Disgusting roach filled gym with shady managers who have fraudulent practices. Don't join this gym unless you want roaches to crawl into your belongings through the holes in the lockers. Don't join this gym unless you're ready for them to fraudulently charge you $680 several months after you have canceled the membership. When approached about this discrepancy, the manager, Ashley Harvey, states that policy ALLOWS them to illegally charge you months after you have canceled. So there you have it. Out of the horse's mouth. A quick scroll though the reviews will indicate that this has happened with may other members. Choose wisely if you're wondering if this gym is for you. Current members, take heed and prepare to be in close contact with your banks should you ever decide to cancel. read more

Customer seevice relations is extremely poor. Warning. My info was provided so I could tour and see what the gym was like. Would've been awesome since I work downtown. However, before I even stepped foot into the gym, multiple employees called and text me. I feel like this, and I am sure others do too, of I say I will be there on Monday, I will be there on Monday. Unfortunately, they will call and text you almost everyday, even after you share when you will take a tour. Look, I don't owe you any money, don't call me as if I do. I couldn't take the harassment and never even went to take a tour. If employees can't respect my time, I don't want to be a member. read more

I would like to add that after I canceled my membership is April the Maryland Athletic Club proceeded to randomly charge m Credit Card NINE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FOUR DOLLARS for no known reason, which I now have to spend time sorting out with my bank. (I was paying $85 a month) read more

Maryland Athletic Club - blatant credit card fraud - Gyms Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

Nice gym with lots of options. Lap pool. Hanging out pool. Hot tub. Sauna (in the bathroom). Free weights/dumbbells. Squat racks. spin class room. stationary bikes outside of the spin classroom.weight machines. treadmill. Stair steppers. ellipticals. mats. exercise balls. rowing machines. A colleague invited me to try it out and it was a nice kick start into getting back into shape. Thanks my friend and MAC! read more

I do not recommend this place. The management is very poor, and the facility is dirty with cockroaches. The pool's ceiling materials are coming off, which is toxic to health. The manager, Ashley, is always looking to charge you more rather than provide a good service. For example, we signed up for semi-private swim lessons and they automatically switched to private billing because they couldn't find more customers. Tried three times to ask about a problem with my membership account. Still no answer. It's just not worth the hassle and expense to go here when other gyms provide better service for the same price. read more

Just had the most unfortunate experience this weekend trying to enjoy a free trial at the Maryland Atheletic Club. My partner was given a 7 day free trial thru his job for both of us. We came in on Saturday- couldn't get through on the phone to anyone to inquire so we just showed up. Girl at the desk, photocopied our licenses and let us tour the gym on our own. I returned an hour later to try a class. The membership counselors and sales manager were there and said I should never been allowed to tour. I got set up with the sales chat and a formal tour (it was sub par- I kept asking about where certain studios were for classes as I hadn't been shown them and was never told about parking validation) then attended a class. On Sunday we lifted weights at the club and I was texted by the sales manager to ask how things were going and if I wanted to join with 0$ enrollment as that ends today. I shared that I needed to finish my 7 day trial to understand if this was the place for me. She said to me that I don't have a 7 day trial, I only have 3 days or something like that. At this point, between front desk girl, the sub par tour which left out multiple things and the counselor not know certain policies like their 14 day cancellation- I was done. This was the same manager I was talking to- I had it in writing that I got 7 days from their company coming to my partners job. I had sat in her office and told her who my partner worked for and this offer was extended to their company. My partner is also a sales manager and these details should not slip through the cracks of the entire sales team. Be careful with this company. Also for the rate they are offering you can have a premium membership at Merritt, rooftop pool with bar poolside. read more

I've been going to the MAC for about a year and it has just about everything you need - cardio equipment, weight training, pools, racquetball, classes and locker rooms. They've been pretty good about Covid, enforcing masks and blocking off machines. Sometimes I still feel on top of people but there's only so much space. Jason is an awesome personal trainer too! My one pet peeve is in the women's locker room, some of the sinks don't work, some of the paper towel holders don't work and some of the soaps aren't filled. I have to walk about halfway down the counter to be able to get all 3. Seems like an easy fix but it's been a year and nada. Otherwise, a good gym with free parking up to 2 hours! read more

Revising Prior Post- I just cancelled my membership after several billing issues and the unresponsive and unapologetic reaction to my issues. First I was doubled billed for my membership. I followed up once a week for a month and only when I said I would cancel in 30 days, did I get a response. I received an email with invoices saying there was no error. I followed up in person and they acknowledged the error but did not process a refund. They said they could not and I would just not be billed (so I had to watch for that given the prior I acknowledged error). Next I was double billed for PT I purchased for a family member. Once again, no immediate response or research for 30 days. Again, no refund, just stated I would not be billed. No sense of urgency to correct errors and following up for a month each time. Unacceptable. read more

I'm back at the MAC! I love this gym. I travel and work out everywhere I go. Sometimes the local gym is nice, sometimes I have to make do, but I always train no matter what. I actually get excited about being back in Swervetown just because I get to train at the MAC. I'm not settling or making do here - they have everything I need. Lots of free weights, space to jump rope, all the bands and balls and things, spin bikes, pilates reformers, martial arts gear, treadmills, ellipticals, stairs, lap pool, water exercise pool, jacuzzi, and sauna shower stalls! That's the short list, there is much more. There are lots of windows and high ceilings, and the space is clean. There is towel service and they sell C4, protien shakes, and other good stuff. The staff are friendly and make it easy to get a drop in pass. I got three training days in on this trip, and I feel great. I look forward to being here again. read more

I provided notice when I signed up for membership that I only needed 3 months, but the gym charged me for 4 months--the fourth month was charged at a higher rate as well. Be aware of shady billing practices. Additionally, the gym may continue to solicit you via email despite repeated requests to stop. read more

I love this gym so much. I have never been a gym goer until I stepped foot in this gym. They have a very good variety of machines, a large amount of classes (included in the membership price), lots of rooms that you can use if you would like more privacy, and the best part is the 3 pools and jacuzzi. I find that it is very rarely busy, which is awesome if you are gym shy, and the staff is always available to help. All in all, i find the price to be extremely good considering what you have access to, and I will continue to be a member here for as long as i can. read more

Enjoyed the gym last year but put membership on hold during the winter since we leave for that part of the year. Due to back surgery I haven't returned to Baltimore but received a charge on my August credit card for what they said is an auto membership restart. I called for a credit but they said required a 30 day notice. Since I called 5 days late, they charged me for another month. I agreed to paying for the first month but wanted credit for the second month. Wouldn't budge! I see other negative reviews regarding their billing practices...beware! read more

I have been a member at the President st. location for about 6 years. There are 45 lockers in the public area of the gym but only 18 have locks. This problem has been ignored for years. When will this be fixed? read more

The swimming pools are fantastic. The staff is always so friendly and welcoming. It is a great facility.

There are always no towels at the pool. The hot tub is down quite often or the shower at the pools is broken or the pool is closed - seems like every other month! They stopped sanitizing the pool equipment too -. I went there for a year. It went from ok to kinda getting bad now to worse to I am going to Merritt Downtown now. read more

Awesome Club with all the facilities and amenities to inspire that daily fitness need plus friendly staff that puts a smile on your face! I know if I just show up I will be motivated to do more than I thought I could or wanted to! read more

M- more A- awesome (than) C- cupcakes! That's how I describe the MAC, and I think cupcakes are lovely. I stay at the hotels connected to the MAC a lot and thus get access to the facility and it makes me lament every time I have to go back to my regular gym (sorry New York Health and Racquet!) Good stuff: It's big, clean and spacious and always seems to have plenty of machines/stations available even during peak hours right after work. There are plenty of towels to use and wipes to clean equipment after you've made it all sweaty. There is a nice pool and a dedicated stretching area (which my gym creates, but then always ends up filling with equipment). There's a nice variety of programs on the TVs (I love the 80's music video channel) and the trainers are helpful but not too aggressive from a sales perspective. The classes they have look fun and I believe they offer some type of child care. Also, the people I've seen using it actually seem to be working out. At a couple of the locations of my gym in NYC, some of the customers seem to be more into S&M* than working out. Not so good stuff: I can't think of a single thing. Now, I don't know how much it costs but I'd say it would be a bargain even if it was $100/month or more. I'm pro-MAC and I approve this message. ______________________________ *Standing and modeling. You know, just sitting there sipping their energy drinks and staring and gabbing with other people for 15 minutes while doing only one set on a machine or weight bench read more

I love nearly everything about MAC. When I walked in as saw "Pretend this is recess" on the wall I knew I was in the right place! They offer a huge array of classes, at all hours. The locker rooms are clean, big and well-equipped. Every member of the staff has been great and the rates are a lot more affordable than I expected. My favorite classes are CxWorks (You want core strength & tone? Get yourself into one of these 25 minute classes with Erlease!), Water Resistance (so much fun w/Patrick but a real killer later ) and any yoga class taught by Abril! There are several saltwater pools offering tons of classes and workshops. The recovery pool is wonderful on sore muscles and then by hitting the dry sauna in the W's locker room, my workout feels "sealed in!" Heaven! I received 2 evaluation sessions with MAC trainer, Chris C, as part of signing up. In the first 5 minutes, he suggested a simple change in my squat form (I hated them, so I rarely did them at all) and now they're a regular part of my workout! He was so effective, I bought 4 more reasonably priced (zero pressure or pushy salesmanship btw) sessions! All the parts of what MAC offers are working together to accelerate my fitness to a level I've never seen before and I'm truly grateful! (NOTE: I do wish they had merchandise though. I'd love to have a MAC shirt in my gym drawer ) read more

This is a pre-enrollment process review. Pros- 1) Luxurious, calm and not crowded. 2) Intermittently they run offers such as- the one time joining fee of $299 will be waived, you will receive $200 worth of credits in your account that you can use towards some sort of a training at the facility, $20 will be waived from the monthly membership fees for the first month or if you join mid month, the fees for the remaining days of the month will be waived off. 3) Some hotels in the area will let you use this facility for free if you are a hotel guest. 4) For $177 a month (per couple), you can use any and every item that this facility offers such as gym, yoga, squash court, swimming pool, Pilates, etc. 5) The facility has an indoor/covered parking garage in their basement. MAC validates the parking for max 2 hours per visit. 6) There are multiple fitness options available. For example- they have one pool for babies and moms, another for lap swimming only, another for both lap as regular swimming and a jacuzzi. All their pools are indoor, heated and salt water (not chlorine). Moreover, you do not have to carry your own towels or kick-boards or floatation belts, they have everything that you can use for free. You do not have to pay for using the lockers, it is free for day use. There is a fee if you want to want to use it overnight. 7) They also have an option for day visit for a fee, if you want to just come for one day. 8) Their pricing is on par with Merritt Club Canton, so I did not find MAC's basic membership fees expensive. 9) The staff is friendly. Cons- 1) Mandatory lock in period of 3 months, which means that you have to pay upfront for 3 months membership. 2) They are pushy. For example- you will be told that their offers are valid if you join right away. That might either force you to join or walk out. 3) Coaching fees are not included in the membership fees. For example- if you want to learn yoga or swimming, you will have to pay extra fees over and above your membership fees. So, beware of this one. 4) The facility is very small. For example there are 3 swimming pools next to each other. The pools are not deep. The max depth of the lap pool is 4 feet and the lap/regular combination pool is 6 feet. 6) Since their membership fees include all types of fitness options, you do not have the option to pick and chose the ones that you are interested in. Which I think is such a waste of money. For example- I want to join their gym. I don't know to swim. Yet, I have to pay for everything even though I might not use them at all. I wish they had a pick and choose option, I would have joined right away. I ended up joining the Y Swim Center. read more

Stayed at the Homewood Suites which gives access to the MAC, at no cost. That was pretty spectacular since it is a full fledge gym. The process was simple, you just provide your ID on the initial visit, after that you just need to sign in. Plenty of cardio machines. PLENTY for everyone at the same time. Ever seen a weird cardio machine and wondered what it was? There's a 99% chance this gym has it. Also has your standard weights, benches, machines, etc. This gym has a huge swimming area with a lifeguard. I believe they have 3 different pools. Kiddie pool, casual pool, lap pool, and a jacuzzi. Locker rooms are great. Open lockers, you can provide your own lock. Showers, steam showers, and a sauna. There's no way I can complain as this was a complimentary gym for me. read more

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Good gym with a lot of options for cardio, lifting, strengthening etc. Many of the machines are equipped with TVs with lots of channels to choose from. I didn't use the pool but they have that as well. I can't speak on membership prices as I was using the facility as a guest. read more

I went to MAC as an out of town visitor at Christmastime; they were very accommodating. The club is spacious, bright and clean. There is a lot of equipment to use, space for exercising, several pools and squash courts. I highly recommend! read more

I am a member at the Timonium gym but ended up using this gym during the week that the MAC Timonium was closed for the week for their yearly clean up. This was my first time here and it felt like I was at a spa. The pool area is so fancy and very peaceful. The place has lockers all around the place, which is great when you want to get on that treadmill and not want to drag all your belongings to the bathroom. They have plenty of towels around the gym for you to grab, which makes it so easy to grab a towel and head to that group exercise class. I come here now couple times a month when I was a break from the more busier gym in Timonium. You do have to pay for parking but when validated, it comes out to be $1.50 for two hours after 5pm. Overall, this place is awesome for a gym! Expensive membership but I think it's well worth it! read more

I would and want to rate the MAC 5 stars but it's an absurd price to pay for a gym in Baltimore. The facilities are great and always clean. There is always enough machines or space in the classes. Plus the class instructors are awesome. And having a pool is a huge bonus. But the price just doesn't fit Baltimore. I'll pay it because the service is great but they need to re-evaluate the pricing. read more

I would like everyone staying at the Hilton Garden Inn and Homewood suites to know that this gym is NOT friendly toward minors. They do not allow minors to use any of the equipment even with an adult so your child who regularly uses equipment at home cannot do so at this facility. Also, the woman was very snotty and muttered under her breath, "I tried to tell them they cant be here" There should be a waiver that parents can sign allowing children to use equipment such as treadmills and the hotel should not act as if guests have access to workout facilities as they truly don't. read more

If you want aquatics this is your place, you will not find another comparable in or around the city. There are 3 heated pools - kids, lap, and aquatics classes - and one hot tub with waterfall for your back. There are aquatics classes 6 days a week, both shallow and deep water, with certified staff several of whom also have experience with physical therapy adding to their ability to really use the water to achieve a great low-impact workout. It's extra nice that kids, lap swimmers and aquatics all have their own spaces (instead of finding that you have to pay attention to when group fitness classes are before deciding to swim laps). So, that's the gem of this gym (in my humble opinion) but wait there's more! The actual gym floor is unexpectedly large: there are two cardio sections and two machine sections surrounding a large free-weight section with full wall-to-wall mirror. There are also two smaller stations in the main gym for flexibility (stretching, yoga, sit-ups, kettle ball, etc.). Then there are dedicated rooms for yoga, cycling, dance (think zumba, body pump, latin dance), and pilates reformer. But there's still more: a boxing studio, squash courts, and boxing gym-style training area. If you have a family there's on-site day care. The staff is incredible. On many days I am met by the phrase "go away mommy; we don't want to leave yet". They also have special events twice a month (a parents' night out) where dinner and themed activity are presented. And did I mention the kids' pool??? They have a business center in the lobby in case you need to get a little work done on the side; clean, amply-sized locker rooms featuring steam showers and sauna. The pricetag is a little higher than other area gyms (maybe 15-20%), but unlike most "gyms" this place is not a meat market. There are rules, such as no phone calls on the gym floor, that keep the place a sanctuary; and all of the training staff are interested in working with you at your level (and my level is that of a 40s mother of twins with a bad spine and too many carbs who's motivated to do better but faces the reality that she's never going to be a fitness model). Basically they cater to an older, professional clientele and their price point matches that. They have a parking garage on-site that is validated (free for up to two hours at a time; $5 for four hours). As if that isn't enough, I didn't even cover the ample amount of group fitness classes they offer. These are from beginner level up to the most advanced. They really can meet all of your needs. read more

I really like this place. it has just about everything a health club should have. I have been a very satisfied user for almost 3 years. My big complaint is how loud the endless music they play is. Recently for unclear reasons the volume of the music played from the speakers in the gym has increased markedly. Most people listen to their own music via headphones or earbuds. yet the music played in the facility overwhelms what I am listening to. Why should that be?! Why do they feel they should be able to control what i hear! I and other users wear earbuds for a reason, to enhance the gym experience with our own music or podcast. Do me a favor and lower the volume of the music or explain why the hell you won't!! If I wanted to listen to the music they choose to play at volumes that prevent me from hearing my music or podcasts I would go to a bar and leave my ear buds at home. At least I could get a beer there!! read more

This is a great looking gym, sleek and comfortable, lots of bells and whistles. The membership staff member made it easy to sign up and I opted for auto debit. My reason for joining was to get my disabled spouse an opportunity for extra movement in the pools. During the first month I realized the gym/pool option was way too much for my spouse to handle. I contacted MAC on three occasions to let them know we could not continue the membership, they never responded. I sent a cancellation notice, and recieved no correspondence. MAC auto debited my account two more times so I cancelled my checking account. They have never responded in any fashion other than send me collection notices for $2300. The management is scum, a typical money grubbing gym, lower than used car salesmen and payday lenders. read more

Wow! What an amazing facility. Located in Baltimore's Harbor East, the MAC gives me the feeling of a luxury facility at a fancy resort. The workout area is spacious and modern, and they offer just about any fitness class you can think of. Thomas R., from the sales team, gave a wonderful tour and answered every question I had thoroughly. Based on the tour and Thomas' presentation, I decided to cancel my Brick Bodies membership and join MAC!!! read more

Maryland Athletic Club - Gyms Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

To be blunt, MAC Harbor East seems to have been designed in the most yuppie, "check the boxes in the back of my NSCA accreditation book" sort of way. There are much, much better gyms in the area. MAC Harbor East is designed like a spa, not a gym. The place is inordinately huge for its location, but perplexingly has very little of that space devoted to machines, and the vast majority of the space devoted to machines to cardio machines. The rest of the area is devoted to what you'd expect - spinning, squash, classes of every kind, a pool, huge hallways for no particular purposes, etc. The decisions made within the equipment space are weird. As one might expect, there's only a select amount of equipment available, with a good portion of it cordoned off for personal trainer use. The entire gym is above the Landmark theater, meaning that "dropping" weights gets you instantly kicked out of the gym (one ponders if the same rules apply to plyo or the like). The equipment is nice, but tries too hard - the benches for bench pressing were nigh unusable due to a weird rack location that made racking and unracking dangerous (it was either above my forehead, where it put me in an unsafe location, or at my solar plexus, which limited my range of motion). The knurl on the Olympic bars was filed down to ostensibly not hurt the hands of the guests, but it ended up being more dangerous than anything (the bar kept slipping in my hands). The machines there were also too "helpful," meaning that they were over-designed to the point of being overly difficult to use - overly padded equipment can hinder as much as help. Hell, they even made the weird decision to locate a squat rack right against a TV, meaning that any real use of the rack would likely bump/wreck the TV. To top it all off? This place isn't 24/7 and has very constricted hours. This is a city gym, not a bank - there are plenty of us yuppies who work long hours who don't schedule their workouts around the convenience of fitness staff. I don't mean to be "that guy," but the clientele here speaks volumes about this gym. At other gyms in the area, I've seen people busting their rears in various respects, and it's admirable. Here, I was surrounded by people doing 2 mph walks on treadmills watching TV and guys doing calf raises with 10lbs on their shoulders. The spa atmosphere doesn't give the "work hard, get fit" vibe, at all. This is not a bad gym per se, it's just overdone. I've been in crappy basement gyms filled with sumo wrestler sweat (Japanese gyms are awesome) that were overall better and more athletic than this joint. To be blunt, in my opinion, this is a boutique gym designed to coddle yuppies into believing they are getting fit. There are MUCH better, and much cheaper, places you could go to get sexy. read more

I was happy with it as the environment is nice and the high price keeps the crowds down. I did register complaints about broken equipment (mostly audio/visual or the showers but some equipment too) and it seemed for the price point it could take quite some time for repairs. Today, however, I went to cancel my membership as I get outdoors and really don't use it in the summer. Here was that experience: I have had a membership with MAC since 2012. I have enjoyed it, I have brought folks in as guests and have suggested it to others, however, I have found that, in the summers, I rarely use it as I run with Back On My Feet more PLUS, as active duty military in the US Navy I PT much more at work. This year I thought I would cancel for the summer. Do I remember all the fine print that was signed? No. What do you do? You ask the person at the counter. When do I need to cancel? *click click click* they type on the keyboard and pull up my record. They say the payments are billed on the 15th, come in then and you're good. I come in to work out this morning. I tell the counter person I want to cancel. I'm told you can talk to this person or that person but they aren't here right now but here's their card, you can call from work. Drive to work, lunch time rolls around *ring* hello, yes, I'd like to cancel my membership. I'm sorry, you have to do that in person. !!! (This is when I should have known.) In person? When would be a good time for that? Anytime during our normal business hours. When would that be? I was in this morning and nobody could assist. Well typically betw - No, no, not "typically". When are your "normal business hours"? You either have them or you don't. Oh, from 9 am or so to around 8 or 9 pm. Now personally, I don't know too many companies that put on their door we are open from this time until that time... or maybe this other time. But that's a totally different conversation. Anywho, I leave work early cause - god forbid - I miss the typical normal business hours. I go in, in person, AND I get to speak to someone that can actually help! She says ok, sign this and you're membership will close out as of 1 June. Wait, what??? I was told if I came in and cancelled today I would be good. Oh, who told you that? I don't remember the name but it was the guy at the counter. Ohhh, *chuckles* they wouldn't know that. WHAT? The counter folks wouldn't know that? They knew enough to pull up my record and tell me all my billing info and the billing dates but they can't tell me an accurate day to come in and cancel? Anyways, she says You've already been billed. Really? Really? Let me call Visa. Hello Visa, was I billed? No. Great, bye. No, no ma'am I have not been billed. Seems the loley counter folks were correct. Well that doesn't matter because in 2012 you signed all this... *prints off a stack of fine print* Good one, perhaps the counter folks should be trained how to do THAT! Yep, check mate. I should'nt have expected the folks who work your counters and represent you to give me accurate information. But, check this out. I am a local home owner. I cancelled for the summer. With the steep fees and service like this, when winter rolls back around where do you think I'll go? When folks ask me about gyms what do you think I will tell them? When I post on message boards or give online reviews, what do you think I will say? read more

2.5 years ago, it was love at first sight. This is hands down my favorite place in Bmore. Prior to joining the MAC, I had never had a gym relationship that lasted longer than a month and credit them for preserving my sanity while stuck in Bodymore Murderland. This gym has everything you could possibly need or want, and more that you didn't realize you even needed until you suddenly found them lacking in other gyms you visited. I could laundry list all the basics (machines, pools, classes), but since anyone could get that info off a website, I thought I'd share some of my favorite less obvious amenities. - 'coin' lockers outside the locker rooms in case you just want a safe place for valuables - swimsuit dryer - body composition scales - plenty of towels - covered hand weights (so much better than bare iron) - fans in the large group exercise room (you'd be surprised how many gyms lack this) - free guest passes if you call a day ahead The one thing to note is that parking is not free. However, you could always park in the Whole Foods garage down the street (they validate for up to 2 hours with a WF receipt). read more

Hands down, the nicest gym in Baltimore. Hmmm, that doesn't do them any favors. Let me start again: On the same par as a fancy gym in a big city. MAC wellness in harbor east has everything you are looking for in a gym: Friendly staff, some really excellent personal trainers (I hesitate to tell you to go see Wayne bc he's already so busy, but he's a pro who takes his work very seriously), a 25yard pool (Masters swim is offered), yoga, Pilates, sauna, etc. Basically they have it all. It gets a little busy at two times; the month of January and 530pm daily. I think that they could provide better service to their actual members if they limited when hotel guests from the adjoining Hilton could come use it. Otherwise I've enjoyed coming here for the past two years. read more

Awesome gym. It has just what you need. Super clean. Friendly staff. Awesome place. Highly recommend.

Is it possible to fall in love with a gym? I was visiting my friend in Baltimore and she wanted to know if I wanted to take a BodyPump class with her at the MAC since she could get a guest pass for me through her membership. Considering we had a night of marathon drinking scheduled for the night ahead, I felt as if it was a proactive movement. Sure, I'd love to subject my fragile muscles to an hour of torture. Sign me up. Okay, the gym is immaculate and clean. The only thing I didn't like was that I had to disclose all my personal information to use the guest pass. Handing them my driver's license wasn't enough. "For liability reasons..." Yeah, you really don't need my email address... Anyhoo ... the locker room was huge, the saltwater pools looked awesome, and there seemed to be a group exercise class that could work for just about anyone. And how good was the class you ask? Well, since I had to drive 8 hours home to Boston the following morning, I was very fortunate for cruise control. read more

Came to Baltimore from Los Angeles a year ago without knowing anyone. The MAC has been a great way for me to meet new people! It's a social gym, for sure, especially with their large variety of classes. I work out here 4-5xs/week because it is THAT fun! Pros -The staff: Friendly and helpful. The trainers are always around and some even give you tips if you ask :) They are all very welcoming at the front desk. (Unlike other gyms I've been to where they could care less) -The people: Lots of young professionals. A good mix of fit people and people that are trying to get on track. I know some people that stay away from gyms because they are too intimidated. If this is you, never fear. The MAC is a welcoming and supportive place!! Huge emphasis on wellness here. -The equipment: Clean, updated, TVs on all of the cardio machines. Lots of free-weights and machines. -Facilities: The locker rooms are secure and clean. The salt water pools are heated and in good condition. -Perks: Towels. Sauna. Hot tub. Free wifi. Weight machines. Boxing studio. Progress reports. Lounge areas and computer cluster in the lobby. Free advanced guest passes. Hair dryers in the locker room. Bags for your dirty, smelly gym clothes. 3 ESN passes/month to Canton Merritt. -Classes: Free. Great trainers. Good variety. Cons -The price: Im paying $79/month with my Hopkins discount. -Parking: You'd think that a gym that costs this much would provide free parking. Nope. Be prepared to validate in Whole Foods or scavenge for parking in Little Italy. -Weekend hours are ridiculously short, especially for us weekend warriors that get reallyyyy late starts on Saturday/Sunday morning Quick Tip: Monday and Tuesday spin @ 6pm with Eddie. Such a fun instructor! Yoga on Sundays w Vanessa is great too! I usually go if I can crawl out of bed early enough. read more

Just joined today and looking forward to starting swimming lessons. This review is focused on the signing up process. Sherryl warmly greeted us. She was very helpful in explaining what the gym had to offer. We were most impressed by the pools. Sherryl made sure that by the time we left all of out free consultations were scheduled. Looking forward to my swimming consultation. If you want to learn more about the facility, ask for Sherryl! read more

I call this place "The Spa". It's gorgeous, huge, and extremely well-stocked and -staffed. There are several pools (salt water--much less damaging than chemicals); tons of free weights and weight machines; every cardio machine you can dream up, most with iPod ports, TVs, and/or video games; and loads of classes. They don't skimp on the details here--free towels of various sizes, yoga and mat pilates included in your membership, computers with internet access if you're waiting for your workout buddy to finish, steam room, sauna, etc. You can also bring a friend anytime (just not more often than every 30 days for the same person) and/or give your friends free 1-week memberships. (And yes, if they join, you pay $10 less per month!) I also take advantage of the free Whole Foods parking garage a block away. They have childcare options which means there aren't kids running around screaming--this is a big plus for me. I'm generally surrounded by other focused adults in a fun, serene environment. MAC Harbor East is the first gym I've been a member of that has actually made me look forward to working out. There's an escapist quality to the design and the open and welcoming space is a stark contrast to many of the gyms I've used. There are several knowledgeable trainers who are happy to provide a few pointers on the floor and there are frequently little demos and promotions run to give you access to the newest and best advancements in fitness and health. I've had good experiences with the support staff too--in the periods when I've thought myself too busy for the gym, I get a little nudge email asking how my workouts are going. Sometimes that's enough to make the difference. MAC also has partnerships with many businesses to provide cheaper memberships for its employees--I work for Hopkins and I pay a ridiculous $79/month for The Spa. I used to be a member at the DAC (Merritt Downtown Athletic Club) and now I can't believe I used to pay $119/month for a place that looked and smelled like an old wrestling gym. If you're looking for a downtown gym, check it out--I think you'll be blown away. read more

Wow! What a great facility. This is the largest "gym" I have ever been to in my life and I have been to many. Used this facility as a Hilton honors member during my stay in Baltimore so not sure what it actually costs but it was a great place to work out and to relax in the heated pool with my husband. They had a great aquatic fitness class. Clean locker rooms, courteous staff, lots of people but not crowded....located in the best part of town right next to the four seasons. read more

This place has everything you need for a variety of workouts. I love being able to swim, lift weights, take a barre class, and run all in the same place. It's a little expensive compared to similar gyms like the Y or Gold's, but the neighborhood is safe and very close to work downtown. My favorite area of the gym is definitely the pool. The temperature is very comfortable in the lap pool. They also have separate deep and shallow water pools as well as a hot tub. The locker rooms are a nice touch as well. Each contains a sauna, steam shower, towels, and many different toiletries. The only thing I don't like about this gym is that they push personal and semi-private training sessions on you when you first join and at their monthly events. While the trainers are very knowledgeable, I think you can definitely get your money's worth from the monthly membership fee alone if you just want a place to work out. The training sessions are really meant for people who want reach a very specific fitness goal, train for an event, or get extra help with their form. Otherwise there is no need to buy these additional sessions since they can really increase your membership fee. read more