Gold's Gym Austin Bee Caves — Local services in Bee Cave

I’ve been attending this gym for around a year and a half now, and I can confidently say it is one of the best in the Austin area. The combination of amiable staff, various machines/benches, the wide selection of cable attachments, and a lively community make this gym the gold standard of muscle-building gyms.

From a purely muscle-building perspective, this gym beats the YMCA, Lifetime Fitness, and Westlake Gold’s Gym. Its equipment is well-stocked with plenty of static bench variants, two decently kept Smith machines, and plenty of squat racks. Furthermore, there are plenty of cable systems, a wide selection of machines for every muscle group, and some boxing bags. If dumbbells are your thing, multiple sets of lower weights and some higher weights reach up into the 130+ range, with plenty of static and adjustable free benches to accommodate. I also appreciate the well-thought-out equipment placement in this gym; the benches are not too close, nor are they sporadically spread out. If you need some water, there are also many fountains, although some are colder than others. Its 35-40 dollar price is the best option for anybody looking to effectively build muscle for a fair price.

However, the best aspect of this gym is its staff and community. The staff here is exceptional as well as helpful. They initiate conversations, actively listen to what their clientele says, and provide thoughtful responses. Two staff members, Jaq and Keaton (hopefully I spelled their names right), are outstanding. Jaq is an all-around fantastic dude; he’s nonjudgemental, always has a bright smile, and frequently starts conversations with me and other gym members. Furthermore, my conversations with him have always been genuine; he seems to honestly care about the people he interacts with. Moving on to Keaton he is a knowledgeable and respectable staff member; he is always willing to help other members and provide in-depth feedback to their questions. Similarly to Jaq, he is well-mannored and kind to those who walk up to the desk. This is not to say the other staff isn’t kind either; these guys just stick out to me.

The community is also quite accepting, with plenty of nice and mindful people who frequent the location, and the sour interactions I did have were from people who don’t frequent that gym (I haven’t seen any of them since our interaction). I can’t speak on the personal trainers or the classes, but I imagine they’re pretty decent.

Generally, as long as you follow the rules and apply some common sense, you’ll never be approached by the staff or called out by other gym goers.

Now, this wouldn’t be a complete review without a few minor complaints, so here they are: I find that the lids for the wipes often tear the wipe and get stuck under the restrictor, causing you to have to open the thing or just find another station (stronger wipes might help). The Smith machines are slightly gritty, so it might be time to oil up the two safety drop bars. As with any gym, more 45 plates always help as well. Lastly, there seem to be a few unused machines due to their being better alternatives, newer models, and or the machine itself is a little too niche (the bar climb machine). I understand money doesn’t grow on trees, but I feel these machines could be replaced with different or...

Probably going to have my membership cancelled for writing this, but I can't in good conscience simply sit back after what happened today.

I'll preface this by saying I'm usually never someone to write reviews. Simply not who I am, but after today I'm as confused as I am offended.

A gentleman I routinely attend church with asked if he could start coming with me to the gym as he wanted to get in better shape and wanted a workout partner. I was thrilled that he wants to prioritize his fitness and get in shape. We started working out the following week and shortly after the first day, Ben and Kevin approach us and ask if I can step aside to speak with them privately. I gladly agreed, and to my confusion, they start berating me with false accusations of being a personal trainer and poaching their members. They told me about an "out of house trainer" policy and how that places tremendous liability on the gym. Completely understand, no argument there. My confusion lies in that I'm not a trainer, nor have I ever held a certification, the gentleman is personal family friend whom we've known for months, I was not getting paid, and we were completing the workouts together.

I was then told that a write up would be done and put in my file and that if I was seeing working out with another individual at any point again in the gym that my membership would be terminated.

Here lies my confusion - upon looking around, there were at least half a dozen pairs working out together. These ranged from high school aged kids, to couples, to older individuals.

After asking for clarification that I would no longer be able to work out with another individual in any capacity, I was told that is the case and that my membership would be terminated if caught. However, that they "were always hiring, and if I wanted to come work for them they would be more than glad to hire me as a trainer."

After being a golds member for several years, I think it's time to find a a new gym where the staff doesn't berate the members with false accusations...

If you value respect, safety, or basic human decency, do not come to this Gold’s Gym.

I was keeping to myself with my headphones on, not bothering anyone, just trying to focus on my workout. Out of nowhere, an older man I had never met began harassing me. He interrupted me mid-set, stood directly over me to block me from continuing, and refused to move — making it impossible for me to keep working out.

At the time, I had completely lost my voice, so I couldn’t defend myself or ask him to leave. Instead, he followed me around the gym, stared at me, and made degrading comments like: • “You don’t even know how to work out.” • “You shouldn’t even be here.” • “This is a waste of time for you.” • “You should not be here.”

I wasn’t doing anything wrong — I was there to better myself mentally and physically — yet I was cornered, humiliated, and made to feel unsafe in a place that’s supposed to support its members.

What makes this worse? When I reported it, the front desk admitted they had previous complaints about this man. This was not his first time. The manager told me members are allowed to harass someone at least once before the gym will ban them.

Let that sink in: At this Gold’s Gym, a paying member can stalk, insult, corner, and block another member — and face no consequences the first time.

This is not just bad policy. It’s negligence. It’s putting members at risk. It’s telling paying customers their safety means nothing compared to a membership fee.

If you want to spend money to be harassed, trapped, and dismissed by management, this is the place. If you want a gym that actually protects its members and respects them — go anywhere else.

This gym does not care about its members’ safety. I will never return, and I strongly urge anyone reading this:...