Best Gyms with Indoor Pools near Chicago, Illinois

I have been a member here for over ten years and I have slowly seen this place go from good to awful. First it was the demise of kids club, now it’s the limited hours and overcrowding. If you are going at peak times it’s near impossible to navigate. Since the pandemic the hours never returned to normal and the classes didn’t either. If anyone is reading this it needs to be turned back to 5am opening and stay open a couple hours later, especially on the weekends. I sent a message to someone in aquatics about an issue I was having and never even received a response which lets me know how valuable I am as a member. The only reason I am giving this an extra star instead of the one it takes to write this is for the front desk staff who are just lovely people. Jen, Jojo, Jackson, Canon and anyone else who mans the front desk is in desperate need of a well deserved raise as are the cleaning staff. Everything else about this gym makes me wish harder that the equinox hotel that was supposed be built actually came to fruition and that there were better options that were walkable. Overall: seek an alternative if possible and if this is your best option try to come at off peak times. *Cutting this down to one star that I have to give to write this review because all the above mentioned people are no longer there and the HVAC isn’t working properly.

Best thing in my day! Staff is incredible, music is always on point, the cleaning staff keep the facility pristine. Ive lived in the city my whole life. Ive been to all the gyms including lifetime 1. West loop athletic wins Gold in all category's. If you're looking for a good gym community it's the place to be. Ive been a member for several years ,so my review is a solid one.

WLAC has been an important addition to my routine. My personal trainer Zac Bernat has made all the difference with my relationship with the gym, fitness and working out making it not just positive and fun but educational and informative. I've seen huge results in my body and physical skills since working with Zac. The facility itself is always clean although I do wish there was more parking as it can be tricky at times.

Wouldn’t recommend signing a membership here. The gym itself is kind of a dump, but more importantly, the 3rd party the gym uses for payment processing is extremely shady. They’ve charged me a “decline” fee on my account twice in the past 6 months for literally no reason. To be clear, the card is not declining. In fact, the bill is still processing on the first day of the month. WAC refunded this fee the first time, and stated that if it happened again, they would refund me again and resolve the issue. Welp, turns out that was a lie. The in-house billing staff is incredibly kind, and even stated that this isn’t the first time members of this gym have had issues with bills processing accurately. If that’s the case, why are you still working with them? Your 3rd party vendor messed up, and now I am responsible? LOOOOOOOOL. Whoever is the decision-maker to keep that partnership alive is MINDLESS. Get a new job buddayyyyyy. Quick math: I would have gladly stayed a member of WAC for the next 3 years minimum. That is $3100 in revenue. Instead, now that they won’t cover a $25 fee from their sack of shit payment processing vendor, I am cancelling to go elsewhere. FFC is more expensive, but hey, at least I feel like I won’t get a fungal infection walking around their locker room. Lmao! Piss off WAC.

This place has gone downhill. The hours are weird, staff unprofessional. Management needs to retrain their staff on basic customer service skills. There’s plenty of gym options in the area, do yourself a favor skip out on this place.

Best gym in Chicago by far! Between the vast variety of machines, equipment, trainers, nutritionists, masseuses, massage chairs, dry sauna, steam room and the very friendly staff and management, the Premier Package is worth every dollar! If your looking for a gym where people go to actually work out and not take TikToks, this is the gym for you! Also ask for Leo, one of the personal Trainers, he's helped me not only lose weight but also fixed my stretching techniques

⭐ (1 out of 5 stars) While the gym facilities themselves are decent, I've had a deeply frustrating experience with their membership management and billing practices. I've been a member for a long time and travel frequently for work. When I discussed this with their staff, I was verbally assured that I could freeze my membership without any concerns due to my travel schedule. Unfortunately, this turned into a significant problem. Despite the verbal agreement with their staff member, they sent my account to a debt collector. When I tried to resolve this, I was told I should have followed up on an email that contradicted what I was told in person. The staff member who made these assurances is no longer with the company, and management seems unwilling to acknowledge or honor the verbal agreement made by their former employee. What's particularly disappointing is that I expressed interest in continuing my membership and working things out, but was met with inflexibility. While they did offer to waive some fees, being sent to collections without warning, especially after receiving assurances from their staff, is not how you treat loyal members. Pros: - Good facility and equipment - Convenient location Cons: - Poor communication between staff and management - Inconsistent information given to members - Aggressive billing practices - Unwillingness to honor verbal agreements made by staff If you decide to join, I strongly recommend getting EVERYTHING in writing and recording all conversations about billing or membership changes. While the gym itself is fine, the management practices have made me question my choice to be a member here.

FFC Gold Coast is looking like its going to be my 2nd home. Its a large gym with huge selection of weights, equipment and variety classes. There is also an indoor lap pool, 3 indoor basketball courts that quickly convert to indoor Pickleball courts. There is also a rooftop for warm weather classes and member events. I regularly work with Personal Trainer Leo and he is awesome. The gym is constantly being cleaned and equipment is maintained daily. I've never seen an "out of order" sign. The demographic is a diverse mix of ages 20-80, and all of the employees are friendly and helpful.

Michelle has been rude every instance I have interacted with her, I would highly recommend they choose another representative to answer the main phone. The gym and the majority of the staff is great.

The astroturf field in the image is the roof of the gym! What a great view and overall amazing property. Special shout-out to Carlos who has saved me many times from a lockout without judging

If you are looking for a local gym with pool keep looking. It was closed a significant part of last year for staffing issues. It has been closed for the last 4 weeks for maintenance of a filtration system and announced to be opened today, December 16th. I was told this morning it is still closed and scheduled to open on December 26th, a day the SFC is closed. It’s a very unreliable fitness center.

Great facility. Tons of machines, swimming pool and sauna. Racket ball court, basketball court, ping Pong room and they have special 360 functional workout room. They have several workout dance yoga cycling rooms too. This blow away many of the chain gyms

As a UIC student, I come to the gym six times a week, and I’ve met many people here who, like me, love going to the gym. Overall, we like this gym, especially with all the recent equipment upgrades. However, I have a few suggestions to make the gym even better: 1. Increase the number of incline benches: Right now, the gym only has one incline bench, and people often have to wait a long time to use it. 2. Add more cable machines and reduce the unnecessary cardio equipment: For some reason, a few of the cable machines are always broken, and during busy times, people usually have to wait. But there are way too many cardio machines in this gym!

Has equipment and good to get a good workout but so is planet fitness. East campus gym is slightly better for advanced lifts or power lifting. As a student with limited gym options and finances this place gets the job done though. Am curious why we can’t use middle knurling powerlifting bars on squat rack. Feels unsafe with respect to bar type, thickness and bend to the bar after a certain weight. But maybe there is a good reason. Hours are good and Ira is a cool manager too.

solid gym. you can get most everything done. the hours of the gym could be better especially for people that like working out late night or super early. But overall it’s a very good gym. It’s clean, most people rack their weights, not too much chit chat going on, it’s just a good place to get work done.

What defines a system is not the issue it faces, but its response to it. The last problem with a 2-week breakdown of the steam room showed that this complex system - FFC Fitness reacts poorly to the problem. On the coldest days of Chicago, the steam room breaks down and they can't fix it. I'm getting it. But for me, this fitness is becoming useless, I already have a fitness in my building and another one - Planet Fitness for $10 a month. You have lost the key element-steam room, that differentiates you from Planet Fitness but you continue to charge people 14 times more, how can this be normal? I don't want to pay 2 weeks for a very expensive fitness where what I need no longer works. But the manager replies that they can't freeze my membership for 1-2 weeks, especially for free. Why can't they? They don't want to or don't know how? In any case, this is a poor reaction to the problem.

I had such a fantastic experience signing up at FFC, thanks to Kelly! She was incredibly friendly, knowledgeable, and made me feel so welcomed from the moment I walked in. She took the time to thoroughly explain all the membership options and answer my questions, making the entire process smooth and stress-free.

It's gotten a bit to expensive to see the hot tub this dirty and they clean it during business hours very often. It takes 4 hours to heat up. It will bubble like a bubble bath lol The steam room has been broken for about two weeks and no idea when it will be fixed.

I recently moved to Chicago from Philly and was on the lookout for a great gym experience; I found exactly that at FFC Lakeview! From day one, Sarah and her team have gone above and beyond to accommodate my needs, diligently working with me to explore the best membership options. Their professionalism and eagerness to help truly stand out, making my transition much smoother. While everything has been top-notch, my only wish is for a sauna upgrade to match the premium nature of the membership. Highly recommended for anyone seeking a gym with stellar customer service!

Went to check out the gym to see if I wanted to enroll, my partner asked why they needed a picture for a test and what they are going to use it for. The desk attendant had no answer and left us in. We actually enjoyed the time at the gym and we're thinking about signing up. Well today we went to sign up and apparently they "had case notes of us being rude" when asked for specifics of what was rude the manager said my partner not wanting to take a photo. When asked if it was so rude, why did they let us continue to have a test day she had no answer. When asked what more the "case notes" said she wouldn't elaborate. When asked if she wanted our money for a gym membership or not, well I'll go spend $100+ on membership else where. If asking for data privacy and asking what they plan to use the picture for is so horrible it warrents rejection AFTER being allowed a test day, so be it. If they want to discriminate that's on them, becasue I'm sure it was more discrimination than him "being rude" since they couldn't even answer what happened and what was rude.

I just finished my two week trial membership and here's what I like about my individual plus kids membership: *FREE 2 hour childcare *Variety of classes - Pilates Mat with Zineb and Fuerzo Kickboxing with Marcelo have been my favorites! *Special programming! Kids are in a free weekly dance class and they had a reptile show where we could touch the animals. Negatives: *Parking is a challenge despite them having two parking lots. I had to park on Fullerton this morning around 9AM. *Family pool access is limited on weekends as 3/4 of pool is used for lessons in the morning. Definitely worth the investment for the childcare alone!

I booked a birthday party for my daughter because it was hard to find someone who would respond ahead of time. I chose this place out of a few last minute options. The upside: The party was very nice. The hosts were amazing, friendly, down to earth, and social. I didn't have to do much running around because they did everything for me which is serving the guests, lighting the cake candles, and cutting the cake. It was a nice and cozy atmosphere. The party was expensive but the host gave me an alternative to take the sides away from the choice of pizza which ended up being $150 cheaper. They decorate for you, too. The downside: the minimum guests allowed was 15 children. I had a hard time finding 15 kids for my daughter and I reached 12 but some people canceled. I still had to pay for the absent people. Which is $40 per child including their pizza fee which is $22 per child. The boxes of pizza were so small and the pizza was mediocre. The cake tasted "different" as one guest said. I tasted it myself and it was ok. You can't bring your food. If you're not a member, you get charged an extra $350. Overall: the children had fun and enjoyed it. I think the party is expensive to pay the hosts equally but the food didn't make sense with the expensive. I would book again if the downsides improved.

If you are a childless adult looking to workout - do not go here. Join FFC, Midtown, or even Xsport. This place is terrible value unless you have young kids and need daycare. The membership rate is $150+ for outdated equipment, kids running around everywhere at all times, high schoolers misusing and hogging equipment, and overall just very little space to actually workout despite the facility being huge. There isn’t that much actual equipment in comparison to commercial gyms. Also the front desk staff is not helpful and it’s impossible to get ahold of anyone in billing or membership. I’ve been over charged several times for things I didn’t sign up for or incorrect membership fees. Honestly a scam. I’m really disappointed in my experience here, with the exception of the tennis programs which are great.

I love this place. It has absolutely everything an individual or family could want. I joined as a college student at DePaul university and then returned with my children as well. Excellent exercise and yoga classes and the best tennis courts and coaches. The outdoor deck and dining area has some as the best views of Chicago which makes up for the lack of outdoor pool. There is an excellent indoor pool for serious swimmers. Did I mention the customer service is stellar.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I’ve been attending Lakeshore Sport and Fitness for over eight months now, and it has been an incredible experience! The classes are fantastic—Monday yoga with Manny is the perfect way to start the week, and Dylan’s cycling sessions on Tuesdays always keep me motivated. Carla’s body conditioning on Wednesdays is tough but so rewarding! A special shoutout to Kid Kampus and their amazing counselors, who have made it possible for me to maintain my wellness routine while being a busy mom. I can’t recommend Lakeshore enough for anyone looking for a supportive, fun, and effective fitness community!

2 stars for the location, layout, pool/hot tub and it's a decent value for the price. However, this location is in DESPERATE need of a deep clean and detailing! I'm actually shocked they didn't take care of this before the January rush. My "favorite" pink crumb (pictured) has been chilling on the leg press machine since I joined over a year ago. Lol. Lots of dirt, dust, and hair, so it's not a surprise that some of the machines stick or get damaged. Agree with past reviewers that the treadmills need leveling too. Ultimately cancelling my membership to join Planet Fitness (!) I included this feedback in my cancellation request a month ago but pink crumb lives on.

I really love this gym, but it has gone downhill. The equipment (handles, grips, bars, etc) were recently updated and its clear that the owner bought the cheapest junk on amazon they could find. The bench press pads and extremely hard and covered with slippery, cheap vinyl that will legitimately injure you. The grips on machines will often be tattered and ripped for months before they are replaced. The treadmills are poorly leveled and most of them shake side to side. Sad and poor business decisions for a somewhat upscale club that I love. On the upside, it is very clean, the employees are nice, the contracts are simple and the space is absolutely stunning.

Great gym, only knocks are for the hours. Closing at 9pm and 7pm on the weekends in annoying. Other than that, this place has everything you need in a gym machine and free-weight wise + a lap pool, sauna / steam room. November 2024 update: Insanely busy from 5:30-9am and 4-7:30pm every weekday. Literally every station and machine are in use and there are several people waiting for the most popular stuff. I have left early few times because a normal workout would take 3x as long with the amount of people there. Need to extend hours or cut off new members.

Evening hours are ridiculous. They close super early so the gym is overcrowded the whole night. Unless you're unemployed and can go during the day, it's hard to do a serious workout.

100/mo and there's no ez curl bar attachment for the cable machine lol All in all not worth the money honestly , it's okay Would be worth it at ~60/mo Also- Ceilings leaking No heat, it's cold as hell in a hoodie and your hands will stiffen (still running the fans)

Steam room is great! Pool is saltwater- staff is very helpful and friendly - club is always immaculate -gym equipment is varied -spin classes are great

This gym is pretty well maintained for such a busy location. The staff is pretty friendly and attentive. The gym is generally clean all the time. My only gripe would be the awkward layout and the equipment is very dated with limited choices. You get a mix of young professionals and DePaul university students that frequent it. The college bros are little irritating sometimes and a bit unhygienic. I’ve noticed a lot of harsh reviews stem from the entitled clientele that frequent the gym and don’t really “workout” but go just for the prestige of saying “I go to equinox”.

I had a fantastic experience at Equinox! From the moment I walked in, the staff was friendly, welcoming, and incredibly helpful. Abigail and Michelle were wonderful—communicative and eager to answer all my questions, making the whole process smooth and enjoyable. I even had the chance to do a private Pilates reformer class with Kiara, who was phenomenal. Her expertise and enthusiasm made the session both challenging and fun. Highly recommend Equinox for anyone looking for a supportive and well-equipped fitness environment!

The newest-looking of all the Equinox clubs in Chicago. Good mix of equipment and great light-filled space. However, I find the Lincoln Park location to have more equipment

I had a facial appointment coming up this week and it’s been canceled due to the manager Rachel Rayburn letting the esthetician go. I was going twice a month to Nashylee for facials. She always gave me the best treatment and best advice on skin treatments. Very humble girl. This gym is over rated and front desk was always clueless as well when checking me out.

I worked out here for the first time today and the vibes are really weird overall, it's not a welcoming environment. This is something important to me when I look for a gym. There was a trainer named Patt (I looked at his name tag) who took a piece of equipment from me while I was using it (no, I didn't walk away from it and I was in the middle of my sets, I briefly stood up to take a sip from my water bottle), he did not acknowledge me at all and did not look at me, he just plopped his client on and completely took it, the moist annoying part about this was the other lat pull was free, he was just too lazy to get the proper attachment and decided to take mine because that is more convenient for him. I think that behavior says a lot about the gym itself and the culture at this club. The facility itself was also pretty dirty overall and a lot of people do not wipe down equipment after use despite the signs to do so, there is a lot of stuff on the floor (salt and dirt). I think for the actual price of the membership, it's definitely not worth it. There are so many better options in Chicago at that price point with better energy and well maintained facilities.

I've been a member at Lincoln Square Athletic Club for over a year now, and it’s been excellent! The gym is always spotless, and the staff members are very friendly. Recently, I needed help adjusting my membership, and Danny made the process smooth and easy. He was incredibly helpful, professional, and clearly dedicated to making sure members have a great experience. I always feel comfortable working out here, and the welcoming vibe keeps me motivated. Highly recommend LSAC to anyone looking for a nice neighborhood gym!

If you value being treated like a human when you need to cancel your membership because you moved 2,000 miles away, I don't recommend this gym. I actually enjoyed the facilities, but my experience with the customer service of their third party billing provider has been absolutely dreadful. Signing up is easy and then they'll hold you hostage once they have your credit card info.

Predatory membership and credit card policies, avoid this place and all its other affiliates. I forgot to update my CC after it was stolen and they charged me $23 with no warning via email, text or in person at the gym. Cool way to scam your members guys :p

Joined in mid February- Danny helped us and was super cool. I really love the robust class schedule, I pretty much only do classes. My only complaint about them is that I feel like I’m always stuck focused on the same muscle groups even in different classes. The locker rooms are nice and the gym is always clean- overall a great experience and a place that makes me actually enjoy exercising. The trainers are usually great and I never feel like I’m being shamed for moving at my own pace.

It's not the biggest gym, but that's to be expected given that it's in Chicago. The space that they have is used very effectively though, and the pool looks huge and well-maintained, although I haven't swam in years. Some of the weight equipment show their age, but even then, everything is really well taken care of, and there are also plenty of newer equipment too. There's a good focus on powerlifting and free weights in the weight room, and the equipment selection shows that. They allow chalk which is fairly uncommon in my experience for school gyms (neither UIC nor UIUC allows chalk for example) and commercial gyms. They have a variety of barbells, including women's bar (35 lbs and 25 mm diameter) and I think even some power bars (45 lb and 29 mm diameter) instead of the standard mixed use barbells (45 lb and 28.5 mm). There are 10 (12?) squat racks (technically 5(6?) two-sided full racks, but the point is that there are 10 or 12 slots with safety bar to squat and such), although there aren't any dedicated bench stations so you'll have to pull a bench over to one of the racks to bench. They have most of the weight machines you'd expect to see. The main critique I have would be that they don't seem to have a hack squat, and all their leg press machines are horizontal leg press, which feel way worse to me than angled leg press. They were doing some maintenance when I was there though, so maybe they had those machines stashed away. Also, while they don't have a hack squat, they do have 2 Smith machines so really, it's just the lack of an angled leg press that somewhat matters. There's a decent cardio selection upstairs, and there are several rooms to play/practice other sports. It would be nice to have some matted areas to stretch and perform mobility routines/yoga, but there are portable mats available.

Received a day pass while visiting the college with my son. The pool is great and the facility was really nice and clean. There was an interesting little museum and hall of Fame when you first walk into the building that was cool to see.

A good gym just a short walk from the commons.

Weight room is crowded and not well laid out and too small for the number of people they are trying to service. The steam room has been closed for years (with no price adjustment for a day pass.) The pool is now under construction for months. Lockers are expensive--$70 a quarter. Overall an okay gym, but lots of frustrations with it.

This review is for the Gerald Ratner Athletics Center which houses the competition pool for the university. A parking garage is across the street, but other than that it's a challenge, For safety I would not park off campus. My son swam in his conference meet the UAA. He swims for Washington University. Typically Emory, Chicago & WashU are the top programs in the country. The teams are competing in swim and dive. The facility lacks adequate spectator space for very large meets such as this. The pool is a 50 meter plus diving. It's a great pool and swims fast! The staff at the event over four days was excellent. Ticketing was handled well and the lines organized. They even had a coat check. My deduction of 1 star is the spectator area. Not only small, but the design is poor. Only the two front rows can see well. 3.5 rounding down.

Great place with super friendly staff. Basketball court, swim pool up to 9 ft that offers swim lessons and swim team thru cpd website, small exercise room, rental spaces available as well.

Very nice facility, clean with a very professional staff.

I had my son’s baby shower here. The price was very reasonable. It’s so clean inside. The staff was very friendly & helpful.

Clean facility, very nice staff My daughter is taking swimming lessons and we love it! They have a pool, gymnasium/basketball court and gym for use. They offer exercise classes including cycling.

They do not answer their phones at all. They cancelled classes to further notice and dont return call when left messages trying to find out when they will resume. One staff member/aqua aerobic instructor is very unpleasant! I was gonna bring a crew from job to take the class but we will definitely try another location for the class next session.

I love this place! The group classes are excellent, the staff is incredibly friendly and helpful, and the gym is always clean and never too crowded. I highly recommend it.

Best gym ever! I went here for 2.5 years and loved it every time I set foot in here. With Ramie, Bob, and Michael running the place you’ll always be greeted with a friendly smile. The gym has great energy but isn’t overly busy. Great equipment and the group classes are awesome. Highly recommend this gym to anyone in Chicago.

Has almost everything you could want in a gym, with some great extra perks (hot towels, pool, smoothie bar, snack station, free samples). It's a little pricier but worth the cost because their group classes are actually very good here. People from other FFC locations have come to be my guest here because of the instructors. Only downside is parking can be difficult (there is a parking garage but it's always very full) and it needs more free weight/open space for workouts. Otherwise, very highly recommend!

I did 2 private Pilates sessions with Grace and she was 10/10 wonderful! She was very supportive and a great teacher during these beginner sessions.

Ramie Reed, the Membership Director, was absolutely wonderful to work with. She has always been exceptionally pleasant, supportive, and understanding. I also loved working with Michael for personal training. He supported me with very thoughtful, beneficial, and fun workouts. The facilities were always in great condition. Thank you FFC! The only downside I have to report, which is mostly out of FFC's control, was repeatedly encountering people in the sauna who seemed to have a cold or some other transmissible respiratory illness. I just think it's inconsiderate to potentially get other people sick by using such a small, unventilated space while ill.

When the Kroc Center first opened years ago, I went for information on joining. It was not a good experience. The people I spoke to was not customer service oriented. I didn't join. Last week, I went back and had an entirely different experience. I can give the Kroc Center 5 stars for the customer service I experienced. I spoke with Beverly. She was approachable, nice, friendly, and very helpful. She was very customer service oriented. I will become a member.

It was my 1st time doing the Sista Strut breast cancer awareness walk, and I absolutely loved it!! From the stage set-up to all the different booths giving out freebies and informational things about breast cancer. I'm definitely doing this every year. The weather was perfect and the sun was shining. #Save the Ta-Ta's!! #mammogram #awareness #sistastrut #pink I walked for family and friends

When is the Krc Center going to make signing kids up for camp easier?! Why must I have to come up in person everytime to fill out the same sheet and pay? Shouldn't we be able to do it online?

The Kroc Center offers everything you desire from a gym and community center. This stylish, modern community center offers indoor and outdoor activities for all ages. The Center has a swimming pool and lap pool, indoor water park, spa, indoor and outdoor tracks and basketball courts. It's a great place.

Great faith based place for families. Lots of classes for adults and kids. You can book a waterpark birthday party. Also rent out the banquet room for an event. They also have a daycare and a cafe. Security on staff. Thank you to the Kroc family for investing in this community!