Hidden Gems Archery...you have not failed this Yelper. I know 3 stars looks bad, but it's not. I just wanted to set the record straight because I have had business owners in the past message me all upset and whatnot. If you've never taken archery lessons before, swing through...this place was A-OK. I thought I was going to have to add the listing to Yelp, but someone did 9 hours prior...small world. And they also used a Groupon. I was originally going to go to the Staten Island based Groupon archery offering since it was 1/2 as much, but since I would have had to pay the toll to get to S.I, I figured it evened out. For 30 minutes, me and the one other guy taking the intro course learned about the methods and safety of archery. And then we put arrows into things for a little under an hour. We got about 4 rounds in I believe and were alternating on the 4 target course (narrow room on the second floor of some building) with a family of 4 who were obviously members and obviously practiced...they were on some Katniss and Legolas type ish. I feel confident picking up a bow and arrow now. Learned a lot from Q and Tyler. Q provided the archery lecture and it felt like a James Bond movie...you know when Q explains the gadgets to Bond. Except our Q was a woman. With a 99.9% safety rating. Ask her where that .1% went. I went to the 12 PM lesson on a weekday and I think the preceding lessons were packed or so I overheard. So I'm glad I chose the first lesson. It's why I chose the first lesson. Next up, fencing! And then ninjitsu. read more

Sadly I missed the Yelp event, but I did come here for my friend's birthday party recently. We were a large group (at least 20), and the instructors did a nice job staggering our group with safety instructions and prep while a set of tots were taking aim at the targets. Overall, it was a cool experience. We were buddied up and I paired with my friend, who immediately pigeonholed himself as troublemaker/class clown. He got some special attention from the staff and I received a couple of demerits for not following instructions (I'm oblivious, not insubordinate). Yes, friends, I had two of my arrows removed from my quiver at one point, but I couldn't really blame them as I had ample warning. Once I earned my way back into good standing, the arrows were returned. Shooting was fun and pretty straightforward after a few tries. My only criticism is that they should spend a little less time on the prep and let us loose sooner with the bows (time flies pretty quickly when you're shooting arrows). But I get why they over-prepare with the safety lessons. read more

Me and my friend visited this class 3 times and every time we had fun. Fist time for learn the basics class, 2nd time to practice, 3rd time to learn how to use a sight and learn Olympic style. The team is very friendly, funny, and make you feel welcomed. Place uses Win&Win bows, basic models, good brand. But understandable since it's a beginners class. Thanks guys for doing such a great job. read more

Hidden Gems Archery - Beginners line - Archery Near Me

My husband surprised me with an archery lesson for our anniversary!! OMG you wanna talk about excited? And in Brooklyn?? Yes, this BK girl is loving this! We had the place to ourselves and an awesome instructor. Archery takes a lot of skill and practice. I found the experience to be very therapeutic and I was even able to pop a balloon! I never made the bullseye but I came super close and I enjoyed every minute of it. The team members that we met were all so cool and I could tell they loved their craft. read more

For someone who tried archery for the first time here are a couple of major pros and cons for this place: Cons: 1. you only get to shoot 4 times (3 arrows each time). For the price you pay they should let you do it at least a couple more times since the first and second trial are kind of "practice runs" 2. BE AWARE it's $30 if you use cash and $32.17 if you use your credit card. I am not big fan of places that over charge you for using a credit card (especially over $2). It isn't fair! 3. Location is hard to find once you are in the building. They can use some signs as you are navigating through the college. Pros: 1. Staff was friendly and helpful read more

I am SO happy that there is finally an archery place in Brooklyn. Commuting to Queens would've been ridiculous for me. My boyfriend and I went on a Google Offers deal. And I found these instructors to be thorough, friendly and very well educated. The instructors teach you the basic fundamentals of archery in a very short time, and when you go up to shoot, they watch you to make sure you're doing everything right. I must say that I couldn't ask for better instruction! Will I go back? Absolutely. Will this be my new sport of choice? Yeah, probably. read more

Well the archery itself is pretty awesome, but beaware you will only get 9 chances to shoot with 9 arrows, so for $30 that seems a bit steep. The lesson part takes up most of the time, as well as instruction and explaining of everything. It may have taken longer because we had a large group maybe others will get more shooting? But I think it general the whole thing can be a lot better organized and more streamlined and efficient. PS. It's a bit hard to find, it's on the 4th floor of St. Francis college! read more

My bf bought us both an intro session with Hidden Gems after seeing a deal on Amazon Local. I'm overly-cautious and under-athletic and he's about the opposite, but we both had a great time. I was very comfortable shooting after the detailed instructions where Q had us practicing our stances and 'shooting' with giant rubber bands. We also got personalized help and adjustments while shooting with the real bow and arrows. My bf had archery lessons in college but was sure he didn't learn as much technique then and had better results right away with Hidden Gems. The instructions did take time, but we were informed that after you've had your intro session, you can come back and don't have to go through the instructions again, you can just start shooting right away. There were two kids in our group and they seemed to enjoy it too. And most importantly to grandmas everywhere, no one put their eye out. read more

My bf bought a living social deal for hidden gems archery and we took the lesson there together. First impression of this place is that it's a little disorganized. I think they overbooked our time slot. But a lot of people in the class left half way through the lesson for some reason, so the group shrunk. Hidden Gems rents out the gym in St. Francis college. It's chilly in there, bring a sweater there if you plan on going. We were taught how to shoot by Q. She was funny and informative. The lesson takes about 20 minutes. That didn't leave a lot of time for shooting. We got about 15 shots, then time was up. But of you return for free shooting they offering reduced prices. The staff is very helpful, they explain to you what the most common mistakes are and help you with your shot. I would have been more pleased with the experience if i had more time to shoot. read more

Went here for my bday with a groupon. The place is not in the best area and really is "hidden." It's also fairly small, so don't expect to shoot further than 20 feet or so. The reason why I deducted a star is due to the sloppiness of how our experience here began. There was a post it on the door that said "Will Open at 11:50" Well they let us in at 12:10. Once inside we awkwardly stood around waiting for some sort of direction and were finally told to find a seat. It then took another 20 minutes to get everyone signed in while sitting again in awkward silence. Once the instructor Q took over things flew by. The staff FROM THAT POINT on was exceptional. I just wish they greeted and interacted with us like that from the beginning! Otherwise you learn a lot as a beginner and get to shoot for about an hour. read more

Now I'm ready for my stint on "Survivor"!......i f it included hunting 400lb immobile cows that don't mind being shot at multiple times. On Saturday, my sister surprised me with an archery lesson through this company. We arrived early and were greeted very warmly by the helpful staff. Before they give you the sharp, pointy things hurl to mercilessly at the targets (aka arrows) they prep you and make sure you do not hurt yourself or the poor bum standing next to you. The lead us through some instruction that included: -proper stance -safety precautions -holding the bow -why we should not use other people's equipment - general "dos & don'ts" of not shooting your neighbor The instructor was fun and quirky and made us feel at ease. Our group was nice and small (about 8-10 people) and we all fit comfortably on the shooting lines. When you are deemed ready to pit your coordination against gravity, you are given an arm guard, bow and 3 arrows. There are separate instructors for the shooting range and they come by and gently correct your stance and give you pointers. I quickly realized that my concept of arrow-flying- physics was vastly wrong and cursed my high school teacher shortly under my breath. They were very helpful and didn't mind at all when we asked them to take pictures of us shooting! Great experience! Great birthday gift! Tip: Get the earlier classes because the later you go the more ppl will show up! read more

I went to this place with my Fiance on a Groupon and I have to say that I had an awesome time. The staff was nice and patient and the equipment was good as well. One woman had us stretch certain muscles and showed us how to hold the string of the bow using a big rubber band looking thing. Then she fitted us for arrows. Next we had two guys give each of us bows and broke us into 2 groups and the shooting began. If you're doing something wrong, they will come over and show you the right way to shoot. The time seemed to go by so fast as I wanted to keep shooting my bow and arrow. I am definitely going back to Hidden Gems Archery (even without a Groupon because the prices are very reasonable). I am now hooked on archery. read more

I was here for an introductory course as part of a Yelp Elite event and going in I had no idea what to expect. The first half hour or so was spent going through some basic exercises of stance, terminology and technique. Some may find it boring but for those young padawans with patience, it will all come together when you pick up your bow and start shooting. We had a good amount of time in front of targets actually shooting and at first you could hear the clank of many arrows falling to the floor. By the last round of shooting, most of us were hitting closer to center - or at least not hitting the floor. The course is just enough to pique your interest and I will certainly be back for more. There's a certain amount of therapeutic value in archery. read more

Had a great time here. I came here with a groupon and had been looking forward to my first time doing archery for a long time now. I learned a lot that day and the staff was super nice. This is an indoor shooting archery place with 4 post. My groupon gave me a 30 minute intro lesson and 60 minutes of practice shooting. I would definitely come back here but on a day that I think would be less crowded. They allow only 4 people to shoot at a time because of the limited space. read more

class is held inside one of the event spaces at Bethel Assembly (2 East 120th Street at Madison Ave). go inside and take a right. walk past the church's store and dont buy the "jesus candy". i think its like jesus juice but in candy form. stay focused and keep walking, go down the steps and class is on your left. very informative and safe. something interesting to do and learn. the class i went to was pretty crowded (20+) so some of us had to share a target which i didnt like but i hope to keep going way after the groupon frenzy dies down. the instructor sounds like Rick Moranis when she speaks which is kinda cute, i guess. enjoy. read more

I came here for the Yelp Let's Take Aim Tonight! Elite Event. The instructors were informative and funny. Good instructions with repetition definitely worked. The introductory class in the beginning was taught so well that all the Yelpers were hitting the targets, consistently too! Even though we had maybe 30 minutes of actual shooting time, I had a blast. So much that I've signed up for 4 classes! They have two locations: Bronx and Brooklyn. Their Brooklyn location is right off the Borough Hall station. The prices range from: 1 class for $25, 2 classes for $40, 4 classes for $68 ($17 per class!) for 1.5 hrs of shooting. These prices include their equipment. Have your own? 4 classes is only $48!! read more

The lesson was extensive and clear. The instructor was very good and I got help when I needed it. I took a lesson before this one at another place and I was taught nearly nothing compared to what I learned here so it really helped me improve. It's not a huge facility and it's a basic set up so it's best for beginners and basic practicing. I hope that they expand their offerings. read more

I had a wonderful experience overall at Hidden Gems Archery. The instructors were very friendly and helpful from beginning to end of archery lessons. read more

I'm a novice archer and all the archery places are too far from me. Last time I took any lessons it was 2 hours to get to Brooklyn, the lesson and 2 hours back- almost 6 hours of my day. I thought oh well no archery as long as I'm living in NYC. BUT THEN...I discovered that Hidden Gems does classes every Saturday 3 blocks from my apartment!! I'm so excited! I've gone twice and have already seen progress. I work some weekends so I won't be able to go every week but I will be going at least once a month. Instructors are great and very welcoming. If you live in Upper NYC and want to try archery check out Hidden Gems. read more

Our experience was excellent! So we arrived 40 mins late. Q, (the instructor) was super flexible and accommodating, essentially ended up giving us a private 2 on 1 class, and also allowed us to shoot for almost 2 hours. We had so much fun, and the staff were encouraging and very friendly. I would definitely come back again. read more

This place is great. You get what you paid for. This is real archery. The instructor measures you with the bow and arrow to make sure that you get the right size bows and arrows. The bow is wood, so it is definitely a lot lighter than the metal ones they use in queens archery. Also, they teach u archery the real way without using the auto releaser. read more

What a wonderful way to spend a weekend afternoon! The staff is very knowledgable and extremely friendly and helpful. Coach Q and Natasha were both wonderful. I learned a lot and highly recommend for a group outing, party or if you want to become an expert and channel your Katnis! read more

I bought a groupon for this place on a whim, and It was so much fun! Never thought I would be able to shoot and arrow, and even hit the target! The Instructors were fun and informative, I will definitely be going back again! It does get a little cold in the gym because of the air conditioning, so I would pack a cardigan or light sweater just in case. read more

We arrived at Hidden Gems Archery through AmazonLocal. It was a great time! The energy was pretty low amongst my group, but friendly instructors really helped. Definitely would recommend. read more

Great experience. The instructors are so good with kids and beginners. I've been twice using groupons. Perfect indoor activity in the winter. read more

I have a son who basically got hooked on archery overnight. And, looking for a place to shoot was rather hard since we from NYC and we don't have many places to train at. I check out a few other places I rather not say who. But one day we went to Hidden Gems. and I must say they are just awesome. The staff was super friendly and helpful. my son didn't only learn to shoot but instead found an extended family at hidden gems. Now he won't shoot any where else. He considers Hidden Gems his home. And he shoot in a bunch of tournaments as well. Coach Q and Natasha are simple the best instructors you can find. If you want to learn don't think twice in stopping by that this place. I even learned to shoot myself. read more

Find that hidden "Robin Hood" in you for a very reasonable price. My wife and I just had the introductory lesson and it was great!

"You have to improve the signage!" i said into the phone, irritated after walking back and forth searching for Hidden Gems. Turns out a sign on the street was blocked by trucks. But after a staff member came down to the street to find me, everything that was "hidden" truly became a "gem." Hands down this was one of the most unique, exciting and satisfying experiences for a Saturday afternoon in NYC. Forget the white and black zones, i actually hit the center of the X in the dead center of the mat in the first hour! The teachers are GREAT, with perfect blend of warmth/humor, patience and professionalism. We were first taught all the precautions; then "suited up" with arm protector and quiver; then given our arrows and handed our bow. Mine was named ONYX#1..cool. "Q", William, Brent, and (?) our 12 year old future Olympian.. and lesson mates..THANK YOU ALL for a memorable and enjoyable experience. And biggest THANKS to my nephew who selected this activity to celebrate his 25th birthday. You hit the bullseye on this one! read more