Gig Harbor Family YMCA

Good clean facility with so-​so customer service. If you like morning/​evening workouts this isn’t the best place as it is always packed. My biggest problem was after taking the rock wall belay certification I was frightened at how unqualified they are to certify people to belay each other. Since I was already a member and an avid rock climber I figured why not have the convenience of using the wall right there too since I went every day anyway! After taking their «belay certification» course the only thing to take away from it is that I would never let a single YMCA «belay certified» staff member belay me. I already know very well how to belay, belay certification is just common with indoor rock walls to reduce liability. They had us belay chairs with a grigri — I kid you not! The staff members were unaware of the fact that a grigri is an assisted brake belay device, telling other people getting certified that they could take their brake hand off if they needed to — that is a BIG no no! Never ever ever take your brake hand off belaying. The staff members could not even explain the difference between a static and dynamic rope, this is just the very basics I would expect from a facility that is not climbing focused, if they are offering training they need to be educated themselves before training others. I watched some of the younger volunteers belay children and I was pretty scared for them to be honest — the belayer left his brake hand off several times and encouraged unsafe practices. I surely hope they never bring people outdoor climbing. Additionally, we were never allowed to use the wall after getting certified, what a waste of time. By all means enjoy the many machines and classes at this gym but please don’t climb or allow your children to climb with these folks, head over to Edgeworks across the bridge where it is safe and you will learn how to climb safely and correctly!

Best pickleball in the area! Every morning of the week plus Friday nights best for date night…

Steve Triller and his team uphold the mission of the Y in a way that honors the organization’s roots. The property and programs provide literally hundreds of super, healthy, body and mind developing options for our Gig Harbor community. Great facility. Great staff. Thanks for all you do!

I really wanted to join this gym even though I would be paying $ 100 joining fee which if you were not a member for more than 90 days (in which I was a member of YMCA for many branches at different times of my life), but this place is just PACKED!
The huge parking lot is almost full in the morning and one of major reasons for using Y for me is shooting some hoops… Which the courts are usually occupied by some taichi or pilates classes. Why can’t they just use the multi purpose room for those???

The lady at the front desk working today (Mon, May 11^th at 5:30), the one with short red hair, was incredibly rude. This place came recommended by my mother in law, as we are new to the area from the east coast, and I’m afraid she was terribly mistaken when she insisted it was ‘family friendly.’ From what was just displayed, this place is anything but friendly, and at the very least somewhere I’d want to bring my family.
After standing at the front counter for a few minutes, this employee addressed my brother, who asked if they offered 3-​day passes. She replied very curtly with a, ‘absolutely not!’ Wow! Ok, let’s give her a chance to redeem herself then… He then followed up with, ‘okay, well do you offer any tours around the gym, and can I get some information on memberships?’ Again, she droned on about a $ 100 deposit and $ 45 monthly payments… But then immediately went back to doing what she was doing. She offered no more information; almost as if she was telling him to pay up or leave.
Obviously she had no interest in providing any more information than necessary, and for service like this… I’d rather drive 40 minutes out of my way to the 24 hour fitness in Lakewood –they cost exactly the same anyway. My family and I have no interest in being greeted by THAT every day.

Definitely the best YMCA/​recreational facility in general I’ve been to. Very clean facilities and family friendly. Large running track that spans the entire perimeter of the upper level, wide variety of fitness equipment and very helpful staff.
My family and I also were able to attend free tae kwon do lessons with our membership! Lots of other neat classes you can attend as well such as zoomba and even healthy cooking demonstrations! Another major plus is the childcare facilities. Definitely a major part of what makes this place family friendly.

I have images of the Y from my teenaged years (many moons ago) as being dirty and having very little equipment. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that was not the case at all. They have LOTS of equipment, it’s very, very clean and the staff is very friendly. My only gripe is that I called to sign up for the free 12 week program to try and get myself motivated again, I was told I had to call upstairs. I was given the phone number to call. That kind of service SO annoys me. They are the same company!!! 1– She should have been able to set up my appointment for me. 2 — If she couldn’t, she should have been able to transfer me. 3 — When I called the additional number, I immediately went to voicemail. Lousy customer service.

This YMCA is fairly new and definitely the nicest looking YMCA I’ve used. The building and facility itself is huge, but there are major shortcomings when it comes to the layout and use of space. Given the size of the building, the weight lifting area should be at least double what it is currently. The swimming pool area is fairly large and used mostly by kids. There’s a good amount of cardio equipment but only four Stairmasters!
The soap in the men’s restroom needs to be refilled daily. Nine out of 10 times, the soap dispenser is empty. It’s so simple, just have someone refill it!
For almost $ 60 a month, I expect a lot more from a gym. The membership folks aren’t very customer focused and not the friendliest bunch. Gig Harbor needs some competition by one of the larger fitness companies such as LA Fitness, 24 Hour Fitness, or even a Gold’s Gym! Also, the Y closes at 5PM on Sundays! Seriously?

This is a beautiful facility with two huge swimming pools and cardio machines on two floors. I have gone at different times and never had a problem getting to use the equipment. I even hired a personal trainer who works out of the Y and got some great new workout routines from her. The place is clean and well-​maintained; the staff is super friendly and helpful. I would be there every day if I lived a little closer to it.

It is a fabulous facility. It is over sold which makes it tough to get on some of the cardio machines in particular. I tried to set appointments with personal trainers. There was very little response so I gave up and went else where after multiple attempts.
If you are independent in your needs and flexible with your times you will like this facility a lot. If you are looking for some guidance and assistance or if you need to go before or after work it is not the place to go. It is that simple.

I’ll start with the pros: There are a lot of machines and equipment, a big indoor track, activities and mostly friendly staff. It sounds great on paper.
Cons: SO. MANY. PEOPLE. I have been there all different times; 5 am, middle of the day, close to 9 o’clock it’s ALWAYS packed. I am training for a bikini comp so my main focus is weights and there are always a bunch of guys just talking and camping on equipment. When I try to do a circuit some guy will sit down on a machine I’m using for 15 minutes including his rest time and never get up to let someone else get a set in. I have to fight with people over benches and cardio machines it’s INSANE. People have no regard for other gym users and it’s usually a waste of my time even going there. For the same price other gyms a few minutes away are sounding like a lot better option.
Honestly I should have known on my tour that it wasn’t the right gym for me during my tour when a male staff member told me it was gross that I was trying to put on some muscle and that girls shouldn’t have any. Idiot.

While the facility is very nice and some of the classes offered are well taught and beneficial, this place is somewhere I refuse to return to because the front desk and membership staff are beyond rude!
They are unhelpful and condescending, and for a place build on «Christian Values» they do not portray this what so ever. More than one employee spoke to me in rude tones and by the end of the conversation I simply left instead of working out as I planned to. I am canceling my membership simply based on them and will find a new gym to spend my money and time at.

Yes, people are friendly, it is a beautiful facility, and child friendly. Too bad adult swimmers are at the bottom of the totem pole when it comes to lap swimming during my after work hours. I have stopped showing up altogether because my frustration levels have peaked out when I arriveto lap swim at end of work day. I guess the powers that be don’t really care. Seems to me the instruction pool staff needs to be more hard nosed regarding «poop accidents» in the pool. Moving kids to lap pool for that reason (which has been far too often in my experience) just isn’t fair to me or other lap swimmers. If policies change I will gladly return. I love the pool, but my opportunity to use it barely exists! I wish someone at the Y would care and do something about this issue which has become longstanding.
Swimmers, beware, the pool experience at the Y is not what it ought to be.

This a fairly new YMCA that looks like it is always full. But, when you go inside it is very accommodating and spacious. The staff is very friendly and kind to children.

Not had very many good experiences with the Gig Harbor YMCA. Signed up for summer programs for my son during the summer season. Have no other need for their services the rest of the year. In my opinion they are only after money. When I… went to cancel my membership after the summer and they billed me over $ 100 for not cancelling within their 5 day time frame, so they get paid for an entire month of services NEVER rendered, then they convinced me to put my account on hold and then they would call me so I can can just renew my hold, so that I do not have to cancel and I won’t be billed for services AGAIN not used. Well, surprise, surprise. They just started billing me again today. I called and spoke with the director who made it clear that she had not intentions of refunding my money and basically called me a liar. BAD BUSINESS PRACITICES!!! Word of mouth means a lot in Gig Harbor, and I intend to tell everyone I know!

This is my favorite Y simply because of the variety and quality of classes they offer. The instructors do a nice job of accommodating different fitness levels. The Zumba classes are my very favorite, the energy is upbeat (duh, it’s Zumba! But you’d be surprised at some places), and the instructors have a passion for what they do.
Okay, onto a few tips/​critiques/​pointers:
Sometimes, it’s as if you have to be in-​the-​know and arrive at classes super early in order to get a spot and/​or equipment. If I know ahead of time, that’s totally cool. But, sometimes I’ll show up for a class early, and I’ll be standing around for 20 minutes for no reason. Awkward. I guess it’s the same for the weight and machine areas. They can be crowded, but I’ve always had good experiences.
My main bone to pick is with the pool. The swimming classes definitely take precedent here, which is fine… I get it. The parents paid extra for their kids to take swim lessons, which is great for the Y. It does feel like more and more frequently, I can’t go swimming because the entire pool is closed down for classes. It just seems to be getting worse and worse. Pretty annoying.

Ok, they didn’t extend the hours but they’ve updated the machines, added a squat rack, developed an Iphone App, and added automatic electronically coded lockers. The crowds are not the Y’s fault so I can’t downgrade them for that, Very happy with the continuous updates and improvements here. A couple extra hours here or there would be nice but I’m very pleased with this facility.

Great for kids but for me it was WAY TOO CROWDED! I tried my best to go to the Y during off-​peak hours but it appears that off-​peak hours no longer exist.
PRO’S —
State of the art equipment
Free Wi-​Fi
Huge Pool
Family friendly locker rooms
Lot’s of sports programs
Fairly inexpensive compared to other facilities.
CON’S —
Too crowded!
First floor exercise area smells of B.O.
Locker room floors always wet and occasionally dirty. VERY difficult to change clothes without waiting to get to your locker. For such a large facility it is surprising how poorly the locker rooms were designed.
Paid the outrageous «initiation fee» in December only to find out the the fee is waived in January.
I can’t fault the Y for making money by having an unlimited membership, but for me it’s just no fun working out with «1,000’s of your best friends.» Smell is too overwhelming to continue my membership.

My family and I love the Y, we are there 5 – 6 times a week always.
Two complaints only, the weight room area is tiny tiny tiny.
The hours are an issue, PLEASE STAY OPEN LATER THAN 9:30! :)
The Y is very nice, staff is incredible, very clean, well maintained and has almost everything you could need. I just wish the weight room were a little larger to accommodate the amount of guys who lift regularly, and I wish they stayed open later, 11:00 would be perfect.

This place has saved my life! The employees are always friendly and truly care about the individual. I have lost a number of things at this YMCA including a $ 300 ipod. All of them were kept in the lost and found and given back to me with out a problem. This is a family friendly gym with guidelines. So if you think its appropriate for your toddler to be in the weight-​room with you, there is a day care with great services. They also provide financial scholarships if the price is out of your budget. This is my home away from home.