BlazingSaddler wrote: » Hi all, 3 and a half years on from my original post i'm thinking of joining this place again!, mainly so I can use the pool with the kids in the summer. The pricing seems to have increased still, now at €69 (€49 off peak) pm per adult, €29 pm per teen, €15 child. Joining fee €69. Are these prices negotiable at all, back in the days of Crunch they certainly were. I get the impression West Wood wouldn't budge. I'm sure I wouldn't recognise it since the Crunch days, is it worth the money?
annfield1978 wrote: » So apparently I should have been paying children membership for my 6 yr old at 15veuro a month on top of my normal membership of 450. 9 months into my membership I am told I can't bring him in. I have another child about to turn 4 and they'll be looking for money for him as well. Crunch was children under 12 weren't an issue
BlazingSaddler wrote: » That's great annfield1978, I may try again! Mine wasn't a straightforward renewal as it expired back in October, I also think having the kids on the membership at the same price as last year is something they may have tightened up on.
annfield1978 wrote: » was able to renew at Crunch at same price as last year as spoke to girl at the desk and not the membership team, not sure if that made a difference or whether its new members that may get stiffed for the higher prices
RasTa wrote: » Skipping cardio. Do you even run bro?
Phil.x wrote: » I pay €280 for ME, here; http://abarbellgym.com where real men hone their guns and push heavy weight. If I'd your money I'd burn mine.
Phil.x wrote: » Special time of the year when that deal is on. Ben Dunne like crunch are not real gyms and are packed full, they are a type of resort/treatment/spa....soft place.
Je_suis_Jean wrote: » Do you get some sort of special discount? Taken from their website "12 months - €349 (student - €299)". Why do you pay so much to just push weights? Why not join Ben Dunne Blanchardstown for less than you are paying in your current gym and in addition to all the weights you can lift you'd get access to a 25m pool, cardio equipment, Jacuzzis, Spin classes etc etc and even a hairdressers onsite so you can look your best when showing off those guns
Phil.x wrote: » WTF!! Is this a joke. Ha ha ha...
Je_suis_Jean wrote: » It's the monthly fee you need to focus on if you're planning to be a long term member. I pay €180 a month for 2 adults and 2 kids which adds up to €2,160 per annum. That's a lot of disposable income so you really need to be using it to get value from it. Thankfully we use it 4-5 times a week.
RasTa wrote: » No idea why anyone would waste that money over a Ben Dunne Gym.
Je_suis_Jean wrote: » I know low cost can be done as Ben Dunne and others show very well but I also guess it depends what you want from a gym. If my focus was weights and cardio equipment I could join Ben Dunne in Beacon but it doesn't open until 6:30, the first spin classes don't start until 7am (Spin atarts @ 6:30 in Westwood), parking is a pain in the ar$e there, it doesn't have a pool, sauna, jacuzzi and steam room area, doesn't have tennis, squash and five a side football courts etc. Horses for courses I guess. No question Ben Dunne and Raw Gym etc offer excellent value for money if what they offer is what you're looking for.
Arse Biscuits wrote: » Celtic Tiger and greed stupidity is back!!
Je_suis_Jean wrote: » I do think it's a pity some people who won't want/value what Westwood are planning to bring to each of the Crunch gyms will leave but the flip side (which I guess is what the owners of Westwood are betting on) is that others will join. If they are correct it will be disruptive for a few months as some leave and others join but it will settle down again. Do you have alternative gyms in the area offering a package closer to the old Crunch deal you can join? Even if there isn't right now you can be sure other gym operators will be looking at this as an opportunity to perhaps open one of their gyms to serve those looking for a better value than the old Crunch/new Westwood clubs are now offering. Market forces and all that!!
Arse Biscuits wrote: » I know it's an excellent facility (Clontarf) but I'd never be in any of the other gyms so being a member of all doesn't appeal to me at all. It's a pity they've gone about it this way tbh and it's not worth going off peak at €57 per month.
BlazingSaddler wrote: » That is a massive amount of money to be spending on gym membership. My last and previous years in Crunch for 1 adult and 3 kids (all under 12) and 20 guest passes for when the wife decided to join us, as I said earlier was only €450! This is really not going to go down too well with existing Crunch members
Je_suis_Jean wrote: » Three things:- 1. If you have your membership agreement (which you signed or agreed to when originally signing up) you'll probably find it includes a right for the club to increase membership fees annually or as they see fit without having to give any minimum notice. If you don't like it you can leave seems to be their stance. I thought about leaving a few times but can't find another gym which gives us what we want i.e. opens at 6am, has spin classes, pilates and yoga classes, tennis and squash etc. It is expensive though, no question. 2. They may have included a notice of fee increases in their communications over the Xmas and new year period which I normally just bin i.e. you may have missed previous 'notifications'. 3. I think it's a few years since they increased the fee. Not saying it's justified but if an increase of €4 across all 33,000 members (I think I saw that figure quoted when Crunch and Westwood are combined) that would generate €1.6m a year in additional revenue. They could afford to lose over 1,500 members in protest and they'd still have a net gain in revenue from the €4 monthly increase.
Je_suis_Jean wrote: » I pay €180 a month for 2 adults and 2 kids which adds up to €2,160 per annum. That's a lot of disposal income.
Arse Biscuits wrote: » Got a newsletter in the post today with all their news in it and then hidden on the back in the corner is a price increase per month from €75 to €79. That's surely breaking the t&c's letting people know 9 days in advance that there's a price increase.
Je_suis_Jean wrote: » The joining fee is a once off which is frequently waived. I get 2-3 letters a year in the guise that they are giving me a €499 cheque I can give to a friend to use against the joining fee. It's the monthly fee you need to focus on if you're planning to be a long term member. I pay €180 a month for 2 adults and 2 kids which adds up to €2,160 per annum. That's a lot of disposable income so you really need to be using it to get value from it. Thankfully we use it 4-5 times a week.
slavedave wrote: » I was in there as a guest last week and received a flyer with details on it that reflected other people's posts here. The staff member did say that if you were a member already ( my wife is) then you do not pay the joining fee. That would bring the price down per year a fair bit. I hope I heard her correctly.
annfield1978 wrote: » My membership runs out next sunday, I too paid €450 last time so your topic is off concern Won't be paying that sort of increase if that's what they offer Whats the entrance fee for? I got a flyer with a discount ticket on it, but i think that related to bring a second member in? Seemed to be one of those too good to be true thing
