Sportrock Climbing Centers - Alexandria, Virginia

Austin G.

If you're into rock climbing or want to learn, Sportrock is one of the most affordable options in the D.C. area. They have three locations, but this one is closest to Washington, D.C. My wife, seven-year-old daughter, her friend, and I went for open gym at 2:45pm on a Sunday. Here's our experience.

1) Check-In: It's super easy and staff are friendly and helpful. You can rent shoes and equipment.

2) Walls: There are three rooms full of climbing walls that rotate their course every few weeks. There are courses for beginners all the way to advanced. The back room has the tallest walls.

3) Space: There's free parking out front near one of the outer murals. There are restrooms, sitting areas, and drinking fountains.

My daughter LOVED this place. It's the best we've been to in the area. She's already asking to do summer camp here, which they do offer.

Shoutout to A.J. He's so friendly, helpful, and my daughter and her friend loved him. He's great with kids and even gently nudges them to face their fears.

BlovesLifestyle

Went to Sportrock for the first time this Saturday and had a blast! Our first impression was meeting Rey who was super helpful.

She greeted us with a lot of enthusiasm and showed up around the gym, and told us all about the different class options and gave us her card.

They had a craft fair going on that day which was super cool and unique.

The facility itself was HUGE!!!! So many climbs!

Excited to come again.

Lucy C.

Great climbs, and biggest of the two SportRocks in Virginia. Lots of boulders, and the 60ft top rope climbs (plus lots of LEAD and two speed climbs) are so much fun. Employees are really helpful and very chill. One downside is parking- but the lot next door is always available. My favorite place to climb.

shawn G.

I’ve been a member of Sportrock Alexandria for 3 months now and I’ve only ever had incredibly positive experiences at this gym. I’ve finally had the opportunity to use every amenity this facility has to offer 3 months in: auto-belay walls/top rope walls, climbing/belaying classes, standard gym equipment, and fitness classes… every experience has been outstanding (equipment, staff, cleanliness, organization, etc.). I absolutely love this facility and the awesome staff who keep it running.

My wife and I (mid 30s) are new to climbing - we visited several climbing gyms in the Midwest earlier this year (shoutout to First Ascent Chicago) and joined Sportrock to more seriously try out climbing as a hobby/workout outlet closer to home. 3 months in I 1) can’t imagine life without it, and 2) finally appreciate/realize how lucky we are to have a top tier climbing gym like Sportrock in our backyard.

Ill be the first to admit that I was nervous as a new climber joining a gym (especially starting this sport in our 30s, haha… I’m old) but Sportrock makes the intro/trial period really easy with free gear rentals and climbing classes (intro and belaying) for the first month of your membership. That gave us a long opportunity to learn the basics and try out climbing to make sure we enjoyed it before we invested in our own gear. Throughout our intro period I really appreciated the staff spending a lot of extra time helping us get geared up and oriented to the facility/walls every time we visited - even if things were busy that day, the staff never rushed us. World class customer service.

3 months in we’re absolutely addicted to the community/culture here (it’s so easy to make new friends and find climbing partners), and the incredible variety of routes/activities: from bouldering, auto-belay, shorter top rope walls… to 60ft top rope walls. Routes are reset every few months to keep the challenges new and fresh. You get one free guest pass a month to bring friends to this awesome place and let them experience it as well.

The gym is SUPER attentive to fixing issues and keeping an open line of communication with members. For example the AC was having issues for a few days once, and I think I got an email update every day on their progress fixing it… I don’t get that level of proactive and transparent communication anywhere else. Same story with the new bouldering wall they recently built… we got a weekly update on progress and opening timeline.

Membership fees are monthly with no penalty to stop/restart if you’re leaving town for a while… a huge difference from other gyms that try to trap you and make it impossible to cancel or pause your membership.

I can only assume that 99% of the negative reviews on here are from nasty locals who don’t value a community-oriented culture and/or don’t appreciate Sportrock’s safety-first approach to new users. Lots of the negative reviews appear to take issue with the safety protocols (which I really appreciate) or are impatient with the time and attention the staff give to every user need (can’t handle waiting a few extra minutes).

As a newer climber I really value this gym’s focus on safety (e.g., users must certify on an ATC to master belay technique before graduating to a mindless Grigri), and the staff’s willingness to spend extra time helping new users get oriented/setup… even if it means the next person waiting needs to hang tight another 3-5 minutes for assistance.

I love this place and the awesome staff that keep it running until 11pm every night - don’t ever change.

Reilly O.

I absolutely adore SR. I’ve been climbing at the Alexandria and Sterling locations since high school when I would drive over an hour after school each day to climb. I’ve always felt welcomed into the community even when I return for the holidays. Most everyone is friendly, and the community events organized by the gym are such a great resource. I have been more and more impressed with the gym management and setting quality throughout the years, and I’m so grateful to have such an amazing gym for when I visit my family. SR is just the best.

Noah T. R.

This place is absolutely amazing! I celebrated my birthday here, and it turned out to be one of the most enjoyable experiences ever. I love how they offer a variety of levels to choose from, ranging from effortless to insane, accommodating everyone’s skill levels and preferences. Personally, I found the "Harvest" experience to be particularly exciting. Am I the only one who thinks it's an absolute blast? I tried it out, and it was incredibly entertaining, filled with unexpected twists and challenges that kept me engaged the whole time. Overall, it was a fantastic adventure, and I can't wait to return for more fun!

Daniel B.

Gym is amazing!! The routes are incredible and there are the most amount of walls I’ve seen at a gym ever period. Some nitpicks that would improve things: Giving problems a specific V1-15 Bouldering Rating would be helpful. The color system is different but I don’t think it is very helpful in knowing what you’re climbing and deciding what to jump on. Also having jump rope at the gym would also be good. It’s one of the best cardio warmups.

Ahmad K.

I’m a casual climber and have been to Sportrock a handful of times now. Got belay certified on my first visit and enjoy the very tall top roping routes. The staff have been helpful and friendly every time. Actually, most times I’ve been, they’ve given me the discounted rate, even though I’m not a student or military or anything! Great gym with clean and well maintained facilities.