David Barton Gym

I do have my complaints about DBG, usually having to do with the air conditioning or with CYC taking over the yoga space, but I am giving it five stars anyway, mainly to correct for all these dudes complaining about other dudes pleasuring each other in the steam room. Seriously, dudes, do you not know where you are? Have you not noticed that the clientele is made up of impeccably worked-​out and closely-​shaved gorgeous men? It is a GAY GYM!
This is not to say it is a gay-​only gym. There are plenty of straight men here, too, and plenty of women like me who love working out without thinking for a second about what the men around her think of her body.
Also, I have grown to love the décor. I don’t care for the «Victorian Goth» thing David Barton was going for, but I love that there’s a room to work out in that is dimly-​lit and chill.
Great trainers, too. Not every single one of them, but if you pay extra for the «plus» trainers or the «experts,» you’re going to get a great workout.

If you want to go to a gay bathhouse, here’s your place! My boyfriend went here and there were several guys in the sauna MASTURBATING! He was extremely traumatized. Wow. What a f*cked up place. DO NOT GO HERE. There is some weird stuff going on here! He said the class he went to was great, but then in the sauna, it was WEIRD.

after going to DBG inside the old Limelight, I’ve been spoiled and expected a 1:1 experience. Not so at DBG Astor Place, although that doesn’t mean the space itself isn’t nice.
As usual, the décor is a little gothic/S&M inspired (hey, i’m just saying what y’all are thinking), and the lighting is club-​esq and plush, which i appreciate. the staff is friendly, but not as chill as the staff @ the Limelight location. As a Classpass user, you’ll also have to fill out paperwork and surrender your license every.single.time you come for a session, which is a little tedious (at Limelight you only do it the first time).
The thing that irks me a little about this location is the oldschool lockers. I feel like DBG charges their regular members enough that they could upgrade the facilities a bit. I also find the layout somewhat confusing and difficult to navigate, but I do appreciate the wood décor and also the built-​in blowout beauty bar.
the machines are pretty much the same here as with any DBG, and on the plus side, I found that there was more floor space to do plyo/​ab and core workouts. The downside is you’re facing some pretty boring street views and again, their cardio machines aren’t surrounded by good ventilation /​fans, which is a sweaty nightmare after a decent amount of miles on the tread. but i digress — it’s still leaps and bounds above a typical gym and for a quickie before or after work, it’s more than acceptable (see what i did there?).

GREAT GYM!!! AWESOME Trainers. BUT the Music they have to work on. Coming in in the morning for a work out and hear the theme from flash dance or Whitney Houston is enough to make me turn around and walk out he door. Come on. Bring back a playlist that fits the DBG. I also miss the free spinning classes they had where they replaced with Pilates which is dead space I never see it being used. Please consider in turning into a yoga studio again. Taking a yoga in the aerobics room does not have that calm surrounding effect.

I am updating my review because of how bad the class was in my first review. This gym is more about showing off than a good safe workout. As i mentioned they didn’t even do the smallest stretch after an intense weight class. That is so bad for you. Even though I did stay after in the classroom to stretch by myself I suffered a terrible trapezius injury that kicked in about two days later. The injury that put me out of commission for three weeks. Needless to say i only used two days of my two week free pass as I could not move. I have been going to the gym for 12 years and I never had an injury like this. I know it was from the class and a bad teacher who did not only not stretch the class the least bit afterwards, but also let people do new moves in a wrong and unsafe way only concerned with how much you can lift, and how much stamina you had and showing off. I suffered badly because I used this gym. My neck still hurts from time to time. I don’t recommend taking classes here at all, and the gym overall is not worth the price.

If you want to leave your bag and you have to pay 29 $ more and at least for 3 month. WTF? Do you think it is good? You just lie to people!

give you the bad first. no secret but there’s loads of guys pleasuring themselves and each other in the locker room. it would be one thing to ignore the sight and vibe this causes but lets face it, that’s a major undeniable health risk! after a number of futile complaints, some that went recorded and even pointing out scum bags to the staff, i had to get out of this place. leaving was no easy task, the gym refused to let me out of my contract and GM Joshua explained that being subjected to sexual encounters was something id just have to deal with…
David doesn’t have anything to do with the company anymore and the corporation that runs the place is clueless how gyms work. one look at the people in charge and its obvious they know a lot more about lifting bags of take out food than lifting weights. only half of the staff here is worthy of being pulled from a burning building… to get the overall environment here, think Planet Fitness dipped in lube then rolled in glitter (doesn’t sound all that bad). if you bring any kind of intensity and purpose to your workouts prepare to be put under a microscope.
the good stuff about the place is that the few members of the staff who are nice and knowledgeable are cool and passionate about fitness. the place is kept clean and very organized so if you’re just there to walk in. lift some weights, avoid the man goo ridden locker rooms go for it but for the price its not worth it.
For the kind of money they are charging, if you’re looking for a gay gym that doesnt give the community a bad name or if you just want access to the best equipment in Manhattan I’d say spend your money at STEEL Gym in Chelsea.

Avoid the steam room. Came here for a cyc class (class was great — 5 stars). Had some time after so I thought I’d use the steam room and showers. Walked into the steam room and two dudes were j@cking each other off… it was 2 in the afternoon for gods sake. Spoke to a manager and (to his credit) he was quick to respond.

This gym is extremely expensive but
I have gotten the past two memberships as a gift and it truly provides everything that one could ever ask from a gym (and more)! I didn’t work out much before but it is such a motivational atmosphere I’ve started training for a marathon!

Go elsewhere. This gym has no respect for their patrons. My distaste started when they yanked out the spin studio and replaced it with «Cyc,» a soul cycle knock off years ago which is a separate business and separate charge. Good luck spinning at the other DBG locations– they offer about 4 classes per week total so as to not compete with Cyc.
Today, I walk in and they are FILMING a movie in the open gym. The entire gym is ripped apart with a film crew. I went to use a piece of equipment and was told «sorry, those bikes are props.» Why would you film in an open gym? The camera guy replied «why would your gym let us film here?» Excellent question.
Just two months ago the gym was unexpectedly closed all day on a Friday for a different production. DBG should get over themselves. Hope they film the broken showers and mildew soaked carpet. Go to Equinox.

I’ve been at this location for over a year now. I absolutely love it. The amenities are great, but more importantly the trainers are fabulous. I mostly take classes there and the circuits training classes are the best.

I love this gym! It really does make working out more fun. The equipment is top notch and the classes are really good workouts. This place really does make me look forward to going to the gym. All of the workers and trainers are super friendly and helpful. I wouldn’t pick another gym in New York :)

This gym has by far the coolest vibe of any I’ve ever been a member of. The staff is always friendly and attentive, and the facility is kept very clean in all areas. Definitely go check it out.

I wish, wish, wish this gym had a more central location to my office. I gave it a whirl with some guest passes, but It’s just too far for me.
The shocking part was how much I enjoyed this gym, as a woman. It appears to be geared more toward men, but i was more than comfortable here. The classes were awesome, and are taught by the personal trainers.
The gym itself is very clean, spacious, and not lacking in machines or equipment. The GM there (I belieeeeve his name was Josh) gave me an awesome tour of the place, and had a great, helpful aura about him.
If you’re looking for a gym in the area, you won’t be disappointed.

Unfortunately, I have to update my review. I was a member of this gym since before it opened. My wife and I are pretty well known as the couple who work out together, especially in pilates. I come at least 4 – 5 times a week & some times twice a day. I have taken every class except the yoga classes, even Women on Weights. I have tried to be patient with the changes in the gym and even thought about leaving, but have stayed mainly because of a few instructors that I really like. Some things are still very good. The equipment is top rate, except the AC in the studio which has a history of breaking; not just this summer, but every summer for six years. I consider that a minor problem. Also, I have never had a billing problem or something that couldn’t be fixed rather quickly.
If you’ve read my other reviews you will see that I loved this gym. The trainers were great and it seemed like a superior gym. The trainers went from many great ones to a few. Jarbari and Dawn are still there and still really good. I’ve never had a one-​on-​one with Carolina, but her classes are great. But most of the classes are just meh, except fro Tatiana and Megan’s pilates classes, still the best! Tatiana, Megan, Dawn, Jarbari, and Carolina are the best you will find anywhere and are really the the reason we are still members. The gym experienced a lot of changes over the last year and a few months. The pilates/​yoga studio was closed and the spinning classes ended to be replaced by CYC, something similar to Soul Cycle. It now costs extra to spin, something like an additional $ 20+ for EACH CYC class on stop of your membership. However, you can just buy a CYC package and get to go to the gym for free (because how are they going to check?). That means that some days things can get really crowded. They billed the CYC classes as better than the old spin classes that were included with DB membership, but after trying a few I can tell you that is not true. Dawn led spin classes that were far and away better than anything in CYC. At best CYC is about the same as the other «free» spin classes with louder music and instructors who are way more annoying.
The recent additional has been «barr» classes that simply take up studio space and seem to have replaced more interesting and useful classes. Even the front desk has changed and not for the better. There are some staff who are friendly and welcoming, others (make you feel like you just walked into the DMV.
I will likely stick around for a while. It’s convenience, the equipment and space is excellent, and the trainers are worth it still. But I am afraid that what used to be cool and innovative with separate training spaces, a pilates studio, and dedicated spinning room has turned a more expensive version of NY Sports Club.

Do not go here!
Not only there are dubious things happening in the locker room, their customer service is absolutely horrible. I was wrongfully charged $ 100 twice after canceling my membership and every time they made it a painful experience to get a refund. I do not recommend this place to anyone!

I’ve usually been a staunch defender of the David Barton Gym Astor Place location, but since the Chelsea location opened the weaknesses of the Astor Place location are glaring. Maybe I’m just lifting at the Astor Place location on off times but it seems like every time I do they’re having some sort of debilitating issue, be it plumbing, air conditioning or a broken lifting machine. That might even be fine, if it was only paying $ 20 and it was the New York Sports Club. DBG should be better than this. During my last visit the air conditioners weren’t even working! Save yourself the trouble and just get a membership at the Chelsea location, the treadmills are newer, the weights are newer and it seems when something breaks down it gets fixed immediately. The calf weight machine by the bench presses has been missing a piece that makes it safe to use for over a year. The Chelsea location might be smaller but less people go to that location. Just do yourself a favor and steer clear of the Astor Place location.

I’ve been a member of NY sports club and Equinox since living in the city. David Barton is my favorite!
I’ve been a member for a few years now. Barton offers two levels of cardio and weights. The equipment is always clean and in perfect condition. They offer a variety of challenging classes. I also have a trainer once a week whole totally kicks my butt!
The gym is like working out in a night club with a DJ booth inside of a disco ball. The lighting is super cool offering an energetic atmosphere. It’s never too packed when I’m there, so I’m not waiting for machines, etc.
The locker room is massive offering everything needed to get fresh after a hard workout! Blow dryers, razors, shampoo, conditioner, etc. There’s also a separate men and women’s steam room to relax in.
David Barton gym makes me excited to workout!!!

I was thinking about writing this review for almost half a year now. I was really hoping that all the negative would disappear if I would just sit it out. Honestly, I don’t think that anybody at db management cares about the members that pay regular price. They make a killing with the cyc cycling, so they refuse to listen to complains and are not willing to fix it.
Since I signed up, there have bee at least 5 new membership advisors tat I had to deal with. Most of the staff gets fired after a few month I guess…
I used to love this place. Nice interior, great vibe, perfect atmosphere. BUT ever since they added the cycling classes to the gym, it’s been a constant deterioration… It’s impossible to go to the gym in the morning, bc of the student crowd taking up all the space. I understand that they are young, but seriously, you need to take pictures in the steam room while obnoxiously talking as loud as you can?!
What used to be my relaxing spa is now ruined for me. While these students take home everything, yes, you won’t believe it, at one point all the hairdryers were gone!!! I have to pay a $ 50 maintenance fee out of nowhere without a warning or explanation. Are you people in your right mind?
The saddest part is, that nobody at db will ever read this or be interested in fixing the problems. I guess they desperately need the money that the cyc classes bring in or they would probably have to close their doors pretty soon…

Yes, the women’s locker room– once peaceful, clean and wonderful is now messier/​crowded with lines at the showers due to the new partnership with Cyc.
Pricing has increasingly gone up during my time here and has reached an all time high.
Corporate has been sketchy in terms of my contract/​membership. They’ve unknowingly and without warning charged me twice in one month for a regular student membership and a training membership due to an overlap of memberships. ???
It doesn’t make sense.