David Lloyd - Dartford

 

Overview
Set a little way into Dartford slightly out from the postcode on their website and up a slope I can only assume is designed to warm up those calves is David Lloyd Dartford.

The facility is a little odd with a reception on the ground floor but I only found facilities on the first and second floor which threw me a little, really not sure what exists on the mystery ground level (this does mean you go through a barrier and climb a small Everest of stairs!). But fear not I found my way around as I found signs in this David Lloyd, this has been a recent bug bear for me so very glad that this one made my life a little easier after the stairs!

On the first floor of the building you have the pools, tennis courts and the changing rooms along with the standard David Lloyd restaurant. The gym itself along with the studios are up another set of stairs on the second floor, this includes a range of studios as ever which I didn't dive into along with a small dedicate boxing area.

The weights section as you come up the stairs was to the left for some of it, there was a selection of plate equipment but again a single set of each, a range of dumbells up to 50kg with a couple of some weights but for the first time I have seen the 1-20 were in one area and the 20kg above were in another small section, not far apart but enough that if you happen to be training between these ranges it was an utter ball ache. I see no reason to have split these up at all and it doesn’t really add anything other than lost dumbells between the two areas…
The cable machines are once again in a slightly different section at the other end of the gym around the synergy machine, I do  get this but again we have another gym where the equipment is oddly spread out and doesn’t work fantastically for moving between them.
There are 2 squat racks with deadlift pads and enough cable cross overs to go around though not enough clips? Again another risk of having your cable machines spread out means that this equipment gets spread around and becomes hard to get hold of if its at the other end.

The cable machines at the other end are a fantastic selection of kit here, mostly one of each but the full range is present and quite nicely presented around a synergy setup. Round the back of this is a slightly more secluded stretching area which I do like as it is set away with some boxing equipment and having this with a small wall to separate was a nice touch.

The cardio equipment is spread around the gym and we have a wide range of kit with water rowers, spin bikes with screens, steppers and more, whatever your poison is for cardio the odds are you will be able to find  something to keep you occupied here. With the new kit having TVs built in there isn't a need to have screens up and they are few and far between. One pattern I haven't highlighted but is present here again is that the equipment always has TV cables plugged in but never are connected to the internet limiting the apps a bit which is always a shame.

All of the equipment in the gym appears to be refresh equipment so pretty new and fresh in working order. As ever with David Lloyd this kit is clean and well maintained  which is always nice and there is a good amount of equipment between them all so nothing feels too crowded.

Beyond this, apparently this gym has another celicus spa (maybe the mystery ground floor?) and indoor along with outdoor pools. This along with tennis and squash courts mean this David Lloyd has the full range of offerings  a DL can provide and in quite a neat little package at this facility.

As ever these  is Wifi available but I did find it reached quite as well as other David Lloyds I had been too which was slightly annoying as the building at least for me was pretty phone signal proof so I had to quest around a bit to get enough signal for Spotify to download some bits! (a minor grumble) There was plenty of parking again around more stairs (notice a pattern!).
The changing rooms were very well re-furbished  and were clean, the general vibe was pretty good and the music was if anything a little quiet in this David Lloyd which made a change from the last couple. This is another DL that is a 6am opening on a week day as a note so no waiting in the car park for me!

Overall this gym has a good selection of kit but some rather dubious layout choices let down the gyms functionality for the sake of aesthetic or "clever layout". If you are after the other facilities this place definitely has them though and you can certainly smash a good heavy workout here any day of the week.



How busy?
Very quiet this one first thing, not many people in but those that were there appeared to all be using the plate equipment which was slightly annoying…


Equipment
Free weights area
2 squat racks (2 with deadlift platforms)
1 flat bench, 1 incline, 1 decline
3 free benches
Dumbells up to 50kg
Set of plate machines including
Chest
Row
Shoulder press
Cable machines including
Low row
Cable cross over



Facilities
Indoor Tennis courts
Outdoor Tennis courts
Badminton courts
Squash courts
Indoor Pool
Outdoor pool
Café
Steam room/sauna
Changing/showers
Studios (inc spin)
Free weights area
Weights machines
Cable machines
Cardio area
Synergy 360
Celcius spa


Pricing
As ever David Lloyd can vary by location on where your base is, recently talking to a friend they got a starting rate of
£90 for standard
£70 per person for couples
I have as other reviews had between £60-90 as the range and worth a haggle
Remember there is a premium over this for tennis/squash etc
I will go and investigate the spa price and get back to you on this one…


Other bits
Did I mention the stairs?! I actively swapped to back day after finally getting from car -> reception -> changing -> gym, there was no way I would have survived coming back down after doing legs…
Staff as ever awesome friendly and there to help, lovely team here the guys who spoke to me



https://www.davidlloyd.co.uk/clubs/dartford
https://www.facebook.com/DavidLloydDartford/

Final Gym Rating:
2 pack!
A good set of equipment but some odd layout choices let an amazing facility down!