Taggart Family YMCA-YWCA

I really prefer the downtown Y over this one. Went in to the gym area one day and was immediately stopped by a personal trainer who told me I can't bring a back pack into the gym, basically accusing me of stealing a dunbbell before I did anything. I can understand the policy, but her approach was totally wrong. I then went to the front desk to ask if they could hold on to my backpack for 1 hr. Thy said no, so I basically walked around the gym with my laptop in hand, to keep an eye on it. Was not long after I was approached by Two staff members who told me that I am not allowed to wear socks in the gym! This is where I said 'I am done' where I asked for the cancellation documents. I will finish up my membership at the Downtown Y location and then decide if I want to renew. For the price I pay for me membership, it doesn't make all that much sense to only use one location with poor evenings hours, closes early Saturday and not open on Sunday. In this case, a Goodlife membership does offer many advantages, and you Will Not get harassed about such petty policies that must be enforced for everyone to enjoy the gym. Maybe it is because I am a bodybuilder that I appear intimidating, but I feel like I do not fit in at the Taggart Family Y. And this review does not mention the unsanitary condition of the change rooms. I'm not the first to mention dirty floors and urine smell every time you go to the toilet. It shouldn't be allowed to persist this way, period. Thanks for reading my honest review. @Paulbenish if you'd like some fitness motivation from someone around for a while
7 years ago (06-03-2018)

I paid for a year membership to the YMCA in London, ON, but needed to move to Ottawa only 4 months into the membership. This YMCA gave me SO much trouble and refused to transfer over my membership to their facility. Instead I had 10 guest passes for this location.... Eventually, the YMCA in London (great amazing awesome gym by the way) agreed to terminate my membership early and refund me the money I would have lost so I could start a new gym membership at the YMCA in Ottawa. Ironically, my gym membership in Ottawa worked at the YMCA in London... On another note, I really like the inside of the gym and the treadmills face a wall of windows which is a very nice distraction while running. The gym is within walking distance to where I used to live and I never found it too busy inside. I will also commend the management team for the way they handled a situation involving one of their employees. My safety and comfort was their number 1 priority.
8 years ago (29-06-2017)

Great staff -- very, very helpful with raw sincerity. However, the changing room is incredibly lackluster and you better believe it will reek of urine at all times. Gym is fine although a lot of the equipment is past its use date and more often than not there are at least 1-2 machines that are out of service at any point in time. Squat racks are really good on the other hand, and so are the benches.
8 years ago (02-07-2017)

You really get a lot for what you pay here! While it isn't posh or fancy, everything is clean and in good working order and the staff is friendly.
8 years ago (04-11-2017)

I visited the Newcomer Information Centre to ask for contact details of an Inland Office of the Canadian Border Service. Instead they wasted my time asking for information they had no right to ask. Not even vaguely professional. This is exactly what you get when you install refugees in important positions.
8 years ago (31-07-2017)