Watershed Kilkenny - Very expensive - any thought ?

Superfloss75

Good morning !

In a bid to shift the coating of lard ive been cultivating over the festive period, I decided that today would be the day I would give the Watershed a lash. Ive been a member in the Newpark gym for a while, but as it closed after xmas for renovations, Ive been completly exercise free and am starting to balloon at an unprecedented rate !
The Watershed looks v.impressive, so I rang them just now and was horrified at the pay-as-you-go daily rate : its €9.00 !!!:eek:, or for a yearly membership0 €510.00 !!. Surely, this is a bit OTT- its supposed by be a public facility, owned by Kilkenny county Council - that even more expensive than alot of gyms in Dublin !. The Newpark used to charge €12.00 for a day pass, and that a private venture, so the higher charge is understandable, but in the Watergate is supposed to cater for everyone. Well, if you cant afford to lash out €510.00, then €9.00 a pop is a hell of a lot to pay- especially, if you were to use the gym 2 to 3 times per week, even more expensive in the current economic climate. This provides no incentive to get fit - in a time when Ireland (and the rest of europe) are becoming more obese, as a result of our jobs/lifestyles are becoming more sedentry.

I'll be walking / running the new ring-road instead - at least its free !

What do ye think about this charges in the Watergate ? I said it to the girl on the phone that the daily charge was very high, but she didnt respond. I think a charge of around €6.00 would be alot more realistic.

Yours, Hugh-Jazz

Nightwish

I dont think its that expensive. It depends on how much you'll use it. For me, I wouldnt use a gym often enough to fork out €500 or €600 on yearly membership so €9 per visit works out as reasonable for me. €9 gets you both gym and pool use if you arent registered. You get it for €7 if you pay €20 registration fee.

PhilipMarlowe

Doesn't seem dear to me either...
Even at €9 a go you'd still get it twice a week for 6 months and then use the 'great' outdoors in the 'summer' for under €500
At €510 it's only €9 a week so great value if you will use it regularly and you can afford the up-front payment. At €7 it's excellent value.

Deliverance XXV

Is that €500 a annually recurring charge? Generally, there is the yearly fee plus a once-off joining fee. That was the case when I joined The Ormonde. Cant remember exactly but it was something like €400 annually and €200 joining fee.

Ravage1616

They also give you the option to pay the memebership monthly, which works out at 45ish a month which ain't to bad! I don't think its to expensive at all!

mick kk

Is it possible to pay them 45 cash each month (not by direct debit) - i.e. pay as you go sort of thing?

Ravage1616

mick kk wrote: »

Is it possible to pay them 45 cash each month (not by direct debit) - i.e. pay as you go sort of thing?

Not sure mate, my house mate had picked up the brochures for the place but it only looks like ya can pay 45 a month by direct debit. Probably best to give them a ring and double check.

jiggajt

I think its reasonable enough. The ormond gym used to charge 25 euro for a day pass and that was 2 years ago!

My only concern about the watershed is that it look packed all the time. The car park is almost full all of the time. Was going to join but having second thoughts. (Or maybe im just looking for excuses not to go to the gym!)

upthecats

I think its pretty good value if you consider the quality of the fit-out. It is really busy on weekends but not so bad weekdays!

scatty

" its supposed by be a public facility, owned by Kilkenny county Council - that even more expensive than alot of gyms in Dublin !. The Newpark used to charge €12.00 for a day pass, and that a private venture, so the higher charge is understandable, but in the Watergate is supposed to cater for everyone."

I am nearly sure the watershed is a private venture. it is a very impressive place and when compared with other pools and gyms it is reasonably priced ,we got a family pass on saturday peak time €18 for the five of us.it will never be as cheap as the James Stephen pool but when you consider how basic the facilities were there !! the watershed is a great new addition to kilkenny:):)

asimonov

I think The Watershed was built by the local authority (e20 million), but they set up a limited company to operate it. Therefore, it has to "wash it own face" if you know what i mean.

As far as i know the Watershed is not about profit but about making sure that everyone in Kilkenny can access the highest class of sports and leisure facility. I can only imagine the cost if it was a private club where they had to recoup the capital cost of developing it - and truth be told the other facilities don't compare.

I'm training for the connemarathon, and for my long slow runs at the weekend, i can run the 15 miles or so to the watershed...change in there and recover in the pool (having a shower inbetween of course!). That for me is brilliant. I hope they start their classes soon, as there's a marathon core training class meant to be starting soon! Bring it on!

Patcha

The Watershed is a prvate company owned by the Kilkenny local athorities.This has saved the local authority over 4 million in building cost as it can reclaim the vat on the same.
Unfortunately the Watershed are now oblidged to charge vat on all revenues.
The costs are attractive to single users who can afford the lump sum up front or can afford another direct debit but for those who cant swimming im afraid is a thing of the past, until the summer comes and we can usethe river again .

zootroid

I think 510 euro is expensive though. I paid 345 euro for Northwood in Dublin (one of Ben Dunne's gyms).

Sliderman

Called in with my family for a swim last week and thought it was good value. :rolleyes:

pool1234

The watergate........:D