This YMCA has many resources! We got a membership for our family, largely to be able to access the pool and kids/family play area. Aside from that, they have a gym, exercise rooms with scheduled classes, courts, a track, and a childcare center. While there are many options to choose from, the membership price was steep for our family. We found that we weren't using it as much as we would have liked to get the full value - I would say that someone who is able to use the resources daily would find it worthwhile. read more

I love it here. Have been coming here for almost 10 years now. Everything is great, from the classes to the daycare. People are pretty good at wiping everything down and keeping things clean. Of course you run into a couple of rude people here and there but never the staff. Have made a lot of friends along the way and brought friends to the Y as well. My kids enjoy the day care and see friends they have made also! read more

This place is not getting better. They seem to be signing up everyone and anyone even if they can't pay memberships. That is fine, but that affects paying members when there are long waits for equipment. I have been member for over 10 years and this is getting worse. More and more kids are loitering in the hallways. I got a letter saying they are going to raise monthly member ship $4. Yet, equipment is OOS or torn and not getting fixed. read more

The best YMCA in the area. The front desk ladies are very sweet. The gym is kept very nice. They basically have everything. The classes are good you get a good sweat. Also great for kids. The. Mini Waterpark is nice read more

The staff at this location are always helpful and welcoming. The facility is kept clean and any needed information is readily available at the facility, online, and via email. read more

I come here to play basketball and it's fun the staff is very polite and I enjoy being here

Amazing! My son is a student in swim team here and my daughter has a job as a lifeguard. The service is great and my kids love it here. Definitely recommend! read more

Back in July, my family and I decided to sign up for a YMCA membership, so that we could use the gym to workout. One of my initial and specific questions to the staff when I signed up was, could my 10 yr old accompany me inside the gym while I worked out. As I know some gyms do not allow this, I wanted to confirm before I signed up and paid my money. I was told yes, and we were all set! Every Sunday since the day we signed up, my family and I have gone to the CW Avery YMCA to workout, my daughter has sat next to me on her phone, out of the way, I got my workouts in, and we never had any issues. This week we decided to go on a Saturday (9.11.21), I was just beginning to start the core of my workout when a lady came over, interrupted me to ask had my daughter had her teen certification (she points to her wrist like I know what she's talking about, I'm looking at her VERY confused because I don't know WHAT she's talking about), I asked her to repeat herself, and then explained my daughter is 10. She then proceeded to tell me my daughter can't be in there and has to leave, because she's not 13. She suggested my daughter could go by the front desk and sit at the table until we were done. To pause this review for a moment, some ideas sound great to some people, but the ignorance comes in when people think that what may be fine for THEIR kids is a sound solution for everyone. So , I told this lady I was not going to do that, and that my family and I come each week with no issue. I also explained to her that I was told it was fine that my daughter could be with me when I initially signed up. She proceeded to tell me that she was "the director", the staff may have told me that, that's a training issue they need to fix, but the rule is you have to be 13 yrs old to be there. Here's the point of my whole issue and the reason for this review. I understand rules and have NO problem following them. Where this whole situation initially went wrong is the day I signed up. It is a disservice to consumers who want to be informed, for staff members to pass long misinformation. This felt like a bait-and-switch scenario. The information I was given was the basis and criteria used to make what I felt was a sound and justifiable decision for me and my family. The second part that completely soured my experience was the way the director, Kristen Derengowski, handled the whole situation. She was very unprofessional, impressed more with who she felt she was ("the director") and so much in a silo, that she lost touch with the consumer experience and frankly with just being an understanding human. This situation could have been handled in a much more tactful manager. One suggestion to Kristen Derengowski would have been to allow me to finish my workout, but let me know in the future, my 10 yr old could not come inside the gym. I would have still been annoyed because of not receiving full disclosure when I signed up, but at least I would have left with a bit more understanding and respect. This was not the way I intended to spend my Saturday. Anyway, not sure if I will be returning to the CW Avery YCMA. Kristen messed that up. read more

Workout area is nice. Kids club is ok. The kid pool is awesome when it is actually open. Pool hours are HORRIBLE. They are open a random few hours during the day, which makes it hard for working parents. At night it's open from 5-5:45 3 out of the 4 days (dinner time for most families with children). By the time you check in and get your kid in the water it's time to go. Such a disappointment for what you pay for. I would love to see better hours so we can enjoy family time in the pool read more

C.W. Avery Family YMCA - Kids pool only hours - Gyms Near Me - Plainfield, Illinois

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We recently moved to the area and joined. It's a great facility and the staff is super friendly!

Pros: If you need a family orientated gym that's close to home, then this is the place. There are a lot of programs for the kiddies to do. Also, the pools are really nice, and there are many classes to try out. The cardio area is pretty good and there are a lot of treadmills/elliptical that are free to choose. Also, all the machines are pretty new and are in working order. For the most part, the facility is clean, and there are plenty of lockers that are free to use in the locker room. Also, there are plenty of weight machines to choose from, but at times it can get pretty busy (especially with some people who take to long on the machine). Grr..yeah I know it's not YMCA's fault, but jeez 30 minutes on one machine! Anywho...early in the morning or late in the evening (8pm), the place is pretty empty. Cons: I question the cleanness of some of the machines (especially the weight ones). People just don't wipe their sweat off the machines after each use...NASTY! If they would add more paper towel dispensers/sprays and put them closer to the machines, then probably this would entice people to wipe the equipment down. This goes the same for the locker room. I always seem to get my pant cuffs wet! Also, I wish they wouldn't cut the summer hours especially on the weekdays, and it would be nice if they were open longer on the weekends. Neutral: IMO, the rates are pretty high ($49/month) . If you purchased your membership through the Avery Branch, you get unlimited access to the other branches. That's somewhat of a nice deal, but I really don't make use of the other branches so I guess this would be a negative for me. As for the staff (especially at the desk), I'm sort of mixed. There are really nice helpful ones and some questionable ones. Yet, I think everyone runs into this problem in all gyms. read more

Good news first: Excellent facility. Clean, new, and massive. I have only used the two pools, and highly recommend the family pool, especially if you have young children. The family locker rooms are nice, too! I gave this location 3 stars for a few reasons. The first is because I have continuously not been impressed with the people running the front desk. They barely make eye contact with you, rarely greet you, and if you have a problem they tend to cop more attitude with you than help out. They really don't seem to enjoy their jobs at all. Secondly, I signed up for swimming lessons for my son (who was under 1 year old at the time) and only signed up for the program membership, mainly because my son is too young to really take advantage of all of their programs. I felt like I was hounded by numerous people (those who were employed there and those who weren't) about buying a full membership. From what I understand, they get some kind of incentive if someone joins under their name, so I realize people are motivated because they want to save money. Still, though, I felt like everyone was working on commission, and almost like there was a cloud over my head because I wasn't a "full member". I definitely felt lower class at times just because I wouldn't shell out the dinero to reach that status. On a lighter note, our swimming instructor (Becky Rice) was absolutely wonderful! It was nice to see at least one person working there who really liked their job. read more

Plainfield location with Naperville attitude No one seems to know what they are doing but certainly are good at fake it til you make it. read more

This fairly new YMCA has gone downhill. Front desk staff needs to go to social skills building classes. Reminders need be requested daily to let members know it's their responsibility to wipe and clean equipment when finished. More equipment is needed because the ones in use serve as phone stations for members to sit on and text or talk on. Very disappointed in staff and inconsiderate members. read more

PARENTS BEWARE! have been a member for years, unfortunately I don't think I can return. My 4 year old daughter has been let out of the child care 2xs without me going in to pick her up. There is not a strict enough policy of checking kids in and out.... Chuck E. Cheese has a better system. I spoke to the COO about this and the only result was the ladies that work there whispering about me when I went to try one more time to see if I could trust it. I couldn't believe it! As a mother I would only want to reassure another mother that their child was going to be looked after in a caring environment. I have reached out to many other former members and current employees of the Y and they told me that this is a common occurrence that management has not fixed. When I first brought this up to the local Y. Management I was given nothing but a response in defense of their policy... a policy that left my 4 year old wandering around by the front desk with nobody noticing. How can you defend that??? Something needs to be done and other moms need to be informed. read more

So we recently moved to the area and have been looking for a place to join where we could do basic cardio-circuits and swim. We checked out the area Y's because we also like to support their mission. This Y, while a very nice, new modern facility, just wasn't for us. The front desk staff was apathetic, at best, and not very interested in providing us with any information other than the pamphlet nor were we offered a tour. Not very welcoming. We decided to join another Y in the area, and it is working out fine. We can visit the Avery Family Y 12 times a year. Perhaps we will have a different experience in the future. read more

We love the before school program they have at my daughter's school. The facilities at the actual YMCA are top notch and clean. The folks at the front desk are always very friendly. read more

Great facility. The pool is top notch but busy and all of the equipment is newer and well maintained.

This place is honestly such a waste of money. The basketball courts are always filled with little kids, and the majority of the time Half of the court is taken up by some sort of activity they do with only 5-6 kids it's ridiculous. They really don't need an entire court when they could easily relocate to a different room and take up an amount of space that they actually need. I would never recommend this place to anybody if you're looking for a good place to place basketball. TRASH read more

The life guards at the pool need to take it down a notch with there attitude problem on more than one occasion iv seen them yell at someone for what they "think" is wrong, but seems to me like there bored and look for things to nit pick at and should relay think and keep there eyes out for real danger. The gym is wonderful and the people up front are as well no complaints there and it is very clean which I find very important. read more

It's a great place to work out. Great Cardio machines. Full weight lifting options. The front desk staff very nice. I go in the morning and they no me by name. Always greet me when I arrive and leave. Shelly the best ( they are all great). It's a place for families. But, it's the Y, & it's about families & kids programs. If you don't like kids, not the place to join. For the price- it is decent value. Any concerns I have had with any issue, are always addressed to my satisfaction by the staff. read more

Love this place. all the pool instructors are awesome!! My family is really enjoying the new expansion with the weight room and the cardio. The front desk staff have been awesome. Thank you for making the changes we all really appreciate it!!! read more

Just joined the YMCA and take my kids here for swim lessons. So far so good. The instructor is great.

Great place to work out and take classes . The pool and restrooms are always clean. The workout equipment is constantly being upgraded. Just as good as lifetime fitness without the cost. If you have kids the day care is free and the staff are friendly and well managed. read more

I love the facility and the people that work here. They are all so nice and this YMCA is definitely the best YMCA in the Chicago land suburbs. The facility is huge. You can do things like work out, go swimming, or even go to a class. I definitely think this is a great place for all ages. read more

I joined this facility nearly two months ago. We are incredibly happy with the fitness groups offered, the pool area for the kids, and the cleanliness through out. I have two daughters, ages 8 and 2 years old. Something that stands out for our 8 year old is that there's a very nice instructor who offers a zumba class specifically for kids and she does a great job making a healthy activity so much fun for them! As for our 2 year old, the Kidz Corner offers many options with plenty of room! It's a shame that such a great facility with so much to enjoy is so negatively impacted by the front desk and staff, or lack there of. As a guest/member there is no welcome, no eye contact, no smile, zero orginization and the staff is completely unaware of their surroundings. They sit in their chair and wait for you to approach and/or speak and that's only when they have wrapped up their personal (clarity:not work related) conversations. (I did have one experience like this in the Kidz Corner as well) It is mind boggling that my family and I just stand there and are AVOIDED because of the amount of personal conversation between staff members here! I truly hope that enough of the same concerns have been expressed and are finally recognized here soon. read more

Overall, I'd give this YMCA an average rating at best. The pools are great but they have a lot of lessons on weekday nights so it's hard to get a lane to do laps. The workout room is good but sometimes they have classes on weekday nights so some of the equipment isn't available but it's not very often. The basketball courts are awful. There ends up being about 50 - 70 kids on the courts at once a lot. January - April is the worst. There are basketballs going everywhere which is dangerous. Children frequently play 4 on 4 on one basket with people shooting on that same basket. I don't see how any of the kids can improve in these conditions. In summer, they have kids camps with many kids attending. This is a great service but it really inconveniences members. If it's raining, the basketball courts are automatically closed. Some days the pool becomes so crowded with unruly kids that most parents I know leave as soon as they find out that the camp kids are coming to swim. The Avery YMCA purchased 10.3 acres of land for $1 million in June of 2014. Here's an article: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2014-06-24/news/ct-plainfield-school-board-0626-20140624_1_statue-plainfield-foundation-acres. The Y has done nothing with this land in over 2 years and members so far have not been told of any plans for the land. Membership dues continue to rise each year even as membership grows but there haven't been any major improvements. So revenues are way up but members don't see where the money is going. This YMCA is partnered 3 Joliet YMCA's and one in Morris. It is not part of the Chicago Metro YMCA's so you can't visit the 22 Chicago Metro locations as often as you want. The Chicago Metro Y's that I've visited limit you to 12 times per year. If you want to be able to access a bigger number of Y's, you can join the Oswego YMCA which is part of the Chicago Metro YMCA. read more

I was very disappointed with the treatment of my family at the Plainfield YMCA during a recent visit. We are a military family stationed in San Antonio and we're visiting our family in the Joliet IL area and since we have nationwide membership decided to visit this facility. The first day we went, the two people at the desk were busy with other members so we scanned our ids and the young man at the front desk waved us along so we thought that was all we had to do. We had checked online and it said when visiting another ymca, we would have to sign a waiver but we thought since we'd been waved in and the ids were scanned we were covered. We walked around, touring the facility on our own and saW the child watch room had tubes and tunnels and slides to climb. We thought this would be excellent for our little ones to burn off energy during our winter visit so two days later, we returned with our daughters, scanned our ids as last time and went to the child watch. We told them we were visiting and they said our kids couldn't be watched by their staff as that is their policy. I mentioned the waiver they had never presented to us and they said they still could not take our children. Our kids at this point were in tears because they could not understand why they weren't being allowed to participate. We then explained we were a military family visiting to the front desk and they said the same yet could not provide us with a written policy. They then called their director Lisa who approved the use of the child watch. So what is the policy when visiting another ymca? We have visited other Ymcas throughout San Antonio and never had an issue using the child watch. Also when stationed in Ohio, when touring the Ymcas before joining, our children were allowed to go to child watch. We've also been to other IL and Ohio Ymcas and have never encountered this. We understand liability and will gladly sign a waiver, also if this is the policy then fine we will follow it, but I could not find anything stating that nationwide membership did not include the child watch amenity. Then the third time we visited the Plainfield ymca, we scanned our ids as we had the last two times and this time the front desk staff stopped us and asked if we were nationwide members since our ids hadn't worked even though they scanned an error message appeared. They then said we had to sign a waiver and questioned us having used the facility prior. Lisa the director was right next to the young lady attending to us and said she did not remember us, except she did not tell us directly she spoke to the young lady helping us. It seemed as though she was insinuating we were lying about having been there since we had not signed a waiver. It is not our fault that her staff did not follow protocol and allowed us to use the facility even though an error message had appeared or the second time they didn't make us sign a waiver and just gave us a verbal approval. While all this was upsetting, what was the worst was that after knowing we were a military family, not one employee thanked us or my husband for his service and we were treated poorly, pretty much penalized for serving our country and not being a local facility member. Ymca is supposed to be family friendly and it felt as though it was not, it was not military family friendly and I hope that the nationwide membership policies can be clear and accessible in the future. We do not recommend the C. W. Avery YMCA in Plainfield, IL and will be letting our family, friends, and fellow military families and veterans know, as well as the YMCA's Joliet regional and corporate offices. read more

Sooooo disappointed. This facility boasts " no one is turned away due to inability to pay" - however my family just filed a bankrupty and was looking for possible assistance for our school age child, only to find out what a joke it was when we applied for financial assistance. They offered us very minimal discount, not able to afford family membership after all. They do not take into coniderstion all financial info such as mortgage, taxes, medical bills, etc. no wonder we have lived in Plainfield for over 14 years and have never joined. In addition, I have seen the way the high school counselors talk to the children, I would never let my child go there after all. So sad that this is how this facility is. read more

Nice facility and worth joining. Pool can get to be dirty especially after the swim team uses it. YMCA Management does not enforce the must shower before entering the water. Before to shower before you swim and shortly after. read more

Just awesome! I am so impressed! Not only with the facility, but also, the staff! Super helpful, friendly and knowledgeable!!

this place sucks!! my brother came with me to workout and he's desperately trying to loose weight and they demoralize him and harass him. he has been certified two times bc they said he was not certified the right way the first time? they kicked us out of the free weight room and we were told my brother can't use the free weight bc he is under 16 so we were using the machines. (I am 18 so I was able to use the free weights)the workers at this place have nothing better to do than pick on little kids!? the workers are so rude! they were staring at my brother on the machines making faces of disgust towards him and told him he can't use the machines either! at this point my brother was crying! I was so upset!!!this is a horrible place to try to loose weight ! this isn't what a YMCA says they're about ! it's all fake I advise others to think twice about this place! the management was very unprofessional when I asked to talk to a manager after this incident and the manager wouldn't even talk to me in person. it had an employee talk for her. the C.W. Avery YMCA is horrible read more