Villa Sport Fitness - Park Center — Local services in Boise

To some degree, I think the reviews here reflect that most people are not going to write reviews about their gym unless they had a really bad experience... or they have had an outstanding experience. I saw the bad reviews and want to balance them out a little bit. In my experience, Axiom Parkcenter is an outstanding gym. It's easily the best gym I have ever belonged to.

1. The gym membership is actually really pretty cheap by most standards. I moved here from a different city and was paying close to $50/month for the YMCA there, which was a good gym but not as big and with as many amenities as Axiom. Currently, at Axiom, I signed on for a year contract (not required but it gets you a little bit of a cheaper rate) I'm paying for $33/month which includes the VIP option. The VIP option means I can bring in as many guests as I want however many times I want. That in itself is a crazy good deal, even if you only bring in friends once a month. I've never had a gym with this option. As people have said, the only annoying thing about the rates is that they charge a once a year $39 "enhancement" fee after you belong to the gym for I think 90 days. This is pretty stupid and I wish they would just increase their monthly rates a couple of dollars instead of doing it - I suspect this is sort of to rip off all the people who join a gym for a couple of months after the new year and then never go back for the rest of the year but end up having to pay that once yearly fee after 90 days. That said, there is no surprise about this fee at all. When I signed up for the membership, the staff was extremely upfront about costs and told me everything I would be paying for. I still think it's extremely good value for the money.

2. The classes are pretty high quality, even the yoga classes, which you don't normally get from a regular gym. I love that I can get good yoga classes from a normal gym rather than having to pay for an extra yoga membership on top of the gym membership (though an expanded offering would be nice - but I don't necessarily expect this). BodyPump and BodyCombat are two quality classes I go to fairly often and the instructors are good. I'd would maybe like to see more classes that aren't the les milles series but overall, classes are good. There is a very full schedule of offerings and many time options for different schedules.

3. The salt water pool. I LOVE the salt water pool. It's really great not having to swim in chlorine. This was a big selling point for me. Also, since this is really an adult gym (though there is a child care room), you never have to deal with tons of kids in the pool. There is nearly always at least one lap lane open, even if a class is going on, and the majority of the time, all of the lap lanes are open. I really love this because when I went to the YMCA in the other town, I basically always had to swim really early in the morning before work because the pool would have a full schedule of classes or tons of kids in the afternoon.

4. The hot tub, the steam room, and the sauna. All nice extras. The showers are pretty nice, too.

5. The women's exercise room. I don't really use this a whole lot and it's true that most of the machines in here are a little older than the ones outside of it but I like the fact that it exists and I think a lot of women do use it.

6. Contrary to other reviews, I've always found the staff incredibly friendly. I've never had a problem with any of them at all - I actually think the customer service is top notch. They admittedly do put on a pretty hard sell (they always are trying to get you to recommend them to your friends and family by doing give aways for writing down names to offer free trial passes to) but I've never found them to be obnoxious about it.

7. The hours are great. It's 24 hours Monday - Thursday and pretty long hours through the weekend. Never any worries about the gym being closed when you want to work out.

8. There's just a ton of equipment at this gym because it's really large. Most of the equipment is pretty new and in great...

I was a member of Axiom since 2009 (it was Gold's Gym back then). I ended my membership today. I've kept the membership for so long because I only paid $20 per month. Over the past 1-2 years my attendance declined due to the environment being so uncomfortable. Yes, it's a fancy gym, but the macho male testosterone pit was smothering. All the t.v. stations are set to programs that stroke the male ego - themes of aggressive sports, violence, or dumbed-down programming. The televisions that showed gym etiquette were very sexist. The examples of "No cell phones on the gym floor" always showed some chatty woman - when in reality, the ones who yap on their phones while working out are always men. It also shows a "No standing around chit-chatting" rule, and it portrays women. Also in reality, men at the gym do this. The advertisements for personal training show weak, small women who need big strong men to correct their form, and ads for personal training for men show big, strong good looking men who just need a spotter. The ads giving general info about fitness say things like, men benefit from working out because it increases strength, endurance, stamina, etc., while the info for why women should work out states that it reduces the risk of injury and prevents osteoporosis, like women are so prone to deterioration. Besides an environment that caters to men, members in general don't wipe down machines, the towels provided are gross and not switched out very often, the steam room smells like mildew (and has for years) and group exercise classes are always overcrowded. Yoga sessions that have so many people in them that you can't stretch without smacking into the person next to you are the antithesis of peaceful mindfulness. In addition to all these irritations, when I went to cancel my membership, the staff person informed me that because I did not cancel more than 15 days before the next auto withdrawal, I would be charged for April, and then my membership would officially be over in May. This is when the General Manager got involved. He explained that the 15-day rule is policy. I expressed to him that a policy that requires I pay another month is not a good customer service policy , but rather, a greedy one that is designed to charge people another month based on a technicality so the company can milk the customer. Overall, I gave a 3-star rating because it is a large facility, it does have a lot of qualities that other people probably really like, and the General Manager, Brett, was very understanding of my frustrated expressions when I talked to him today. He assured me that the management takes action when male aggression at the gym becomes unsafe, they try to be neutral with the t.v. shows (although, I think they need a reality check on what "neutral" means), and he was very polite when listening to my complaints. Even though my interest in the gym was too long gone to be salvaged, I hope my complaints make for a nicer gym experience for current and...

Villa Sport (Parkcenter) is a solid gym, recommended. One star off due to equipment issues (see below & photos). When these are fixed, I'll consider bumping it up.

Briefly, several of the LF and HS weight machines on the lower level have minor loose parts, need lube/plates drop, or have illegible weight markings. This issue is an odd standout in an otherwise superior fitness center.

Aside from that, overall excellent gym compared to many. I really enjoy coming here to work out and improve my health.

Villa Sport (Parkcenter)'s staff is helpful, knowledgeable, and welcoming. Lots of machines and free weights, and a crazy good number of cardio machines. Clean locker rooms with showers. Smoothie bar with delicious high protein, low calorie drinks. Parking can be tight during busy hours, but there's an unpaved overflow lot nearby.

There's a Palm Beach wellness center connected in the same building which I'm also a member of. I'll usually hit one followed by the other.

Extra key amenities at this Villa Sport location including a steam room and sauna in the locker rooms, a 25-yard indoor saltwater swimming pool with five or six lanes, and a large jacuzzi hot tub by the pool. If you're a gym VIP member (a few more dollars a month), you also get access to the three hydrotherapy chairs.

This Villa Sport holds various classes, including spinning, I believe, with three or four dedicated exercise rooms/studios. There's also a separate, weightlifting and cardio room for women who prefer a women-only setting for their workouts.

One of my favorite features is the open exercise areas. There are three large astroturfed sections where you can do CrossFit type training like rope climbing, pull ups, body weight exercises, ab work, kettle bell weights, rowing machines, push/pull a weighted sled, and even tire flipping.

Before signing a membership contract, make sure to read the cancellation rules carefully, if you think there's a chance you might not stick around. I noticed on a few other reviews people may have gotten caught off guard by the fine print. Nothing tricky going on here, just perform your due diligence as in all things....