Huge place. Great variety of routes. There are so many routes that you can't do them all in one visit. It would be hard to get bored of the climbs there, because there is almost always a route you've not tried yet. This place has more realistic features and cracks that other gyms don't have. The route grades seem a little inconsistent at times, and compared to the other climbing gyms in the Chicagoland area. For example, most routes feel much, much harder than that grade anywhere else. And many of the mid-to-harder grades seem better suited for taller people, as the shorter among us have to dead point or dyno to many of the holds. You'll definitely get braver and stronger climbing at Vertical Endeavors. Room for improvement: The loose black rubber flooring is always a complaint because like a trip to the beach where you find sand everywhere, pieces of this flooring comes home with you. It also leaves black stuff on your hands and feet, so I recommend that you wear socks/closed toed shoes between climbs, because it's not that easy to scrub out. read more

My child was attending a party here in March. Birthday child was turning 9 and so several kids this age. There were also other participants there, ranging in age from 4 or 5 to adult. Most people at the party had no experience climbing. There were some people there not climbing, including young children. After a quick tutorial, everyone went to start climbing. It seemed too quick even. I did not realize there was no staff in the general area they were climbing to help get the area ready (if needed) or clip them in. It seems this would be smart to do and it definitely is needed. My youngest was heading to the climbing area from the party room and a 9 year old was trying to get his climbing area ready by releasing some clips. No staff or adults with the party were helping. We were walking by and since the child was not strong enough to get the other clip off, the clip on the floor flew up and randomly hit me in the face as I was walking by. It all happened so fast, and I thought I lost by eye. The 5" metal clip hit right below my eye. So glad I changed into my contacts before we went because I can't imagine what else would have happened if my glasses were on. I needed to go to urgent eye and the ophthalmologist. Thankfully, the 5" metal clip hit right below by eye and it seemed I would be okay after I healed. It took 5 weeks. While I am okay now, I'm hoping I have no issues come up due to this preventable injury. They make you sign a wavier for anyone there, but it seems to be negligence on the business. Why are children and other inexperienced climbers releasing clips and clipping themselves in?! Maybe this place is good for experienced climbers, but if you are thinking to have a kid party here and most have no experience, I would look elsewhere. They need staff assisting with getting areas ready to climb and clipping climbers in. Bad enough I got hurt and thankfully the 5" metal clip hit right below my eye, but next time it might be a more serious incident. read more

We love this gym. Absolutely amazing place! The staff is wonderful. Logan was so helpful!! It felt like he was our own personal guide for the day!! If you can't make it to the Red then come here! We came up from Indianapolis and we will be back! read more

I went here on a field trip a few weeks ago and it's really fun! Me and my friends had a blast wall climbing here and I would love to come back as soon as possible! read more

Checked this place out while on business. Staff was quite friendly and it was a large space. The rock climbing had rubber chips as the flooring, which I wasn't crazy about. I found bits of trash in it, which is understandable because I'm sure it's quite hard to keep clean but still not ideal. I went there to boulder and they had 3 areas for that. The first area was mostly slabs and had [I believe] 32 routes, which were numbered 1-32 with 1 being the easiest. I thought that was really interesting and a cool way to not get hung up on V grades. The other area was the cave but it was closed for setting. It looked awesome though, wish I could have tried it The last area was a few large spray walls and a handful of more routes. They were graded v0-2 or v3-5 which was odd to me because normally a v3 and a v5 are very different. Overall, it's pretty cool and I recommend checking it out but knocked off a star for cleanliness. The rubber chips, bathrooms, crash pad flooring, holds and the walls themselves were all pretty dirty. read more

Worth the drive over to this climbing gym every time. I never get bored, there are so many routes to try! The staff is also super nice.

Came here with my cousins as a little reunion with everyone being home for the holidays. We came right when it opened and the place was pretty empty. The introduction process was pretty smooth and easy and we were up and climbing in no time. My group had varying skill levels - some first time climbers and some more experienced but we all had a good time. We did a little bouldering but mainly stuck to the auto belay. There were plenty of belay paths to choose from but not all of them were graded which is probably my only complaint. The staff was super friendly and we all had a great time! read more

Just moved back to the Chicago area and had been itching to climb again. VE is the closest to where I lived, but with COVID still hanging around, I was a little nervous about going to any gym even though I knew there were policies and lots of precaution being take. VE didn't fail in that department at all! Seeing the tables scattered throughout the gym with bottles of disinfectant and hand sanitizer made me feel more at ease, and also helped me know I can help keep others around me safe too. Staff is incredibly friendly and helpful with everything. Countless number of routes and problems to tackle, so there's something for everyone! read more

Matt was so incredibly helpful with my Girl Scout troop! He was helpful, kind, and informative. Definitely recommend!

Vertical Endeavors helped me plan a last minute birthday party for my brother's 40th Birthday. There I was less than a week away from his birthday with a guest list of 25 of his closest people and no plans whatsoever. We knew we wanted it to include food and we also wanted to do something fun but not bar related as our guest list included little nieces and nephews. After scouring the internet looking at things like roller rinks, lazer tag, whirly ball, bowling alleys and nothing seemed to work since we also wanted to have food that wasn't gross or not worth it for the price you paid. Cue Vertical Endeavors. They were able to accommodate us even though they require three weeks for notice for large groups. Since we were only a week away and unable to go through their group packages they worked with me to figure out the cheapest way to set up our group. We ended up going with a couple 10 Visit passes and rented gear which worked perfectly. The passes were all day passes and we had several people who did not want to climb but we only had to pay for the ones who were climbing but everyone was able to come participate or spectate. To keep things organized for us they had a sign in sheet for our group at the front and any passes we didn't end up using they saved in their system so that I could use them for a future date. We were all first time climbers so we were only using walls with auto belays but there are several walls for climbers with varying experience! There's also a bouldering area that has different areas of difficulty as well! For the little ones who were to afraid to climb there was a little play area with toys to keep them entertained. So everyone in our party was able to enjoy themselves no matter what age they were! What really sold us for Vertical Endeavors over other places was that they had a large party room that we were able to rent out where we were able to bring our own food! We ended up ordering a spread of my brother's favorite foods and spent the day having fun climbing and eating and celebrating the awesomeness that is my brother. Great place definitely check it out! read more

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Fantastic climbing facility with friendly and helpful staff. Very affordable and accessible for first time climbers.

Great place to climb. Friendly staff. Only allows Pilot belay device (no more ATCs). Plenty of bouldering, top rope, and lead.

Visited here with a friend on a Saturday morning and absolutely loved it! The gym is HUGE and the instructors were friendly. It was our first time so we rented a harness and had a coupon so it was $18/ each for the day. We only stayed for a little over an hour because climbing is super exhausting, but we had a great time! The gym is huge, and there are plenty of auto belays for individual climbers. And a fun variety of climb levels. They also had a lot of bouldering options, but we stuck to the auto belays. Loved this place and can't wait to go back! read more

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First-off, I'm terrified of heights. I've rock-climbed once ever in my life and did bouldering. When I did bouldering, I had to get down, only to hear my friend yell at me "Dude, you're only 4-feet off the ground!". So yeah, I'm no rock-climbing connoisseur (yes, I spelled-check that word), but I'm a firm believer that you need to stretch yourself out of your comfort zone to grow. So now that I just Tony Robbins all yall, Vertical Endeavors (VE) is a pretty cool place! It can be confusing to get in if you're going down Bloomingdale Road, as you kind of have to swing-over a side street , Windy Point Dr, and double-back to get into their parking lot. I'm not the best to ask in terms of how busy it gets, as I went there on Christmas Eve morning at 930AM and there were 2 other climbers there. Which is fine, because I'm not all about having people witness me clinging on to them jugs (yes, they are called "jugs") one-foot off the ground screaming for help. When you get to VE, if you haven't been there, you will need to go to one of them iPads and fill-out a "sucks if you die, because you can't sue us" waiver form. Once you get that, tell the peeps behind the counter if you need to rent any equipment. Pro-tip: chalk shouldn't be necessary if you're a beginner, because most-likely you'll be sticking with the easy routes. As of Dec 2016, me renting the harness and shoes costed me ~$28. Another pro-tip: don't sniff them rental shoes, because they are absolutely rancid. In fact, if you do decide to wear socks with them (some say not to), just consider those socks a lost, because you'll want to burn them afterwards.... and probably attract skunks to the burning stench. After getting your gear on, you'll need to complete a ~10-min orientation, where the staff there familiarizes you with the facility, the different things you can do there (rock-climbing vs bouldering) and how to use the auto-belay system. If you are a non-beginner, you can also do the free belaying sections, but you'll need to get "certified" by VE first, it's just another orientation/class, and you can do that too. The facilities there is massive. They have enormous space for rock-climbing and the back of the facility has two-levels of bouldering. They also have cardio machines in case you want to do that, and plenty of lockers and cubbies for you to stash your personal belongings on. BATHROOM REVIEW: The men's locker room is not that big. I estimated probably 30 or so lockers, with urinals and showers on the other side of the lockers. Bathroom was OK, definitely not as bad as the men's locker rooms I've witnessed at gyms. Guys are dirty mofos. Sit or squat? Squat! read more

One of our favorite places to go. The atmosphere and the staff are great. Definitely worth checking out!

A day pass is $18. I love this place! What I like the most is that they use rubber mulch instead of crash pads. It's a lot softer in the joints and absorbs shock faster. They have 30 autobelays which I love! You get to try so many different routes whereas other places are so limited. The walls only go up to 30 ft tho but the variety of routes make up for it. They also have bouldering towards the back and the upper floor in the front. The routes are pretty good. No complaints about those but with the bouldering, they do use crash pads. There are cardio machines like bike and elliptical if you want to use those. The facility is huge. It's definitely great for groups. You'll never run out of routes to try and the wait time is almost nonexistent. What I disliked was the orientation took a long time. Not the orientation itself but waiting to be shown the facility and how the the place works. The first time I went the person that checked me in told me to put on my gear and to meet up front. I had to ask someone to show me because the dude wasn't anywhere to be seen. The second time, my friend waited for a good 10 min or a little more. I even went on two routes and he was still waiting where they told him to wait. There were a group of employees standing at the counter talking for awhile and didn't do anything so I just told my friend to ask someone to show him around. Besides that, I enjoyed the place. read more

I want to like this place, but there's just so many issues. It's kinda pricey for a day pass. I boulder and the bouldering area is really lacking. There are minimal walls set for bouldering and the ones that are have barely any routes on them. The grading is very strange as well, a route will say v3-v4 or v4-v5... well which is it? A v4 is much different than a v3. The routes seem to be harder here than elsewhere, and every hold is greasy and overused. The route setting for the boulders seemed to be set by the tallest strongest person in existence. Another issue is the spinner log. We found a hold that was super loose so we took a picture and told them about it. At our normal gym, the staff would go out right away to fix it - that's a safety issue. Instead we were directed to a spinner log where folks had written down which hold had spin around where.... the log was huge, with nothing crossed off. That is a safety issue. I don't think we will be returning read more

We can check 'fear of heights' off my list! They have an informative staff and a variety of levels. I felt safe and prepared before the climbs. read more

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As good as it gets! I used to be on a rock climbing club in college and I thought that was fun, UNTIL I found Vertical Endeavors! This gym is one of the largest I have ever seen and the climbing options are absolutely endless! This gym is very clean and doesn't smell bad like a lot of climbing places. They also have a first-time guest orientation, however, if you are still needing assistance after that, the staff is very helpful and active. Additionally, this gym is very kid-friendly and has easily become my little brother's all time favorite place to come. There are so many options and walls for them to climb! If you are looking for a family fun night, a date with your spouse, or just a new and fun activity to do with your friends, I would honestly recommend this place. Whether you're brand-new or a pro, you will learn something new and enjoy yourself (while benefiting your body!). read more

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I visited this place because I desperately wanted to climb while in the Chicago suburbs. It is located in what appears to be an industrial park and a little hard to find. I would recommend filling out the waiver online before going because it will speed the initial intro part up a little. Because the place is massive and it seems like it gets a fair number of new visitors, I and a few others had to wait for a guided tour. There is also a separate waiver for bouldering. I loved how big this place is, so many routes and all with super funny names. The setters have a sense of humor. I appreciate that. There are also 3 separate bouldering areas. There's a neat little child care area where I think your little one can play but there was no supervision, so maybe you'd have to have someone watch your child. I did not rent their equipment so cannot comment on that. I believe the facility also has a no loose chalk policy. I didn't love the rubber mulch on the floor, i think i got some in my shoe at one point. The facility also has a lot more top rope and lead climbing route than auto belays. The autobelay mechanism with the double hook system I can understand is safe and makes it less likely that someone has to go up there and fetch an escaped belay rope but it is difficult and heavy to pull and clip the rope. Overall, totally recommend, would go again, beautiful gym with it's own quirks. read more

Fantastic place all around. There are tons of auto-belay set ups on climbs with a wide range of difficulty. They allow you to rent all of the equipment there (the shoes run really small so get a couple sizes up). For your first time you need to do a quick orientation, but it is quick and painless. One thing to note: they don't sell any food so I would highly recommend bringing a snack, so you can stay and climb longer. read more

This place was great! I went here for my birthday and the instructors were so helpful and kind. Thinking about coming back very soon! There are all types of rock walls to climb, with varying levels of difficulty. I had not been rock climbing in a few years but Vertical Endeavors made me want to get back into it. read more

Had to make a trip to the largest climbing in the nation. Me and a couple of friends stopped by shortly after they had their bouldering competition so we were excited to try out the comp problems. First off this place is HUGE. Tons and tons of walls with lots of great-looking angles and features. I like how the auto belays are generally clustered in specific areas so that certain walls are free for just top rope or lead climbing. Given that this place is ginormous, I was a little disappointed in the amount of bouldering space that they had. But that seems to be the trend in the midwest with more of a catering towards roped climbing. I was also disappointed that the walls were only 35 feet tall for how vast this place is. One particular gripe I had was how long the orientation was. I would estimate that it took at least 30 minutes. We had to fill out the typical waiver, wait for a group orientation, walk throughout the entire gym, fill out a form saying we completed the orientation, demonstrate that you know how to clip into the auto belay, actually climb a little with the auto belay. At the end we just wanted to start climbing already, but wait, one more thing: you have to have an employee watch you if you want to be "certified" to top out on boulders. I can see how this lengthy orientation could be boring and off-putting for new climbers and kids. I know it's only a one time thing, but at least it could be catered better towards the audience. As a climber of 4+ years I don't think its necessary for me to be told about the difference between top rope, lead, and trad and what bouldering is. It was pretty empty when we were there, but I can only imagine how busy this place can get. The locker rooms are tiny for how big the gym is and the only water fountains are near the locker rooms. It would be nice to have more strategically placed hydration stations, especially since the staff was pretty adamant amount minimizing the amount of clutter on the crash pads and floors, so you can't exactly leave your water bottle sitting around. read more

Vertical Endeavors - Rock Climbing Near Me - Glendale Heights, Illinois

When hearing about their grand opening from a coworker, my friend and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to check out Vertical Endeavors. -This place is huge. And by huge, I mean it goes on and on and on. The parking lot and residential streets were completely full, and the place was jam packed; yet, we never had to wait in line to climb or anything. -Before climbing, you are required to take an orientation with a staff member that lasts about 15 minutes. They give you all the basics you need to know to stay safe during your climbs. If you want to do the more serious walls, you have to be certified which requires another orientation. But even the basic walls were challenging. -The staff here are really friendly. I also like how the place let's seasoned volunteers help out as well. Most of the time they were sharing tips and tricks with us, which was really helpful! -The facility is very clean and well kept. Despite the fact that it was day one, the staff were on top of their game. -For those of you that are afraid of heights like I am, just calm down. You could potentially do a practice fall if you're nervous and you don't have to climb all the way to the top when attempting a route. If you stick to it, you'll be better next time! Overall, if you're looking to have some fun and getting a full body workout. You can't go wrong with Vertical Endeavors. read more

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Alright, this is my new FAVORITE climbing gym in the Chicago area! Staff is friendly and knowledgeable and the facility is gorgeous. There are SO MANY routes for all types of climbers out there. The great thing is the number of auto-belays and so many options to choose from. Always look behind corners because there are so many hidden areas with additional routes. Another positive is the rubber tire chips at the bottom which provides a soft landing. The wall itself is rough and more realistic to real rock so you're able to gain traction as a foot hold if needed. Downside is the location itself as I live in the city but definitely worth the trip out! There were so many routes I didn't even get a chance to try the bouldering problems, can't wait for next time though! read more

This is definitely one of the best climbing gyms I have ever been to, and it is one of the largest in the US. Vertical Endeavors is huge with over 300 routes plus three separate bouldering areas. While a lot of Chicago area climbing gyms get crowded, this place always seems to have space and options. Especially for lead climbers! There are a lot of sick routes that go upside down, over archers, and around corners. If you are looking for a winter activity to keep you active, I would absolutely recommend VE as well. The 10 pack passes are a reasonable price, and if you come with a member your first time, entrance is free! read more

Contemplating replacing all of my carpeting with rubber mulch... This place is amazing! I just wish that I was made of money so that I could enjoy it more often. As a relatively inexperienced climber, I was pleased to find this gym for a few reasons. First, there are a ton of auto-belays so that you can climb solo, or with people who are not certified to belay. Second, it is very family-friendly. I can go with my similarly inexperienced wife and kids and everyone can have fun climbing at their own level and pace. Even the tiniest enjoys at, and I usually remember to hook a rope to her so that I can pull her back down at the end of her climb. Finally, the place and the equipment seem clean and well-maintained. It is a "happy place" rather than a climbing dungeon. If it was not so darn costly I could see being a "regular." For now I'll enjoy it as time and budget allow. read more

It's open. It's huge--largest on the world?--it's friendly, and it's got everything. The only caveat is that it's even farther than the Warrenville location from Chicago. Meh, screw it; I'll drive it. Rock on. Note: I own and use a Lenovo Thinkpad T400. Why is that important? The holds at VE GH are so spanking new, my Thinkpad no longer recognizes my fingerprint logon method... read more

Awesome indoor rock climbing gym! The only comments I have for improvement are more garbage cans sprinkled throughout the gym or easily accessible, frequent toilet paper refills, a snack vending machine for Clif bars or energy replenishment, and less beeping sounds. Overall great gym and definitely recommend!!!! read more

Kinda into the rubber mulch. Awesome variety of routes and excellent service. Clean bathrooms and showers, clean workout areas and overall super spacious and pleasant environment. read more

Could have better amenities but a great gym overall for all difficulty levels. Staff is always real nice.

This gym is overwhelming and magnificent to the new inexperienced climber. A great place to go when you're climbing for fun. However, I don't mean to cavil at VE's hygienic qualities but this is by far the dirtiest gym I've ever been to. In the wake of this "flu" pandemic you would think a commercial gym like this would clean their holds often. No, this is not the case for this gym. It seems they have utterly given up on properly cleaning their holds. Every hold was caked with chalk (as expected for a climbing gym I understand) and rubber marks making every hold a grade harder. Needless to say the staff is very unapproachable and lofty. The climbing community deserves better VE. read more

I'm a novice rock wall climber so my review comes from that vantage point. I've climbed rock walls before but they paled in comparison to the offerings here. And there are many! Not sure how many routes they have but it's likely in the hundreds and they vary greatly. My son and I took it easy, sticking to the easier routes that were kid friendly. I was able to scale to the top of these but the advanced routes were another story. Let's just say I have a newly found sense of respect for the folks who can climb these walls. Many of them take great talent, strength and patience. After a half dozen routes or so my hands were red and painful, and my upper body felt like jello. Still..I was very happy that we came here. Next time I'll likely bring some climbing chalk for my hands (or you can buy it from them) and wear shorts and a tee. It was -10 out today so we came in with pants and thermal. Both were too cumbersome and heavy for climbing purposes. Neat place, we enjoyed our time, and I'll very likely be back. Cheers. read more

I went here on the 1st Friday of the month, which means it's free for new climbers. Came with my boyfriend and we are hooked. So many walls to climb and for different skilled sets. They have three boulder climbing areas and the instructors there are very professional. They offer private lessons and there is a kids zone for little ones to hang out in. read more

If you want to learn to climb, this is your place. Great staff, reasonable rates, climbing walls, bouldering, rope climbs, etc... Sometimes it gets busy, but that just tells me that the place is popular because it is well run. read more

Plenty of options for climbing and bouldering. I went with a friend that prefers to Boulder so I took advantage of the auto-belay systems. During our orientation we were told it's the second largest Vertical Endeavors in the U.S. read more

Holy crap. This place is HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE. So many different walls with a full spectrum of difficulties and overhangs, with auto belay and free hanging ropes to meet any level of skill and physicality. Clean, modern facilities with friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable staff. A full stocked pro shop. Plenty of free parking in the lot out front. Is there anything more you could ask for? The locker room is a bit on the small side, considering how many potential climbers you could have at one time, but other than that, it's a climber's paradise. Sign up for a membership and climb to your heart's content. read more

Loveeeee Vertical endeavors! The gym is huge and they're always switching up the routes to keep it fresh and interesting. I just started taking my 5 year old son up to climb and the staff is so friendly and patient which I think is important in keeping kids interested and excited. In my opinion, VE is the only option around indoor climbing. read more

Vertical Endeavors - This little guy learning how to climb!!!! - Rock Climbing Near Me - Glendale Heights, Illinois

Facility is impressive, but pretty expensive. Also, be careful if you are a member to cancel (if you need to) your membership by the 1st of the month. They will NOT refund you even if you have not used their facility in any way. Kind of poor customer service which has made me less interested in becoming a member again when I return from school in the summer. read more

This place seems to never be open. If you have a membership good luck using it! They should at least be open in the morning. Garbage.