The Coolest College Recreation Centers in America

A lot goes into a college choice: good location, price, party reputation, and—at least for some of us—the kind and quality of education you will receive for the next few years. But for any student who wants to stay active, campus rec centers are an important consideration. In recent years, they've gone from modest gyms to million dollar buildings that offer students everything from weight rooms to spin classes to spelunking and trips to Everest’s Base Camp. Here is a list of the top facilities and the amenities that could help fight off the Freshman 15, and much more.

Photo courtesy University of Auburn

As the eighth-most-active state, according to a 2013 report from United Health Foundation, you would expect Colorado’s schools to house some spectacular recreation options. With a renovation that added 70,000 square feet to the building, the Colorado State University Campus Recreation Center is the crown jewel of the campus. “It went from a rectangular box with no connection to the outside to glass windows everywhere,” says David Frock, chair of the 2013 Outstanding Sports Facility Award Committee for the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association. “The cardio weight area has one wall with huge double-decker glass looking out at the mountains.”

The center also has five fitness studios, offering yoga, Tabata, TRX, and Zumba, as well as 33 acres of outdoor sand volleyball and basketball courts, an inline rink, and playing fields. Even the climbing walls offer many choices, including a standard indoor climbing wall, an outdoor bouldering area, and a wall that rises out of a pool, complete with waterfall and grotto wired with LED lights and music. Climb a route, then let go to plunge into the deep end. Memberships are not available to the general public.

Photo courtesy Colorado State University

From this beautifully designed $25 million recreation center, students can rent skis and snowshoes to enjoy 20 kilometers of groomed ski trails in the DeMeritt Forest that abuts the facility. (Those same trails can be used for running and mountain biking during warmer months.) With 93 percent of the New Balance Student Recreation Center floor plan open, students on one of the hundreds of cardio machines or in one of four strength-training areas can enjoy the view of the rustic Maine countryside. To enjoy a different kind of visual, the indoor aquatic complex boasts a 20-person hot tub, hot-water-jet bench seating, and a co-ed sauna. Memberships are available to the general public and University of Maine students.

Photo courtesy University of Maine

The multi-story Eppley Recreation Center’s 7,400-square-foot weight room, and 3,500-square-foot cardio room are two of the main indoor draws for students looking to stay fit. Additional indoor facilities include a padded martial arts studio equipped with heavy and speed bags, group exercise studios with mirrors and ballet barres, a functional training studio equipped with specialized weight and cardio equipment, and two multi-use gymnasiums for basketball, volleyball, and badminton. The outdoor aquatic center includes beach volleyball, a bouldering grotto, a splash pool, lap pool, and co-ed saunas and steam rooms. You may have even seen some of the facilities—Michael Phelps shot a "Head and Shoulders" commercial at the University of Maryland natatorium in 2011. Memberships are not available to the general public.

Photo courtesy University of Maryland

In a state where winter temperatures can fall to minus-40 degrees, a fantastic indoor recreation center is a must. The $11 million Wellness Center at the University of South Dakota embraces the concept that fitness is only one part of health. The gym houses “The Biggest Loser,” a healthy weight-loss camp for campus members looking to shed the freshman 15. For taking fitness to the next level, the rec center offers TRX studios, and a Hyper Fit Boot Camp—a six-week program complete with nutritional guidelines and scheduled workouts with personal trainers, aimed to get you spring-break ready. Memberships are available to the general public.

Photo courtesy University of South Dakota

Everything in Texas is bigger, including the athletic facilities. “Approximately 90 percent of the student population, or more than 45,000 young men and women, participate in some aspect of rec sports,” says Nicole Olmeda, senior assistant director of UT’s Recreational Sports Division. The 250,000-square-foot Gregory Gym can handle the masses and then some, offering the standard run of cardio and weight machines, spin classes, racquetball, squash, tennis, and wallyball courts. The 2-acre aquatic complex boasts five pools, including both outdoor and indoor lap-pools, and a tanning pool for the less-exercise-inclined. The gym offers memberships to a limited number of Austin residents.

Photo by Tom Fox

One of the most recently renovated collegiate gyms in the country, Auburn’s Recreation and Wellness Center houses all the latest fitness trends under one roof, from black-light disco-ball cycling rooms to the latest in open-air architecture. “In the core of their building, Auburn has a large elevator shaft 3-stories high,” says David Frock of NIRSA. “It houses live plants and is a peaceful garden in the middle of the rec center.” A 1/3-mile track with elevation changes winds its way through the entire center, giving runners an ever-changing scene as they jog. A golf simulator and game room complete the gym’s mix of fitness studios, game courts, climbing wall, and aquatic complex. Memberships are not available to the general public.

Photo courtesy University of Auburn

Located in the middle of Indiana, Wabash College is a small, all-male liberal arts college with a serious wellness center. In addition to a fully-equipped 7,000-square-foot cardio and weight room, the Allen Athletics and Recreation Center offers a wellness incentive program, rewarding students with swag for each logged workout. In addition to the standard array of yoga and fitness classes, the gym offers CrossFit and nutrition too. Additional facilities include separate indoor and outdoor running tracks, tennis, and a dedicated wrestling facility. The facilities are open to Wabash students and immediate family only.

Photo courtesy Wabash College

“The message of our recreation programs is to get the Georgia Tech community to participate in a healthy lifestyle, whether through outdoor adventures, competitive sports, organized fitness programs, or informal recreation at the recreation center,” says Sara Warner, of the Georgia Tech Campus Recreation Center. The center offers 15,000 square feet of cardio and weights, a 39-foot climbing wall, five racquetball courts, a squash court, and a floating indoor track that treats runners to views of the city skyline. The aquatic complex was the home of the swimming and diving events for the 1996 Olympic Games and offers students lap pools and diving at the highest level. (Expect to see the nationally ranked Georgia Tech swimmers and divers using the facility for practice.)

For the adventure minded, Georgia Tech’s Outdoor Recreation program (ORGT) offers students everything from climbing 101 to week-long adventure treks lead by professional ORGT guides and students to far-flung places including Mount Everest's Base Camp, sea kayaking in Acadia National Park, and rock climbing expeditions to South Dakota and Wyoming. The rec center is only open to students, faculty, and alumni.

Photo courtesy CRC at Georgia Tech

The Associated Students Incorporated Recreation Center, or ASI, at Cal Poly has over 20,000 square feet of cardio and weight machines, divided into three exercise areas, to best create an inclusive environment for gym-goers of all levels. The modern, glass-filled building houses studios with 15 unique group fitness classes—including three forms each of martial arts and yoga, Pilates, TRX, and Body Combat boot camp-style classes. If that’s not enough, a “rent-a-class” feature allows students to request unoffered specialty classes, and the ASI Rec Center will provide an instructor. To go with some beach volleyball, an outdoor climbing park opened in 2012 and features a 42-foot-high climbing wall and 13-foot-high bouldering rock. Memberships are available to students and CalPoly-affiliated community members.

Photo courtesy Cal Poly State University

Easily one of the most decorated student rec centers in the U.S., the University of Arizona’s Campus Recreation facility houses all of the standard fitness equipment in this 108,000 square-foot environmentally friendly and green tech-filled LEED Platinum building. Additionally, the facility provides outdoor adventures, including canoeing the Colorado River, caving in the nearby Kartchner Caverns state park, backpacking in Yosemite National Park, and wilderness yoga retreats.

For the adventure minded—but low on cash—the center rents sleeping bags, tents, backpacking stoves, mountain and road bikes, hammocks, and more. There’s an integrated lobby offering retail sales, food service, a computer lab, and tutoring service, plus several seating areas throughout the facility. The recreation center captures the essence of leading a well-balanced, healthy lifestyle. “It is more than a gym,” says Lynn Zwaagstra, director of campus recreation at UA. “It is a social hub for the university.” The general public can purchase a day pass, or be sponsored by a university member, staff, or alumni for long-term membership.

Photo courtesy University of Arizona

The $140 million Recreation and Physical Activity Center (RPAC) helped propel The Ohio State University to top honors on numerous “fittest college” lists. The five-level cardio-and-weight facility offers students serious about fitness almost any machine they could want. Satellite facilities throughout the campus offer additional gym equipment, climbing walls, outdoor basketball and tennis courts, and intramural fields. A partnership with Nike allows OSU to house one of the better student lounges, including foosball, pool tables, four flat-screen TVs, and the latest gaming consoles. Memberships not available to the general public.

Photo courtesy The Ohio State University