Fitness First Highbury

Disappointing! Had been here a few years ago and was impressed but after joining it seems the gym has lost its spark over time. Really limited equipment and facilities, never enough free weights (especially two of the same weight) and the ones they do have are all SUPER heavy which isn't that accessible for females wanting to use lighter weights. Did a spin class and had to move bikes twice as they were broken. For the price you pay as a new member you'd expect a more premium experience but it's really not worth it compared to other gyms at the same price :/

Too many memberships have been sold, it’s often far too busy and there is not enough space or equipment.

It’s gotten fairly tatty now and needs some work - the changing rooms often smell really bad. There is a sauna and a steam room, and it’s become a bit of a joke that there’s always one of them that is out of order.

The equipment itself is fine, slightly older but does the job.

Awful place,lazy reception without skill.
Layer they sell the sauna services and I paid for it, was broken,every week the different receptionist said next week is available,never I saw available it.
I choose the the option one month no contract,I guess it not like this,they said to me you pay every month.
The clean is so rude ,every time she complain in the change room, the place was dirty.
They stop my membership before
finish a send a complain never answered to me.

Similar to the other reviews: it's just a bit grim and there is not enough equipment for how busy it gets. I gave up swimming in the evenings here as there was usually stuff floating in the pool after it's heavy daily use. Shame as it used to be a lot better / could still be so great.

Lovely staff and great location. Unfortunately the gym is often overly busy and there isn’t enough space to accommodate the number of guests.

The gym has become a little tatty and needs upgrading, it often feels unclean even though there are often cleaners around.

As others have noted in other reviews, the pool is pretty disgusting and people just go straight from sweating in the stream room / sauna into the swimming pool to cool down.

It’s a shame as the gym has good potential - it just seems far too expensive for what you’re getting.

This is a very good gym. It has most of the facilities you could wish for - weights area, sauna, steam room and swimming pool. The staff are all very friendly and it feels like a nice small community between staff and members. Sometimes you have to wait to use some of the equipment in the main weights area as it’s not the biggest but it’s not a massive issue and it wouldn’t stop me from recommending this gym to someone looking to join

It's worth the money. Brilliant location, quiet, huge gym with all the accessories you need, seemingly never a struggle for space to do what you need, startlingly refreshing attention to cleanliness - the hoover is always on, bathrooms always clean, and the general vibe is healthy, which is what a gym should be.

A little disappointing...

I joined when I first moved to London in August last year after trying out a couple of gyms in the area. At first, it seemed to have a good range of equipment and was definitely a step up from where I was before. I was happy for the first month or so, but over time it just doesn't seem to live up to the price point for the membership.

The gym is overcrowded and you often have to wait a long time for equipment. Everything just feels a little run down, and things definitely seem to have gotten a lot worse in the last month or so.

I've tried the spin classes a couple of times, but had to keep changing bikes as the foot grips are broken on many of them. The screens on lots of the bikes are also faulty meaning, when a class is full, many people aren't able to track their progress or even use the pedals properly. For a premium gym I wouldn't expect this to be the case.

They've always had towels available on the door when you arrive, but have recently started running out because they've sold too many memberships. Last week, I'd come in to use the pool so had to go home when I found out they had no towels left. The staff didn't give any explanation and no apology, which was frustrating as I'd wasted my time coming in.

Overall, there's nothing that bad about the place. I had just hoped for a lot more based on the price of the membership. I'm feeling disappointed to be locked in for a year of this.