were climbing… and the kid ran into the belayer’s arms… O_​O … and the staff didn’t say anything to them.
GENERAL/​UNIVERSAL note for everyone (important points + etiquette I’ve learned/​observed):
— DON’T step on someone else’s rope. Especially when it’s being used!
— DON’T traverse or climb underneath a climber (for rope/​boulder/​auto belay!)
— DON’T traverse too high (I actually recently saw a guy who fell off from almost at the top of the wall and smacked his head and got carried out by EMT). Even if you are a great climber, you never know if you’ll slip off. Be considerate of the people you may hit if you fall.
— DON’T wear your harness in the bouldering area. Do you really want to take the chance of falling weirdly on your harness/​gear/​carabiner?
— LISTEN UP for people announcing «LOWERING» — you may have a climber being lowered over your head. Actually, don’t stand around at points where climbers are going to be lowered, period. Always be aware of your surroundings!
— DON’T give a ton of unnecessary slack during lead climbing even if you’re belaying a human monkey. I’m no expert, but if someone falls on their 2^nd or 3^rd clip and there’s a ton of slack out… you get my point (hopefully).

My husband and I got a groupon for the Fight Gravity 1 class which comes with a week long membership. Drew and Dan taught the class and they were very friendly and helpful. After the class, you have to come back to take a test before you can climb and belay on your own. We’re looking forward to going back this next week.
Looking at the rates, I’m not sure if we would sign up for membership, but maybe we will reevaluate after the week!

1^st thing i want to say is that this rating could much easily get better, and I will edit my review if they ever fix their big issues.
I’ve been to numerous rock climbing gyms. and this is my third membership. I am a member here solely due to the fact that they meet the basics for a rock climbing gym. they have bouldering and some sort of ballet.
1^st big issue they’re size… much much smaller than most the gyms within 30 miles of the area. To their defense, santa monica is very expensive and they do a lot with the room they have but none the less it’s small and very expensive.
2^nd issue their buddy system. Every other gym i’ve been to lets you bring one buddy per month for free with a membership. this place lets you bring one person for free, but it must be their first time. From a business standpoint, I don’t understand this, most people do not join a gym after there first time. it usually takes a few times so why not let them bring the same friend two months in a row. Thats how i decided to sign up and I’ve had two friends get memberships at another gym i went to after bringing them a few times.
3^rd HUGE issue is the belay system. Both the gyms i’ve been to only had auto belay and I’ve never used a buddy belay system. So coming here they make you past a test and give you a prep piece of paper that looks like its from the 90s. They would not even let me use my phone to watch a youtube video on how to do it «for insurance issues.» But they did suggest i purchase a $ 45 class that would show me how to tie a rope and how to brake a buddy. $ 45 after i just signed up for a membership for something that was learned off of youtube in less than 8 min.
Basically if you’re equally as far from this place as the other gyms, go to the other ones, much better quality gyms and cheaper. If you’re like me and this is the closest BASIC gym, it will do but that’s about it.

Great 6^th birthday party for Jayla at Rockreation! Exactly what I wanted, only wish we could have 3 hrs instead of 2.
Jenn, Jenny and Pablo were fab. They were knowledgeable, patient and encouraging to all the kids and adults who wanted to climb.
2 kids in particular were very scared but by the end of the party, with the help of the staff, they were climbing too and enjoying themselves. The place was packed but our party ran smoothly.
I would highly recommend this for any age. We will be going back.

My husband and I tried Rockreation from a groupon that we received. It was really fun to learn the ropes /​climb techniques with my spouse. It was actually like a lesson on communication and trust! :)
My husband wasn’t a huge fan since the walls are only so high and he is already 6’6″ himself, but I had a great time. I think we may try to climb in nature where he has more room to keep climbing.
Awesome staff. Beautiful women’s bathroom. Slightly stinky atmosphere — but it’s a gym right?!

Majority of staff is very friendly. Kids friendly. Lots of enthusiastic rock climbers. A bit cramped for the space, esp during the weekend.
The only issue /​one-​off scenario I had was with one of the employees who was administering a beginner class. They focused and emphasized safety training, which was great. But because I was still getting used to the ropes (as I was just a beginner), I ended up with pinched cut from the ropes/​buckle. The first thing that happened was the instructor got annoyed at me for getting injured and then proceeded to gather everyone in the class to point and tell them: «Class! See this is what happens when you don’t follow instructions!»
It really turned me off and I was pretty annoyed bc I was already injured (not like I purposely tried to injure myself — I tried to follow instructions as best as possible). Not saying they didn’t emphasize safety training, just the instructor’s attitude. They didn’t have a safety kit either, just bandaids.
I might give it another go but there are different rock climbing facilities in LA that i’d rather check out before coming back here again.

Great place been a few times now. Really friendly staff ask them a question they offer loads of advice. I’m new to climbing so took the group lessons with a mate. Very good lessons, relaxed and fun and now me x my mate are climbing on our own in less than a week.
Also hoping it wouldn’t be one of those places where if you’re not an expert you’re in people’s way. It’s not got that feel at all.
There’s clearly good climbers doing crazy things I can’t but fun to watch them.
If you’re interested at all I can’t say enough good stuff so just go try it.