Over this past month I tried out a newish Bikram studio near my office, Bikram Yoga Herald Square. The studio is pricey ($30/class or $210/month) but GILT had it a one month unlimited for $45 so I thought I’d give it a try.
(huge + clean studio)
(overall, very pretty studio)
(super nice locker room)
Click through for the studio review!
I’ve really only spent time at one other Bikram studio (Bikram Yoga NYC) so most of my review compares it with that studio, we’ll call them Herald vs NYC.
So Herald has amazing amenities which might explain why it’s so pricey. There is one studio and it is enormous. My guess is that in last night’s class there were 50 people yet I was still a good 5 feet away from anyone else. In Bikram this is awesome because when you are shoved in a tight room, sweat is flyin’ everywhere and it’s gross. However, in this studio the only sweat I had to deal with was my own. The room also has some sort of special air filter so it’s always the perfect temperature and humidity combo and doesn’t get that heavy/smelly Bikram air feel (if you take Bikram you know what I’m talking about). This studio actually felt like it had clean & fresh air. Everything is very clean, including the giant locker room which has nice showers with fancy products and lockers (complete with locks). The studio also supplies yoga mats, unlimited towels and unlimited filtered water at no extra cost. Other studios, like NYC make you pay for each of those things, which really adds up. I loved how I didn’t have to drag my own yoga mat around or think about washing a bunch of sweaty yoga towels, everything was there for me at no extra cost. Literally not a single person brought their own mat. So amenities-wise, Herald is the big winner.
Now, onto the actual class. The instructors at Herald are really nice and know what they are talking about. However, the classes are big and there is no personal attention. I took 6 classes at the studio and didn’t get a single correction from the instructor (and trust me, I could use some corrections). None of the instructors asked our names. Other studios will take down everyone’s name so they can form a relationship during class and over time, none of that was done here. That’s not to say the instructors weren’t very friendly and nice, they were, the just didn’t give me any personal attention. At NYC instructors knew my name and checked up on what I was doing, helping me along the way.
Because of the lack of personal attention, I felt that I didn’t push as hard as I would otherwise. This studio was also less intense than NYC. At NYC they are very against letting people leave the room during class. Part of Bikram is learning to deal with the heat. It’s uncomfortable but you are really not allowed to leave the room and if you try, they somehow convince you stay on your mat and deal with the heat. At Herald people were leaving the room continuously throughout the class. Every class I took there, people were walking in and out of the room (to get water, to take a breather, etc). This is distracting to people focusing on their poses and also goes against a core piece of Bikram. I never actually left the room but there were moments where I thought “everyone else is, maybe I should get some cold water.” I resisted the urge, but mentally it makes you slack if other people are slacking around you.
Overall, the studio is really nice and perhaps if you aren’t that intense about your Bikram, it would be good for you. if you’re looking for a more intense practice but don’t care about the amenities, go to Birkam Yoga NYC. If you care more about a clean locker room (and well, overall cleanliness) head over to Bikram Yoga Herald Square.
Also worth noting- Bikram Yoga Herald Square only has one location so class times are limited. Bikram Yoga NYC has a four studios and more class times so really at nearly any time you want to go, you can find a class.
From my two studio experiences, if I wanted to create the perfect studio, I’d take all the instructors from Bikram Yoga NYC and have them teach at Bikram Yoga Herald Square (and then I’d also move the location out of Herald Square because it is my least favorite part of NYC).
Well, we can’t have it all! In the end, both studios have their pros and cons, and at either you’ll get a good sweat!
