Swell Athletic Club

Fantastic experience: I have been training in local gyms for over 35 years. I've seen it all. From the tiny one room weight room at the YMCA, to the laughably over-managed and under-improved Spectrum(now the Bay Club), the old adage, "You get what you pay for," is always the mantra. However, with Cathedral Oaks Athletic Club, you get so much more. From the management to the staff, from the two pools to the outstanding food at the cafe, I would NEVER go anywhere else to train. Yes, the club is not brand new, but it is very clear to me that the management works hard everyday to bring you the best possible experience in a multidimensional athletic facility. To those who complain about a pool temperature of less than 80 degrees, and more shade on the outdoor lounging areas, I say: Go somewhere else because you have no idea how good you really have it at Cathedral Oaks Athletic Club!

Fantastic experience: Pool is nice and warm. Instructors are nice and friendly

Fantastic experience: Best summer party for the kids in the area with Eric Geeb, Jeremiah Nix and Jake Nelson leading the management team. We are lucky to have such a wonderful club in Goleta.

Positive experience: We enjoyed being guests for a family pool birthday. The place is clean, well maintained. Loved the fact the pools have salt instead of overwhelming chlorine. Now, it's very pricy to join, specially family plan is very steep. The website has no price range. That's annoying. Most of attendees where respectful to each others in the pool and outside. However, some adults randomly swim in the kids pool. Maybe a sign to educate them to stay in the adult area. Something was broken or down and we were informed that only members can order food. That was annoying. Had to leave eat and come back.

Fantastic experience: We have been coming here for about 10 years. I love it! We bring our kids to swim in the pool, and we go in the hot tub. We often get food at the Cafe. I've done the spinning classes while my kids go to the mini muscles class. We play pickleball and we also work out. There is so much to do and we often see friends or neighbors. It's been a great family activity, we plan to continue coming!

Fantastic experience: Granddaughter Swining IRIE ROOTS.

Fantastic experience: Love this place. Wonderful that they have an outdoor gym and high quality equipment. Been a member off and on for over 20 years.

Fantastic experience: I love the facility , very friendly staff and very clean.

Fantastic experience: Have been members three different times. :) Decided to rejoin because it gives our family at least a place to go and exercise and leave the house. Staff is still extremely friendly and the amenities for the price are very fair. Cafe is also set to open and sitting in the sun, next to a pool with an ice tea is not a bad way to end the day...bonus, I don't have to do maintenance on a pool at home this way. :)

Fantastic experience: I've been a member for over 15 years, and Cathedral Oaks Athletic Club is a great place to swim, workout, and play tennis. They even have childcare!

Fantastic experience: I really love all the coaches, and from when I started to now, I think I have improved a lot. Dwain and Charles are so kind and offer such great coaching with swimteam, The substitutes are always nice; the only one I've had so far is Nancy, she is amazing! I love Cathedral Oaks club...- Ella

Fantastic experience: COAC is a fantastic place. Very helpful staff, great facilities, with a warm inviting ambience that makes you feel like you are in shape before you even work out.

Fantastic experience: The facility is a class operation run by Eric, Jeremiah and Jake. They put the guests first everyday and especially during the Summer Party we just experienced. The kids play area was beyond description with kids exclaiming that it was the best day of their lives. Our community is lucky to have such a top notch club and thanks to Eric Geeb, Jeremiah Nix, and Jake Nelson!

Fantastic experience: My second home!!!

Positive experience: You take the good with the bad. First is the good: It's an excellent place for a family with kids, especially if you live in the area. There are two pools which are both outside, this allows for the pool that the kids use to be nearly always available. That works really well for me, as I can bring my boys and there are almost always kids from the neighborhoods that they know and can play with. For me when I go alone I can swim laps without worrying if it's the right time of day. The rest of the facility is decent, although in a larger metro you can get equivalent club memberships for half as much or less. But this is Santa Barbara and the competition is the YMCA which is, sadly, so poorly run (especially for families, ironically). The issues I have have more to do with the management. Calls into the club about billing questions or facility reservations have gone unreturned. It seems like every week or two I get an email about part of the facility being offline for repairs or other functions. Mind you, I appreciate the facility being kept in repair, but there seems to be no strategy on this at all. Often the repairs are scheduled in prime use windows instead of non-peak. They also don't seem to be well co-ordinated, where the pool might be closed for a period then the adjacent lockers, then their laundry is broken (where they don't opt to use a service in the mean time) and so on. Finally it's pretty traditional. Tennis and fitness and swimming. They've updated some of the fitness but there are no rock climbing or other fun activities outside of the pool that some more modern clubs have. In any case it's still my gym, which given the high cost is saying that I consider it the best option for my family. Still, there is much room for improvement and I'm not sure I will renew after the contract period.

Fantastic experience: They run a top notch operation! We love the club!

Fantastic experience: This club has the best custodial staff of all time. If these staff were a song, they would be Telegraph Ave. If these staff were a book they would be Ender's Game. GOAT-tier staff

Fantastic experience: I love this club! Friendly staff! Clean! Awesome classes! Concerned training! Fabulous pools in the foothills! It's been my best life long choice for health and happiness! I'll never leave! I love it!