Washington Sports Clubs

Clean, convenient, cheap. Never too busy, if so just work around it. Simple as that. No complaints

My complaint is on WSC management and corporate. Good luck canceling your membership.
I came in person to cancel and thought it was successful because I received an email confirmation showing no charges. Then they charged my card for an annual fee after I canceled and won’t do anything about it. The annual fee is for the following year with an effective date after my cancellation notice date. The manager was rude and very unhelpful in getting this resolved. There is no phone number to contact member services or anyone outside of the club manager — absolutely no customer service.
Beware to new members about auto pay as they will charge you fees you did not agree to and are unaware of after you cancelled your membership. Due to this I’ll never sign up with WSC/​NSC again nor recommend it to anyone I know.
Edit — WSC has since followed up with me and refunded me for this overcharge. I am satisfied with their service and attention to my concern.

If this is the most convenient WSC for you, AVOID and join another gym.
This location often has issues which I’ve never noticed at another location like being out of tissues, paper toweling or soap. Recently they were out of sanitizing wipes for about 2 weeks. They started by putting paper toweling and a spray bottle at each station. Eventually the paper toweling ran out and people just stopped cleaning machines in the middle of cold and flu season.
Today, another member was shouting loudly during his entire workout including a 15 minute period where he screamed «I’m a bad motherf**ker!» at the top of his lungs over and over. You could hear him in the locker room and I could hear everything he was saying and yelling over my headphones. I asked the staff to address it after I was at the gym for 10 minutes. They commented that they «were just laughing about that.» They never left the desk or did anything even though it went on for another hour. Meanwhile, a membership person was giving a tour to a new prospective client and I watched 3 women discuss their decision to leave early because of it.
There are too many other good options for gyms which are either cheap or nice. WSC is neither. If this a location you’d have to use regularly, join another gym.

I read a LOT of reviews prior to commuting to a monthly membership, and I have to say I am actually more than impressed with the Chinatown location. None of the machines are «old» or broken down. I’ve never EVER had a situation where the machine or weights I wanted weren’t available. The locker room is large and I’ve never had issues securing a spot there either. They have a sauna which I utilize after every workout. The showers always have enough body wash, shampoo, and conditioner. The women’s side has 4 hand held hair dryers to use, as well as body lotion available. So far I’ve had no pressure to hire a personal trainer– and that’s even after utilizing my one time free trainer consultation. I haven’t yet done the classes offered here, but the spin room and the aerobic room look sizeable and clean always.

Looking back, I would have preferred drinking poison than joining this place. The two managers are unprofessional. The trainer we used was fraudulent. He billed us yet we did not meet with him. At times he said he did meet with us but we were five states away. This place is a scam.
It took over a month of talking to their «headquarters» to clear up charges they fraudulently charged. Their home office is as horrible as the staff at this location. They sided with the trainer saying the charges were correct. I don’t believe they were mainly because we were at a bridal shower. We ended up having to pay $ 86 because they sent a claims company after us. After talking hours on the phone and days waiting, we paid it to stop the harassment. At one point it was impossible to get a manager to take my call so I had to call saying I was a company looking to open 20 accounts. He called me within 10 minutes.
So, if you want headaches, arguments with headquarters, hours on the phone, and fraudulent charges, then this place is your destination.

I am dropping them to one star because they made cancelling my membership a nightmare.
A month before I wanted to cancel, I stopped by the front desk. I explained that I was moving soon and asked if I needed to give advance notice that I was cancelling. WSC staff said «no.» Instead, they explained that just needed to call the manager when I wanted my membership to end.
I followed these instructions. However, the manager (Staci Cook) sang a different tune. She said that I couldn’t cancel for 30 days and refused to give any weight to the other conversation with WSC staff. Six months later: WSC is still trying to collect for the extra month. They have called and e-​mailed numerous times, sent debt collectors after me, and threatened to ruin my credit over this.
I even tried contacting corporate to fix this. Talking to multiple people got me multiple stories. For example, one person said that my earlier conversation with WSC staff didn’t count because it «wasn’t documented.» A second person said that the conversation didn’t count because «only the contract matters.» Meanwhile, Staci maintains that neither of these positions is correct; that the problem was I just didn’t speak to the right WSC employee (How was I supposed to know who the «right» employee was? Good question).
This is all extremely troubling. First, WSC can’t get its story straight. Second, it’s unreasonable to expect members to know which WSC employees «can» and «cannot» speak for the company. Third, some of WSC’s positions don’t even make sense — for example, they stuck to only some of my contract’s boilerplate language, yet also say that both of us have to stick to *all* of it. Fourth, it’s hard to believe that this is how they treat a member of 3+ years who may have joined a different WSC but for this terrible experience.
UPDATE: after looking at other reviews, I think Staci Cook may be to blame for a lot of the problems at this location. She disregards what her staff tells people. For example, let’s say that you ask a question about your membership, and you receive an answer that’s different from the one she would have given. She’ll write off the earlier conversation and say that it’s unfortunate you «misunderstood.» Instead, she should honor what her staff tells people. Or, if she really doesn’t trust her staff, she should instruct them to say «I don’t know» or «I can’t say» when members ask questions.

I echo the comments made my previous reviewers that the facilities and equipment tend to be dated. However, the cancelation process at any of these properties is deplorable. I canceled my membership in July. Because I canceled after my billing date, the membership would not really be canceled until September, meaning I would be billed for August. I accepted the consequences because I should have known to cancel the membership before the billing cycle. That said, they are still trying to bill me for September and October even though I canceled in July. Here’s a couple of points to keep in mind when you decide to cancel a membership to one of these locations:
1. DO NOT USE a debit card or a checking account when paying for this membership on a monthly basis. If you did, switch billing methods before you cancel.
2. DO USE a credit card when paying recurring charges for this gym membership, preferably one that has a good system for disputing charges, such as the American Express cards. This is because once they do start billing you after you’ve cancelled your membership (which they will), credit cards won’t make you pay disputed amounts. You don’t want to try to get money back from these establishments.
3. DO request an e-​mail, confirmation number or other proof of cancellation. I didn’t because I accepted the additional billing for August since I knew I didn’t cancel in time. When you call to dispute charges, they will claim you didn’t cancel if you don’t have some sort of documentation. And guess what, they never provide you with documentation.
4. DO NOT provide this outfit with a social security number under any circumstances.
5. FINALLY, if you do cancel and are using a credit card for billing, call your credit card company and instruct them to reject any charge attempts by this company after the effective date of the cancellation.

Mike, the manager, immediately responded to my review and addressed my concerns. I appreciate that and therefore am editing my review. It’s still small and older equipment but if you’re looking for a cheap contract-​free gym this is a good option.

UPDATE***
Mike, their Business Manager contacted me and apologized. As a gesture of goodwill, they refunded me the cancellation fee.

This gym would be ok if it were truly $ 20, because it is on the level of much cheaper gyms. This place is not nice with old machines. If you don’t care about the quality of the machines, paying for towels, while still overpaying, that’s one thing. But this is all besides the point because I am writing this review in the hopes that the WSC’s veritable scam model will not exploit any other people looking to get healthy.
I was a regional passport member of the washington sports club for about a year and a half. I predominantly went to the Dupont Circle location, but I joined in-​person at the south Dupont Circle location. When I joined, I said I work at xx company and they have some sort of agreement with WSC. The associate said, «oh you can have a membership through your employer.» I asked a lot of questions about the ridiculous fees they had me pay upon signing up, and specific to this instance, was told that I wouldn’t have to pay the «one time enrollment fee» more than once if I left the gym so long as I came back within a year. I gave them my credit card information anyway, and I paid the ridiculous «one time enrollment» fee.
All was good for about a year and half (at the north Dupont location). The club charged my fee through my office’s payroll. I recently switched employers. So I went down the Gallery Place location thinking I could easily switch the details to my new employer, particularly since they so happily charged me the «rate lock guarantee fee» in January. Also, I learned that the monthly fee I was paying for the passport membership through «the employer discount» was $ 5 more than they were currently offering new customers.
The manager Staci is condescending and thinks that repeating the club’s scam model over and over again somehow makes the simple, straightforward scam not seem like a scam at all. She proceeded to tell me that I would need to pay a $ 100 joining fee again to continue working out there, even though I was a member just 1 month ago. I told her exactly what the associates told me when I asked what the joining fee entails. She said I «misunderstood them,» yet she was not there. She said «as a courtesy,» she’d waive some other ridiculous fee! I am truly offended by this women’s condescending choice of words and demeanor. I will absolutely not be returning to this club. I will pay the extra cost to go to a pleasant gym.
To sum up, this place will give you fee after fee, deny what they said the fees entailed, try a new scam every other week.

Update: After posting my review on Unilocal,Facebook, and contacting the Sports Clubs Network directly I received a message from a WSC manager. It took two months to be reimbursed and I was offered a complimentary membership for thirty days, which I used. Despite this, I would never consider rejoining the gym based on past experiences and the amount of time it took to resolve the matter.

Let me start out by saying that Washington Sports Club saved me today, since my regular gym was closed, and the gym in my building doesn’t have any barbells. It was especially awesome that I got to work out for free, since I was able to sign up for a weeklong trial. The staff was super courteous when I showed up, and the locker room seemed nice enough.
That being said, the gym itself was pretty underwhelming. The free weight area is tucked into a tiny corner, they only have hex weights (which make it hard to deadlift), and there’s only one power rack. At one point three straight people walked up to the rack and went, «Hey, do you know if this is the only rack here?» — I guess we all chose to start our trials on the same day and were experiencing the same confusion.
All in all, I’m glad I was able to get my workout in, and I actually liked the fact that their weights are iron without the plastic coating — it means that the gym is filled with that old-​school «pumping iron» sound. I just couldn’t see myself ever joining a gym where I’d regularly have to wait 20 minutes to squat and/​or deadlift, especially since I’d imagine that 5 PM on a Thursday during a blizzard isn’t a peak time.

Just joined in January 2015 and I’m a big fan. Most of the staff is really friendly and says hi to me or remembers my name. All of the machines work and the cardio machines all have their own TVs with good pictures. I train with Elvin and he’s great! Really keeps me motivated on days when I just want to lay on the couch. Locker rooms are clean and spacious enough. I was worried that it was going to be crowded being in the middle of Chinatown, but I’ve never had to fight for space on the cardio machines, even on Monday evenings. I haven’t tried any classes out yet. For the price, I’d definitely recommend it!

I’ve been working out with Rudy since June and he never fails to amaze me. I’ve learned more about health and fitness in the last 6 months than in my entire life. Watching my body transform and seeing myself become toned, energetic, strong and healthy has been an incredible and empowering feeling. His workouts are always fun and upbeat and I leave feeling absolutely exhausted. Rudy has really shown me the limits I can push myself to mentally and physically with his encouragement and support. Unlike other trainers I’ve had in the past, you can tell Rudy genuinely cares about the health and fitness of his clients and wants to see you reach your goals. He’s very flexible with his time and always tries his best to change around his schedule for your convenience. If you are really ready for a change and you are really ready to commit, then I couldn’t recommend anyone better.

Best of WSC in the city!
I agree with a previous post stating this gym is reliable and boring. But, it offers everything you need for a great workout, no matter what you are looking to focus on (except for swimming– no pool). Unlike other WSCs this place isn’t as crowded and is always kept clean. The staff is friendly and helps with any problems with the machines.
Just to be aware… I have Verizon phone service, the complex is in the basement of the Verizon Center, and I don’t get service down there. :(Oh well, it helps me focus on my workout.

Favorite Gym in Washington D.C. !
You find all machine you need, people are always friendly. Fitting rooms were clean, but the shower less. I was travelling D.C. just for a couple of days and with WSC we kept in shape.

It’s certainly not the kind of gym you join because it’s a pleasant or luxurious space to hang out. It’s basically a giant room in the basement of the Verizon Center. On the other hand, they have serviceable machines, a friendly and competent staff, a short-​term membership for transient visitors ($ 30 for 30 days), and a great location. That’s a pretty good deal in my book.

WSC is the Honda of gyms. Reliable and boring.
With the exception of DuPont Circle, the gyms lack the pizzazz of other more upscale offerings. That being said, they serve their purpose– a lot of locations, and hopefully doesn’t cost an arm and a leg.
Come, work out, leave. That being said, I’ll give a few specific rating for this location:
1. Facilities 3 stars: On par with other WSC locations in the area– I’d say about the same décor and facilities as the south DuPont location and the one on F street. They have TRX or whatever that AstroTurf shit is.
2. Boner index: 2 stars. Thought there would be more cuties. Nope. Maybe they don’t like working out in a rape dungeon decorated like a movie from the early 2000s.
3. Classes 2 stars: where are you gonna spin at? No real space to speak of here.
4. Locker room 2 stars: no steam room, small sauna, enough space, but nothing too fancy.
5. Crowd 4 stars: Never had to wait, not too crowded. No meatheads leering, and no creepy staff.

This gym’s billing practices, and almost everything associated with how they are collecting money from people is absolutely atrocious. They are untrustworthy, 78% of the people that you come into contact with lack a viable response for any of your issues and on top of that, Town Sports International (which owns this chain) has THE WORST customer service of ALL TIME, I am not sure of how you can operate a business without any regard for the people that keep the business alive. I would highly recommend going elsewhere if you plan to work out; this place is full of hidden charges.
The only bright point, my personal training experience with Shlomo was exceptional, he would be the ONE good thing that came out of that gym.

Was in DC and wanted to hit up the gym. Pretty much what i would expect from a gym in downtown. They had all the basics plus some other stuff. The setup of the machines wasn’t all that great, probably because of the odd layout. Bonus to the friendly staff who let me go in with my friend without having to pay a $ 15 fee.