You know when you wake up one morning and you think, 'Today, I want to climb stuff'. Don't deny it;…read morewe've all thought this at some point. I went here with a friend and her son and we had a great time. They kit you out with the appropriate footwear (kids get a helmet - absolute favouritism right there) The instructor was very friendly and patient with us. He showed us the best routes up the wall and was great with my friend's son, who was quite young and understandably a little nervous. One thing about this place that might put people off - it doesn't use harnesses. The walls are about 20 feet at most, methinks, but obviously you only go up as far as you're comfortable with. The floors are padded too, so if you do fall on your arse as I did, you don't hurt anything except your ego. There were loads of people there who are obviously regular members, and some of the guys were really fit. Will definitely go back

I had no idea this place existed - what a find! If you are into climbing (and especially…read morebouldering) and you can get to Sutton then head down and check Craggy out. There are two large bouldering rooms with 100s of graded problems of all styles from easy jugs for beginners to stuff I can only look at and wonder how on earth anyone can climb! The centre is really well designed and has a great feel, the staff really know what they are doing and are happy to offer advice. There is even a bar next door! Also, check out the caving system. It must have been put in for children's parties but believe me it is a real laugh. I got lost a number of times and in some places it really takes some effort to get through. If this is the future of indoor climbing then I like it. Makes such a change to grubby old walls where you feel like an outsider if you 'don't fit in'. Now my local wall!

I was really sad that I came here on my last day in London and not my first!!! I prob would've gone…read morea few more times, but alas such is life. This place is really cool with so many rooms and climbing routes. There were plenty of top rope, lead, auto belays, and boulders. There is climbing indoor and outdoors, really the playground of my dreams. There's even a cafe and food here, honestly I would never leave this place. And the best part is it's so affordable even for the one time visitor. The con is it's some what far from Central London and that deterred me from going the first time. For any climber visiting London, this is a must!!!

I mean... it's a castle. One with its innards ripped out and replaced by variegated cell walls…read moredotted with multi-coloured hand- and footholds. Does it -get- much cooler than this for a rock climbing gym? The three floors of top roping, lead climbing, and bouldering merely comprise a fraction of what this mega-centre has to offer. They now have a more traditional gym space, walls of lockers (remember to bring a pound coin to use them), a kit shop, and a cute little café on the top floor. On top of offering an awe-inspiring venue, the staff I've encountered have been absolutely lovely. Even when they spot something going less-than-right, they come by to gently offer words of wisdom rather than scathing criticism. Plus, as manual as the check-in process here is*, the front desk employees keep things moving right along. I thought that climbing was going to be one of those things that I might have to give up for good after I moved away from NoVA and my beloved Sportrock Gym there, but I've discovered a whole new level of climbing gym brilliance at the Castle. --- * My former climbing gym had a swipe card system which automated the check-in process completely. Whilst it's not a hassle, it would reduce the work required of the front desk staff here nominally.

This centre in south London is unbeatable! Only wish it was more accessible as it is a nightmare to…read moreget to on public transit. The location is massive but easy to navigate around. You enter upon a massive reception area, lockers to the left and adjacent are toilets and changing rooms. But as I am writing during covid times, the changing rooms are not available at the moment! Through the main doors you enter upon the roped walls and lead walls. To the left is the stairs that go to the first floor. Continuing on the ground floor the back area is a traverse wall and bouldering section. The first floor holds a cafe with some seriously yummy eats! Their paninis are pretty great as well as their sweet treats. They've got a variety of drinks as well. There's a decent amount of seating space and behind all that is another bouldering section. The staff are great, the community is awesome, what more can you ask for?

The Reach is a new (as of January 2010) climbing wall in the Southeast London area (Woolwich)…read more Located in an industrial estate, the premises offers a huge amount of space, which has begun to be filled with exciting new climbing walls and artificial boulders. I visited with a climbing partner on the opening weekend (free climbing = yay!) and although the place is clearly not complete yet, there are plenty of walls completed to keep you occupied for a long session. The climbing is already quite varied, with slabs and overhangs at various angles, and some volumes added to the walls. There are lead areas and top ropes, and one of the slabs is at a very nice angle (I would have loved to have a go at a ridiculous speed climb up it), has been painted with a mural, and was being used for children to climb. At the same time, the lead area boasts some very steep and difficult routes, so I don't think that anyone could have nothing within their grade to go at. At the time of my visit, there were no featured walls (i.e. moulded to approximate the shape of rock and quite common at newish climbing walls), but there are plans for some. A campus board area is also apparently on the way. Hopefully some more efficient heating is also on the way, as it was very cold inside on the opening day. I mention this as you might want to take a large jacket with you, not to put people off going - if you're a climber in the UK, then you won't mind the cold! I do think this will improve, and if it helps, the changing rooms were nice and warm. Possibly the most important feature of a climbing wall is the cafe (climbers being extremely partial to hot drinks and cake) and so a makeshift cafe offering very reasonably priced snacks and drinks had been set up for opening, and I think the cafe as a whole will be complete very soon. The cafe is located on a mezzanine level, on which the main bouldering area also rests. While we were there, we heard one of the staff discussing a huge boulder which was unfinished at one end of the building, which is going to be on a pivot so that the whole boulder can be tilted, creating new problems, which seems like a really cool idea. Although I live on the other side of London, I will make another visit to The Reach, and so might update this review as new areas are completed. I would definitely recommend this wall for people who live a bit closer than me, or work in the area. The staff were really interested to see what people thought of the new wall, and seem like they are really trying to tailor the wall to climbers' wishes. If you've not climbed before, you need to ring them before you go, to arrange for a course to acquaint yourself with the required skills, but existing climbers can register any time they are open, at the reception.

Of the 3 gyms we hit, this was our favorite for a number of reasons. It's a non-profit that tries…read moreto promote climbing for kids, so the day pass for a kid was the lowest, but their early morning entry (7-9am) for absolutely anyone is even lower, at only 5 GBP. The bouldering area was maybe not as large as some others, but the "secret garden" area (half outdoors) with competition climbs having very large holds made it unique and was my kid's favorite area in the gym. Their community was also welcoming and encouraging and chatted with us. It's also a lovely walk along a canal through a park from either nearby bus stop to get there.

MECW is my local and I come at least 3 times a week most weeks but don't ask if I've gotten any…read morebetter at climbing as I spend a lot of my time watching some real pros absolutely killing some of the routes in the Monkey House (the place where all the ceiling climbs happen.) So alright it probably isn't as big as The Arch and it's not as polished, branded or as... hipster but there's definitely a charm to this place which I didn't find at The Arch. Not to mention there is a little top rope for those who are that way inclined and there's a secret (shhhh) beginner's room past the top rope section where you newbies can go if you feel dissuaded rather than inspired by the muscular machines in the main rooms. There are classes available and every Thursday evening a member of staff is on hand to give you tips on improving technique. It's very busy at peak times, this means weekday evenings after 5 and weekends. I try to come around lunchtime on weekdays and avoid the weekends. A monthly membership costs £45 or £40 concession. There is a shop on site, owned and operated by the wonderful Rock On, an independent climbing specialist. They stock a variety of gear and are more than happy to assist you in getting the right pair of shoes. Day access does not differentiate between peak and off peak access like The Arch so you pay £7 for the day and that's all day. Locker rental is 50p which is refundable but goes towards charity if you don't want the refund. The one criticism I have is that their opening hours could be longer. They could open earlier on weekdays and close a little later, especially in the summer. Keep in mind that their main rival, The Arch, opens at 6am and doesn't close until 10pm. There is parking on site but it is limited at peak times. Plenty of bicycle racks though and easily accessed via Mile End tube.

One of just three ice walls in the UK, tucked away at the back of (my favourite) outdoor shop Ellis…read moreBrigham, is the Vertical Chill Ice Climbing Wall. Two storeys high and kept at -5°C, the wall is open to everyone: from complete beginners to seasoned professionals who want to practise their ice pick skills at little closer to home than the the Alps Kitted out in warm jacket, trousers, boots, ice axes, crampons and helmet, in I go to the Vertical Chill. Tom, my instructor, goes through all the basic skills and techniques before sending me up the ice wall. It is tough, and physically demanding, but brilliant fun: a heady mix of adrenalin and excitement. You might be ten minutes from Trafalgar Square but it feels like you're scaling a distant glacier. It happens that I rock climb as a hobby, so the rope work and heights weren't an issue for me. But those with a spot of vertigo should think twice before parting with your £50 for the hour-long lesson - two storeys might be higher than you think! Overall though it is a great experience, and another one of London's unexpected attractions!

Guildford with 86 rope lines, both lead and top rope, and its extensive bouldering wall is one of…read morethe leading climbing walls in the world. Sutton is the newest and most exciting bouldering wall that we know of, with hundreds or routes with something for everyone, also housing a fantastic caving adventure experience ideally suited for children. So - young or not so young, male or female, big or small, fit or a couch potato - come and enjoy the total thrill of climbing at Craggy Island to get fit and of course, to climb to new heights!

Highly recommend this place. The staff are really really nice and chilled and there's a really fun…read moread friendly atmosphere. The cafe is nice too - they sell a variety of smoothies, paninis, fruit and granola type bars. They sometimes have some hot soup and jacket potatoes too. Great when you've been climbing for a few hours and are hungry. Great for climbers, families and children's birthday parties too. Definitely family friendly. Only down-side is that they aren't too good for parking - you might have to go back to the main road to find a space.

It doesn't look like much when you walk in, but don't let that fool you. This place is massive!…read moreIt's bouldering only FYI. First thing you do when you walk is check-in and you'll see the first boulder. It's built with wood so it's slick, but the rest of the gym is much better and textured. Upstairs there's loads of lockers, feel free to bring your own lock. There's an entire built in table that goes down quite a ways with stools and outlets so you can study there or downstairs by their little shop/cafe. As you walk in more you'll see the training area, with a great board, loads of campus boards, bars and other essentials ya need. There's a slab wall, on the other side has a traverse area and next to it is a circuit wall. As you go further there's more variety, loads of overhanging, slab, and good features. Their system is on the V grade and by colour. Overall a pretty cool place to check out! Not too far of a walk from the Bermondsey station.

This is the best bouldering gym I've ever been to…read more This place just opened three months ago, and according to its website has "over 11 000 square feet of bouldering, dozens of circuits offering hundreds of climbs" and "is one of the biggest climbing facilities in the UK." Which I definitely believe - I've been to 20 or so climbing gyms in the US, Canada, and the UK, and this is definitely the biggest bouldering gym I've ever seen. The staff's friendly, the prices are normal, and the facility is just so friggin' enormous, I still can't get over it. They lay their routes out according to color, so basically there are eight or so colors of holds, and all the routes set within each color fall within a certain range of difficulty (e.g. V1-V2). Each color has 30 or so routes associated with it, so you're looking at 240 total bouldering problems right there (assuming that I remember the number of colors correctly). 240 bouldering problems! That's fucking insane! The gym I go to in san francisco has, like, *maybe* sixty! And that 240 figure isn't even counting the ~30 bouldering-comp problems The Arch had up when I visited! They've also got plenty of other training gear - a bunch of hangboards, a moon board, a training board, just all sorts of crazy stuff. If you like bouldering, you have got to go here. This place is the best.

Booked a class pass session there as they were open recently for trials and absolutely loved it…read more The space is huge and shares the volume with Chel-ski another class pass funny thing I am looking to try. Back to climbing, this is pretty much a climbing hall with a dozen walls to choose from. There s an almost regular wall, and then all the other ones are modern design I should say. They are all very interesting to try and can all be done in different ways to make it easier or harder. You get secured using a harness and an automatic rope system thing allowing you to fall down. Plus somebody is supervising you the all time. Music is blasting, you move at your own pace, you realize how hard climbing can be, and you can keep trying as many walls as you want. It is really fun and can be hard if you push your limits. There s even a wall with a timer so you can check your best score at climbing up and challenge your friends. As shown on the pics the place is really flashy, not traditional climbing looking making it fun for an hour thing, or if you would like to bring kids around. There s also a cafe in there.

Clip and Climb is amazing! An indoor climbing wall space that is used for children during the day…read morebut offers adult classes at night! I went with a friend through our class pass memberships and has such an amazing time. There are over ten different climbing walls that you are free to go on as often as you like. The guys who work there are extremely friendly and kind and offered lots of helpful tips! I highly recommend this place for anyone of any age!