Vivo for Healthier Generations

Expérience négative: Withdrew from a lifeguarding recert course a while back. Aquatic manager said they would issue a refund and then he ghosted me after several emails and I never got my money back

Expérience négative: I went to vivo with my 6 month old in a stroller and needed to get upstairs. The elevator was out of order so I asked customer service and they directed me to another elevator and said they would send someone to unlock it for me. After waiting 15min with no one showing up I had to carry my baby in his stroller up the stairs which is extremely unsafe. Customer service consisted of three girls texting on their phones not being helpful. Unimpressed.

Expérience négative: I registered level 6 skating for my kid for the fall season 2024. Got a call at Sep 20, said they are unable to find an instructor for the timeslot at Saturday, but have an alternative option on Thursday. Thursday was not work for me, so I decided to transfer to level 5 at the same day at Saturday. I found out there was an outstanding balance of $171 on my credit for the level 5 skating class on Oct 26. So I emailed Vivo to explained that I have already paid for the $190 (10 classes) for level 6, I did a transfer to level 5, the registration fee should be just transferred to 5, I shouldn’t be charged $171( vivo later can only make 9 classes for this season, so $171 was for 9 classes). Then my long journey for asking my $190 level 6 refund was just starting! I don’t remember how many emails and phone calls I made, I still didn’t get my refund! Sometime they told me the level 6 was transferred to level 5, just not applied it yet, Sometimes they ask me to show them the proof I paid for the level 5, after I showed them they told me it’s in process, after 2 weeks waiting I asked again, they told me another story! I have no idea does it difficult to calculate $190+$171=$361? Why they have so many excuses for their mistakes? Why they made my life so hard? Why I have to take their consequence? I did contact Neil and Christie, I send them emails and call them, no one was reply and call me back! I called the front desk, you said would forward my case to the managers, still no response after that! I am asking you to proof you did the transfer, you didn’t. I proof you did charged me the $171 from my accounts credit. Check my transaction history, you will find out what I said was true, you didn’t do the transfer! The transaction history is the evidence! You have to correct your MISTAKES! DO SOMETHING!

Expérience négative: The membership fee is BS after I canceled it afew months ago. I was a member for many years before that..

Expérience négative: Pool closed for a private event on Sunday morning 8am-12…really? Maybe give me a refund on my membership……

Expérience fantastique: Richard Smith (Vivo Personal Trainer/Fitness Consultant): I've had the opportunity to work with Richard for almost a year and a half. My time spent with Richard has been life changing. I haven't been this strong and fit since my teens. I see consistent improvement in my stamina and strength. He is always encouraging me to do just a little more than I think I can. He has designed workouts for me that are challenging, engaging, and diverse. He is incredibly knowledgeable about strength training, and conditioning as well. He pays careful attention to me while weightlifting to ensure my technique and form are perfect, to avoid injuries. I attribute my lack of injuries in this past year and a half to this. He is very motivating and stresses the can-do attitude. He discusses making improvements and goal-setting. I look forward to coming to the gym for my workouts, both mentally and physically. Richard, thank you for being patient, encouraging and inspiring. I look forward to continuing to work with you and would highly recommend Richard to anyone looking to improve their fitness. Logan Boomer (Vivo Personal Trainer/Fitness Consultant): I had the opportunity to work with Logan for 5 personal training sessions. He is very knowledgeable about weightlifting and conditioning. He customized my workouts for my age, gender, ability level and personal goals. Throughout the training I was impressed by his attentiveness, ensuring my form was perfect. This skill assisted to avoid injury, undue stress on joints, and optimized effectiveness. He is friendly, encouraging, and always motivated me to work my hardest. Additionally, he provided me with the detailed workouts in Google Doc format, including links to Youtube videos to remind me of the moves, which continues to assist me. He was on time to each session and spent the full hour with me. He was flexible when I needed to reschedule. I hope to work with him again in the future. I would highly recommend him as a personal trainer to anyone of any level, age, gender, or background.

Expérience négative: Double bookings for badminton courts are a constant problem, and it’s beyond frustrating. Every time we bring it up with guest services, we’re met with rudeness or indifference. Their go-to response? “It’s not in our hands,” followed by handing over their manager’s business card or email. Even when we reach out via email, it’s useless – nothing gets resolved. On top of that, badminton bookings open on Saturdays at 7 a.m., and by 7:01 a.m., they’re all gone. Seriously? Vivo needs to take its so-called “community commitments” seriously and actually make the courts accessible to everyone. How about adding more slots during peak demand times, like evenings, instead of leaving so many people out? It’s high time they address this mess.

Expérience négative: I really cannot understand why the men’s restroom in the lobby on the first floor of Vivo is designated exclusively for men, while the women’s restroom is unisex. I have repeatedly encountered bearded men entering the women’s restroom, and the stall door locks are even broken and cannot be secured. For any woman, using this restroom feels extremely uncomfortable and unsafe. I can’t comprehend why Vivo chooses to make such a distinction between the men’s and women’s restrooms, subjecting all women who use the women’s restroom to unfair treatment. Even a basic need like using the restroom becomes an uncomfortable and unsafe experience. I strongly urge the Vivo management to classify the restrooms in a standard way, with separate men’s and women’s restrooms!

Expérience négative: Terrible experience for badminton. You have to book a spot. But even you booked a spot,They can’t ensure you have that spot. Always double booked. At least two times for me .Frustrated every one specially for the kids. People show their booking information. The same time for the same court . Two groups there. By the way, you have to wake up at 7 am every Saturday morning otherwise no spot for you to book. Too bad….Can they refund the membership fee??

Expérience négative: I switched to this gym earlier this year for access to the pool, even though it costs nearly double what I was paying at my previous gym. Today, I went for my usual swim and asked to use the fins, as I normally do. I was informed by the lifeguards that a new policy—starting today—restricts the use of fins to those in swim lessons, due to misuse by children. As a paying adult member who relies on this equipment, I found this decision unfair, especially since there were no children using the lane pool. Despite asking several times for an exception, I was repeatedly denied. I was then directed to speak with the Aquatics manager, Dominique, but was told she was in an online meeting with other managers. Nevertheless, I knocked on her office door, hoping for a brief conversation. Rather than taking a moment to speak with me, Dominique waved me away dismissively without so much as a word. What made this worse was seeing a lifeguard enter her office moments later, at which point Dominique had no issue stepping away from her computer to speak with them. After this disappointing encounter, I was later contacted by the guest services manager after I got home. He explained that the policy change is temporary because around half of the fins are supposedly missing, and they are working on a system to keep better track of the equipment. While I can understand their reasoning for this temporary fix, it still doesn’t change the fact that I was treated poorly and dismissed when trying to address my concerns. During the call, the guest services manager mentioned that Dominique “didn’t see” me outside her office or didn’t recognize who I was. I find this explanation absurd—I was standing directly outside the glass door in my Speedo, clearly not dressed in lifeguard attire. How could she not see or recognize that a paying customer was trying to speak with her? This attempt to excuse her behavior only makes me more disappointed in how the situation was handled. For the price I’m paying, I expect better treatment, respect, and professionalism—none of which were shown by Dominique. If this is the kind of management this gym stands behind, then I am left with little choice but to reconsider my membership. There are plenty of other facilities that offer not only better value for money but also a higher standard of customer care. This experience has been deeply disappointing and has left me questioning whether my membership is worth it. I am absolutely appalled by the unprofessional conduct I experienced. To be dismissed and waved away by a manager—someone who should represent the gym’s values and respect for its members—was nothing short of insulting. I am disgusted that such behavior is tolerated from someone in a leadership role. It’s a disgrace that paying members are treated this way, and it reflects poorly on the facility as a whole. What’s truly sad about this entire experience is how the actions of specific managers like Dominique have tainted the reputation of this gym. The lack of professionalism, courtesy, and basic respect from someone in her position is simply unacceptable. It overshadows the hard work of the staff who might genuinely care about members. This gym has potential, but management needs to be much better if they want to maintain the trust and loyalty of their paying members. If improvements aren’t made, they will continue to lose clients like me, who deserve far better.

Expérience positive: Pros: Large facility, lots of space and selection for classes (fitness, art, skating etc.). Public library onsite, 2 selections for food/drinks. Large washrooms/change rooms and clean. Cons: parking is small for the size the facility, especially if you're just wanting to drop off a book at the library, trying to find parking is awful. There is always something broken/being repaired/under construction, but the price never reflects that, it's always full price (speaking of which, Nov 1 2024, the prices are increasing yet AGAIN! And by a huge percentage). The pool is freezing, unless youre in the whirlpool, front counter staff are a hit or miss in terms of being helpful and/or friendly.

Expérience négative: What a scam $75 new membership fee is. I was a member of Vivo and cancelled my membership in June. I went to get a family membership today and they want me to pay $75 again. Even though I had paid for it the first time. No one notified me that the fee will be applied again. Otherwise I would put my membership on hold instead. Vivo, there are better ways of making money. By providing great service and facility. Making people pay the $75 fee again and again is a total scam! Great job losing $1500 of business over a scam $75 fee.

Expérience fantastique: Vivo is a great community hub! The indoor park, pool and gym are amazing facilities. Ore at the East Customer Service Desk is super helpful too.

Expérience positive: Only one person in the reception and its too slow. They should put more employees in the reception to make the service faster.

Expérience fantastique: Great place for a lift or a swim. The monthly membership is a bit expensive but you are paying for access to the entire facility.

Expérience fantastique: If you're looking for a place to have fun with your family, this is the place to go. It has a pool with a shallow area for your little ones, and a deeper area for swimming. The library has a fairly good selection, and a nice, clean accessible washroom. We love hanging out on the Social Stair, which is kind of like giant stairs to climb and sit on. There's so much to discover here. I definitely recommend it.

Expérience négative: I had high hopes but was disappointed. Firstly, it took almost 15 min just to pay for our entry into the facility. The two very nice staff at the desk helped three groups ahead of us, but these families had a lot of questions (all of which could have been answered by looking online) which made the progress through the line very very slow. I’m most disappointed at the condition of the family changing area. It was very small and filthy!!!! The floor was super dirty and covered in mounds of hair!! There’s not a hook to be found, so hanging anything isn’t an option, which is even more inconvenient considering every surface was gross. I’m certain in one room we used there was poop on the wall. Also, it was freezing cold air blowing in the entire place. Getting out of swim gear, drying and dressing is possibly the worst part of swimming. Add arctic air to that and it makes the whole thing unbearable. I didn’t want to use a toilet in the change room, so I used the bathroom near the ramp. It was also dirty, paper towels all over the floor, gross sinks, hair all over the floor. etc. The first stall I entered didn’t have a working lock so I had to find another stall. I will say my kid loved the lazy river and the slide, however I don’t think we’ll go back.

Expérience négative: NO women’s washroom. There’s a male and gender neutral bathroom which I find outrageous.. it would make more sense being a women’s and gender neutral bathroom. My child and anyone else’s child should not be subjected to go to the bathroom with an adult male in the next stall. Women are literally a minority and not having a bathroom for them is so dangerous.

Expérience négative: LITTERALLY no one at their front desks knows what’s they’re talking about! Don’t waste your time go starlight to a manager or team lead

Expérience fantastique: The registered kettlebell class was such a great experience. It made me appreciate all the new techniques I learned and all the benefits it added to my workouts. The instructor is very experienced, knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. Regardless of whatever experience or level of fitness you are, anyone can learn kettlebell in this fun and safe environment. I really, truly enjoyed this class.

Expérience positive: Go there to swim on a daily basis. Mornings are great to exercise, afternoons and weekends are pretty packed. People at the pool is really nice. Admin and people at the front desk, sometimes, lack of information on certain aspects.

Expérience fantastique: Loved the registered Kettlebell training with V, she makes the workouts fun, yet challenging and provides support and feedback to improve form while learning new techniques. If you’re looking to add kettlebells into your work out this registered class is ideal for building comfort and confidence with kettlebells and ensuring you use proper technique to avoid injuries. Also appreciate being able to access the training without committing to a membership.

Expérience négative: The management team requires significant improvement in their support and responsiveness to people's inquiries. Many of the administrative staff lack the experience and expertise to provide comprehensive assistance and collaboration. The high occupancy rates of the gym and swimming pool can be inconvenient for users. The gym equipment, despite being relatively new, shows signs of wear and tear, particularly on the benches. They promised to compensate for the water restrictions that caused a closure of the pool and the shower rooms, and they never did. Overall, the organization appears to lack effective management and may not be the most suitable option for potential residents.

Expérience négative: Does anybody answer a phone there? Called 3 times within the last hour (early afternoon) with inquiries for guest services and no answer.

Expérience négative: Being a regular, and annual paying member of Vivo, I am complaining about the following below-standard services of this esteemed public facility, even after the month-long annual maintenance. 1. The soap holders, which have been damaged many months ago (even before the maintenance), has not even been repaired. 2. The soap dispensers in the common men's bathroom are always out. And when I complained this morning to the cleaner, he seems to not care at all. 3. They even have a notice saying when the bathroom has been cleaned but even that notice is not being updated, so they might as well remove it. The latest that they have there is May 2, 2024.

Expérience négative: Summer camp review: my son joined the 9-12 summer variety camp in August. He has been in different camps with different providers, his review of the Vivo camp was: " the worst camp ever!" The camp leaders do not interact with children. They stand around, children do "free play".. They have daily "swimming", but not allowed to use the small slide in the pool, and only 1 second rinse after coming out of the pool. As a result, he developed rashes on his skin. I do not recommend Vivo summer camps.

Expérience fantastique: Great summer camps for kids! We registered our kid for a few different camps at vivo this summer including multi sport and outdoor explorers, he had a great time at both and staff were very organized. They also made sure the kids had sunscreen on, and weren't exposed to smoky air on days the air quality was poor.

Expérience négative: Going to swimming today but they said compacity is full where there is only a few people in the pool and the reception is so rude.

Expérience fantastique: Tina was super helpful at guest services, helping with the membership hold and explaining the reinstatement for the membership after the water restriction!

Expérience négative: Terrible service. Had 3 people in line ahead of us and the guy took close to 45 minutes to process… only one person working. Second time this happened.

Expérience négative: Service here has gotten a lot worse. I waited in line for 15 minutes when there were only 5 others in front of me. Also, they no longer offer a family price for a family of 5. Family of 2 adults and 2 kids is the max. Even with 1 adult and 3 kids, they charged for a family of 2 adults and 3 kids. We used to go here all the time

Expérience négative: Almost one year since we joined as a family. I am so fed up with this place. Gym is very small and always overcrowded, not enough equipment for everyone and there is no more weightlifting belts or stretching bands. They gor stolen and broken, and Vivo is not replacing them. Pools are on another level. Two days ago I went to swim and then at 230pm whole swimming pool was shutdown for private purposes, together with sauna and hot room. No matter what time you go, don't expect to use whole swimming facility, something is ALWAYS closed. With two small kids I can't choose when to come and then when we go there , leisure pools would be closed for classes, then I have to take my 2y old to big swimming pool. Baby pool is open maybe 1 out of 10 times. Vivo water restrictions were longest in the town While others pools were open , Vivo was still fixing theirs 3 weeks afterwards. Don't buy family pass, because is not what you expect, you will not be able to use it due to all other classes they have. Worst managed pools in the city. Additionally, few male lifeguards are very rude. One new East Indian guy shouted at my 6y old across the whole facility, even though I was there and he could tell me if something was wrong. Another new Asian guy also very bad approach when it comes to delivering a message. Zero customer service, you can tell they hate their job.

Expérience négative: Overpriced and not worth the money unless you get the family pass. 1k a year for a ball court that's always packed, mid gym equipment and a indoor park for no reason is crazy. Only decent thing is the swimming pool. Don't waste your money, go to golds or somewhere else. You'll get a better bang for your buck. Also it's not 24/7 which is a big yikes in 2024.....

Expérience négative: Very disappointed place. We paid $1750 per year, the most important item for us to come is the swimming pool. However, since May, Vivo started have swimming classes every day, they closed the two pools (which they only have) to who are not in the class. We paid the money but cannot use when my son is free at every evening, which is the most free time period for most of the families. Now, they told us there is waiting time for pools, we have to go back home with disappointed. Maybe I will choose to YMCA next year after the membership done. YMCA will be a better choice. For your response, I cannot reply on it. Firstly, You didn’t say anything about how to help others (most of you members) who are not in swimming class when you have the scheduled swimming classes. Instead of not allowing members using them every day. Secondly, I am not complaining anything about your upgrading period.

Expérience négative: You have to make an account with them just to pay for the daily admission.

Expérience fantastique: Our 6 year old attended camp last week and we were blown away! We can't thank the camp leaders enough for creating a special experience for the kids attending. Our child had never experienced Cricket and it was certainly the highlight of his week. I would highly recommend camps at Vivo! What a place!

Expérience fantastique: fun here i like swimming here but i dont come very often cus i donf have time sadly and theres smaller pools for kids i think every pool has those actually. it has a slide too and those diving board things im too scared to go on them though locker rooms clean most days and theres a lot of lifeguards and um safety?? jackets like that one i think that come in a lot of sizes

Expérience négative: Very expensive The parking lot is empty cuz no one is there! Who pays 1k a year for swimming per year .. with all the free money they received to build and renovate and now board jacked up the price of membership to unrealistic levels

Expérience négative: Imagine immigrating to Canada to take a warm shower and with decent water flow, well dont come to vivo for that. Response from the owner38 minutes ago Hi Jeffrey, a water main break in NW Calgary has impacted the city’s water supply. The City of Calgary issued an emergency alert implementing water restrictions. Our Operations Team addressed water heat concerns in the centre over the weekend - I will alert the team of your concerns. We greatly appreciate your understanding as we navigate this instance. - Team Vivo Reply: No, the water main break is a cop out excuse water pressure has been an issue, I've sent emails to guest services (as instructed) plenty of times since the opening of the new vivo with no changes guess they dont really care about their guests. PS there are showers on the pool deck, I wonder why the pressure there is amazing if City of Calgary in implementing waster restrictions. Very interesting to say the least, be careful before you buy your membership people out there reading! You guys are closing the pool June 17th - July 1 2024, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, make the showers in the change room work like the ones on the pool deck. Response from the owner: Thank you for your feedback, Jeffrey. We are committed to improving your experience with us and it looks as though we are discussing this subject with you via email. We will remind the team of your feedback and a Vivo representative to reach out to you directly to address your concern – Team Vivo Reply2: 2 Weeks now and my kind "vivo rep" has yet to contact me, again vivo using another cop out excuse to delay the opening of the pool. Lets not forget that if water restrictions weren't a thing the poll was only suppose to be close till July 1 2024. Lets not forget the city of Calgary implemented the water restrictions on JUNE 8TH giving vivo an extra week and 2 days to do what they say is pool maintenance. Lies upon lies are catching up Vivo, when are you guys going to run a business ethically and tell the truth. PS: Did you guys fix the showers after we as vivo customers gave you guys 1 month and countin?

Expérience négative: Most disappointing public investment. after all years wasted still problem after problem had a very beautiful hot tub with view which replaced with a mysteriously building in back. Very weak management who cannot bring back pool service on time and use water shortage as excuse. Our kids pass the age of learning swimming because of these mess. 2019 now 2024 still broken facility

Expérience fantastique: My family and I have been with Vivo since it was previously called Cardel for years, specifically since 2008. My first set of kids have had nothing but amazing experiences at Vivo. I myself and my husband really enjoyed the facility (pool, gym, classes, etc) before the centre was even updated. I also used Vivo for field trips when I owned a childcare business and staff members are ever so wonderful. Now, with our second set of children, we tried Vivo again, but this time started with their summer camp. We are still amazed at how welcoming the staff members are, cleanliness, fees (absolutely worth it), accommodation for all age groups, and ofcourse, the newly updated pools, gyms, and indoor play area downstairs. We cannot wait to use it all up! Thank you Vivo for your consistency to providing a community based environment throughout these past 16 years!

Expérience fantastique: Awsome place. Great changing rooms staff and lifeguards. This place has everything you need a pool, gym, ice rink, rock climbing, a libary, a indoor park, a outdoor park, camps and basketball courts. Its like a multi in one bundle deal. Im so exited for the summer to get my membership. I would recommend this place and for some feedback keep up the work and pls try adding more showers in the universal not needed but extra would be nice bye vivo - Ammar

Expérience négative: The staff was very mean and criticized us by not allowing me to drop my child off. I am very disappointed especially due to the lack of respect and support they provided. The equipment was nice but not in ideal condition. I mainly required an adjustment for the drop in thing but they simply wouldn’t allow even watching my child to play badminton.

Expérience négative: One big major issue is on the main floor in the lobby area there is no public washroom exclusively just for women. There is only one MEN washroom and one that is UNIVERSAL for just anyone. My teenage daughter is scared to go to the washroom once she hears a man in the same washroom. She feels really uncomfortable knowing that just next to her is a man using the washroom together with her at the same time. She said she could see his shoes. I am really worried and I really hope Vivo management can change the universal washroom back to women’s washroom.

Expérience négative: I there every Wednesday for Calgary special Olympics the swimming pool is worm but there was good showers was little bit not enough water but l go see my assistant coaches Danyka and first time floor hockey

Expérience négative: Worst “Community center,” in the city. Drove 30 min to sit in the sauna and they required my ID, drivers license to enter the facility. Forgot my wallet at home, just brought cash to enter, so a complete waste of time and gas. They claim it is necessary to require ID to “limit crime and theft.” So treat everyone preemptively as a criminal to reduce theft, nice Vivo! Another excuse was in case of an emergency they could use that information. I don’t recall any emergency contact being on a government issued ID.

Expérience négative: This place does not care about Lane swimmers and gets worse every month. The lane pool is 6 lanes so when you look at online schedule & it says 4 lanes that means 3 lanes for public swimming & only 3 for lane swim, this month it says 2 lanes 1 for public & only 1 for lane swim the rest is for swim club. Sometimes says 6 lanes this means 2 public & 4 for lane swim at best & there is no control so public swimmers are taking up the limited lanes meant for lane swimmers. Some of the staff & lifeguards are excellent the problem is management. Vivo please don't respond with something like we strive for all our patrons concerns Etc. Because clearly you don't, read all the other negative reviews

Expérience fantastique: Great facility, drop in was $15. The equipment worked well for me, and I wish I could have pieces like that in my hometown gym. Cleanliness is top notch, and single stall all gender washrooms and showers is a considerate touch.

Expérience négative: If we are not allowed to take pictures and videos of our kids training, please post signs. Your staff screaming up from the main pool to the deck, in front of everyone doesn’t look very professional on your staff and it is embarrassing to the one find in non-compliance. Thank you!

Expérience positive: When I enquired about the fair entry discount, the staff person told me it would be equivalent to YMCA. I came in to sign up, and the discount is not even close to fair entry at YMCA. Also do not offer fair entry discount to child care, which YMCA does. The young staff worker are mostly very friendly and they to be helpful, but are not actually knowledgeable on the programs, fair entry, events at the facility. Also, Vivo needs to create some kind of notification system for when the pool or other unplanned closures happen. I checked the website for pool times same day, and it was open. Packed up 2 families of children, only to arrive and pool was closed for the rest of the day. Super frustrating, as I had a group of disappointed children and I had checked same day on the website. Other facilities I have been a member of provide notifications on closures. Today I phoned to enquire on a program that is available to register in, but has minimal information on the website. Both times routed me to a general staff person, which would circle me back to the automated answering service and back to running for general staff - no option to leave a voicemail, it just continues to circle back to unanswered ringing. The facility itself is great, 4/5 I'd say. But the customer service is below average. I regret purchasing a membership to be honest.

Expérience positive: The centre is cool. I went swimming last night and the pool water is really cold I’ve been to other pools where the water gets warm when you swim in it and this water never did that. If they heated their water even a couple degrees warmer it would make a lot better experience Also the swimming facility floor is disgusting definitely wear some kind of swimming shoe

Expérience positive: Using this facility for years and must say customer service is getting worst day by day. Staff members are neither welcoming nor knowledgeable. Hard to reach them out on phone. Overall below average experience.

Expérience négative: A bad experience for lane swimmers. It’s a beautiful facility and nice to see this opportunity in the neighborhood. Unfortunately the lanes are overrun with kids messing about and lane swim etiquette was not being enforced. I couldn’t complete a single lane without being kicked in the head with a flipper or asking the kids to let me pass. I get the impression this place is for families and not actual fitness types. I very sadly left after three laps and kindly asked for a refund on my way out. Thanks to the desk staff for obliging!

Expérience négative: Perhaps it is unfair to post a low star rating. But extremely disappointed at the fees. I have been a member of this facility for many years as Vivo and Cardel. Up until Covid hit and the two closure for renovations. . Now I find it highly unaffordable. They did tell me that they were charitable, which I now highly doubt. not with the fees charged. So was a member in my 50s, now 72 years of age. Old timers may need to go to Calgary Rec centers @ $43 per month. Response; Affordable? Charity?. Not many are aware of the average pension is, until they get their first cheque. I receive $1000 with both pensions. Is $60+ per month considered affordable at Vivo?. A young family of two adults and 2 children $225 per month?. A great price for professional people, but not for the average joe. Certainly not affordable for retired people. Vivo is no longer a rec center. I name it "Vivo Spa". Both Calgary Rec Centers and Ymca are less $$.... the second also offering financial assistance toward lower fees, to those that need it. Always preferred VIvo due to location. But will now travel a bit further to Thornhill.

Expérience négative: First of all, the trainers, fitness class instructors, and facility are all good and professional. However, the system was extremely terrible. They charged my credit card on file without my authorization, even not sending me a receipt letting me know afterwards. Plus VIVO wasn't supposed to charge me at first place. I renewed my membership 4 months ahead, VIVO told me the remaining 4 months will be credit deducted from my new membership fee, so I paid the rest with my card on hand at front desk. On the next day, my card was charged again by VIVO for the "credit" amount without my authorization, receipt, or even a call of explanation. This is credit card fraud, terrible management, what a waste of the good facility and fitness trainer.

Expérience négative: I am sure the facility is nice, but today I heard from my daughter that there was not a women's washroom. She and her friends went into the "Universal" restroom, but it was full of guys and they were not comfortable with that. They had to go down and ask to be let into the actual gym area to use a women's restroom. Is this really what it has come to that we no longer provide women's washrooms? One for men, but not for women?

Expérience positive: This center is going through some growing pains which will hopefully get better with time. The new facilities are a welcome addition, but a lot of the time blocks we would want to use them (ie. pool on weekends, gym late at night), they are unavailable due to classes, which has made having a membership disappointing. The few available public swim times are super crowded. My son seems to get sick often at the pool. Not sure if it's the temperature, number of people, or chlorination that needs to be reviewed but it's been inconvenient enough that we end up driving to Airdrie to swim at the warm pool even though we live next to Vivo AND have a membership. The library is the main reason we come here. It's great, but busy. I would appreciate young family/pregnant women parking stalls as the library entrance gets super crowded and I often have to cross the whole busy parking lot with my small kids. The "indoor park" is pretty underwhelming to adults but my son consistently has a blast there and there is some great kids programming offered. I do question the ability to keep this space looking new and clean as it ages due to some short-sighted material choices. The online portal is kind of glitchy and you have to visit in person to add family members. There should be some kind of dedicated portal glitch reporting form for how many problems there are. Their phone number is not listed on the website. Thanks Google maps!

Expérience négative: The portal to book drop in classes is once again down, cant book any classes past Monday. I have spoken to 4 different people at Vivo about this in the past 5 days and yet their IT department still hasn't fixed the problem.

Expérience négative: Overall disappointed with their timings. The place closes extremely early on the weekends, which is a major inconvenience as that is when we usually are free to play and workout. The pool closes even earlier, which is a major letdown.

Expérience positive: The booking process for courts needs to improve. The website's workflow for members to book a court is completely broken. For ex. we have to stay up until 12 in the midnight to book a court for the next day, if you are specific about time. The website's design will not show you the courts / facilities that you can book. There is no clear instruction anywhere and you will be lost in the website. If we search for a court, then it will list every available date asking you to register, and if we do click "register", there won't be any response, making you wonder if it worked or not. You then end up doing this all over again and same result. Also, there is no way for vivo employees to book a court even if you call them a day prior and the court must be booked online. Well, we can try and book it online without calling them, but the website doesn't work as the booking process is broken. In all, a very badly designed web experience in this age. They need a new vendor and I would be surprised if they can't find anyone else other than this incredibly bad CRM software that they are using now. The fitness centre is very small and gets crazy busy from 3 pm or so. It seems most of the high school kids come in here to work out so most of the machines are occupied when you want to go to the gym after work and it can get really loud due to the number of people and the small size of the fitness centre. I am sure Vivo knows how many memberships they have sold vs the capacity of the gym, so they could add more equipments in the lower level and open it up instead of cramming everyone in this small area. Consider yourself lucky if you aren't interrupted by someone walking too close to you when you are working out because there are too many benches close by and there is no way they can walk out of the place without getting dangerously close to someone working out. If you need a peaceful workout, consider taking a break from work during work hours for it and then get back to work. If thats not possible, do not get a membership here. For when you can manage to get in peacefully, the equipments are in good condition, while it doesn't offer the equipments like what you can see in Golds or Planet Fitness, this is decent for someone who is interested in basic strength training. So this place gets a 3* from me after removing 1 for the crowd and 1 for the website's experience.

Expérience positive: The fitness centre and pool look very nice. I was disappointed that the change rooms didn't have changing stalls, so I changed into a toilet stall, hoping that I wouldn't drop something in the toilet bowl by accident. I was also disappointed that there were only water bottle refill stations and no drinking water fountains, especially by the dry sauna and steam room at the pool.

Expérience négative: $62 million spent on Upgrades and still inadequate, unhygienic changing rooms in the swimming arena. No slots available for Badminton courts ever. No app for bookings. Money hogging enterprise. Go for YMCA instead.

Expérience négative: Mar 24, 2024. Terrible day. Brought daughter swim. Asked everybody leave the pool at around 1:50, so that means so many people need change room at the same time. A 3 year old girl can’t wait that long time to use the change room to suffer that cold. Then I’m just changing clothes as soon as I can. Hoho, the very badly employee show up and say can’t change here. So tell me what I can do, make this 3 year old girl wait until she get cold? What the funny thing!

Expérience positive: Finally got to re-visit after combined Covid and pool closures. Don't remember much about the first set-up, but the locker rooms are very nice. Signage for things would've been nice. Didn't see any change room spots, just the washroom area and the shower area. The showers in the bathrooms were pleasantly warm, especially after the hallway to/from the pool is very cold. Also seemed like there was a chilly "breeze" blowing in from somewhere. The water and the area didn't seem as "tropical" as the previous iteration. The pool water was warm-ish. The customer service person at the front desk offered us the stamp, in case we wanted to check out other things. We were in the pool for 3 hrs, and about halfway through, noticed that the stamp was about 90% worn off, completely gone by the time we were done. Maybe look into longer-lasting stamps, or perhaps wristbands of some kind. Only other "issue" is membership pricing. As a family of 3 (2 adults, 1 child), there's no discount. Discounts start for families of 4. Family of 3 is over $2K/year. By my math, it's more that the 6-member family discount.

Expérience négative: Front staff are wonderful, easy transition into the facility with little to no wait times. The pool is clean and organized. However, I have come to lane swim multiple times during the week and I need to say the work ethic of the guards are horrible. Buddy guarding all of the rotations, and not scanning the pool in an effective manner. If in an emergency I would not have full trust these guards would provide a full duty of care.

Expérience positive: The fitness facility is decent, good equipment and you can usually get on the equipment you want at any time, sometimes you have to wait, but that's ok. The facility itself is so dirty though! All I do is stare at the streaks on the glass looking into the indoor park while on the treadmill, and then the dust on the ledges is gross. The toilet seats are always dirty underneath (they're flipped up often) and the floors in the bathroom stalls are always dirty with mud or hair. The swimming change room is the same- hair everywhere, it's pretty disgusting. Also, for a newly renovated facility the showers in the swimming change rooms are terrible! They hardly work, the curtains always come off the hooks, there is no ledge for shampoo and the hooks for towels are all far away. My final complaint is the entrances are always changing! Sometimes you have to go west, or east and sometimes you have to go from the west down to the swim change room, then all the way back up, across the top level and back down to get to the indoor park- they need to fix this issue, it's super frustrating. The staff is always friendly however and there are tons of them working at all times. My daughter loves the venue and it's close to our house so we will keep going, but PLEASE INCREASE THE CLEANING!

Expérience négative: Beautiful nice pool but they have it so cold in there it’s unbearable. Price is too high. 28.50 to take my 2 year old swimming for an hour. Also very annoying as they always change which entrance you can use.

Expérience fantastique: Great place to visit!A good place starts with the reception.I was greatly impressed by the customer service provided by Pat, at the entrance to to the pool.She was very patient with me and professionaly answered all my numerous questions.Her good work needs to be recognized and rewarded. Today was the first day I re-visited Vivo after renovation.I was pleasantly impressed by the facility, the steamer, the sauner, the lazy river, the 6 lane pool, the clarity of the water, and the professionalism of the staff!!!

Expérience négative: THE POOL doesn’t have HAIRDRYERS installed in the change rooms! This is the first time in my life I experienced going to the pool where there are no hairdryers installed or offered to the customers. I expect in a facility where they offer water-based activities there will be hairdryers so the customers can come out with dry hair, as they came in. And it’s not like we’re living in a tropical climate where it doesn’t matter whether your hair is wet or dry when it’s +30. I for example had a skiing session right after the pool in our balmy -5 and didn’t plan to show up on the slope with wet hair. It’s not a problem to bring my own hair dryer, but since it was my first time in this pool, I was just shocked that they don’t have them installed like in tens of other pools I attended in different facilities, provinces and counties. The customer service should consider having a portable few hair dryers to offer to the clients. It’s not a cheap facility and the service should be on par.

Expérience fantastique: One of my favorite facilities in the city. Very clean, modern, and love playing hockey there.

Expérience fantastique: Rylan is amazing! Great customer service should be promoted to manager or VP! The best guest services representative I have ever met in my life !!!

Expérience négative: PSA everyone. If you had a vivo punchcard before the renovations, they won't credit you! Talk about theft!! Had a punch card gifted to the family, we went 2-3 before renovations then didn't afterwards as life gets busy. We decided to go yesterday and they said with the new system they have to log into old system to see yada yada yada will email back. Awesome that sounds great thanks. Email was one sentence saying you don't have any Yeaaaaa we know how many times we went nice try.

Expérience négative: I was trying to get into the swimming pool first time after years. I was a regular swimmer there for a while and one day I realize that quitting is the best solution for me. The swimming pool was always too crowded, the swimmers were rude, the wirkers there were totally absent, and most of the time, doing my swimming there was a FIGHT. I definitely was not healthier going there. The facility is bigger now, new swimming lanes have been built, all I wanted today is one ticket in to see whether vivo is a better place. I was waiting in line 30 to 40 mints, than the worker asked me for an ID to make me a new account. I said that I just want to get in one time, he insisted about my ID. Ok. Than he tell me that the pool is on max capacity and I have to wait until they call me. Oh. Any estimation about the waiting time? Than he takes a piece o paper, trying to put my name in. So, after so many upgrades, my estimation time is depending on a piece of paper forgotten on the table. Nothing was changed at VIVO unfortunately.

Expérience négative: I am beyond disappointed with this facility. We called to confirm they had drop in badminton, they confirmed they do it from 7pm to 11pm. We showed up 20 minutes later and were told we needed to book in and that the only open slot isnt until 930. Requiring players to schedule courts in advance, is CATEGORICALLY NOT DROP IN. I was not informed of this when i called initially and am beyond frustrated. 1. It should not be called drop in on the website or when calling in if i need to book a time 2. Every other facility in Calgary that does drop in, allows people to actually drop in. You simply play a match and then let the next group on the court to play. Do better Vivo.

Expérience positive: This is lovely facility! My young son and I have used the pool and boardwalk space and love both spaces. In the boardwalk area, it would be so nice to have nature sounds playing in the background, and it would be great if the dance music during workout classes could be kept at a much lower volume (the music tends to echo loudly throughout the space).

Expérience négative: The worst customer service. I experience this evening. The front desk Christine is very sarcastic, the way she responds to my inquiries about fair entry for annual members. I know she's tired, but she must be open to any inquiries to anyone, especially since it's a potential new member. My experience with the vivo front desk is awful and felt embarrassing. I walked away, and I didn't finish my inquiries with her. She should not be the frontline person for vivo.

Expérience fantastique: Had a heated discussion with another customer where she thought she could share my booked court. One of the staffs called Masey came in and help diffusing the situation and validated my point of view. Great customer service

Expérience fantastique: Arjun Gill is an awesome young man.Since I have been coming to this facility he has been so helpful to me and very polite.

Expérience négative: I had a very disappointing experience at Vivo today. Around 3 PM, we arrived, excited to use the swimming pool. However, we were told the pool was full. We were the second family on the waiting list, so we patiently waited, watching people leave, reducing the crowd by at least 1/3 to 1/2. Surprisingly, the staff insisted it was still full, leaving my daughter, initially enthusiastic, gradually losing patience and ending up in tears. I suggested letting just my daughter and my mom enter, but they refused with mechanical responses. After waiting for almost an hour and a half, we gave up and went to YMCA. Honestly, YMCA's facilities are more comprehensive, featuring spacious family shower rooms, non-stop showerheads, liquid shower gel (not foam), and hair dryers—features Vivo lacks. (A friend has a yearly pass at Vivo but regrets it. Her family likes YMCA too.) Overall, the experience at Vivo today was awful, marked by rigid rules and a lack of empathy. Thankfully, we ended up having a delightful family day at YMCA.

Expérience négative: Being a yearly subscriber to Vivo services, I have been using the facility daily. For the past 3 days, their public showers did not have any heat. As patrons, we already complained on the 1st day but its been 3 days and the issue is still not resolved. This morning I have complained again to the maintenance guy, and he said he was not aware because he was not on duty during the weekend. Are they not using any kind of logs, or do they dont have proper turnover of duties and concerns??? As an annual subscriber, we are paying premium for their first world type of services but it seems this pathetic facility is giving us third-world standards. With regards to their hot tub: after swimming I went to relax at the hot tub and made sure to turn on the timer that powers on the water jets. In the middle of me, relaxing in the hot tub a swimming staff just turns off everything without even bothering to tell us in the hot tube was was going on!! Hey, what kind of customer service does the Vivo staff have? Do they even get some training?? Going forward, I have learned to lower my expectations about this pathetic facility. If anyone is thinking of paying the annual fee for Vivo, please dont! You can use your hard earned money anywhere, but not here. Then last month, I have also reported that in the men's shower, one row of soap holders were destroyed. Without this soap holders, there is no way for us to place our personal things (other than putting it in the dirty floor). Until now, its been more than 7 days, no action yet has been done - I approached the front desk yesterday, and they just said "its already been reported". Reporting, and getting action done are different things. Apparently Vivo does not know the difference between these two. The customer service in this facility is so pathetic, and their high entrance fees does not correspond to their level of service.

Expérience positive: If you want to use the gym and swim the same day it’s poorly laid out as far as change rooms and access goes . I miss the old steam room the new one isn’t hot enough I was really hoping the upgrade would be better poorly set up !

Expérience négative: I can only echo the other bad reviews here about pool capacity. We arrived at 3pm on Sunday afternoon and right before we could enter the lifeguards radio'd up to say they were at capacity so we were the first on the waitlist. After we waited for an hour, I was told the guards didn't think they could allow more patrons in before closing (this was at 4pm, the pool is open until 6pm). Meanwhile through the viewing windows we had seen at least 1/3 of the swimmers leave since we'd arrived and there were 4 guards on duty and 2 guards on break. It was only by begging the front desk staff that they let us in (the exact words were "the guard staff will make an exception, but just for you"). By the time we made it in to the pool at 4:30 there were approx. half the swimmers from when we arrived, but we didn't see the next family after us on the waitlist be let in to the pool until 5pm. Are you seriously saying 4 on-duty lifeguards cannot safely watch over more than 80 swimmers? We will not be returning to Vivo unless we can be there before the pool officially opens - what a nightmare.

Expérience négative: We get here and the pool is "at capacity" there were less than 40 people! And as we were leaning they let a bunch of people in the pool..

Expérience négative: tell me why this facility is so expensive yet so unorganized? their booking system is terrible and should be looked over as i tried to book a court yet did not work. the pool hours are horrible and should be more efficient.

Expérience négative: Really disappointed after purchase the annual pass, the pool constantly close because apparently they don't have enough lifeguards. They are always apologizing because they are low on staff - Then just hire more? What was the point of expansion? I understand pool only open several hours at the beginning of reopen. But now 2months after things still doesn't get on to normal schedule. My kids are very disappointed every time you guys kick them out.

Expérience négative: Every time I go there reminds me to go somewhere else because of how expensive it is. If I want to take my 10 year old swimming for an hour it cost me $28.50. They say oh you get to use the whole facility I'm like I don't care I just want to go swimming for an hour. Not paying that screw them.

Expérience positive: Very Friendly, attentive and helpful staff. Looks like a nice place to work out, swim, climb, go to the library, play Basketball and Badminton. Plenty of parking and easy access from Transit. The Washroom Stalls are too short I would say... even for adults. The Basketball courts aren't as grippy/ clean...could use some wax for the New Year. The Price is slightly cheaper than YMCA and it's close to home so will most likely still come here.

Expérience positive: My family had a Vivo membership for many years. After Vivo’s reopening, we got an annual membership and I have attended and enjoyed various drop-in classes. My favorite class is Zumba class because it is a fun cardio workout that feels like a dance party every time. The instructors at Vivo are kind and caring and are very passionate to teach and provide guidance to the participants. I look forward to trying out some new classes in the future.

Expérience fantastique: Lots of new equipment and aquatic facilities! Fitness Center opened April '23 and Newly renovated Aquatic center with 6+ lanes pool opened OCTOBER! SAUNA just opened December 22, 20#3!. Priyanka has a good yoga class on Fridays evening and Tuesdays morning, Saturdays AM

Expérience négative: Ridiculous rules inplaced at Vivo after renovations regarding helmets for adults when skating. How much of a coddling society must we be. Zero stars if I could.

Expérience positive: I just started my membership at VIVO and have been trying out the many drop-in classes. My top three (because I can’t choose just one) are Low intensity Flex with V, Zumba with Lynn Ann, and Resistance Training for the Older Adult with Richard. I must say there are many options to choose from throughout each day. Check it out!

Expérience négative: want to give zero star,Vivo is very terrible , we paid for it $1500 for year, when we were there to opening our gym cards they said steam room will be open soon , and this soon already been since October, for me steam room and hot tub is the reason why I open my card , and even though the hot tub the only open until 4;30pm at Saturday and Sunday that’s the time lot of customers still working , week I can here this two weeks been 5 times closing, like right now!!! Plus the week has period, how many times I can come ?! What is the point we paid for it and enjoy nothing and is not refundable Again,I just try to finish everything early and go to vivo this morning, still close, morning close and evening close, F!

Expérience positive: Favorite Class at Vivo: My favorite class at Vivo is the Sunday 9:30am HIIT Class. It incorporates the use of 2 new areas within the renovated Vivo facility. One of the busiest classes each week at Vivo. I love when one of the stations is the use of the Slam Ball on the Mini Trampoline in the Indoor Park space.

Expérience positive: I really like the newly renovated Vivo centre, i know lots efforts have been put into it so I hope it operates better and better!! Also I see issues too and I hope some changes can be made based on members’ suggestions and experiences. 1st - I hope they could plan programs better, be more thoughtful and organized. If the building closes at 11pm, why is the swimming pool closed at 8:30pm? This does not allow parents have enough time after work to have dinner and then bring their kids to the pool!! 2nd - it seems understaffed at the front desk. Last Sunday when we went, we waited for at least 15mjn and the front desk people didn’t even see us standing there waiting as they were busy with other people. It still seems chaos here and there, the overall management seems poor. I cannt find any one in charge, all I saw is the young kids at the front desk or janitors. If I have some questions or concerns or recommendations, don’t even know who I should talk to! 3rd - how come the gate is not closed all the time and people can get in without swiping card. I don’t want to share space with people who didn’t pay for membership!

Expérience négative: Facility is beautiful and amazing. Front desk staff are working hard and trying their best. The issue is the number of lifeguards. I have a family membership and swimming has be so inconvenient. The pool is frequently “at capacity” due to lack of staff. The absolutely amazing looking sauna still isn’t open. Sure the pandemic messed with staffing for everyone but that excuse is wearing thin. Maybe offer a more competitive wage and attract lifeguards. There is a multi million dollar building being under used due to a couple extra bucks. Management need to solve this problem.

Expérience négative: Completele unorgnized centre so far . After spending millions of $$$ tax payers money, two days in roll not able to get in swimming pool due to early closing time. Respond from over counter personal is "Sorry not enough life guard on duty" we have to put you on waiting list and call you when spot is available . Accepted to be on waiting list to get in swimming pool ****wow lol lol unreal ****.After 20 minutes of wait approaching service desk and hearing again ****Sorry couldn't call you we are so busy and closing pool in 10 minutes . I think that is way how to treat VIVO members thank you

Expérience négative: First time ever going and besides for the library, I don't think I'll be back. It's more expensive than other rec centers for a family of 2. If you have a large family, I could see it being a good deal tho. The biggest issue I had was that the pool water and air were freezing! Also, we never knew that you'd need a lock for the lockers and weren't informed when paying (even tho they knew it was our first time there).. so that sucked. I would have given only one star, but they did have private showers instead of just a big showering room, which was awesome.

Expérience négative: Really disappointed since the renovations and trust me this is a consensus amongst new members. They were closed for almost 1.5 years to complete absolutely mediocre renovations. 2 stars are only for the new gym but still annoying if you want to use certain weights, because you have to leave the main gym walk down to the other entrance, scan your card AGAIN just to get downstairs. Price also increased significantly to pay for the renovations which changed nothing, and in fact made the customer service worse. They only added 5 new lanes to the pool with barely any expansion to the family leisure pool and now they have a restriction of people so every weekend there is a line of families to use the pool because apparently they don't have enough lifeguards. They are always apologizing because they are low on staff - Then just hire more? What was the point of expansion? I was very close to buying a family pass until I experienced this. And look at the swimming times 9-430 and closed after 430 on the weekend - but again during this time there is no guarantee you will be allowed in when that's the only time parents can bring their kids which is on the weekend. Before the renovations we used to be able to bring our children in the evening on the weekends, not anymore! Some weekends pools are closed in the evening for a "private function" so basically it's a lottery to get yourself into the door. Please pay a drop in and go on the weekend before committing to any annual membership and you can see for yourself. Buyers beware. **Update went today. Pool closed at 430 leisure pool was closed until "further notice"I was hoping I would have a better review but it got worse so I lowered my rating. ** ***update March 2024. The Pool hours are better so I added 1 star but they randomly close it for "private parties" on the weekends....and they say they are "not-for-profit?" How does that make sense? Clearly money talks! Also don't bother with the rock climbing for children. They have this pointless card system of 10 people and then you have to wait until it is returned to guest services and then you can get your turn. How does that make sense? So I have to wait until someone returns in to guest services, and wait by guest services with my fingers crossed that I will ask for it at the right time? One of the vivo members said "wait here and I'll remember you are waiting". Why not store the names digitally in order of first come first serve and when they leave you call the next person in line waiting by the climbing wall, like any other place that has a waitlist? Vivo is an absolute mess!!!!

Expérience négative: I thought the massive renovation would make the facility much better. I have no idea who was on the design team, but I feel like the design and layout of the space is terrible. There is such wasted space. The workout gym area is soooo small. I know they spent lots of money on the "indoor play area" with hills, but that is such wasted space. If I were to design, I would have used that space to put the workout gym and the studios all in 1 area (similar to YMCA Rocky Ridge). So, people who are working out can see the drop-in classes and be more motivated to try them out. There is barely any mirrors in the workout gym and in the studios. I have no idea why. I like to make sure my form and posture is good while I work out but I can't even check because there are no mirrors. The cloud studio is in such a terrible space. It's hard to find. It is on the way to the lookout area of the pool so its soooo humid and the studio classes get so hot. Again, no mirrors so I have no idea if my form is good. The pool is opened, but it isn't children friendly like the Y in Rocky Ridge. Also, it closes it at 8:30 pm. Why then have the facility open till 11 PM? I usually have to workout after 8 pm and want to finish in the hot tub, but I cant because it is already closed. They should have looked at YMCA Rocky Ridge for inspiration. TERRIBLE DESIGN. I am only here because it is the closest rec facility to my house.

Expérience négative: Was excited to check out the “new” pool after a very very long time being closed. First off, couldn’t even get in because “a piece fell off the side of the pool and they need to find it before we reopen”. Oddest excuse I’ve ever heard for not opening a pool. What on earth was it that fell in and why is it so hard to find? Also, by glancing in the window it sure looks like the leisure pool is exactly the same as before!! They simply added a lap pool (which was needed, but you can’t exactly say it’s a brand new aquatics center).