Movement LIC

This is the most centrally located, multi discipline (lead, boulder, and TR), high quality (good setting, large lead cave, tall walls, interesting angles, and a thoughtful layout) climbing gym in NYC. Now under new ownership, previously The Cliffs, this gym still breeds great climbers and an inclusive social environment. I’d say it has a better lead cave than Gowanus and typically hosts more experienced climbers as it’s an older gym, but doesn’t have a sauna or as extensive bouldering as Gowanus.

It is great climbing for all ages Edit, I’ve been climbing here for 3 years now and I have the same problem, all the team kids skip the lines and DONT SHARE THE WALL. Not only that the staff don’t care about it which is really annoying. Also the mini fridge is never fully stocked up. Also ever since the gym became “movement” the staff got more rude, the food and drink stock went down, the simple first aid stuff disappeared, and more kids would run around unsupervised, Please fix this

Often come here, but the main factor between going here or Gowanus is the locker situation -- often the big lockers are taken, so I have to push my work stuff and shoes into a small locker which isn't great. There's also not a lot of floor or bench space, so it's uncomfortable to get situated when arriving / leaving. A lot of people also leave their shoes under the bench, and it's not great to navigate around since they're in the walking areas. I would totally come here more if there were an upgrade to the lockers.

The Cliffs LIC is a great all-around climbing gym. There’s plenty of bike parking out front and there’s even an indoor bike room right by the entrance when you walk in. There are locker rooms (don’t forget to bring a lock) that also have bathrooms and showers. After checking in (you’ll need to take a belay test if you don’t yet have a Cliffs belay certification card or take one of their classes to learn), you’ll be greeted by an IMMENSE top roping space. It’s literally jaw-dropping. I’ve never seen higher indoor climbing walls and there’s an incredible number of climbs. There are also about 8 auto-belay climbs on the left side of the facility. There’s a decent sized bouldering wall that has varying degrees of climbs, including a cave, and there’s also a small extra bouldering wall on the second floor. There’s a store on the first floor that sells all sorts of climbing gear. The second floor has a small weight lifting gym area and climbing finger board, and there’s also some elliptical and treadmill machines up on the second floor by the small extra bouldering wall. Overall, the Cliffs LIC is a sprawling facility with friendly staff and you’ll have a great climbing day if you ever stop by. I highly recommend.

TLDR: if you’re new and want to explore bouldering, this is NOT the place to go. We’ve heard good things about this gym but it does not lived up to expectations. Yesterday my friend and I decided to try out a day pass. When we got there one of the employees asked us if we needed gear and, being new to all this, asked them if they meant shoes. I was taken aback when they responded with “yes shoes and chalk” in a demeaning tone. I was only asking a clarifying question because this is an unfamiliar activity for us! Since we had athletic shoes (not knowing climbing shoes were different) we said there was no need for shoes and I proceeded to ask where we could get our harness from. They looked at me and goes “I literally just asked you if you needed gear and you said no”. I asked a few more questions about what we could do here given we do not have licenses and she vaguely directed me to a beginners area with an irritated voice. We are both new and no one gave us the lay of the land and felt so lost. Any time we asked questions she was unhelpful and condescending. We felt very unwelcomed at this gym and are hesitant to return given the absolutely terrible experience we’ve gone through. Do want to give some credit to our fellow climbers — one lady was super kind and walked us through what the employee should have.