The largest fitness company in North America is absolutely in disarray. The facilities are poorly kept. Customer service is absolutely horrible. It has had to withstand numerous lawsuits and media reports of unethical business practices with regards to membership contracts. And has seen it's stock tumble. This company with all it's holdings is literally one of the most poorly managed in the world. The corporate structure is top heavy, marked by bureaucratic torpidity, group think and an all around lack of common sense. While attempting to limit risk and cut expenditures they have stymied growth costing millions in revenue. The company finished up the fiscal year 2003 losing about 600 million dollars. Their stock shares have fallen from an all time high in the $30 range to about $2 per. All of this has correlated into an absolute disaster for the product their members receive. Machines go weeks without being repaired. Facilities are in general disrepair. Unionized maintenance help inhibits cost saving measures and productive upgrades in cleanup crews. Club staffs are generally poor. Subsidiary companies are left without support, are falling apart, and the attempts to limit outlays has caused a massive loss in valuable human capital. The company with over 450 facilities and various brands needs to regroup and cut out levels of overlapping management. They should sell off about 50% of their locations to recoup their losses- restructure and streamline their systems moving the control closer to the club level to improve customer care. As of now Bally's would be the last place I would purchase a membership.

Do not make the mistake to sign up in any type of contract with this gym. They suck........... I enrolled in a membership with them. I went there maybe three times. I thought my membership was over. They kept charging me money for months that I did not even go. They know that most people do not read contracts and this is how they basically steal money form you. So please be careful. They are not open to make any type of deals with you.!

Bally's is the trashiest, filthiest establishment there ever was. Find out about the human waste that works at Bally Total Fitness:
www.riadhhamdiisaretard.blogspot.com

My girlfriend was tricked into a 36 month membership and it was because i wasn't with her the contract has no signatures. After going for a "FREE" 2 week membership she ended going only 1 time that was the day she received the "FREE" 2 weeks. Now she called to cancel her membership was told she couldn't because she did not go 8 times in 1 month and 8 times before the other month to make up 60 days.So after calling a few times found out that she has to have a total of 17 classes. 1 with a trainer and 16 others without i suppose. Right now as i am writing this she is doing her first class after she was tricked. So tomorrow on her way to work and everyday till she gets 17, she is going to swipe her card, if this works i will comment again in about 18 days and tell all you people that were ripped off like she was if it worked. If it does and yous till have time start going to the gym now. Also as soon as you sign up or get tricked you lose your "FREE" 2 weeks. Get your 17 classes before they get you!!!!!!!!!

I received a Free Trial offer in the mail to Bally Total Fitness. I thought, why not and went to check it out.
When I walked in, I was met by a salesperson who immediatly started rambling off about memeberships.
I told her I was NOT INTERESTED in membership & only wanted the FREE TRIAL offer. She sat me n a room with a trainer who did body fat testing and told me I had 22% body fat and was overweight for my age and then told by the saleswoman that I could pay monthly - $37 and accepted cash. I paid her cash, signed a waiver and went on vacation. I am back from vacation now, have not been back to the club - and I get phone calls 5x/day from a recorded Bally Message. Finally I wrote a letter to Corporate stating that I want the phone calls stopped and I want to cancel.
I received a letter in the mail stating " Your request to cancel is denied, as it does not meet the workout requirements as stated in your membership agreement."
I just got off the phone with a representative from member services and they told me so far I owe $111 and I cannot get out of the contract for 36 months!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was never told I was agreeing to a 36 month contract nor did I want one!!!! I was told I could cancel!
Now I am being sent to collections & there is nothing I can do until the full balance of $1,335 is paid for the 3 year memebership I was scammed into!

Total scam!!! worst gym ever, customer service suck's! The personal trainer that was offered was crap . Also the location i was using in North Hollywood, C.A was always stinky and hot. The guys that worked there were total perverts... After i had joined this gym the Bally's employee kept calling and harassing me early in the morning to join even after i had been a member for two months.
Lets hope this so called business goes under for the sake of everyone who has been scammed by "Bally Total Fitness"

There are ways to get out of the three year contracts. I'm a former Bally employee and i worked in the collections department. First, If you move and there is no bally's within 20 miles of your residence you can cancel your membership, but you have to send in proof!!!! The proof needed is a utility bill or a copy of a new state ID with the new address or bank, or bills that show your new address. Plus, If you have more than one person on your membership you have to show proof for everyone EVEN if your the buyer (primary) person of the membership. Second, you cant cancel your membership JUST BECAUSE!!!! If you have a 3 year membership and want to cancel this is what you need to so. 1. You have to go to another bally's gym and get a new contract, but make sure it the same type of membership as the one you want to cancel or its more expensive. The reason why you have to get a new contract is because ONE person cant have more than one membership!!!!! So, one you get the new membership call THE Bally's corporate office and tell them that you have two memberships, and they will cancel your old one, because your new membership will have more time on the contract than your old one. 3. Once your done telling them about your other membership they will cancel it for you. NOW!!!!!! What are you going to do about your new membership? FOLLOW THESES directions: 1. you have 60 days from the day you sign the contract to cancel, BUT you have to meet a few requirements. You have to attend the gym 17 times. Just got to the gym and swipe your card so you can get credit 2. one of those 17 clubs visits has to be the free personal trainer session you get. Once your done with that you have to make TWO monthly payments of the membership!!!!!!! ALL OF THIS HAS TO BE DONE BEFORE THE END OF THE 60 DAYS WHICH IS CALLED THE 60 DAY PROMISE PERIOD!!!You then have to send a letter to the corporate office stating that you want to cancel for the 60 promise period!!!! Once you send in the letter make sure you call the corporate office and tell them you sent the letter!!!!!!!!! THIS IS THE LOOP WHOLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Any questions feel free to contact me at latin_stalion101@yahoo.com

AWFUL membership terms, AWFUL service, SUB-PAR, OVERCROWDED facilities and equipment in all 3 locations I lived in. It's the worst membership I ever had to any company.

Was scammed!! I came into bally's with a 2week free trial pass. One of the representatives told me to come into the office for info (it's part of the free trial). But he then asked for my name, number, and credit card number! I told him I wasn't interested in signing up until my 2weeks- and he said he wouldn't charge it until I decided. I called my credit card just incase because I thought it was fishy and it was charged! I have to file a dispute and who knows how that's going to go through. I feel lucky that I caught it early before I got trapped in their contract!

I joined Bally Fitness because I wanted to have access to a treadmill and weight machines regardless of the season or the weather. Bally delivered on this. They even have TVs hanging from the ceiling with the sound off. There is also music playing through speakers embedded in the ceiling. Having a TV to watch is a nice amenity while you're working out on a treadmill. I was a little disappointed with the music though, so I started using headphones but the music coming out of the ceiling was just too loud and sometimes the selections were creepy. Even when I started using an ipod with headphones the music from the ceiling was too loud and went right through the headphones. The TVs are out of reach so you can't change the channel. You have to watch whatever is on.

I didn't think anything of the TV and music situation at Bally until I went to another gym. The standards for music and TV are higher at other gyms. I noticed that other gyms have a TV attached to each treadmill. You can plug in headphones and have sound, also there is no music blaring from the ceiling. You can use an ipod with headphones and get good sound without having to go deaf.

Bally needs to upgrade it's treadmills to have individual TV's and the noise coming out of the ceiling should be eliminated. If they don't keep up with the amenities offered by competing gyms, they're going to keep losing business.

Im from San Diego, CA and I go to the one on sweatwater road, they have awsome equipment and its kept pretty clean. But the thing that hurts them the most would be there contracts, Its probably the most rediculous scam ive ever experienced in my life. Today I typed "Bally Total Fitness Reviews" on Google, All I got was bad reviews about there contracts, saying that is a scam. IT IS!!! I wouldnt recommend this Gym to anyone! Im on a 3 year contract with them, once you step in and sign any papers, hand any money over, theres NO WAY OUT!

Ive read reviews on people who were on military leave and cannot pay for the membership anymore. They cancel there membership and then 10 years later they have a negative mark on there credit score from Bally Total Fitness. There are people out there that cannot buy a house because of this. WHAT A SCAM!

I am totally disgusted with the business practices of Bally Fitness, I unknownly signed up for a three year contract with a fast talking Bally's representative, after three months and w few hards times I was unable to not only afford the monthly payments but use the gym at all as I had broke my toe. In the three months I had the membership I went one time for a total of 45 mins. I now have to take time out of work and makea doctors appointment to prove I broke my toe. How many people go to the doctors over a broken toe? Not many since there is nothing a doctor can do. But now its going to cost me $70.00 to leave work and the co-pay to end a contract I was tricked into siging in the first place. It's insane to expect someone to pay something they are flat out telling you they can not afford. Thanks to Bally I have to choose to either not pay all me rent or pay them...People's circustance change drastically through time and this company should be a little more understanding of its fellow man's needs.

I walked in to a Ballys right before Thanksgiving of 2005. I spoke with the sales guy, and yes I was pursuaded to purchase a membership. I was told that it was 19.99/ month because it was a Thanksgiving special. I made a stupid mistake by signing the contract which stated 34.99/month. I asked the sales guy, "Wait a minute, why does this state 34.99/month and not 19.99?" He said that was the regular price and since I was getting the Thanksgiving special for 19.99 that would not apply to me. I learned my lesson the hard way. When purchasing a house or car, I definitely would not have signed a contract like that. But I thought, a club membership... Little did I realize I was lied to. When I was billed for 34.99 and called the club, they stated this "Big E" sales guy was no longer with the company and that I should not have signed the contract if it did not state 19.99. I just could not believe someone would do this at a fitness center. Hint: The only way I could get out the contract was to "move" to a place where there were no Ballys within a certain distance and provide them with a bill with my new address...Which I did very soon.

Worst Gym ever. Worst Customer Service. Specially on cobb Parkway, Marietta, GA-30067. Had gone in March'06 to inquire about membership, they did provide a good deal but told them to hold as I had to cancel my previous gym membership elsewhere;before I commit to Bally's.The Sales Representative wanted me to pay $5 deposit to hold the deal (and made me sign few paper saying its not contract its just to confirm my $5 payment and my interest in Bally's)so i can Decide on Bally's after my cancellation of current gym membership(not Bally's). I was unsuccessful in cancellation on my previous membership so asked Bally's to return my $5 and Cancel the hold for the deal that they gave me. They made me run number of times to confirm that I no longer have hold and I am not obligated to any contract with Bally's. Later after 1 month and successive months I realised they started to charge me 100s of Dollars for the membership that didnt happen.I am still fighting to get my Money.

Terrible service, Terrible equipment, Horrible in every way possible

I go to the Bally's at Union NJ. It is also known as the Springfield location. There are so many incidents happening at this Bally. There are times when lockers got broken into. Two of my friend's car got broken into at the parking lot. My friend's girlfriends car got STOLEN!!!! It is very unsafe and Bally is not doing anything about this problem. We bring up our concern to them and only thing they said we are not responsible for your personal items in and out of Bally. We asked if they can put a security car at least when it gets dark they said no. I told them I don't feel safe coming here therefore can you cancel my membership and they said no. Only thing they want is your money. They are not concerned with your safety. If you ever sign up for Bally, sign up monthly contracts. If you like what you are getting you can always sign up for a contract later on. Especially this Bally is NOT SAFE at all. I strongly recommend you to join some other gym.

They suck totally. You get what you pay for. Its never clean, equipment is always breaking down. Some of the equipment there, I think fred flintstone was using it. The one I used to go to in Livingston NJ had a steam room way in the back where gay people used to have their sexual encounters (real story). You cant work out, you have to stay in line waiting for people who dont know how to use the machines to figure it out. Guys are always hitting on girls. The place is filthy. But NY Sports Club owns it now. But Bally's is horrizble.

My college gym is just as good and much cheaper.