Taipei Xinyi Sports Center — Attraction in Taipei

First of all, there is nothing wrong with the facilities, they are well-kept, relatively modern (but wearing out), and usually clean. I'm very greatful for such a place, so in the spirit of improvement, I'm writing this so it can continue to better serve its community.

The reason for the one-star review is safety concerns. I've seen several instances now where the staff will not enforce the safety rules clearly and publicly posted. For example, during a busy time at the pool, two swimmers crowded out a third in the lane by following too closely and pushing him. Both are against the rules: when staff were told, they asked the victim to move lanes rather than remove the bullies from the pool. The staff then proceeded to tell the victim that this kind of thing is how people do things in Taiwan and that the two bullies were friends, so it was ok for them to disregard the very clear rules posted. This sort of thing will only encourage more and more unsafe behavior. All over this island you see the slogan "safety first" (安全第一), but this is clearly ignored here. This also worries me because it makes me wonder what other responsibilities are being ignored: chemical treatment of the pool? child safety? rinse checks?

Another safety concern is many mosquitoes in locker rooms due to open windows. In a time of COVID, offering open invitations to dozens of disease-transmitting insects is a recipe for spreading infection.

Another is that people don't clean off sweaty equipment at the gym, and staff are slow to do so, which is obviously unhygienic. The courts can also be dusty, which is hazardous in start-stop sports like basketball and squash.

Another is random wet areas on floors and stairs that go unmarked and unmopped.

In conclusion, this facility could be lovely if you didn't have to watch out for unsafe behavior in others and watch out for your hygiene and safety because staff won't at all, even when they clearly should. Bring mosquito repellent, watch your step, and avoid aggressive behavior in others.

UPDATE: This place just keeps getting worse. Now they steal money from you if you book a court and need to change the date with plenty of notice. They also seem to be fine allowing people to poach squash courts. It's been almost a year since they replied to the OP and there has been no noticible improvement to their increasingly deteriorating operations. My strong recommendation is that you go elsewhere, the Nangang and Daan centers may not be as new, but they run things...

Pretty good value for money, no questions-asked gym. You just pay 50NTD for one hour (you can get multiple ones) on the ground floor and they give you a QR code that you use to enter on the 2nd floor. Unlike many other gyms in Taipei they don't scan or your passport or force you to build a 3D model of your face for facial recognition (I wish I was joking).

The equipment is all right. Don't expect to do very heavy lifting though. The dumbbells seem to stop at 26kg (57.5ish pounds?). There's your basic stuff like a couple of squat racks, bench presses, one smith machine. There's some treadmills. And then there's some machines which aren't the best. T

There's a "personal training room" that has gym balls, jumping pads, and other useful training equipment but it was cordoned off.

If you just want to get a work-out in and are in the area (like coming down from Elephant mountain) then this is a pretty good choice. If you are looking for something long-term then I think there are better (but maybe a bit more expensive)...

The place is fine. Cheap, great location, and lots of activities. TAIPEI does do a great job of providing for its citizens.

But the reason for the low rating is because of the staff.

I go quite often for all the reasons above and I live super close by. But the staff, especially the swimming coaches and lifeguards are unprofessional and rude. Every time I go, they always have a frown. When you ask them for questions, some give you the wrong answers, say they don't know, or just answers in an unfriendly way. I take my daughter there for swimming classes and even the swimming coaches are unfriendly.

This being said, I will still go back because of all the good parts of the place. I just hope they will re-train their staff as everyone in Taipei is super friendly...