Bally's Fitness

Hi S., I agree with many posts below, awful when it was time to cancel. Luckily I had saved EVERYTHING but it took forever to get it done. They were threatening to sue us & I was able to prove cancellation because I had saved all my paper work I would try some place else.
Just my opinion.

I was a member of Bally's before I had children so I do not know anything about their kids club. But, what I do know was that I hated their billing dept. When I signed up you had to have your money automatically taken out of your account and they messed up time and time again. When I finally got so pissed off by them taking money out of my account 3-4 times a month I tried to quit their gym. Well, then there are all these cancellation charges when it was THEIR fault that I wanted to quit. It wasn't worth it to me, and it was a YEAR battle with their company and my bank.
L.
Side Note - I am a memeber now of LA Fitness and have had no problems. My kids go to their kids club almost every day. We have a nice pool, lots of fitness machines, raquetball, basketball, yoga...you name it. It's been really great. If you have one by you I would recommend them.

I think Bally's is a horrible MEAT market. The guys at the one I tried out were just pigs. I enjoyed the Women's Workout world before they moved. Now I'm at Xsport. It may look like a bunch of Muscle men there. But honestly, to go and get a good workout that's a place to go. The employees and other members are friendly. Mine has a Child's Play area for kids. It's $1 a visit or $10 a month for a max of 2 hours a day. The Child's Play is not open on Sunday.

We had a horrible time ending our contract at Bally's, in the end we had to pay it until the contracted ended. Xsport does allow you to suspend your membership due to medical reasons, military duties and maternity breaks.

I was a member for almost 20 yrs ( WOW). I have since ended my membership because I was not going as often, and I want to find a place that has more classes during the day and more of a variety of classes. When I used the kids club it was mostly at the Schaumburg West facility. My girls did not mind going there, and I never had any problems.

I did not have a month to month membership, but even after cancelling my membership, I can still go back at the same annual rate, which is the most affordable I have found thus far.

I just joined Bally's about 6 months ago and I really like it. I do have issues with the parking also becuause the lot is always so full but the machines are always empty. I have not used the kid club yet, but that is why I initially joined so I could workout and the kids would be safe. i signed up through Globalfit which is an employer discount and I pay a very resonable rate. If you work or your husband check to see if you can apply through globalfit with your employer. Good luck!!

I signed up for a 2 year membership and had them taking the money from my debit card for the membership it was for me and my husband) and the price was affordable...I didn't like that the parking lot was ALWAYS full but when I went it in seemed like no one was there...I was always able to get on the machines I wanted and had no problems finding a locker, but it was irritating that I had so much problems with parking. I didn't like how some of the more experienced gym go-ers would scoff if I was using a bike or eliptical because they wanted to...too bad.
During the middle of the membership I called to see if I could cancel because we were barely going (I was diagnosed with a medical condition that makes it difficult for me to work out more than a light work out here or there) and was told that I could pay off the remainder of the membership, but the only way you can cancel was if you had a medical condition or if you moved so many miles away from a location...I explained about my condition and they were willing to cancel mine with a doctor's note, but not my husband's - I told them that although the location fell within their mile limit, it was still in an inconvenient location for my husband to go to - they didn't care. None of that was explained to me when I signed up. (I never canceled because my doctor feel through on getting me the letter I needed, by the time I got it from the doctor I had a hard time reaching them again to find out where to send the stupid thing).
When my membership was up I called to ask if I had to do anything to cancel and was told by one person that I didn't have to do anything...then I got charged for another month's membership, so I called again and this time their answer was to send a letter to the corporate address to tell them I wanted to cancel the membership and wanted a refund for the most recent charge...it's been over two months and I keep getting letters from the corporate address telling me they are having problems taking money from my account (because we had to cancel my debit card and get a new one issued-for a different reason)...I've tried calling but the phone number to the corporate office is automated and you can't get a hold of anyone there...it's VERY frustrating - I WOULD NOT recommend getting a membership there...have you looked at Fitness 19? We used to be members there and liked it - it's affordable.

I've been a Bally's member for over 20 years. It's not the best club but it's the cheapest game in town, so if you just want to work out, it's a good deal. I have had my son in their kids club a few times, no problems ever.

I've been a Bally's member for 13 years. I've used the locations in Schaumburg East, Schaumburg West and Mount Prospect. Other than using a park district facility during college, that's my only exposure to gyms so I can't say it's better than, say, Lifetime...but from what I understand it's much more economical. The renewals over time are great. I just renewed for another year at $68. For the year, not the month! Now I primarily use Mt. Prospect after work, so at 5 pm when I arrive it's often crowded and you may need to wait for your machine. But for the money I think it's worth it. My hubby used the kids club a few years back and thought it was fine, right now I run straight from work and work out quickly in time to pick up my kids from day care. And of course I don't have any words to add about ending the membership myself, other than saying to ask when you sign up. Not just verbally, but have them show you in the paperwork where it says what happens when you get out.

Hi, I have never been a member, but my friend was. She had them taking the money out of her account, and when she wanted to cancel, she could never reach anyone at the number listed to call. I can't remember how long it ended up taking, but it was ridiculous. If you do it, don't use your debit as a form of payment.

HI S.,

My husband and I joined when we first got married. It was a nightmare cancelling our membership because of our move out of state (to an area without another Bally's) We still joke about the phone message that we got everytime we called....Please hod.....The check was finally mailed to us after a year of nagging them and threatening to go to the business commissioner and when it got here it was prorated so low that it was as if we had only asked them to cancel our membership a month or so before.

My personal opinion is don't get involved with any organization that does not honor it's commitments to the letter. ESPECIALLY if they never intend to from the start. Have you looked into your local YMCA? That's where we work out now and it has been nothing but a pleasure...we can travel with our benefits as well.

M.

My husband was a member for years, and after we got married he added me to his membership. I agree with what other people said, their customer service out of California is very poor, I remember once, we were on hold for an hour waiting to speak to someone. However, we like Bally's in terms of price, location, and FREE childcare. We go to the Mt Prospect one and the lady there on weekends is so nice, she's been watching our daughter since she was 8 months old! If you are thinking you will be with them for years, I would say it's worth it! No other gym offers Free Childcare for a very low monthly membership like Ballys! I suggest you go visit the place while the childcare is open and get a feel for it!