My son now 13 years old , started at 4 years, wasn't progressing much, took a year off and he is now the best swimmer ever. He finished 3 years later we did skip some sessions . My 4 year old daughter will start this year also. Staff friendly and although I couldn't follow the training. My son seemed to enjoy the classes and is a very confident swimmer ... read more

This place is borderline abhorrent. The first and most specific point is that this place is NOT clean. The staff are filled with idiots who seem to never be around, so even if you didn't pay for a class it feels like you can walk in and swim with no issues. Don't even get me started on the classes. How is it possible that our kids did more in the mommy + me classes than they ever did in the Advanced mommy + me?! Walking out after our last swim session with my 2yo was the best feeling because we know we will absolutely never be back. Save your money, your time and your health. read more

My son is enrolled her for a 6 week session . His first class was 2 weeks ago . I signed up online . On the first day of lesson first thing that caught my attention was hygiene and cleanliness of the facility . It's not clean ! The pool itself is not well maintained . The ratio of kids to instructors for the mommy and me class too may kids in one class . There was also 4/5 yr old class going on at the same time with a ratio of 11 kids to one instructor . The second lesson was cancelled on the day I went in due to pool cleaning during the time of a lesson on a Tuesday at 5:30 . There is a huge gap of communication for parents and the how this place does business . I have reached out via phone no answer and now email with my concerns . It took a few days but today I heard back from Heidi . I will update this with further once I have more info . read more

Kids learn to swim without the distraction of their parents. Group classes are 5:1 My sons learn a lot each season. We've gone read more

This place gets 2 stars because it USED to be good. When we started lessons last year, the school was great. We had a steady, reliable instructor and the manager was present and responsive. Both of those employees are gone. In the time that they've been gone, we have had 5 different instructors who all teach differently so there's no consistency. Since the new manager never seems to be available, the school appears to be run completely by kids. While the kids are pleasant and doing the best they can, they are kids. There was still no August instructor schedule available on July 27 because they were all preparing to return to school and no one had their class schedule yet. Trying to contact anyone for a refund after being told BY THE STAFF that there no instructors scheduled is a maddening waste of time. Once they got enough complaints , they posted their cancellation policy on the front door but did (and are currently doing) nothing to remedy the situation. They're just holding our money hostage. There are plenty of swim schools in MD to pick from do choose one of those. I doubt any others are as bad as this. read more

Awful establishment. The instructors are fine but this place is so poorly managed. See below for specific points. 1) My daughter was enrolled for individual lessons for one session. Most weeks my daughter would get sick about 2-3 days after every her lesson without fail. This establishment is so filthy and needs to be sanitized. 2) with the indivisible lessons you're entitled to one make up class if you need to miss a lesson. It literally took me calling 5 times before I ever got a call back to schedule the make up lesson. And that's only because I asked to speak to the manager. 3) they don't give end of session reports!! They used to give you a little pamphlet that explains what your child mastered that session and on what level they left off at. They don't do this anymore. When I asked about it the front desk said "my manager stopped printing them out so we just don't do that anymore". I asked for that report because we were starting at the Kids First Bel Air location for the next session and I wanted to show the instructor exactly where my daughter left off. They said they would get it for us but never did, and no call back. SHOCKER. This place needs new management, a really good deep clean, and training for its employees big time. I would never take my children back here. read more

Horrible Place! I Would not recommend to anyone. My daughter has been in a lot of sports but Kids First Swim has to be the worst establishment I have ever been in contact with. My daughter was first enrolled at the Dundalk location and our only issue here was that there were a lot of college kids so the coaches weren't consistent. Which is understandable, we just wish were told this before hand. We wanted a more consistent coach for our five year old daughter so we went to go check out the Perry Hall location. Our daughter loves to swim so we enrolled her in private lessons every Sunday with a specific Coach that our daughter connected with. We called the week before just to make sure everything was set and stone and that's when we were informed that the Coach we picked out is no longer with the company and we would not get a refund but we were more than welcome to pick another Coach. They did NOT contact us with this information, we called them. We debated on calling corporate but our daughter really wanted to swim so we picked another Coach. So here we are today ready for class and we were told because of the shortage of coach's my daughter would not be able to get her individual class that WE PAID for. My daughter is upset at this point and the woman behind the desk said it's "nothing we can do" but my daughter could "free swim" but that's not what I paid for. Looking at the reviews here if the "higher ups" decide not to refund my family our money, we will be taking this to court. Everything they said before enrolling my daughter at this location was a lie and it's not okay. I only selected one star because I had to, it really should be no stars. read more

Save yourself some time and money by going to the Y or another swim school. This the place is a joke, 50% of the allotted time the kids spend on the step with their feet in the water, and the other 50% is spent with the kids doing whatever they want to without supervision. I nervously watched my non swimmer make several attempts to dive and at no time was the instructor aware. Her back was turned to them most of the time and the few seconds she looked at them was to splash them with water. After this first and scary session, I called and complained plus told them I would not be returning, nevertheless, they went ahead and charged my credit card for the entire previously booked classes. This is an unsafe place and the licensing authority should pay them a visit unknowingly and assess the classes. read more

Good place once you get going they do a better job at teaching now and seem to really care About the kids. read more

One time I was teaching a level 3/4 I believe. Someone pooped in the pool. They did not follow appropriate health department regulations- you are supposed to shock the pool and clear it for 30 minutes. They left us in there because they do not want to refund people. The manager at my time of unemployment, Nicole, was very unprofessional. Instead of taking matters privately, she would reprimand you in front of staff and speak down to you. Nicole never told me to my face that she let me go, she told the rest of the staff however. Thanks Nikki! read more

We have been involved with Kids First Swim Perry Hall for a few years now. My grand daughter started it out swimming at a very young age. She has gone through several levels and we have had several different instructors. They all are very patient, compassionate and seem to really love the kids. Most recently, we have had the opportunity to have Miss Alex as our instructor for several different levels. She truly has a teachers soul. Miss Alex has patience , kindness, support for the kids, and a genuine interest in helping the kids learn the correct way to swim and be safe ! When three-year-old tend to wander with their minds and their eyes, Miss Alex knows the right way to pull them right back in and get them involved back in the lesson. Most importantly, the students respect her and she respects them.! read more

Hmm, no reviews seems like an injustice for this place. So, I was randomly driving to kill about 20 minutes and decided that I'd never really paid attention to the strip of Rt 1 between 43 and Honeygo. I usually either get off at Rt 43 or get on going north at Honeygo. Starting at Honeygo going south, Kids First Swim caught my attention on the right, so I decided to go it. I'm really glad I did because they were having a December special class - two 30 minute classes a week for 3 weeks for $55. What a steal, so I signed my daughter up. We're not through that special yet, but we've already signed her up for the next session. She's learning so much and having so much fun, she cries when class is over. Also, a pretty cool feature of having her enrolled in the class is on weekend nights from 7-9 there's family free swim. The pool area is clean and the temperature nice. The changing rooms are a decent size and pretty clean (only earning a 'pretty clean' because I'm grossed out by hair and sometimes there's noticeable hair on the floor, but this should be expected considering....but still). The bathrooms aren't fancy, but clean and functional. All in all, the December deal is what sucked me in and it worked. Now we're happy customers. read more

KIDS FIRST Swim School - Watching my 3 year old jump into the deep end from the observation room. - Swimming Lessons/Schools Near Me - Perry Hall, Maryland

My first visit here was with my grandson for his toddler swimming lessons. They could use a bit more seating for spectators while the children are getting the lesson. Otherwise I think the staff was very friendly and accommodating. read more

KIDS FIRST Swim School - Swimming Lessons/Schools Near Me - Perry Hall, Maryland

Horrible. Currently trying to get my money back from them. I signed up by phone and was never told about the no refunds policy until the instructor kept cancelling sessions and then one day didn't come back at all. I then was forced to wait a month to reschedule and then was told I wasnt scheduled for that day. plus disrespected in front of my child. They refuse to give me my $300 back. And told me to take it to court smh sherry the woman I spoke to told me the owners were aware and wouldn't give me any money back . read more

Kids First swim should be called Kids first what a joke. This place never has an adult working there. The "instructors" who are children, do not care about your child's wellbeing. They spend their time laughing and talking with their co-workers. As the parent, you need to be the life guard behind the glass wall. The lessons have no structure. The "instructor" teaches for 5 minutes on a breast stroke. Then it becomes, I'm bored with your child and since my phone isn't in the pool, I'll toss these 5 rings across the pool and converse with my friends who work here. Mean while I don't face your child who could drown because they don't fully know how to swim because they are here for lessons. And watch out for the "instructor" hand signals, where they place their hand or fingers on their nose/face while they laugh to each other about not teaching your child to swim. I'd give a negative rating if I could. read more

Well, i was kind of okay with this company for the first 5 weeks my daughter has been here. The branch seems kinda of stinky and dirty, and they are well underequipped as far as changing areas go, but for her level 1 lessons my daughter learned all the activities, so I was forgiving those things. However today we come in and are told that our daughter should go through level 1 again, despite her being able to complete every exercise in the level 1 program. And of course, they'd want us to pay full price for it. So at this point this now seems like they are just trying to milk us for more money, which added to the other issues, no longer makes me very happy with this place at all. read more

We love kids first! And our sons teachers Mrs. Nancy and Mrs. Ileen ;)!!! Ms. Nicole is awesome too! He has learned so much at only 5 years old! read more

My 9 year old and 7 year olds have gone there for years. My 9 year old zoomed thru and finished level 8 last year. He also did the swim team for a while. My daughter is still in level 3. Both of my kids have always liked going there. I have always liked the teachers and staff. I would suggest they keep classes at 4 kids or less. We only had 5 one time. We have been happy with it. read more

Found a deal on certifikid, $50 for 4 weeks of 1 30 minute session per week. Have just completed the 3rd week and thus far I do not have any major complaints. The facility does look a bit outdated but the pool area is fine and I like the observation room. I do wish that they had a family bathroom instead of restricting the use of the bathrooms based on the age of the child. After one session we had to hurry and get cleaned up as we had a family function to attend. I had to send my 7 year old into the bathroom by himself to shower which I was not completely comfortable with as there is not much privacy with the shower and dressing area. Once he finished showering I had to take him to another area to go into the private, tiny, changing room. My child seems to be enjoying the lessons. Seems to early to really tell if he is developing major skill but I just signed up for the next session so we will see where it goes. If he doesn't make it to the next level after the next 7 classes I probably won't sign him back up. read more

I will never step foot into this establishment again!! I registered my 4 year old for swim lessons, she loves to be in a pool but is very timid about putting her face in the water. While I was registering, the manager assured me that they take their time with the children and don't make them do anything they are not ready to do. I reiterated that it could be weeks even months before my daughter will feel comfortable about going under or even just putting her face in. Again she said it's fine. So on our first lesson a few days later I am watching through the viewing window you can see that my daughter is acting very timid in the water, she didn't like the splashing from the other kids. Six minutes into the lesson the teacher takes my daughter off the side of the pool and puts her completely under the water, when she comes up she is crying hysterically, everyone in the viewing area gasped when my daughter went under, it was obvious to everyone watching that she was not ready for this. I went to the door to go in and there was a lifeguard standing there who said I couldn't come in I wasn't allowed, I went directly to the front desk where the Manager was, I was furious!! I asked her why my daughter was put underwater when we had discussed how long the process would probably take for her to let this happen. She said your daughter must have said she wanted to go under I said I doubt it and I want to go in and check on my daughter she too said I couldn't. I told her watch me and I proceeded behind the counter and into the pool area. By this point my daughter is crying so hard she is making herself vomit. She was left alone on the side of the pool by herself, the teacher had left her there and continued teaching the other kids. The Manager followed me into the pool area where I was trying to console my daughter and she had the nerve to say you are making it worse by coming in here she would have been fine. Then the instructor finally came over and said that my daughter wanted to go under, my daughter immediately said no I didn't!! You didn't ask me if I wanted to go under. I took my daughter to the changing rooms, calmed her down and got her dressed, the whole time she asked why the teacher put her under water that she didn't want to. Before leaving I went to the Manager and asked if I could have the name of her boss and she said no that it wouldn't go beyond her anyway, the teacher did nothing wrong that my daughter shouldn't have said she wanted to go under if she didn't. I asked for a refund and she said no and it is non transferable. I am out $80 and when I came home and tried to research who the owners are it is not an easy thing to find. I wouldn't suggest that anyone takes their children here, they are unprofessional and very rude and don't have your child's best interest in mind!! read more

There's a reason this swim school has a poor reputation amongst mom groups. But I was feeling optimistic and gave it a try anyway, however, we won't be returning due to poor management, low quality swim instruction, and an aging and dirty facility. For the same cost per session you can go to one of the best swim schools in the nation, Meadowbrook, which is more professionally run with higher quality staff and much more knowledgeable and caring instructors. If you're looking for a local water hole for the kids to get wet and don't care about much else (including cleanliness), this might fit your needs. But if you want quality swim instruction, for the same price as KFSS, take your kids to Meadowbrook. read more

My cousin & I took a "water therapy" class on Monday several weeks ago . The people in the class were very nice and the gentleman instructor was very good . However, the pool was filthy. The water was cloudy and I scooped up human hair at least8-10 inches long. There were bits of black somethings on the floor and my cousin also scooped up hair debri when attempting to swim. Yuk! It was disgusting. We would like to attend Monday classes routinely but the pool needs serious attention. read more

The one thing that bothers me is that the swim instructors always seem to have Dunkin Donuts in their hands while they are coaching. How is this possible for a swim coach? I do not believe that drinks should be allowed in the swim area. I witnessed one coach hold her drink for 10 minutes while spouting commands to the students in her class and holding a conversation with another swim coach. read more

this place would be great except its ran by a bunch of grumpy teenage girls who have a low tolerance for young children. my 5 year old hates this place because they are not at all patient with him and are rude. At the end of his first class he said to me mommy she was mad at me and just kept telling me I was doing it all wrong. I really don't think she knew it was his first class but she was clearly irritated with him from the start. we have been 3 times so far and all the staff iv encountered have been teenagers and rude except for one instructor who I was told everyone try's to request. read more

My first visit here was to bring my kids to a friends Birthday party, when we got here we were greeted by smiling faces from the friendly staff who showed us where to go. The facility was well maintained and taken care of. I was so impressed with kids first in Perryhall I signed my two boys up for swim lessons that day! They try to be very flexible with their schedule which works great for me being a single dad. Over the next several weeks my kids looked forward to comming to swim school and seeing not only their instructor but the whole staff are very friendly and great with kids. The manager Nicole and assistant manager Heidi are great and they really care about the kids and making sure everyone has a comfortable and wonderful experience. I would recommend this swim school to everyone!!! read more

We have been going to kids first at this location for 5 years now. We started with mommy and me and then my oldest son finished last year being fully aware of the water and a great swimmer. My youngest is in his third year now and I must say, ms. Nancy is fabulous! He has gotten over his fear of putting his head underwater and knows pool safety. He is doing things in the water I never thought to expect this year. She is simply amazing and great with the kids! My parents have a pool and kids first has prepared them over the years and made them aware and safe. I could not be happier. read more

We've taken 2 Mommy n Me classes and one level 1 class. Kids First makes learning to swim fun. I am shocked at how much my child is willing to try. read more

Kids First has done such a great job. Registration was easy and the staff is very knowledgeable and friendly. Any time I've had a question or concern it has been answered or addressed in a timely manner. The manager has been very easy to talk to and explains everything thoroughly The facilities are well maintained and kept clean. I will continue to be a loyal customer to Kids First in Perry Hall. read more

We were extremely disappointed in the mommy and me class that we just took for the last 6 weeks. Quick background, we have taken many mommy and me classes at several different swim schools including another "Kids First Swim School" so we know how they should go. This particular class had no structure and very little instruction. Basically the instructor, "Katie" I believe (Stay away from her, nice girl bad teacher) gave your kid a toy and you held them for a half hour. This is not exactly what we paid money for. It was so bad that I actually had to instruct other parents what they should be doing. At one point the instructor said ok it's time to essentially dunk your kid. No technique was given such as, blowing in the kids face so they naturally hold their breath or to bring them back to the surface in a U motion. As you can imagine dunking your 6 month old for the first time is traumatic enough now you have to do it without instruction. Instruction, by the way, that you paid for. After about 2 classes we complained to the college student at the front desk. She suggested moving to another class since the instructor was so bad. In normal circumstances we would have done exactly that, but our older son was in the 9AM class Mommy and Me was the 9:30 class. So obviously it's a major inconvenience to come to the place again for another Mommy and Me class at a different time. So, I suggested that it would be better if the instructor was trained properly instead of making the customer change their busy schedule. Like I said the was a college student and didn't really have a say in the situation so I said just have the owner call me and I'll take my complaint up with them. I'm still waiting for that call. Then my wife asked for someone to call her about the class being terrible. She never got a call. BUT when it was time to sign up for the next session (you know the part where they take your Money) someone did call. My wife said we were extremely disappointed in the Mommy and Me class and we would not be signing up again until we could talk to someone about our concerns and complaints. Finally someone got back to her she stated all I mentioned above. Honestly all we were looking for was a refund or even given the next class free with another instructor. (2 times we had Sub-teacher and they were good) Instead we got you should have changed classes we explained that was not an option, we asked why we were not contacted about our concerns but they swear they called (they never did though). The representative from the school even admitted they had a lot of complaints about the instructor and she will no longer be teaching that class. We started out with about 15-20 kids in the class and ended with about 5 (most of those parents were in the same situation as us with their other children in another class right before or during the 9:30 class.) They were not willing to work with us at all even though they knew they were putting out an inferior product. To me, teaching your kid to swim could literally save your kids life one day this place doesn't care about your kid or you as a customer. There are plenty of good swim schools out there do yourself a favor don't go to this one. read more

This place is absolutely NOT worth the money. I did the mommy and me class with my 18 month old and there's about 8 other young children in our group one as little as six months they try to have way to many things going on at one time in a medium sized pool. Last week while my husband was in the pool with our little one the instructor of the older children thought it was acceptable to have the older kids practicing diving off the side of the pool where the mommy and me classes were going on which resulted in one of the older students kicking my husband while under water. Which is not a big deal but suppose she kicked my little one My husband expressed his concern and the instructor tried to tell him it was fine and cintinued letting the older ones dive in a needless to say we left early that day and will not be going back. The place is dirty and has a mildew smell. Biggest waste of money I've spent and we also paid in advance so nothing we can do. read more

I just popped on here to write a review for a different place and notice how awful the reviews were for this place. I've been coming off and on since late 2012. I have 2 children now in the program and my sons are Levels 4 and 7. My youngest just passed to Level 4 and he is 6. He spent 5 full session in level 3. Yes, it is frustrating but I can tell you I can see the difference between when I wanted him to pass to level 4 and now. Just because my child is the best out of his class doesn't mean he needed to pass. I SEE the difference now! The place is old and you can tell. The owner really needs to put more back into the place. But the instruction is great over all vs. price. The staff are really friendly and anytime that I've had an issue with anything the Desk person takes care of it right away. I frequently see the manager and have several conversations with her. If anyone has an issue they really need to talk to her. She will handle. I know that for a fact. When I brought up an issue with an instructor she went right out on deck and had the instructor fix the issue. IT has stayed fixed and now my oldest loves Miss Ali. read more