Holmes Place Deutschland Reviews 

I have generally enjoyed the facilities at Holmes Place Potsdamer Platz, but my recent experience during Lisa T.’s Body Pump class was extremely disappointing.

I was unable to perform one of the exercises correctly, and instead of receiving guidance or encouragement, the trainer raised her voice and spoke to me in a disrespectful manner in front of the entire class. It was embarrassing, humiliating, and not the kind of environment I expect from a premium fitness club.

A professional trainer should support members of all fitness levels, especially when someone is struggling with an exercise. Publicly raising your voice at a member is neither motivating nor acceptable.

I have reported this incident to management and sincerely hope they take it seriously, provide appropriate feedback to the trainer, and ensure that all members are treated with respect and professionalism in the future. I also hope to receive an apology for the way I was treated.

I genuinely hope Holmes Place addresses this issue, as no member should feel uncomfortable or intimidated while exercising.

oh hey Holmes Place! i tried to be honest when writing my review here and on google, but you seem to be way to busy curating your google ratings to address the real issues in the gym.

1) you response to my original review here was just lame. which concrete data would you need? you should know your problems better than me.

2) not long ago i received a warning from google reviews saying that i'm causing defamation to your service and i should stop otherwise legal actions will be taken. cmon, your customers are being honest, and instead you threaten them? if only you could direct this energy to improving the gym, everyone would benefit from it, but so far it seems like keeping the image is more important to you to sell overpriced memberships.

luckily, i opted out of the subscription and will never do again.

Unfortunately, the reformer Holmes studio cancelled my trial class right before, because „the teacher doesn’t pick up the phone”. Now, they are denying me the refund for the cancelled training. They promised me the refund that was never done. Now, they keep saying that I only can book another class, which is against German Customers law - based on german law I am not obligated to choose a different class if the one I booked got cancelled by them - they apparently do not respect it and don’t want to disclose why. (§ 326 (1) BGB
§ 275 (1) BGB)
It is also not stated in their terms and conditions that they are refering to. So be aware that the studio is not respecting basic consumers law & they might cancel your booking right before without consequences :) meanwhile if you don’t cancel 12 hours before you loose your money. Very disappointing approach to the customer. I would love to know why the studio is above the german law

I have been and tried many gyms. Holmes place is one of the worst gyms I have ever been to. The equipments stay out of order for months. Dirty WCs and Sauna, the lack of reliable & compatible customer service. Because of a serous health issue I had to write back and forth to the customer service for 7 months until my termination of my contract has been issued! The most outrageous part was when the Claim for the 7 months of delaying in responding to my termination came by post from the collecting agency Inkasso! Stay away from Holmes place!

I’ve been a loyal Holmes Place member for over 15 years, including during the COVID period when the company was struggling financially. I always paid my fees, even when there were constant issues like broken lifts, bad smells in the women’s sauna, lack of towels or drinking water, and rude staff.

Despite supporting the gym all this time (paying over €100/month), when I asked to cancel my daughter’s membership due to financial hardship, I was refused. I find this extremely disappointing.

I hope Holmes Place reconsiders how they treat long-term, loyal members.

Weight rooms always full, in summer the heat is unbearable. The only thing that worth it in the Berlin Gendarmenmarkt location is the relaxing zone. In addition, they charge you a biannual fee for a health exam but never announce it to you, I had 4 exams accumulated that never could claim. Tried to change it for another service like personal coach sessions and they put me a swimming teacher to make my weight lifting routines. The customer service team is useless. Luxury fee without luxury services.

Holmes Place is trying to erase the Google review I left for its Ostkreuz gym quite some time ago. I thought you would like to know:

Be very careful with Holmes Place. When you are there for the first time, they smile at you and even say you can cancel the contract if you move more than 40 miles from the club. The reality is, I cancelled my membership and sent them proof I was registered in a foreign country. They pretended they could not find my cancellation and charged me for membership one year after I had moved out of Germany. Since I don't have an address, I didn't receive any communication, and now they have blocked my German bank account. I lost the account, then they sent my details to Schufa and didn't reply to my lawyer. They are very evil people doing anything they can to get money from you. I will hire another lawyer and make sure many people know about it, even if I have to spend more than what they illegally want from me. STAY AWAY!!!!!!

They also support illegal work conditions:

Their gyms in Portugal pay massage staff commission only, but demand that they stay there talking to clients for free for 8 hours a day. That is illegal in Portugal and in the whole European Union. I went there myself and applied for the massage therapy job, and I have pictures of the payment structure they offered me.

I pay nearly 90€ a month, and still I’m treated like a second-class member — just because I’m not part of one of the corporate-sponsored users who come here via an app. Holmes Place clearly prioritizes them, while those of us who pay full price are ignored, overcharged, and blocked without a proper explanation.

Facilities are constantly broken: saunas don’t work, the pool is regularly out of service, water pressure in the showers is pathetic, and the toilets in the ladies’ locker room are dirty and limited. This is a luxury-priced gym running with budget maintenance — it’s absolutely unacceptable.

Today I was denied entry due to a billing issue caused by them, not me. When I tried to explain, I was told: “You’re lucky you live here and not in America.” That kind of comment is unprofessional, inappropriate, and frankly, disgusting.

And to top it all off, they deleted my previous review — silencing my voice instead of addressing the feedback.

Holmes Place doesn’t care about you as a person. It cares about your company-sponsored app access and about draining your wallet. The service is terrible, the communication worse, and the human experience today left me feeling humiliated and angry

Adding to other reviewers' experiences: this gym charged me for personal training services (250 Euros) and despite my repeated attempts to contact them to book this service over the course of more than a month (by phone, email, and in person), they never responded or offered any explanation beyond "someone will get in touch with you." Of course, no one has. They have also more than doubled my monthly membership fee without informing me. I now have to take the time and stress to chase down these issues, which is not why I signed up for a gym. It is a nice facility, but it's clear this company does not have a sound financial management, and customers will only suffer for it.

Bad experience 1 - I was subject to unfair treatment at Holmes Place Steglitz.
Bad experience 2 - Holmes Place Steglitz has not been able to give me any reasons for the booking penalties they imposed on me.

Problems I faced:
- In Feb 2025, Holmes Place Steglitz sent me emails telling me that I was subject to booking penalties for failing to attend certain classes. I did not know why I was subject to these penalties.
- On 17 March 2025, I attended a Les Mills Shapes class.
- I was early for the class. I queued up for the class. I saw the trainer standing in front of me with other people waiting for the class.
- The trainer did not ask anyone to sign in. I did not see any method of signing in. I did not see anyone sign in before the class, during the class or after the class.
- After the class ended, I went to ask the reception staff why I had been subject to booking penalties.
- The reception staff explained to me that I was required to sign in before the class starts.
This meant that for the Les Mills Shapes class that I attended but did not sign in, I would be subject to a booking penalty.
- I then received the booking penalty email sent to me on 18 March 2025.
- But the trainer for the class I attended did not tell anyone there was a requirement to sign in. Nobody else signed in because there was no method of doing so. Everyone just entered the room and grabbed the weights. There was no "signing in" done by anyone.

2 issues:
1. Why was I subject to a booking penalty that started from 18 March 2025 even though I did attend the 17 March class and I had already explained to the reception staff that I did attend the class?

2. Holmes Place Steglitz did not communicate the sign in policy to me or anyone else at the class I aittended. All the members who attended the class did not sign in. I did not see anyone sign in. If I had seen people sign in, I would have done the same.
Does this mean that the trainer signed in for certain people and not for others (like myself)?
If so, this is discriminatory treatment.

Not a good gym

Update: they also are aggressively filing disputes with review platforms to have my personal valid opinions removed as “defamation” even though i’m a real former customer and my review is valid.

Endless decline in customer service. No more email address to contact member offices; poor sanitation in the clubs; broken lockers; faulty equipment. I received an email about my account from a “no-reply” email address! No way to write them back or respond. Horrid management. Pity because some of the front desk staff and teachers are genuinely nice. But they have no leverage.

Horrendous scam of a company. They will raise their fees without telling you. They took extra money for extra fees without telling me and just deducted the money overtime until I checked my balance. Then after i cancelled my account. They still took money out of my bank after I explained my situation.

Unfortunately I only now hear about all the rumours, and not before i signed up.
This gym is completely corrupt definitely avoid at all cost.

They get one star, because I cannot give less.

I got a severe injury on the same day they signed me up for private training, DURING private training - In their care, while I specified, that my shoulder was a danger area…

and they demand I keep to this contract.

Fantastic (sarcastic) customer service

‼️ Questionable Legal Practices: A Terrible Experience at Holmes Place‼️

My experience with this gym was nothing short of horrendous. Despite providing detailed medical evidence for an extraordinary termination due to health reasons, they repeatedly tried to avoid their legal obligations. On June 30th, 2023, I officially submitted a request for extraordinary termination of the contract, citing health conditions, and requested a refund for August 2023. Despite providing a medical certificate from a doctor in Berlin, they did not process the termination and refund as required.

On August 21st, 2023, they requested a detailed medical certificate, which I provided. According to German law (BGH, 08.02.2012, Az.XII ZR 42/10), it was possible to terminate the fitness contract under such circumstances.

What was particularly concerning is that they began offering medical advice and therapy suggestions to avoid terminating my contract. When I raised concerns about the legality of their actions and mentioned that diagnoses and therapies should be reserved for qualified doctors, they continued to avoid the termination process. Then, they requested another medical certificate from a different doctor, which I felt was not in line with legal standards and was clearly another attempt to avoid terminating the contract.

Be warned:
- Basic amenities like the toilets are poorly maintained, with unpleasant odors even in the sauna area.
- The staff behavior can be disrespectful; I witnessed receptionists openly mocking customers behind their backs.
- The sauna attendant yelled at a member, which required intervention from other members.
- Group classes and yoga sessions lacked proper equipment and were of low quality.

‼️But the most troubling aspect was the difficulty in terminating the contract and what seemed like attempts to avoid complying with legal requirements. It appears that resolving issues often requires legal assistance‼️

Expect the following response from Holmes Place:
“We apologize for your experience.”
“We take your concern seriously.”
“We will investigate internally and improve the quality.”
“We hope you will give us the opportunity to address these matters directly with you and find a satisfactory resolution.”
“Our team would be happy to assist you in any way possible.”

This is exactly what they wrote to a friend of mine who complained about being charged gym fees after his contract ended. He believed them and tried to contact them since more than 8 months, but they never replied to his emails or calls. They use these responses, likely with GPT help, to give the illusion of customer service support.

I am sharing this to show how fake and dishonest they are. I will keep this honest review supported by screenshots of my email exchanges with Holmes Place, ready to provide proof to Google customer service if needed.

If you are reading this and see the typical response mentioned above, it means they haven’t resolved my situation. Consider this a warning about the problems members face with this gym before you sign any contract. If I update this review to reflect a resolution, it means they have genuinely addressed my case.

I am definitely not expecting anything because they have previously even ignored German laws and acted unethically behind the scenes. I am doing this to expose their poor and fake customer service, so you never sign a contract with them!

Review for Berlin Potsdamer Platz.
Overall I am satisfied. The club is fairly clean and the staff has been friendly to me.

My complaint would be that the shower walls never look as clean as they should be. The bottom of the pool could use more attention.

The rest of the club has always been very clean and organized. There's always a janitor cleaning when I am there, they work hard. Holmes needs to hire an extra cleaner to come in and specifically deep clean the shower and bathroom areas.

When you sign up be aware they will try and add personal training which is expensive and could lead to a surprise bill. They also charge 29 euro 2 times year for the body scan, you can't reject this "service" and they don't warn you of the bill.

The monthly cost is absolutely a fair price for what you get. Towel service, pool, and sauna make it worth the money.

If you calculate what mcfit plus the public pool and liquidrom or vabali sauna entrance fees for a month, you will see how economical a Holmes Place membership is.

BE VERY CAREFUL AT POTSDAMER PLATZ: They will ask you for a pfand, and so I give them my house keys - that at exit were not there anymore due to the employee that supposedly had put them at the wrong number. They showed me and asked me about all the keys that they had and basically I could have taken all of them, however, none of them were mine. They told me 1 day later they were supposed to call. No call, so I called them and they still didn't know about it and they didn't seem particularly interested in the situation.

I am very disappointed. I haven't got any answer for my email after 1,5 weeks! My credit card has been charged with the wrong amount (almost 200€) and I don't get any answer from the customer service. Very disappointing experience, I wouldn't recommend them.

Stay away from this company! Very bad customer service, poor communication, they dont answer the emails and the phone. They deduct your money and refuse to return this for months. Absolutely unprofessional and disgusting. Fitness First is a way better!

One of the dirtiest places i’ve ever been to . The idea it’s premium is a joke . It’s not been cleaned for months. Broken equipment filthy machines . Masks / chewing gum / plasters around the pool for days . No customer service . Over priced if they won’t clean.