Virgin Reviews

Just the best Virgin Active I have been. Member since 2008.

I went here for training and it was a pretty decent club :)

The club is always overcrowded. The managing stuff is the worst part. They have a rota system. No one is really keen or can take responsibility to resolve what you asking for. The reception stuff is not trained enough and they cannot go further than smile at you and pass you a towel.

The swimming pool is a bit dirty. There were dead skins floating in the water and it was packed and a queue for a swim. Also I had a small padlock for the locker and found that someone was trying to open it so I had to buy a bigger one. At the time, there was also a lady who complained that her shoe was stolen as she left it outside her locker. Shame.

Decent space and equipment. They should have female steam and sauna like the barbican one. Thry have enough space for it

Love the ambiance ..huge space to exercise. Variety of kit, and very friendly staff. The only downside is the female changing room downstairs as the shower rooms is stink , needs to scrub and clean properly the other air dryer still not functioning . As soon as you approached to the toilet the stinky smell all over the place . Griechelle

Virgin Active Barbican - a level two gym in Virgin lingo - is a mixed bag with plenty of great attributes and room for improvement.

The areas that need improvement include the weights areas (regularly in disarray with plates and dumbells littered around), the cleanliness of the changing rooms (floors are soaked most of the time) and the cleanliness of the machines. The great attributes include the staff (extraordinarily friendly, efficient, helpful especially Amy at front of house who is a natural problem solver), the class schedule, the running track, the location and the large fitness rooms.

Having been to about ten Virgin Active locations in London ranging from Mayfair to Angel I can confidently say this location is huge! It features three levels, a 25 meter swimming pool, a large jacuzzi, a large cafe with sofas, an indoor a track and sauna/steam rooms in each of the two changing rooms. However the configuration of the weights and machines area is not ideal. The weights area and cardio machines are spread across different rooms, corners and sections around the running track. This causes plates and dumbells to be littered around on a regular basis.

The solution to the problems listed should be tackled by management in two fronts. First, allocate more hours of staff to circulate the gym floor and restack the weights, clean the machines and keep the floors in the changing room dry. Secondly, and equally important, educate members about gym etiquette through signage and reminders. The notice should say, "out of respect for your fellow gym goers, leave the floor space and machines better than you found them". Virgin Active Barbican is a good gym that could be great with a focus on the fundamentals of a gym operation.

One of the best VA in the City. I especially like two things:
1. Separate sauna that allows people to use it undressed.
2. Women's workout area away from the eyes and witty remarks of men.
Towel for free.
You need your own padlock for the locker. I prefer it from the wristband system.
Two dressing areas - downstars and upstairs.
Use downstairs for swimming pool and sauna.
Upstairs - less busy, closer to the Mind/body studios.
This branch is just opposite the tube station.

Nice place; like the running track around the gym; more work needs to be done on the pool

Best virgin active ever. Great classes, gym floor, layout, air con, no idea why this isn t a collection club.

I would like to appreciate the great attention received by NIMAO last Saturday. She helped me and showed me all the facilities explaining everything because I was lost. It was the first time that I went to this gym and she gave me a lot of life there. Thank you

Not the cleanest, friendliest or most practical gym. Very low ceilings so only do pull ups/any jumps if you are happy to hit your head

Very nice gym with everything you need form weights to cardiovascular

Very good gym. There is all the time space at the classes. Showers clean. Towels included at the membership. I was a member at Virgin Active Mill Hill and I just hated it. Now at the Virgin Active Barbican I go 3-4 times a week.

Really is alright, nothing special, but not really that good either.

Could do with an upgrade, but the staff are very friendly and helpful.

Swimming jacuzzi amazing just price is double if they make half price could be perfect

You get what you pay for and this gym has great service. The classes are extremly good especially Adrian who does body pump classes weekly. Ive been able to use other vigin Active gyms around the uk and world wide such as Portugal and its interesting comparing. BARBICAN is used by hundreds of people dailey so slight cleaning issues such us dust build up at the weekends but other than this a great space. The pool can be a little cold and not sure why the one in ANGEL is warmer. At the time of writing this the club was having issues with residents complainingabout noise levels in studio one class..some teachers such as Adrian are brillant at implementing safty and quieter methods. As well as sound proofing i would suggest slient disco headphones so the music can be as high as any individual wants. I THINK the idea could catch on

Great gym with all type of equipments available & great classes. Staff are really helpful

Has good fun energetic classes , staff are friendly, haven't checked out the swimming facilities but enjoy the gym

Friendly staff, great location, dirty loos and worms in the showers

Once sign the direct debit, you wouldn't receive any debit notice in the future, very bad experience, no one can solve this. DO NOT sign direct debit!

Great gym. The showers grow a bit of mushroom but otherwise top notch.

If being served by Hwan ask for someone else. He doesn't understand simple questions but pretends he does. The first day I called to book a relaxation treatment for my birthday the following week I spoke to Hwan. He said he wouldidn't have to speak to someone else about availability and he would call me back in 30mins. 2Hours went by so I decided to call back. Hwan then said he has to speak to another person and would call me back on Friday. Friday came and I still had not heard from him, so I called back again and spoke to someone else who let me know that the website is wrong and they don't offer relaxation treatments at that branch and referred me to Moorgate. By this time I'm furious. Spent the weekend trying to get through to the beauty team in moorgate to make a booking but to no avail. Then finally first thing on Monday, today, my birthday I managed to get through to the beauty team for them to tell me they r fully booked until March. So upset. Now I will spend my birthday at home with a bad back from my occupation. Hwan you are a dooshbag. If you don't understand something, say or use Google translate. Angry, upset but who cares.

Great club. Would be great to have a couple of the better bikes, spin or trax, pointed at the screens if possible. Would be a great addition. Would love to be able to watch football and cycle

Very pleased. Clean tidy. Lots of facilities. You have to bring your own padlock. That's a pain. But there's a sauna, steam room and pool/jacuzzi. They are so lovely and friendly. They even leant me lost and found kit when I forgot mine once.

Wonderful gym, in particular the staff - special mention to Kostas on reception, always smiling!

I would like to appreciate the great attention received by NIMAO last Saturday. She helped me and showed me all the facilities explaining everything because I was lost. It was the first time that I went to this gym and she gave me a lot of life there. Thank you

Very good but I suppose I'm a bit biased cos I work there

Local gym and it has everything I need to do my daily workouts!

The maintenance of the showers upstairs is not good. Two showers have been out of order for well over a week and a sign on each door states that '[we] are working hard' to correct that. The shower in between hasn't been properly cleaned for at least a week, witness the stain of some lotion on a wall (and there are always stray hairs.) Don't blame the cleaners though, they haven't changed since standards started going down last year, it's got to be the management (which has changed) and maybe cost-cutting. They haven't cost the membership fees though.

And my own hygiene standards are average at best, so I've been told!

My favourite chain of gym! It has steam sauna and a pool with jacuzzi. Well train PT and good number of classes to attend

crowded, dated, dirty (floors, walls, windows, equipment, showers - entire place needs to be renovated and subsequently cleaned). there is no space to workout, and there is a dangerous track around the gym floor - seen several people run into each other - avoid!

This branch has a 25 metre pool with one fast lane and a wide slow lane. I came here most of the Summer to train for a 5 day long swimming tour in Croatia. This led to some circuit training in the Ladies Gym Room, then running on the track on the main floor and then circuit training with the men in the same alas my free subscription ran out (I was on buddy membership) but it s very tempting to join for real. However this branch is undergoing extensive roof works which may be disruptive and the pool really doesn t prepare you for open water swimming #cityexperts

Great gym, has about 1800 members a day using it so it's known as a high volume gym, but it's super large, with updated equipment and friendly staff. It has a women's gym section as well.

Frienly staff; very good equipment; good changing rooms

I've been a member for over 4 years, and there's definitely pros and cons:

Some of the instructors are great, really motivational. Some are awful, it's hit or miss.

The women's gym is a definite perk, so nice to have a dedicated area for weights.

The classes can get overcrowded, and even though you are supposed to register for classes I've only once seen attendance checked.

Classes are booked too close to each other (only five minutes gap between), so there's a mad rush to get in and get equipment. Again, if they actually checked attendance this probably wouldn't be an issue. I've actually seen fights break out over equipment. Management seems to care less.

Needs a refresh. Bikes in cycle studio definitely need a tune-up, peeling paint, dirty corners, mats need cleaning. Not a deal breaker but for the cost it should be better.

More diverse classes such as TRX would be nice.

That said, it's a large gym, convenient hours, but I'm starting to question the cost since the classes are so much better at nearby studios (and they're not so overcrowded).

Please fix your class management, make them smaller, check attendance, and diversify.

Good gym with lots of classes, gym floor and additional services like pt, physio, etc

Lovely gym, really impressive. However, I attended a boxing class on a Saturday morning. Unfortunately, there were not enough gloves to go round so we had to pair up and keep swapping gloves. All the gloves there were very smelly and you had nothing to wash your hands with. One of the girls said that they used to keep hand wash on the wall but this was taken down before the re-fit and never replaced. Tip, if you are going boxing maybe invest in your own gloves.

Bodypump class. This is a great class but oversubscribed. There must have been at least 25 crammed in and again not enough equipment to go round.

Toilets do not appear to have been upgraded in the refurbishment.

All in all I would go back but if they keep hiking the prices then they need to make sure they have the basics covered.

The gym is very well equipped with plenty on space. The front desk staff are lovely. The only issue is that the pool is arctic. You need to be a really dedicated swimmer to get in. It s really really cold. I ve even tried having a cold shower to lesson the impact, but it doesn t really help.

Decent gym, not too expensive. Very good instructors for classes. Good size sauna but steam room is pretty small.

I really like this gym, I'm not sure what more you could want.
Swimming pool; Jacquiz; Steam & Suana (separate for male & female); hang out area; class are okay; friendly staff; lots of equipment.

improvements I would say could be: class choices and more staff offering you technique on your exercises.

Thx

A great Virgin Active gym to work out in. Based over two floors, the internet cafe and chill out area are on the ground floor, with changing rooms, showers and access to the gym are also on this floor.

Upstairs is the main workout area, with access to an aerobic studio, cardio machines of all types, benches, squat racks, free weights, running machines, TRX cables, mats, kettlebells etc. There is also another changing room up here that tends to be quiet as not many people know about it...Ssh!

If you're using the ab crunch machine with just the two plates, you'd be working much harder reaching forward from the settee for your next rummage in the biscuit barrel

I'm a long time Virgin Active member. I used Barbican yesterday which isn't my home club. I stupidly left my watch and bracelet in the locker and I am so grateful that when I called today they had both items safe in their Lost Property. It's an expensive watch and thank you to whoever handed it in. And thanks to the really helpful staff today as I called a few times. Nice gym and it's nice to have a women's only sauna and steam compared to other clubs.

Brilliant gym in the city with loads of equipment and classes. Only downside I have found in my 2 years of use is some of the other members can be extremely rude.

Amazing gym, with an running track. Lots of classes and lots of equipment.

One of the best Virgin Active places. I did not come here for a general work out but some workshops at studio. I love coming to their cafe more than coming here to work out. ;0)

One of the biggest Virgin I've been too! At Virgin's high standard, friendly staff, very tidy and good equipments. The place can get very busy at peak times, especially in the weighting area where the treadmill one is barely used. I would suggest to have more benches in the weighting area and less treadmills! Good points are clearly the restrooms as you have 2 distinct areas and it's never full (same goes for the showers). There is a very decent swimming pool that doesn't look that busy (never tried it). Of course as a Virgin gym you have a lot of classes, with I think 4 to 5 rooms.

Good selection of equipment, decent facilities, quite clean.

Love this gym, plenty of space and the running track is great for sprints

Love this gym because it's so spacious and it has a woman's gym too. Staff also very friendly

Currently this gym is in the middle of a make over so it may not be the best time to review but I am still really impressed with this gym! The staff on the front desk are always very friendly and the trainers in the classes are the best that I've experienced.

The changing rooms are a little small but the sauna facilities are absolutely gorgeous and are well maintained. The gym is immaculately clean which is always appreciated.

My only criticism would be that the actual gym floor is quite dark. Some people may like this but for me it's a little off-putting.

Different from what it use to be... I would watch this space to see their plans

I was delighted with the service until the pandemic hit. I have ben charged 2 consecutive moths despite my membership is frozen. Why do you have this option if it is simply NOT true?
You have NO EMAIL we can contact. You have NOONE taking phone calls (last time I tried I was 25 minutes waiting for a response) I went to the London Wall gym (Aldersgate I believe) , which is open, to be able to speak to someone. Incredible I have to do this to get some costumer service. I was advise this was going to be resolved. I received an email confirming that the payment I had done will be saved until the membership was unfrozen but... A couple of days ago a full month direct debit payment came through. What the hell guys?
What bothers me the most is that NOONE is talking to me, no-one is communicating. What kind of costumer service is this?

Quite spacious and bright! With a separate female section with weights and pretty much everything you'd need!

Virgin Active Barbican is a middle tier gym in virgin gyms (if your home club is a higher tier you can use this one as well), I only use this gym to attend group cycle class that Katherine Titterrell manages and she is the real deal. Every Monday evening is the best for me. Gym manager recently changed and now they are taking care of everything pretty quickly. After being managed so poorly, new manager definitely changed this place. When you share your problem they immediately takes care of it. Sauna and steam rooms are in the changing rooms which is really convenient to use. Just grab a towel and go. Lockers are a bit small and you need to carry your own lock with you to use but still for the love of Kat's cycling class it worth it. I just found out Punch Class as well instructed by Conor Baines which was a really good experience especially for someone like me who never tried boxing but I will definitely go again.

short opening times is a minus - it is a 24 hours city after all!

Great and friendly staff, from walking in to changing rooms and gym floor, everyone you encounter is friendly.
The gym itself has great up to date equipment, with good offering of classes, some however I'd thought need lower numbers allowed, the body pump classes are always rammed
Changing rooms could do with a bit of modernization as seem a little dirty but all in all a good gym

The place is falling apart, steam room broken on a weekly basis, showers just refurbished and since then now they don't have enough power, good luck in washing long hair with that tiny pressure.
Gym equipment is lacking and machines are outdated.
Not near enough proper training machines.. And the one in there are mostly rusty in some the pin get stuck in the rust.
On the good side the stuff are super nice, reception people are all very good and helpful and same goes for safe guards, cleaners, gym floor people and some of the service managers.
(I am not referring about the GM as he is a defensive guy who seems to be living in the office)
The gym or health club as they call it, need some serious refurbishment for being decent, it's a shame as the stuff is great and the space is big, to be fair I sense that the lack of refurbishment is beyond even the GM control and the fault lies in Virgin Active head quarters as they probably don't budget the place as they should.

Very kind personnel, well-organized and clean gym. Always a pleasure to go there.

Friendly staff, great classes and generally a really pleasant place to go!

Gorgeous high-tech gym with an impressive range of facilities; boxing studio, every piece of kit ever including some scary looking trolley systems, bike rooms, running track, Power Plates, ladies gym, pool, spa, range of jacuzzis and body scanners that recommend which of their classes is best for you. Despite all the high-tech, it's a friendly place with helpful instructors and a smoothie bar that churns out treats.

Also, my male chums tell me this is a great place to make new friends, if that's your thing.

Old damaged equipment, one changing room is pointless as it got no access to the pool(no sign on it so you have to learn it the hard way) Worst virgin active I been so far.

Clean, modern and very friendly. Lot of machines and space. Perfect!

I ve been going to this gym for a few years and have been a member of many other gyms too, so I have a good sense of where it falls.



Now, the negative. Overall standards for operations, maintenance, responsiveness, accountability and customer service at this gym are low. It is not a premium fitness facility in terms of ethos or physical plant.

The maintenance of the changing facilities and weight areas of the gym is poor. The quality of finish on the walls, floors, lockers, plumbing, fixtures, mirrors, etc. is low. Dust, rust, scuffed walls and chipped paint can be found throughout. Weight machines and free weights are not properly cleaned. Floor and countertop surfaces in the changing rooms are often soaking wet. I have seen better maintained equipment at cheaper gyms (e.g., The Gym). It has taken months for the club to respond to reported malfunctions of some machines.

The weight area is often in a state of disarray, with plates strewn all around, bars loaded up even when not in use. Mats are frayed and falling apart. Equipment that s meant to sit together in one place is often scattered around the large floorplate, meaning users must hunt extensively for missing dumbbells, etc. Mirrors are cracked. Drinking fountains run at a trickle in some cases, and few have spigots for the sanitary filling of water bottles.

Many users of this gym seem unfamiliar with gym etiquette (e.g., unrack your weights, replace equipment where it belongs, lift at a safe distance from dumbbell racks, dry yourself before exiting the wet area of the changing room) but the gym does little to change their behavior. There is almost no signage informing members of etiquette, and new joiners are not provided with a list of conditions for using the space. Personal trainers sometimes themselves contribute to the mess and disorder when working with their clients, modeling poor behavior.

Management has not properly staffed for maintenance of the fitness areas of the club. Often there are no staff in sight. Very occasionally a staff member circulates to tidy up, but this is often at the end of the day. For the space to be orderly, there need to be staff doing this constantly, as well as more member education/compliance. Similarly you will rarely see staff cleaning equipment. And the staff who are tasked with cleaning equipment are usually low-level fitness trainers; amazingly the gym does not employ professional cleaners to clean the fitness area.

The staff who clean the changing rooms are friendly but again, too few. I have also observed these staff mopping up soaking floors with the same towels provided to members.

The gym provides no mechanism for feedback. A tablet for that purpose broke down in 2017, and has not been replaced. Emails to management sometimes go unanswered.

The group fitness classes vary in quality, but few are what would be described as cutting edge. While there are a few fairly good instructors, some of the top talent has left for other gyms and has not been replaced. Those seeking a really challenging group fitness experience need to supplement VA classes with specialty studios or facilities like CrossFit, Barry s Bootcamp, Third Space, etc. Management never inform members of substitute instructors, even with the digital app platform at their disposal.

This is a Tier 2 Virgin Active gym and though by most gym standards is amazing, it really is just good compared to the top tier "Collection" Virgin Active gym literally just around the corner. The sauna and steam room is very nice (although unlike many other VAs, are both located inside the changing rooms and hence single-sex). The most notable feature of this gym is the 160m running track running around the entire gym floor.

Gym itself is ok, showers are lousy; no water pressure, most soap dispensers not working (and haven t been for months), mould in many places. Staff take the feedback nicely and pass it on I m sure but the centre itself is clearly not getting the resources to address it.

Large gym with great facilities! The pool is a little small but rarely busy, it s quite cold so good if you want to get some lengths in! There are a lot of resistance machines and free weights to be found along with all the cardio machines you could ever want.

Wimbledon location is small and needs higher ceilings. They recently cut the hours they are open - which is not cool.