Orangetheory Fitness — Local services in New York

Update: I first wrote this review several years ago but felt the need to update because of one instructor in particular.

Alex is, hands down, the best coach I’ve ever seen at an Orangetheory - across the 10+ studios I’ve been to in 5 states. Being in a class with him is like having a personal trainer, given his attention to detail and hands-on approach whether it is giving tips, fixing form, or even just dropping by to say you’re doing great. This dude can multitask like crazy, and even in a full class he somehow makes time to check up on everyone. You can tell he genuinely enjoys helping people, even staying after class to explain the correct forms in more detail. Sometimes his classes run over but it’s because he’s being too helpful (lol). After having been in a few of his classes now, I felt compelled to come here to commend him - I hope OTF Forest Hills keeps him for a long time because his presence alone elevates this studio.

My original review:

I travel a lot so I’ve been to 4 Orangetheory studios across 3 different states, here is what is provided (and not provided) at this specific gym:

No free borrowing of heart rate monitors (studios in small cities will lend them to you for free, not the case in NY) No towels (the only studio I’ve ever been to that does not provide towels) No surcharge fee (most NYC studios have a special, additional fee for booking if it’s not your home studio; in Manhattan it’s $20 and in Brooklyn it’s $10) Filtered water (from tap, but has a filter so it’s not just a drinking fountain) Free lockers with built-in locks Showers Coat rack No pressure to sign up for a membership if you’re only on a class package (some studios can be very pushy)

The staff and trainers are friendly, they make a genuine effort to learn names and remember faces. Really the only thing they can improve upon is providing small towels. I don’t have a monthly membership so I can’t speak to any billing experiences but the lack of studio surcharge at this location is a big win for traveling package...

Clean Gym, But Beware of Shady Billing Practices

The good: The gym is clean, most machines are in good condition, and the staff is helpful if something goes wrong. They are especially attentive before registration. I trained with one instructor, Coach Tariq, who was professional, and I enjoyed the classes.

The frustrating part: Be very careful with this place! In November, they advertised a promotion: If you buy the wristband with your registration, your second month is free. I signed up, bought the wristband, and paid for the first month, thinking I was trying the gym for just one month. However, I later found out they had signed me up for a three-month contract without properly informing me.

I was charged for November, got December free (since I had purchased the wristband), and then was expected to pay for January—something I never agreed to. Despite repeatedly stating that I did not want any additional months and explaining that I would be out of state, they refused to cancel my membership before January 16th.

Since no one was answering my calls, I took an hour off work to cancel in person, ensuring that January 16th would be my last payment. That’s when they hit me with another surprise: their policy apparently required an extra month’s payment after cancellation. The receptionist was completely unhelpful and only promised to inform the manager.

I told them that if they charged me again in February, I would leave a review exposing their dishonest practices. I later received two calls from my instructor—at first, he agreed that I shouldn't be charged. However, he later called at a bad time, promised to call back, and never did. Then, on February 16th, I was charged again.

So what was supposed to be a one-month trial in November turned into four months of charges. Absolutely unacceptable and deceptive business practices.

Save your time, money, and frustration—find a gym that is transparent and ethical about...

I had a very disappointing experience at this OrangeTheory location.

I booked my free first class in advance and followed all the instructions, including arriving 30 minutes early as requested. However, when I arrived, I was told I needed to present an ID with a Queens address in order to qualify for the free class — a requirement that was never communicated to me at any point during the booking process.

When I mentioned this, the staff insisted they had sent me a message with that information. After checking, they realized they had sent the message to the wrong phone number — meaning I never received any notice. Despite this being clearly their internal error, I was told I would have to pay $30 if I wanted to take the class.

This made me feel extremely uncomfortable — as if I were trying to take advantage of the free trial offer, when in fact I had followed every instruction I was given. Their failure to communicate essential information, combined with the lack of accountability for their own mistake, was deeply frustrating.

This experience left me questioning the integrity and professionalism of the studio’s management. I left without taking the class, and with a strong sense that my time and good faith had been disrespected.

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UPDATE for everyone reading this: About six weeks after my review, they finally replied here asking me to email them – but I had already sent TWO detailed emails to that exact address on the very same day I wrote my review (May 30).【screenshot attached】

Guess what? Not a single reply. Not even an acknowledgment.

This PR template response isn’t about fixing anything – it’s just to make it look like they “care.” If they truly cared, they would have replied to those emails back in May instead of ignoring them for weeks and posting this copy-paste reply in mid-July – and then still not following up two...