Palo Alto Family YMCA - Palo Alto, California

Brianna B.

Pros: I’m giving this gym a four-star rating because it’s the nicest, most well-maintained, and most affordable gym in Palo Alto for the area of Palo Alto. 💸

Cons: The gym is quite small, especially the weight room. Unfortunately, most people don’t clean their equipment after use, which is pretty gross. I once got addressed by a staff member for being on my phone, yet I regularly saw others taking calls without issue. Not sure what that was about. Also, some people will literally stare at you and hover around your machine while you’re using it, which felt a bit uncomfortable.

J M.

The recreation pool is over capacity with all kinds of special events especially on weekend afternoons. The member including children can only use the deep area because the shallow area is always occupied by special events. Last week, I called specifically asking if there is any special event scheduled that afternoon. The representative told me no event. When I arrived 15 minutes later, the recreation pool was packed with a special event. Palo Alto Family YMCA, why do you have to lie to customers? Not everyone like to share a small pool with another 100 people. The organizer of these special events forces YMCA members to leave the shallow area including young children.

Quentin A.

Solid gym, but I'm not a fan of the community.

Pros:
- Clean and functional gym equipment
- Staff have been friendly and helpful whenever I have questions/issues

Cons:
- Men's locker room etiquette is worse than average. People shave their heads/beards in the sinks and spit on the common floors regularly. This is not entirely staff's fault, but when you already have signs on these rules you have to enforce them.
- The pool and weight floors are often packed
- Some people are weirdly aggressive about the pool? I've seen squabbling a few times.

Dora X.

After three months of membership at the YMCA, I’ve decided to cancel due to some really disappointing experiences, especially related to the pool. I primarily joined to take my kids swimming, but several issues have made it an unpleasant experience:

1. Rude Members: On one occasion, I was in Lane 1 with my child since the family pool was closed. A member approached us and asked us to leave, even though the lifeguard had said it was fine that kids can swim in lane 1 when family pool is over capacity. She then jumped into the pool, intentionally knocking into both me and my child. Despite the lifeguards’ support, this incident left us feeling very unwelcome.
2. Inconsistent Lifeguard Rules: Different lifeguards enforce different rules, which creates confusion. Some allow me to swim separately from my kids in Lane 1, while others insist that I stay together with my kid, which makes it impossible for kid to learn and practice swimming independently. There’s also inconsistency about using the spa – sometimes I’ve been able to go in with my kids, but today I was told that anyone under 18 is not allowed, which was a surprise.
3. Overcrowded Pool and Poor Communication: The pool is often full, with lanes packed due to swimming lessons, and there’s inconsistent treatment regarding how many people can swim. Sometimes lanes have 3 people, but other times we’re told to wait due to capacity limits, even though there’s no signage indicating the maximum capacity.

I’ve emailed the YMCA leadership two months ago about adding clear signage to avoid misunderstanding and they promised to address the issue, but nothing has changed yet.

These repeated issues have made the pool experience frustrating and unwelcoming for families, and that’s why I’ve decided to end my membership.

Aubrey S.

Been taking my kids to their swim lessons for several years and have nothing but great things to say. Very happy with the program. Ms. Carol and Heather are great teachers

Qishan L.

Not recommended. Terrible experience with YMCA Palo Alto. Calls are never answered, and after reporting an incident, I received NO follow-up via call or email. The lack of communication and accountability is very disappointing.

Mu L.

Not recommended for families.

We were in membership for 2 years, mainly bringing kids to the pool. We had a lot of bad experiences thanks to the unfriendly and changing rules and unhelpful staff.

- A lot of swimming lessons, no place for normal members. Weekend and workday 5pm-8pm are also busy hours.
- Sometimes you were asked to wait in the lobby, sometimes you could wait by the pool. Today we were told to wait in the lock room.
- Emailed to cancel our membership. They created the ticket but didn’t take action. When I called 1 month later, I needed to tell the staff the day and email title I sent, so they can admit they ignored the email.
- Each guard has somewhat different rules. For example, one staff member asked me to stay within 1 feet of my kids, making it impossible to learn.

Tj S.

Clean facilities. Good equipment. Wish they were open longer on weekends.
My running shoes got stolen the second time I visited 😢- I forgot to pack my favorite pair of running shoes just before they shut at 9pm, and left 'em in one of the lockers and the next morning they were gone even though I called and left a few voice mails requesting them to hold on to the pair. It was my mistake leaving the shoes behind but I wish someone had acted on my several phone call requests.