Universal Athletic Club Reviews

Having belonged to numerous gyms over the last decade or so, Universal is by far the best (in almost every way).

Pros:
- It's cheaper than other gyms (for most people this is the most important)
- It's kept insanely well clean (you'd think the place had just been built)
- The machines and weights are regularly upgraded to the newer models (they do keep a few of the older models around for the older customers who can't quite figure new tech)
- The staff/workers are very polite and friendly
- The trainers and classes are amazing (you'll actually want to take them)
- If you wish to leave them gym it's as simple as telling them you want your membership cancelled, then it's done with (not like most gyms that literally won't let you leave/quit due to a "legal agreement".
- The pool is perfect for both avid swimmers and families just wishing to relax (swimming lanes and a "free to do what you want" area.
- If you have kids (I don't but I take care of my friends kids while she's at work sometimes) Universal has an area just for kids as well as programs and exercise lessons (Plus they do birthday parties)
- The Locker rooms/sauna/showers are really nice and aesthetically pleasing

Cons:
- The locker rooms are bit too small for the number of members they have
- The parking lot is way to small for the number of members (if you go in the morning 8-12am or around dinner time 5-8pm, chances are you'll have to park on the grass or a nearby parking lot)

I have been a member of UAC since Oct 2016 and I absolutely love it! Everyone from the front desk, to guest services, trainers, instructors, maintenance staff are welcoming, friendly, encouraging and supportive. I've been members at other gyms, but none of them measure up to what UAC has to offer and that's pretty much EVERYTHING! You could literally stay there if they had rooms that might be next, lol! My goal was to create and maintain a healthier lifestyle. UAC helped me attain that by offering services like weigh way less and I also take group fitness classes!

I have seen a lot of gyms in my time but this one takes the cake, and helps you burn those calories too! Great class selection and awesome facilities

i really like going there it's amazing i like the playground it's fun!!!

they are very fast to take your money but to get lessons schedule is not that fast. I am agree with the club and I WILL NEVER go back

It is getting more and more over-crowded all the time. The parking lot has been expanded to accommodate more members and another open house/membership drive is under way. The ladies locker rooms are not adequate in size and a good number of the lockers are rented leaving even fewer lockers available for those who don't choose to pay a monthly fee to have one.

As far as clubs go it's no better than any of the others.

I have worked at this gym, And Went here for 4 years. I have never seen a gym have such good customer retention. Rick who is the owner is Absolutely the best. Management is on point. People spend sometimes up to 4 hours here, Which in The gym business is unheard of. They could bump up their membership prices , And I would still go!!!

And for the post Down Below slamming the kid Zone, Obviously haven't been to many gyms. I have been to every big and small name brand gyms over the last 14 years. Me my wife have 3 beautiful children who absolutely beg to go to the kids club Because of the great staff and kid area there. Universal athletic club kid zone is the best I have ever heard of or been to myself.

12/10/2019
I have really bad experience with their billing system. I froze my membership and their system reactived my account automatically after 6 months without notifying me and automatically charged all members under my account without giving me a notice in advance. I didn t receive any receipt prior or after the charge. I won t realize I am being charged unless I check my credit card activity. Universal athletic club refused to refund me the charges by saying that I should be responsible for that as an adult and that it was not their policy to notify me the frozen period was ending and auto charge started. I was so disappointed that a community service provider took their advantage of having the so-called policy to play the cheating games .

Also, I called to terminate my membership on the bill date. The bill was charged that date without refunding. The billing office won t help customer to get their refund. I have to rely on credit card company to help me to refund the unfair charges.

12/12/2019
Response to the owner s reply:
Again, I didn t receive any email notifying me the end of frozen period while kept receiving ads from Universal athletic club. The auto email sending system might not work as what you expected, or I might be actually left out from that system. I just don t want to pay a penny if it is an unfair charge.
Also, I didn t intend to have the service that s why I froze the membership. The reason I chose to froze the membership was because there was a $150 termination fee and a large fee to rejoin the membership. I am at such a huge disadvantage. I could not find another business like Universal athletic club that designs the business in such a clever way that retain some customers not with its good service but with its money power . The 6-month frozen period itself is an unfair structure as well that it only benefits the business owner, but hurts the customer.

PROS: Great facility with everything you could possibly need. The amount of squat racks and free weights is amazing. They have so many rooms for you to use, to include studios. I never used any of the trainers but there are all types available. I preferred this gym over all the others because of the facility. They do military discounts too! If you're a family looking for a long term gym, it's great!

CONS: the buyout fee. I'm moving and there's no logical reason for me to keep my membership anymore. I went to cancel and they told me I was in a year binding membership and could either continue to pay till my contract was up, or pay a buyout fee of $150. Nothing I can do about it, just wished I'd read it more carefully. LA fitness lets you cancel on the spot, in less five min and no fee.

Parking gets really crazy around 6pm everyday and weekends. I've had to drive around the lot multiple times to find a parking spot relatively close.

When it rains, the facility gets super humid and the ceiling starts to leak. I've had water drip on me while working out on the main floor and the speed training room.

If you're someone who works out on their own and doesn't do much else at the gym, then it's maybe better to get a membership somewhere else. The facility is nice and has lots of amenities but I use the machines, lift, run and then I leave. Never really used anything outside of the main floor and the speed room. If you're simple and busy, this gym is a little expensive.

Friendly and helpful staff members make Universal my top pick for an all out fitness center. This is a excellent place, there s something for everyone at Universal Athletic Club. The cost is very affordable considering what you get with their memberships. Also very clean and neat (not your typical gym).

They've thought of everything. The warming pool has allowed me to postpone knee replacement indefinitely. Clean, open feeling, hi speed wi-fi, ... they even have a little bridge game on Monday afternoons.

Love relaxing in the hot tub and pool. Incredible play area for the kiddies. Held plenty a birthday party here.

My experience with Universal was a great one.

The ONLY con of this gym is that it can be on the expensive side.

However, the price is well worth it if you actually go to the gym every day.

[What do I get?]
Universal Athletic Center (UAC) offers a large number of classes with your membership. It also offers a large number of exercise machines, freeweights and slightly more exotic equipment (sleds, punching bags, medicine balls, ropes, etc.) However, there is no strongman equipment as of this review.

There is also a registered dietician on site as well as a salon and a nice food bar. The hydro massage units cost extra to use, but are extremely nice to have.

[How is the staff?]
In my experience, the staff at Universal is it's strongest selling point. Alison and Beth were great to me as were the rest of the staff.

I was able to change memberships when I needed to and they were great about me cancelling when I had to move out of the area.

[Is the gym worth it?]
I would say that UAC is 100% worth it. The gym is huge, the classes are great and the equipment is well maintained and seems quite clean.

The only con is that the gym can be expensive and charges biweekly. If you use the gym then this is definitely worth it.

If you want something to help convince you go to the gym then this will be a great excuse for you.

I miss UAC and haven't really seen too many other gyms that offer as much as it does.

I highly recommend UAC.

Who's watching the kids in the warm pool. I cant believe staff allow parents to drop off their young kids in the therapy pool and they misbehave, throw things and jump over top of you when you are trying to exercise. Lifeguards dont correct the issue.

Friendly staff clean facility.
Best fitness gym in Lancaster

Realized that i was tricked by one year contract when trying to terminate the membership. I was told that i could cancel membership anytime but didn t tell me there would be termination fees. Nobody would want to simply terminate the membership since there was a huge amount of $ for one time initial payment. But it s worth terminating coz the fees are more than monthly membership fees.

Can't get swol here. Go to planet fitness. They don't judge you for squeezing the cream from Twinkies into your mouth and throwing away the rest while deadlifting.

The place is ok. I think the 1 star reviews a bit dramatic and the 5 stars certainly arent warranted. Sharon Hurst works at the place and gave a 5 star review, perhaps it was getting close to evaluation time ?

Nice family atmosphere...some outdated equipment but overall its a decent value. If you don't have a family there are better places in the area to go

I would never consider leaving my kids in the hands of their staff in the kid zone. I took my daughter and stayed with her to watch and play with her. But other parents left their children their so they could use the gym and other facilities available. The staff responsible for those children are severely inadequate. They weren't paying any attention to them. More than once I had to keep a close eye on kids playing near mine as they were getting into things and climbing in things that children who could barely walk had no business climbing on. There is no way I would considering trusting my kids to their staff

Well maintained. Clean. Classes are sponsored by excellent aides.

I really enjoy working out here. The staff is great.

Would be a 5 Star gym if it was a little more affordable. Facilities are great. Plenty of equipment, group classes are great and nice pool. I will say even though it's much higher priced to belong, so far it has been worth it. Became in better shape in 6 months here than I was in 8 years at Planet Fitness

I came with my friend to try it out they where very rude at the front desk!

Front desk does not relate to working out. Seems like guests are more interested in socializing. Complained to front desk about person coughing every 5 seconds while working out, another time while someone more interested in playing music from her phone, forcing me to listen while working out, NOTHING DONE!

First I have to say I travel for work and have joined gyms in about 6 different states. Universal is by far the best. At first the size is overwhelming, but you soon realize it has everything you need and the environment is motivating and supportive. The staff is great the teachers are really on point.

I have been going to this gym for over a year, and although they employee some great people (Asher, Thomas, Stacy, John... just to name a few) they are very money hungry and do not care about you as a member. I chose to pay extra for the boxing program, which really bothered me because of how expensive the base price was already for the gym. But I enjoyed it that much, that I was willing to pay an extra $40 a month for it. Throughout the year, there have been many ups and downs with the program, including a lot of turnover with trainers. Myself and about 15 others have stuck through all of it and continued to pay our monthly fee, even when we had coaches quit in the middle of classes, or had coaches that just plain were not good coaches. Now the gym decided to take away unlimited boxing, and offer 2 days of week circuit training for the same price! And if we want to do any more, they want us to pay more. I understand this is a business, but they (Sheldon, and the other decision makers) never even had the decency to come to the long- term members who have been with the program, to ask for our opinions, to inform us, to explain it to us, or to even ask if we were willing to do it. This tells me: THEY JUST DON'T CARE. They sent an evasive email acting as if we would be getting a deal of a lifetime, going from unlimited boxing down to two days a week. Very disappointing. I hope they learn that treating their members like this will only leave a very bad taste in their mouths. UFC gym... here I Come!

I wanted to join a gym and called this place to see what they had to offer and what their prices were. The person on the phone told me someone would call me back. That was 4 days ago. I guess they aren't interested in getting new members. I called two other gyms in the area and they immediately told me their prices, offered me a tour, and gave me a guest pass. It's a shame they don't have the same level of customer service as other gyms in the area.