Movement Santa Clara - Santa Clara, California

S S.

Like this climbing gym. Does get busy but it is manageable and you can climb routes even if it is crowded. The gym is well equipped. Lock room facilities and good clean and they are kept up pretty well. Good gear shop with someone there to help you and provide advice as needed. Better location than Sunnyvale (no belay here)

David N.

I decided to check out Movement Santa Clara to try a new gym in the northern California area, and it's enjoyable. I've been to Movement in Orange, and Santa Clara seems like they have a larger boulder area but a smaller gym section. The ceilings don't go as high, so they do feel slightly cramped inside the bouldering area. The routes range from VB to one v11. The difficulty seems on par with the other gyms in the area. The routes were varied in technique and skill but overall really interesting climbs. This gym also uses Kaya as the climbing app, which helps solo climbers figure out betas or log their sends. There's a kilter, tension, and campus board for training, and all of those areas were pretty empty the few hours I was there. The bathrooms were clean and were equipped with clean towels and showers but no sauna. The front staff was helpful in checking me in and asking whether I needed any type of rentals. The price for a day pass here is 33 dollars, which is a tad more expensive compared to a few other climbing gyms. This location also got very packed in the evening, around seven, when I was there. There's plenty of parking, though, which is a bonus. I'm definitely checking out the Santa Clara Movement in the future when I return to the area.

Daniel T.

Visit: September 2024

A pretty large gym with a lot of different walls. It gets pretty crowded after work hours though. I met some of the nicest people here, they were awesome! Gym had interesting routes on problems!

Athena H.

The climbing routes are fun and are updated often enough (if you go to both santa clara and sunnyvale locations, 3x a week, you won't get bored). The staff, bathrooms, and weight areas are passable. Not that clean, but not unusable.

What's nearly impossible to get past is how awful the ventilation system is. I've been coming regularly for over 2-3 years now and it's gotten so stuffy with chalk and BO that my throat and lungs still hurt the next day. I climbed last night for about an hour and my throat is still irritated this morning. The air quality is so bad that my friends only reluctantly go to this location.

On the flip side, climbing vibes and culture are great - friendly and helpful climbers all around!

Ivy X.

Great vibe and great gym overall. There is a large bouldering and fitness area. Even during the time is very busy, they space out the routes enough that most people can easily do one without waiting much. The crowd going to gym are also very cool, I didn't have trouble asking any strangers for some help on a specific route.

My only complain is I wish the ventilation is better. You can smell the chalk and sweat the moment you walk in and this a during winter, I'd imagine the smell will get worse during summer. It definitely can use a better ventilation.

Californian I. F.

Sadly, “annoying” has been the best word to describe this gym. Constantly overcrowded, not even weekday mornings can usually offer a respite, you have to wait your turn to climb most routes, with an overeager climber always nipping at your heels.

Lots of pushy, climbing etiquette-free people climbing right next to you, above you…below you, uncontrolled kids running around.

Overall, facilities are OK and routes get changed often-ish…but overpriced, and bad value at the end of the day. 30-day pass costs $140 - for half the price (literally, $75), in Europe, I get 30-day access to a much better gym franchise that even gives you free chalk.

I climb at here when I am in town, simply because there’s no alternative. Movement is playing the monopoly game pretty well. Really wish there were other options.

Aly H.

Crowded when I went but facilities are great. Pretty clean considering how many people there were and everyone took turns and let people take time on their routes. Loved the variety of routes!

acsonic, A. 3.

Pretty good bouldering gym.

Ever since I've posted this review, I do feel like there's been a shift in how the problems are difficult. There's more variety in *how* the problems are difficult, which helps my ego, but also gives even more variety in the climbs.
Of course, there are still problems specifically targeting strength as a requirement, but that's just a necessary evil 🙃

It's a big bouldering gym with lots of ample space and a wide variety of problems.
The gym space is not bad, and the locker rooms are solid.
The biggest upside is that this gym specifically has foot showers, which I haven't seen in any other climbing gym(not even the sister branches).