I like this gym, it's a bit more like a club than purely a gym, but I don't really use the club…read morefacilities so the gym part is what I'm reviewing here. No tennis, no pool, no snack bar.
Anyway, there are three key things for me when it comes to a gym. First is cleanliness, second is shower facilities, third is equipment.
AVAC is a relatively small gym and I tend to go at off hours. This means not many people, so thankfully it's very clean inside. If you think about a 24 Hour Fitness or similar, they have hundreds of people constantly working out, there's no way to uphold hygiene standards. AVAC, despite being small, has frequent cleanings happening, which is nice.
The showers at AVAC are... okay. On the plus side, they provide towels, which is a dealbreaker for me. Who wants to bring their own towel to a gym? So that's a big convenience factor. The towels have been bleached and washed to the point they are marginally more absorbent than copy paper and quite rough, but I guess a towel is a towel.
The showers themselves are workable but not ideal. Communal in nature, which I personally find awkward, but going at off hours at least allows me to have them to myself or only 1-2 others at most. If it was packed I'd probably wait, it's just too weird. The shampoo and body wash are not very high quality, kind of reminds me of what you'd get at a cheap motel. But again, at least it's there. I also don't want to cart my own soap around.
For the gym's size, the equipment variety and quantity is good. I've never not been able to get a treadmill, I've always been able to get the free weights I want, and there are usually benches available. The only thing in short supplies are squat racks, of which there are two, and space for deadlifts, which is basically also two. I would say the gym's clientele leans towards... not people doing those types of exercise. So I haven't typically had to wait, but again I also don't go at peak hours. There are also tons of machines, if you're the type of person who thinks isolation exercises are good. Better than nothing I suppose, but that's just me.
AVAC offers a lot of free classes, of which I've taken none. They also have a snack bar, which I've never used. There's also a pool (not the swim school pool which is like 2.5' high) and a kiddie pool outside, neither of which I've been in. And there are tennis courts and pickleball and some outdoor fitness area, which, you guessed it, I have never been to.
I wouldn't say AVAC is a destination gym the way Bay Clubs are, but if you're closeby it's probably the best one around. They also have plenty of parking in back in two lots.