My boy has been a student at Zen Dragon since it was affiliated with Z-Ultimate. We wouldn't have stayed this long if we weren't pleased. Sensei Jack is great with kids -- and really loud when their attention wanders.
They have an assortment of billing plans, with slightly lower rates for longer commitments. Most are billed monthly, but for three, six, or twelve months. (We started with the three month plan, and switched to twelve when it was clear that the boy was sticking with it.)
The basic monthly fee includes one 30-minute personalized class per week (one or two students), plus several 45-minute group classes per week. He started with group classes on Monday and Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings, and added sparring classes on Friday evenings when he earned his orange belt.
They're very flexible about rescheduling the private lessons missed due to conflicting appointments, holidays, and so forth, so you always get the private lessons you pay for. Group classes, however, are not rescheduled.
Our boy liked it so much he asked for additional classes for weapons training. Those are purchased by number of 30-minute lessons, rather than by calendar months.
They have periodic promotions. One I want to do next time it's offered is free lessons for parents.
What about the dojo? It's a nice space in a strip mall, with padded floors in the training area, clean floors in the lobby, office, and restrooms.
The teaching style emphasizes avoiding conflict as the first step, but also handling one's self in a fight if it's unavailable.
Some dojos treat martial arts mostly (or entirely) as a sport, while some focus on self-defense in a real fight. Here the emphasis is sport (plus exercise), and learning self-discipline, but there's also solid training on how to fight someone who is trying to hurt you.
I'm rating this a five-star "best ever", but I don't have enough knowledge of other dojos to compare with. read more