January Gym Round Up
Welcome to the January Gym Round Up!
With peak trading season in full swing, gyms across the continent have been plugging their new years offers to attract customers before inevitable price rises kick in. Central Europe powered this month’s report with plenty going on in France, Switzerland and Poland. A lot of gyms are venturing into a second site, this is always an exciting, yet nerve wracking, time for owners - will their big bet pay off!
Our first Market Report launched early in the month, we are thankful for the support from those that have ordered it to date. We look forward to producing more valuable content like this for gym decision-makers going forward!
As always, if you have announcements to share with the industry, be sure to tag/email/DM us.
Austria
Wörgl Fails
As alluded to back in July, Kletterhalle Wörgl has filed for insolvency citing insufficient revenues, excessively high operating costs, and insufficient public funding. We wish the 12 affected employees a quick return to new jobs.
Belgium
Ready for Debut
The former theatre and aerial skills space that has been transformed into Boulderzaal Topo now has an opening date, the gym will be welcoming customers from 7th February
Throwing in the Towel
As we mentioned back in October, Boulderzaal Ronse had aimed to make a mark in wastern Belgium. However, it was recently announced that the trio behind the project have ended their pursuit of opening a gym in the town. Citing financial pressures and the stress of taking excessive time away from their young families, the owners couldn’t continue towards their goal. Credit to them for having the sense to not run themselves into the ground!
Denmark
Community Bouldering
A passionate group of volunteers have realised their dream of having a bouldering gym in Middelfart. The gym welcomed patrons on 17th January. Initially conceived in 2023, Lillibaelt Bouldering now features 175sqm wall space tucked into a 150sqm footprint. As a non-profit, the gym will be volunteer run and set.
Credit: Lillibaelt Bouldering
Finland
Get a Grip!
The GRIP! Action Sports Centre opened on 27th December in the southern city of Tampere. The large complex comprises fitness and wellness spaces, SkatePark, full service climbing gym and a restaurant. As we mentioned back in May, the floorspace is 2300sqm making it the second largest climbing gym in the country. Also included are a Family area with slides and bridges, training wall, warmup mezzanine with hangboards, and an LED lead wall. Wall design and project management are with Easy Access Oy, and wall production by Walltech.
France
Salon de l’Escalade
We attended this event for the first time and had no idea what to expect! Compared to the ABC Conference and Vertical Pro, the Salon is a lot more consumer focused. A quarter of the hall was laid out for B2B and the rest for bouldering competitions, merchandise, demonstrations and presentations. It was great to see people from across France and further afield getting involved, and there was no real consensus on footfall being more or less than 2025. The vibe from gym staff and business owners was similar to that of other trade shows in that the French market has hit the growth plateau and attentions must now be given to gym sustainability and securing revenue. It was for sure the coldest event we have visited!
Good Karma for Parisians
The FFME opened their second Karma gym, this time in the La Villette area of Paris. The original, nestled in Fontainebleau, is known for its legendary training space for national teams, whereas this site will be more commercially focused. The Pyramide-built gym features top rope and lead (12m), speed (10m) and bouldering. and a full cafe/bar space.
Multi-Texture Gym
New entrant to the Riviera scene, Bloc’UP, have announced their first location in Roquevaire. Speaking with the team; the opening is scheduled for May-June 2026 and it will be an independent family climbing gym. It will be 100% bouldering with a multi-surface concept that incorporates natural rock surfaces. The concept is: the cliff at your fingertips.
The space covers 330sqm, including a 30 sqm training area mezzanine. This includes approximately 270sqm of climbing wall space on the ground floor, with approximately 10-15 sqm of rock surface area. Also included is a small and minimalist rope area for kids. Ultimately, they aim to install a real boulder outside the gym, akin to the one by Monolithe at the Salon de l’Escalade. They will have a total of six employees. We look forward to following the progress of the gym!
Premium Kids Zone
Boulder Line 1 in Montpellier has unveiled a premium-style kids zone, utilizing large volumes and macros for the more ‘adventurous scrambling’ 3D-style of climbing. The space opened on Jan 16th and is an ideal alternative for parents needing to burn off some steam for their little ones.
#13
Gym chain Altissimo have announced their 13th site which is coming to the Landes region - teased to be near Saint-Geours-de-Maremne. The gym will feature 1300sqm of roped walls up to 13.5m and 200sqm bouldering. The in-house construction team are already well into the build phase, having put up most of the structural steel.
No Compromise
Another new entrant, Dolomie Climbing, has announced a €2million bouldering gym/restaurant project near Rodez in south-central France. Expected to open this summer, owners Benjamin Fabre and Valérie Sannié have taken over an 800sqm warehouse to create a gym with 600sqm of wall space, up to 4.5m and designed by Alban Levier. This will also include a viewing mezzanine and dedicated kids area. In their words: “Dolomie is conceived as a place that brings people together. Our ambition is clear: gather a wide community around climbing and deliver the best bouldering experience possible, whether you are discovering the sport or pushing your limits. The restaurant, bar, veranda, and terrace are designed to extend the experience and encourage connection, without ever compromising the quality of climbing. Construction is about to begin, with Dolomie aiming to become a new benchmark for bouldering and climbing culture in the region.”
Germany
Heilbronn Expansion
KletterArena, the DAV gym in Heilbronn, has announced a large expansion in an upstairs area for bouldering and training. The render appears to show a quarter-cricular space with progressively steeper walls from 10deg to 40, finishing in a board of some description. This adds to an existing 2540sqm of wall space! Construction starts on 12th January.
Ice Wall Returns!
For the first time since 2012, climbing gym Der Kegel in Berlin had the right conditions to create an urban ice climbing wall. With temperatures plummeting, water was sprayed onto an external tower and allowed to freeze, allowing for an impressive icefall. Water continued to be sprayed over the subsequent weeks resulting in an evolving ice face and consolidation of the underlying ice. Definitely an unusual and eye-catching phenomenon.
Netherlands
Awestruck in Amsterdam
Boulderhal Luchthaven, the latest addition to the chain that includes DockMasters venue Energiehaven, opened to a big crowd on 24th January. The large and visually striking gym offers bouldering across multiple levels as well as training and cafe spaces.
Time for a Rebrand
After 40 years in business, the Mountain Network chain of gyms has signalled it is time for a refresh. With the upcoming grand opening of the National Climbing Centre, the business has been teasing what the future will look like and what it will be focusing on. To date we have seen More Legacy, More Community, More Challenges and More Future.
2.0
After teasing followers with striking imagery and an entertaining launch video, Mono Boulder will be opening their 2.0 expansion with a new competition on 21st February. The build will give the gym twice the climbing surface, a dedicated kids zone, and a larger training space.
Poland
EU Funding For Hold Development
Polish climbing manufacturer T-Wall announced it has been the recipient of an €162,372 grant for "Improving the company's position in the domestic and international markets by commencing the production of highly abrasion-resistant polyurethane climbing holds." The funding will allow T-Wall to better position itself in the competitive hold production space.
Go to the Flow
Bouldering gym Flow have announced the opening date of their larger, second site in Wroclaw - they’ll be opening with a competition on 26th February. The 1400sqm site will feature 520sqm main climbing space and a separate 330sqm kids zone. For reference this is more than double the 400sqm of the original Flow site. Wall Street Climbing Walls were contracted to design and build the gym.
A New Level
Poziom 450 Bouldering welcomed customers with their opening on the 23rd January. The gym is the second for the 450 brand and features extensive bouldering across a wide range of angles, it also includes a Walltopia Quantum Board, SprayWall and comfortable cafe space.
Second Site Incoming
On January 1st Wroclaw bouldering gym Lokal 32 teased a potential second site in a large, bright former industrial unit. Although no details were available we are sure to see the same high quality space, boulders and coffee of the original site!
Spain
Excitement in Valencia
Construction is well underway for the Benimaclet Espai Verd site of NaturalClimb Valencia; the site has been cleared and a fresh concrete slab laid down ready for EP Climbing to get to work. The site will feature a wrap-around mezzanine hosting walls across both levels of the building, with skylights allowing plenty of natural light into the building.
Switzerland
New SAC Gym
Announced at the AGM of the SAC Hohe Winde, a new climbing gym has been commissioned with operations set to begin in 2029. Although no details of the facility were made public, the approximate footprint of the gym will match the existing club gym and feature an ‘optimised design’.
GripStar
Gym designer Christoph Bucher teased a new bouldering gym coming to the town of Stans, central Switzerland. Although no details could be found for the site, the compact gym appears to feature short walls, a roof area and will allow plenty of natural light. The Walltopia built gym will be ready for opening in March.
Refurbished Rätikon
The Kletterhalle Rätikon has completed a full refurbishment and reopened to the public on the 31st January. The bright roped gym features 800sqm wall space from slabs to gentle overhangs.
Patience is a Virtue
A new bouldering gym is coming to Zurich this Spring. Mitō Bouldering takes a different approach to climbing, moving away from commercial quick wins with the idea that progress takes time. Renders provide tantalising clues to the gym, a bright space with angles from 6deg slab, to 40deg overhang, adjustable Kilter- and TensionBoard2, training and cafe/work spaces.
UK
Gladiators Ready!
The Coliseum bouldering gym opened on the 22nd December. The Kong Climbing designed and built gym features 500sqm wall surface, KilterBoard, Digital Circuit Board, an ancient coliseum-themed kids zone, cafe with mezzanine viewing space, strength and conditioning, work and retail spaces. Founded by father and son duo Gary and Matthew Heron, they will head up a team of 9 FT staff and will be powered by Clava.
Lincoln Freek
Lincoln, north England, welcomed Freeklime as the town’s first bouldering gym on 22nd January. The compact space features an accessible range of angles, a central island and prow feature, Moon- and DigitalBoards. The design and build was handled by Walltopia, and hold logistics handled by Impact Routesetting and Beta.
Anticipation Rises
Canning Town-based Rise Climbing has shown great progress towards their expansion. The total DIY project has seen them excavate 30cm of concrete floor, install structural steel, devise a gantry lift system to put up a good amount 400kg CLT slabs for the walls, mezzanine flooring and stairs! With the structure now complete, matting from Core will be going down shortly and the new TensionBoard2 can go up along with the new slab wall.
Darkside Falls
As part of the ongoing renovation works at The Project Climbing Centre, a section of wall known as The Darkside has been dismantled, opening up the central space - for now at least until the next phase of works begins later this year.
USA
Following ongoing events in Minneapolis, a swathe of climbing businesses joined a large scale strike on Friday 30th January. These actions these business took ranged from full closure for the day, to gyms remaining open but offering free climbing.
