Urban Kings Gym

Trained here for years, 99% of the staff are super cool. The smoothies at the reception are amazing, but fairly expensive. Used the gym, Brazilian jujitsu and private classes. Couldn't recommend some of the exercises classes. The membership is pretty expensive so you would have to be keen to train if you wanted to sign up here.

Absolutely love it! Joined in September and can't get enough of all the classes. Staff are very friendly and good quality coaches too. Would definitely recommend this gym.

Walking into Urban Kings is like being welcomed home by amazing and loving staff. I cannot begin to articulate how wonderful this gym is but I can try. When I moved to London the first thing I did was look for a martial arts gym. I wanted a place that was at convenient location, one that was clean, and one that had a welcoming community. But above all, I wanted a gym that had a committed community that was eager to train and strengthen technique. This gym went above and beyond my expectations. Before I first signed up I had the pleasure of meeting Luis, who instantly made me feel welcomed. It is so obvious that he is passionate about the gym and is willing to learn about the members who come in. He takes his time to know what you want to train in and suggests classes to take. Because of his mini introduction I felt less intimidated walking into a martial arts facility. I don't know where to begin when talking about the other staff members. They never fail to say hello even if they are managing all their other tasks. Its clear that these wonderful people want to make a positive experience for anyone who enters. The coaches are definitely tough, but I think its expected if you want to train in such a full contact sport. They challenge you and push you so that you improve. Coming from a more petite frame I've noticed a drastic change in my strength and cardio in these short 9 months. I feel empowered, training here and I know that is rare thing to find in a gym. Even the other members at the gym are such lovely and wonderful people. We support each other during training and it is so remarkable to see how people from all different demographics enjoy spending their time here. Also, it is a fully well-equipped gym. If you don't have gear they sell merchandise upstairs but you can also borrow equipment too. The lockers have shampoo and shower gel ready to be used. I don't know how they managed to fit a sauna in there but they did. Honestly, Urban Kings has been one of the most rewarding investments and experiences I have had in London.

I've been training here for a few weeks and absolutely love the atmosphere, the trainers and facilities. I can definitely see myself improving with each session, and there's a welcoming vibe in every class - which is definitely a positive given the daunting expectations people might perceive accompany martial arts classes.

Updating my earlier review as I have had a response from the owner. I appreciate you getting back to me but I am going to challenge a few of the facts presented. 1. It is stated in the response: "It is unfortunate that you were unable to attend the classes that you intended to when you joined the gym, however our mixed level classes are designed for all and these are the classes that are available at lunchtime." I tried going to Thai boxing and boxing classes last year and was told that I would need to do the beginners classes for 3-6 months before joining these intermediate lunchtime classes. This is a fact, you can tell me that the lunchtime classes are suitable for beginners all you like (maybe they are now, I don't know) but this is what I was told when I first joined, which is contrary to what the person who took my money and signed me up told me. Dispute this all you like, I'm telling you that's what happened. 2. It is stated in the response: "We have a cancellation policy and our staff have been working with you to implement a plan that is fair for both parties." This is incredibly misleading and seems to suggest that I have been offered some kind of termination of my membership based on my complaint. Let me be clear, following my complaint I have been working with a member of Urban Kings staff to resolve this issue but so far I have been offered nothing other than the opportunity to attend a Friday afternoon class which now allows beginners to attend. I have not been offered any kind of cancellation/termination of my membership, I have essentially been offered the opportunity to attend a class, which, as I'm still a member till September I'm presumably (hopefully) still entitled to do anyway? 3. It is stated in the review : "Apologies again if you feel that you have been mistreated in your experience of Urban Kings, however we feel that this review is unwarranted as we dealt with your concerns as soon as you raised them and even offered an alternative lunchtime class with a trainer who specialises in helping beginners to gain more confidence." As you can probably tell from this review I take no small amount of issue with the statement "we dealt with your concerns as soon as you raised them...". There's a chance they may be referring to a separate time where I was offered a one month membership freeze due to a different issue (there was a chance I may have been based outside of London for my job), but even that wouldn't have been a satisfactory resolution and that is not the issue we're talking about here. To re-iterate the issue is: - I was told before I joined that I could join mixed level lunchtime martial arts classes - When I tried I was told by two separate trainers (who were both very nice) that I couldn't My issue is not with the trainers at all, or the classes which were always good when I was able to attend. My issue was that whoever was happy to take my money for signing up misled me as to the nature of the classes. The trainers are fantastic, my experience of the gym has not reflected this sadly. Original review: "Going against the grain here I know but I've been a member here since around last August and for me it's unfortunately been a huge money sink. For a bit of a context, I have a young family and was very clear when I joined that I was most interested in the lunchtime martial arts classes. I was told that these 'mixed level' classes were appropriate for beginners but it transpired that actually they weren't suitable for beginners at all, and I'd have to do the beginners classes before graduating to the mixed level classes. As the beginners' classes are in the evenings (even mornings would have been better for me but that's not an option) I only managed to go for a handful of classes. I should stress that I enjoyed the classes I did go to but, sadly having been misled at the start I struggled to keep it going and by now I've lost momentum. It's a shame, since, if I had more time I'm sure I would really enjoy it but having been misled at the start I can't recommend it."