Hub Climbing Markham — Attraction in Markham

Shady business practices. Serious deterioration of climb quality. My family use to climb here.

We had memberships. My wife had to cancel her membership and my child’s membership. This happened pre-Covid. I continued my membership, but also eventually cancelled it. The other day, which would be YEARS later, my wife saw a charge on her credit card. They claimed she owed the freeze fee for a frozen membership, but she cancelled it. Her credit card, that was expired, was magically updated by someone other than my wife, and was charged the fee. They have not been helpful with resolving this matter. There was communication once and have not responded to my wife since.

Part 2: They use to have great climbs of varying difficulty. Now, they’re climbs are ridiculous with unnecessary pieces and pieces that just plain simply get in the way. The more “difficult” the climb, the more ridiculous it is. Setters should climb they’re climbs. This is very rarely the case.

Update: Since this is the only way you respond, let’s have an open conversation on this platform.

To say you couldn’t get in contact with either my wife or I is a lie. There was email correspondence on Tues May 16. She posted a photo of the email as proof on her review, which has since been removed. We’ve already contacted Google to verify why, but I assume it is due to the confidentiality clause in your emails. The screenshot she posted shows she was informed that management would be in touch with her, which never happened. As per your claim of attempting to call, why not email if the calls were not going through? Afraid of documenting the conversation? I find it interesting that negative reviews is the only way to get your attention.

We know that the membership was canceled. She was charged one month after the freeze payment started up again. She accepted that charge because she acknowledges that she missed the deadline to switch from frozen to canceled. She got in touch with the hub to ensure that the membership was terminated, and she was no longer billed for it after that.

I had also been back to climb under a day pass several times, with zero mention of an outstanding balance on my wife’s account. Notifying your customers of outstanding balances is pretty important, especially when it is a frozen membership balance. So imagine my shock to see a charge of 16 months all at once.

I will be disputing this fraudulent charge with my credit card company as you had no right to steal my money. Your lack of organization is not our responsibility. I will also be filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. What was done and how it was handled is nothing short of deceitful and unprofessional.

EVERY PERSON WHO HAS A CARD ON FILE WITH YOU SHOULD BE...

As a member of this gym for years, I noticed the prices have been going up and the experience has been going downhill.

(1) The gym has become what feels like a giant daycare center (an actual daycare would've been better because they have trained professionals who specialized in childcare). There is an increasing number of kids and parents not following gyms rules; climbing on top and below you, running underneath you while you climb. While I try to be extra cautious, I cannot control what others, neither can I defy gravity. It has become unsafe that I try to avoid going to the gym after school or on weekends. That pretty much limits me to weekdays during work hours... It makes no sense to have a membership and avoid going because of safety reasons.

(2) The gym is planning to renovate while the facility remains open. My initial concern was the construction dust (allergies) and the noise which may affect the health and safety of the climbers. The solution they offered was "we would like to offer you the option to freeze your membership for a month at the standard rate if you are certain that you will not be using our facility during the construction period." It doesn't make sense to me that I have to pay to freeze my membership for a health and safety concern the gym is introducing.

(3) Email response time is horrible. The membership change request form says all requests will be responded within 7 business days. Actual response time was about 5 business days. As a business, if it's taking that long to reply to emails, they should hire someone to specifically deal with emails and phone calls.

(4) Parking can be a headache, especially when there's a big party. Even the plaza across the street was out of parking spots... Would appreciate it if the gym posted something on social media to warn about big parties.

(5) Settings aren't as good as they used to be. It's uninspiring and not motivating for experienced climbers.

Maybe a gym for new climbers or to host birthday parties but I cannot recommend this gym to experienced climbers...

EDIT: To clarify, I'm not asking the facility to hold back on improvements but should consider people who are allergic to construction dust (flying dirt, dust particles, wood dust, etc, not just concrete). The decision to cancel my membership and to ask for a partial refund (not the full refund) was not because of the 3 week construction alone but how things are being handled and other reasons listed above. Why should members pay to freeze their membership on something they have no...

I looked up the Hub's address on Google, and read Aryan Goharzad's review (it was the only review at the time). I was a little concerned about visiting with my 11 year old.

I feel that since Aryan was clear about his non recommendation based on his experience, I would also share my own experience based on my two visits ((Nov 22, Dec 27 2014) with my son; for those parents who rely on reviews as a guide. I respectfully disagree with his review regarding safety.

We hadn’t climbed in over 2 years but it is an experience that we enjoyed. (We moved from Toronto to King City and use to climb at True North). 20 seconds in, he wanted a job at the Hub in 4 years. The first thing you see when you enter is the desk populated by greetings and warm smiles; the 2nd is The Dragon (more on this). The first time there I didn’t climb, but stood by as my son was coached to bolder safely. The 2nd time I did climb and we both did the training session again - different staff member, equally friendly and clear with directions. Yes, the mats are firmer that the other gyms I have been to – but I didn’t find this an area for concern for myself or my son.

We safely bolder the beginner walls, and worked our way around the gym. It is gigantic gym with a lot of walls for bouldering with varying degrees of challenging routes. My son wanted to climb The Dragon after watching a few skilled climbers make it look easy. He loved the foam pit and practiced the techniques taught to him (arms folded, chin tucked in) when falling. At no point was I concerned about his safety. There are challenging climbs and some amazing skillful climbers. All the climbers encountered were friendly.

The place itself is clean, expansive and colourful. There is an eating area with lots of natural light and a foosball table (which we spent some time at to strengthen our grip). I saw weights in a separate area and saw some people with Yoga mats, but wasn’t sure where it was (it really is a huge place).

We really, really enjoyed the time there and plan to visit monthly.

Tips for parents: It was a little cool on the floor with just socks, recommend bringing slippers when the climbing shoes are off, and there are snacks behind the counter and a Tim Horton’s...