Dorking Sports Centre

Negative experience: Uninspiring place to exercise. Gym is outdated with lots of broken equipment, lots of kids just messing around in groups around the gym, dirty changing rooms and toilets. Needs a lot of investment. Paid the day fee and just walked out after 5 minutes today.

Negative experience: U18 can only use the the lowest setting on machines which is 2.5kg and can’t use free weights

Positive experience: Good facilities (gym, pool, sauna and sports hall) with lots of active clubs and classes. Cafe is closed permanently but they thought a redevelopment might be coming soon. Good value of money

Negative experience: My Daughter had swimming lessons at Dorking for 2.5 years. It changed hands to Better this year and the quality of the pool went down so drastically. The changing rooms were dirty, the lessons were becoming more disorgainsed due to the change or management, the toilets were always dirty and a lot of them were out of order and my daughter mentioned the pool was cold a few times. Its a real shame as Alison, who taught my daughter, was fantastic and she is a real asset to them. She is the only reason I have given 2 stars not 1. We have now moved my daughters swimming elsewhere.

Negative experience: My gym membership has increased nearly double since the overtaking of ‘Better’. The facilities however have gotten progressively worse with multiple machines being out of service for several weeks still yet to be fixed. Overly priced for the value.

Negative experience: Me and my family used to go regularly to this centre for swimming and badminton. It was smooth booking then but when changed to ‘Better’ company, it did NOT became better! It is so difficult to book and plan activities ahead of time. I was advised to use their website to book activities which is very limited options and prices are now more expensive! Sent email to reception to enquire slots, NO response at all!!

Negative experience: Nice staff but the facility has noticeably deteriorated since Better took over (and raised prices!). Dirty changing areas, a lack of general maintenance, floor tiles lifting, toilets broken and not fixed after months. The pool itself is good for lane swimming but there is a lack of general upkeep in what could easily be a fantastic centre. Is there a plan?

Negative experience: Hmmm.. just tried to go for a Swim, simple you would think, but now they encourage you to book on line on a basic council level app, added to the fact if one wants to come adhoc there’s only one computer now to deal with payments or enquires at the desk with numerous staff unable or just too busy to help! So the takeover company is called Better!....Ha, hardly .....I would suggest Bollox, probably more apt! I didn’t go for a swim!

Fantastic experience: Great facilities and conveniently located

Fantastic experience: Amazing place

Negative experience: I have just moved into the area and cancelled my membership after my first gym session. This gym is the worst gym I have ever been too. It feels like a small box with no equipment what so ever. No lat pull down machines, only 2 cable machines, 1 bench press, only up to 40kg dumbbells also. If I could give any advice then that is to move the whole gym into an area with more space and to massively upgrade this gym with more variety of equipment. The gym way to small for the amount of people who use the gym so good luck even getting on the cable machine past 3pm. This gym may be suitable if you are new to weight lifting but for people who train regularly and take it serious you need to avoid at all costs. I have never seen a more deprived gym in my life. Please fix it so us locals can actually train somewhere that is somewhat decent.

Negative experience: I have been a frequent visitor of the centre for years. it's so sad and quite frankly shocking how quickly it has deteriorated since being taken over by 'Better' (possibly the most ill-named company this century so far). The memberships and lesson fees have risen, but the facilities have been stripped. The teaching pool is closed on Sundays, no public swimming at all on the weekends for babies unless you want to join lessons which I understand slots have been reduced. There are no coffee or food facilities begging the question of what one should do if they have a hard session and need a glucose hit or are watching their kids attend an all day gala. The staff are doing their best but you can see that they are underfunded and understaffed. The place is dirty and soul-less. A huge shame to see such a hub of the town go down hill so spectacularly... And all the while the bright green messaging ' better' plastered everywhere seems to bedo nothing but mock every unhappy face coming in and out. Shame on you Dorking Council. This was such a vibrant place that we all as a family once enjoyed but I'll be driving 20 mins now to Horsham to use the facilities there. Please don't waste your money. Find an alternative. The place needs to fail so it can be handed over to a company that cares.

Negative experience: Very bad gym I have been to a few gym and this is by far the worst gym I have ever been to, it's small and feel like there's no room to move. This was the 1st time I went there to train there and left after 5 minutes. I also cancelled my membership straight away

Fantastic experience: Got 29 mins of free parking. Was in row Zone A row 8/9 and right under the landing path of the jets. Great bonus, if you've never been under the jets landing before.

Negative experience: Very disappointed all been privately managed now when you work out what is the cost to go swimming it’s a lot of money plus parking it’s clean it’s tidy but that’s how it should be the cost again too much

Positive experience: Shame there isn't much swimming available during the week in the small pool. Hope they open the cafe.

Positive experience: Lovely pool. Clean. Unfortunately there is now black plastic on the large windows! Can no longer look out at the beautiful hills from the pool. Such a pity. No response from the management to complaints.

Negative experience: Still no ability (Jan '24) to book virtual cycling session online so not 'Better' since the new management took over. Won't be returning until this is fixed as I don't want to turn up not knowing if i can complete a ride or not

Fantastic experience: If you’re a regular gym goer you’d know not every gym feels the same, although this is one of the smallest gyms I’ve been to, the atmosphere is great. The staff at the gym aren’t really the friendliest but I don’t need them anyway, however at the reception and every where else including pool side they’re really attentive and helpful! You get a lot of value for your money, a lot!

Negative experience: Very bad communication the phone line is just a bunch of pre recorded messages by a computer.¿ is speaking to a person too old fashioned.

Fantastic experience: The scuba club were very kind to give the Explorer Scouts a wonderful introduction to scuba lesson here. The facilities were clean and well appointed.

Fantastic experience: Grandchildren swim, nice and warm!

Fantastic experience: Friendly staff. Good facilities.

Negative experience: The gym is very poor. Machines are frequently broken, equipment isn’t great, air conditioning is not always on and doesn’t work well, changing rooms smell and are not clean, water fountain constantly leaks and smells, and the gym is very small and crowded. The price is therefore extortionate.

Negative experience: Terrible experience! Membership: The flexible membership terms are not clear. Be cautious when signing up because you are required to provide notice for flexibility, and there are no forms to sign agreeing to this. Pool: The pool is old and dirty. As a regular swimmer, it was the first time I developed multiple styes in my eyes after using this pool. App access: Access and booking for swimming are managed through an app. If you don't have one, you need a QR card. However, these cards ran out for months, forcing me to request access. The of the staff, often rude and abrupt, were unhelpful regarding the my lack of a smartphone for the app access. All in all, not a great experience. While I understand the benefit of having a local pool and gym, the facility seriously lacks in customer service and pool cleanliness. On a positive note, Jimmy on reception was always helpful and great at helping with access. Thanks Jimmy!

Fantastic experience: Really happy I joined great facilities & the staff are exceptional helpful Worth the money

Negative experience: Okay pool and sauna, the gym was outdated 15 years ago and extremely cramped

Fantastic experience: Clean and tidy place with good coaches

Fantastic experience: Dorking really lucky to have such a Great sports centre Very clean & Super friendly staff Nothing like the swimming pools of the 70s!!

Negative experience: Gym - machines often broken and take weeks or months to repair. V v expensive for what you get. Staff not interested when i raised my concern... apparently I had to 'speak with Dan'...

Fantastic experience: Took a child with learning difficulties and the staff couldn't have been better trained to assist me in keeping him calm, they even opened a extra swimming lane.

Positive experience: Includes, sports hall, yoga/pilates hall, Gym, swimming pool with lanes and a separate baby/toddler pool, cafe (however has not been open for a while and is still closed), cycling room, toilets and a crèche. Staff are very kind and welcoming. Also includes changing rooms and vending machines.

Positive experience: Been a long time since I was last there. Nice pool but water was abit cold at the time. I will return eventually

Fantastic experience: Conveniently located and good facilities, pleasant staff

Fantastic experience: Really good gym. Great for work outs, swimming and have classes with great coaches.

Fantastic experience: Joined Saturday and enjoyed my first training session Monday....May there be many more.

Fantastic experience: Amazing

Positive experience: My family and I frequent the sports centre for swimming, gymming and other purposes. The staff are nice and the facilities mostly clean and tidy. It's nothing spectacular, but offers an important service for the local area of an affordable and functional leisure centre.

Fantastic experience: Great place for all kinds of sports. Accessible and clean.

Fantastic experience: Staff are always helpful and gym is kept clean at all times

Positive experience: Took my 10 month old to their baby bounce session, was very nice for him to meet and interact with other little ones. Facilities were ok, staff were friendly.

Fantastic experience: Pool is great and gym is full but not stuffed with weightlifters

Positive experience: Good gym with friendly staff but could do with some updates to the changing room

Negative experience: If you are considering to visit here for swimming, please avoid. I have used adult pool, so do not know about kids pool. However, I felt that the pool was not safe for swimming. Water is so cloudy, dirty, foggy and lack of clarify. While I swim, I saw dusts, hair clustered on the bottom of the pool and even some hair/bits of floating debris came into my mouth which was disgusting. Shower facility was also filthy, there are mouldy or dirt patches behind of the door and the floor. I will never use this facility again.

Positive experience: Nipped in for a coffee and to find out about swimming. It was not easy to know where to get the coffee at first. Staff at reception make it. Pleasingly, they had decaf cappuccino. I bought a swimsuit and several other items. Good selection of swim accessories for adults and children. Hope to start swimming there soon.

Positive experience: The gym has good classes and equipment and a full length pool and kid pool on the side along with a sauna and steam room. I will say though, that the Places app they have is complete rubbish. The QR code to let you in never works so you end up having to ask a receptionist to log you in or log yourself in at a screen to the side with a tedious process of adding your class or gym session to a checkout basket and then “buying” it - free of course. Just finding the QR code section in the app is horrendous. You aren’t able to add class times to your calendar app (other gyms I’ve been with do this) instead you get spammed with emails when you join/cancel classes. The air conditioning NEVER seems to be on enough so the gym area is always warm and smelly. In the lobby, they sell some swimming costumes and equipment which is quite useful. They have some vending machines there too with crisps and sweet treats - which for a gym makes zero sense at all since you’d expect to find healthier options here of all places. The bathroom and floors are normally clean. So all in all, not the best but not the worst gym experience.

Fantastic experience: Great facilitates and a very fair price. Shame the council doesn't have a carpark option that works on conjunction with the center.

Positive experience: Grear gym with friendly people but the swimming changes rooms could do with a redecoration.

Negative experience: Terrible for baby swimming water was under temperature and the leisure centre gave me fake operation director details and are chasing me for paying expecting me to continue lessons there with a 7 month old. Not baby friendly and my child was shivering I would avoid. Reception team super unhelpful and gave incorrect information about how to cancel the membership and now cannot speak to anyone. Avoid

Negative experience: 2024 Update: a gym named “better” took over and somehow managed to make this terrible gym even worse. The name of the gym just feels like salt in the wound at this point Wild since many of us have said we’d pay a good amount for a membership at a proper gym, not sure who in the council gave this place the nod but they obviously don’t use gyms. Gym is very basic, not very clean and feels a bit like traveling into a 80/90s time warp. Needs to be bought into 2022. The pool is always full or in use for classes, even in the evenings. If you are looking for a decent gym with use of a swimming pool/sauna after, this place has the facilities but they aren't very good or they are fully booked, so unfortunately I will be canceling my membership and joining another local gym, many of the alternative gyms within the local area far outshine this place which is unfortunate as this is the closest gym to me, this is also the only gym facility with a swimming pool/sauna/steam room so if it was updated and run properly, this would be many peoples first choice for gym!?. Fingers crossed a good company takes over the premises soon, completely revamps it and I will happily return it would make a killing in the right hands and after a nice investment into a refurbishment, I'm sure.

Fantastic experience: Good gym facilities and had great service from Dan the South African who was always available to help

Positive experience: Nice facilities, paying to park is a bit odd.

Fantastic experience: Excellent pools- great kids pool and really clean changing rooms

Fantastic experience: The staff that I've meet are super friendly and make me feel welcome and cared for. Jimmy the receptionist is super helping and kind.

Fantastic experience: Great place, value for money

Fantastic experience: Went to watch great grandson swimming

Negative experience: The parking is paid £1 per hour and on the top of your membership.The staff did not mention this detail when I was considering membership.As a result I was fined £25.. Do not rely on pool staff. They told me I can stay up to 3 hours to use the sauna and steam room.Next visit was late 15 minutes, I paid 2 hours parking,they did not let me in because I was late...

Positive experience: Recommend calling to confirm pool availability, as their website is notoriously out-of-date

Positive experience: Good swimming pool and changing facilities. Small kids pool with a slide for toddlers.

Fantastic experience: Must admit to only calling in here for the excellent toilets.

Fantastic experience: Muito bom a minha experiência desde que comecei a praticar no Dorking Sports, bom atendimento dos trabalhadores na área, talvez haja um pequeno permenor quê é, na segurança de armários nos balneários, de resto está tudo muito bom 3,5, estrelas. Haja lá uma pequena falta de coordenação pára impor e falar com as pessoas, pára um bom uso diário, uma bons cuidados pára às limpezas, coisa quê muitos não aceitam, nem fazem as suas próprias limpezasnas máquinas quê fez uso : ISTO NÃO É COISA PÁRA BRINCADEIRAS (COVID-19 E MONKEY VÍRUS).

Fantastic experience: Great facilities and good carpark, short walk to town.

Negative experience: Still back in covid days cafe not open changing rooms downstairs still closed

Fantastic experience: The gym looks nicer more spacious feels less cramped

Positive experience: Great, clean and fresh facilities, the water is just too cold though, the kids were blue within half an hour

Negative experience: Miss sold on the internet. Not living in Dorking and relatively new to area so hadn’t used before. Said parking available but not explained that this was pay and display until 6pm is a scam frankly. Means a £40 membership easily becomes up to £60-70 a month. Can’t believe a £40 a month membership fixed doesn’t come with free parking. Booked some classes including f membership tour some of these didn’t run and excuse given was “not enough staff”. When trying to raise these complaints with company very poor customer service given and often met with just a phone option.

Positive experience: good pools , but for the last 2 weeks we couldnt have a warm shower afterwards. We wasnt informed about this issue before booking or when we checked in. But they still charge the same fee. Because of this we are going to use a different swiming center

Fantastic experience: Inflatable fun is awesome. Kids love it.

Positive experience: Too busy, only one slow lane and had to share that with a teacher and child plus all the other swimmers, yet two fast lanes, one was empty, so we used that one untill a regular I assume complained, obviously thinks is his own private lane. I am definitely slow and obliged to get out, however my friend is not slow swimmer, but they(two men) pretty much bullied her out of the fast lane. Staff did nothing.. No doubt they are arrogant on the road too, can imagine them being the type right up behind intimidating others because it is all about them. Rant aside, the staff were pleasant, nice pool, changing rooms clean and hand gel available still. Easy to book. Won't go in evening again though as too many peeps.

Positive experience: Goof family sports centre, with great range of classes, good gym, large pools and a sauna and steam room.

Fantastic experience: Omg , was there first time with my client who has learning disabilities . Young man served us and he was soooo helpful , he has managed to open a new account for my client . On the way back , recognised my client , remembered his name . We have left very pleased . 5* for your staff

Fantastic experience: Beautiful facilities and very clean, very friendly staff

Positive experience: Shabby gym, needs updating, obviously funds are tight and it shows. Staff friendly and well motivated.

Positive experience: Clean place with a lot going on. I was only there to register for a race, but it looks great

Positive experience: Hot inside but a great facility

Fantastic experience: First visit it was really nice with good facilities and parking, Jimmy on the reception was really helpful and even lent me a pound for the lockers. Will definitely be back soon

Fantastic experience: So I went swimming for the first time since before lockdown with my two boys, now 4 and 2. We used the family pool. Facilities were clean and staff are always friendly. We stayed the full hour as my boys were having a great time I was anxious about going alone with my two boys but my eldest was able to stand in most parts of the pool so great for building his confidence in the water. My youngest was happy playing in the shallow parts or using the side of the pool to get around. We all had a great time and shall be visiting again hopefully on a regular basis

Positive experience: Great swimming pool! Lots of changing rooms, well set out, lovely warm toddler pool! Also great baby changing facilities, a seat for toddlers as well as baby. Hot showers for after and good cafe!

Negative experience: Things are not getting fixed here. In the men's toilet, a urinal has been blocked for over two months. There's a recruitment poster next to it on the wall so if you get a job here you could be trying to fix this. Wear a mask though. The hand soap dispensers in the men's toilet do not dispense any soap which is handy during these covid times. The water cooler hasn't been working for three months. The shower near the sauna has lost its power and just dribbles out. This has been going on for five months. The steam room is much bigger than the sauna room and has calming blue lighting. Both rooms are clean and fresh but the sauna is too hot and you can only use it for 5 mins. Locker is £1... Refundable. You need your own bag for swimwear after session. There is no swimming costume dryer. Parking... £1 per hour during the day. Free on Sunday. It now costs £8 to use the spa. If you just want to use the spa you have to pay for swimming plus spa. The price increased by £3 in the space of a few weeks. Seems an odd rate of inflation. There's still no feature on their Web site to book the spa only. I feel like not going back and I'm certainly not joining. Everyone seems to be on the make since covid. Does this place have a manager???

Fantastic experience: It's brilliant. All the people who work there are delightful and couldn't be more helpful.

Fantastic experience: A very pleasant environment with first class facilities. Always an enjoyable experience with very courteous and helpful staff.

Fantastic experience: great staff, good facilities

Fantastic experience: Well organised with regards Covid and clean.

Positive experience: So far good service

Fantastic experience: Went for a family swim today. Price was very fair at £12. Good social distancing. Staff were very attentive

Positive experience: As a parent, this gym provides so much for me and my family. A creche, children's swimming, sports clubs, a pool. Personally, I love a gym that provides both equipment and good classes and this gym delivers on all accounts. Friendly staff, affordable! Yes, the building is a bit outdated but nothing short on whats actually on offer here.

Positive experience: Helpful staff. Great venue- but lighting a bit variable ie reacts to movement but not consistently or bright enough. It was a bit difficult playing badminton.

Fantastic experience: Very good sports centre. There is a swimming pool and a gym. Would recommend to visit.

Negative experience: Charged £9.60 for 45 minutes , the gym itself is less than mediocre. Never again.

Fantastic experience: Very clean and strict covid rules pool cleaned for 30 mins after every 45 min swim session lovely to exercise again ‍♀️

Negative experience: Absurd and highly inconsistent communication!! Called earlier today to book a slot to play basketball and everything was fine. After I came in, I was told that they DON'T KNOW if I can play basketball or not due to Covid rules...... Very interesting, especially given the fact that I'm alone and they are letting multiple people to play badminton.... All resulted in me just GOING HOME, THANKS A LOT :) Super annoyed and dissatisfied with the poor communication and service!

Fantastic experience: For healthy and fit life nothing is better then exercising. Get sweeming pool and sports stadium too .

Fantastic experience: I have swum regularly over many years at the lovely Dorking swimming pool and I am very grateful that it has been partly reopened, for the past 3 weeks. It feels safe, well monitored, enjoyable, and good for me. Thank you

Fantastic experience: Excellent arrangements for covid and helpful staff.

Fantastic experience: Fantastic centre. Good selection of activities, friendly staff, nice vibe

Positive experience: Have to pay to park not good

Positive experience: Good range of classes and the pool and gym are great. However the changing rooms could do with an update.

Fantastic experience: Fain

Positive experience: Gets the job done

Fantastic experience: It was clean & friendly! Ample parking