Appalling store manager. Appalling customer service. I should have followed my gut. Went here in the fall of 2020 and had a subpar experience.Went again last week and it was even worse. Rude employees, rude management, completely devoid of empathy. I will quite literally never buy from here again. I’d steer anyone away that I could.

Great gear, great people. They know what theyre doing!

The selection is decent, but not anything special. You can only get store credit for refunds, so only make purchases youre sure you wont need to return.

Staff was excellent with helping me decide what I needed! Thank you!

Super helpful picking out hiking boots

Could not return a coat purchased as a gift without a receipt. Had the card used for the purchase and wasbought just a week prior all tags in tact. This is an antiquated policy with all the technology to see purchases on a card. So many choices in shopping, too bad they are not concerned with a keeping customers happy!

Well stocked. Good quality items. Good service. Discounts.

Needed a new pair of hiking shoes desperately, so I decided to go check out there selection. I’m a very avid hiker and have had my keens for years, but wasn’t a fan of the keen options they had. I picked out a three pairs that I was interested in trying and the assistant manager (chris) went to the back to bring them out so I could try. He came back with two pairs because they didn’t have one of the pairs in my size. I wasn’t completely sold on either, which... when your paying nearly $200 on a pair of hiking boots, I want to feel completely sure that I love them. I selected two more pairs I was interested in and when the assistant manger came over he was incredibly rude. I asked if I could try the two new pairs and he proceeded to ask me what my “problem” was with the two pairs I had chosen because they were “all good shoes” and I “basically tried them all already” (the two pairs I tried I guess was “all”?) Yes. They were all great quality shoes but everyone’s feet are different, and what might be comfortable to one person isn’t necessarily for another. He seemed completely inconvenienced by doing his JOB. And to be spoken to so rudely in front of other staff and customers felt embarrassing. I will say the other two staff members were going above and beyond for the customers they were assisting- discussing the different features of the shoes, helping with the boot sizing, bringing out different pairs without issue. Based off my experience I won’t be returning.

Thanks for all your help, Pete! Hes knowledgable, friendly, just an all around great guy. Well be back for more stuff

I bought 2 pair of hiking boots from Brian yesterday on 11/9/19.Brian was extremely knowledgeable, courteous, helpful and friendly in recommending boots that would fit my needs. Brian made my purchasing experience at EMS painless and easy for me which I really appreciated. If I need any other outdoor gear I will 100% go back to EMS and ask for Brians expertise.

Everything you need for outdoor activities. great selection of hiking shoes and boots.

I was very excited today to get what I needed and use the 15% off discount they post on their website if you sign up for a rewards account. However, I was very disappointed to find out that, even though it was not mentioned small print of their offer, you need to wait up to 24 hours after signing up to receive the coupon (helping to prevent walk in use of the coupon). If they had put this in description, I would have been able to use this offer before going on my trip. False advertising is a poor business practice and doesnt serve well in the long run.

Very helpful staff & the rewards club is very beneficial...

Thanks EMS Albany! Thanks for going out of your way to replace a broken buckle on a guide dog harness with a canoes pack buckle. Appreciate the help!!

Eastern Mountain SPORTS sells no skiing jackets. Very sad to make the trip for a MOUNTAIN SPORTS store for nothing.

Pleasant, knowledgeable staff. Prices are $$$ but par for the course.

Awesome place!

Very friendly staff and great selection.

I don’t usually post bad reviews because I understand that sometimes stores and employees just have bad days. But this review is based on multiple visits and experiences at this store. First off, they never seem to have what I need or am looking for despite being an outdoor sports retailer and that is the kind of gear I have gone there to look for, but hat is besides the point. Here is the experience that has finally caused me to write this review:My wife and I walk into the store looking to by some snow pants. No one greats us despite the fact that there are 3 employees and no other customers. After searching this relatively small store for 10-15 minutes no one offers to help us. We ask for help finding some snow pants the the employee point to a general direction of all of the pants and says “somewhere over there” we had obviously looked in that area so that was no help to us. He didn’t offer to help us look or anything. We finally find some but we didn’t see any fitting rooms and apparently none of the employees are interested in helping us so we just took a chance and bought them hoping they would fit.After going home we find out that the fit sucks for both of us. So I folded the pants up and put them on my kitchen counter to return later. When I go back to return the pants I am told that they can’t be returned because they appear to be worn. The employee then points to some fuzz, a few dog hairs from being tried on at my house, and what appears to me to be a very small water mark that very well could have come from the store. I reiterate, I didn’t not wear these outside and there surely weren’t any signs of that on the pants. I get that they weren’t perfect but a simple pass with a lint roller would have solve it.So do yourself a favor and go to LL Bean or Order on-line from REI and get good customer service and the assurance that you will be able to return an item if you aren’t happy with it.

One of the last real outdoor stores around

Purchased a pair of North Face hiking shoes for daily wear that started to click loudly with every step 2 weeks after purchase. I put on 4-5 miles a day and the clicking sound became unbearable. Took them back to EMS and was told there was nothing they could do and that the clicking noise might go away in a month or two. They suggested that I purchase after-market insoles, which they just happened to sell, to see if it relieved the problem. I did buy new insoles from another store that day but it didnt stop the problem.I spent $120 on shoes that I cant wear anymore and EMS did nothing to help. Im done with them.

Nice store, friendly staff. Items can be pricy, but everything is high quality. Ive purchased a variety of clothes and camping equipment that has lasted and remained durable.

Good selection for a local shop. Nice helpful workers

Premium gear, helpful educated staff, well stocked, and fair prices.

Went in to kill some time and purchased some BD trekking poles that were on sale. Realized after I had checked out that there were no replaceable carbide tips that were supposed to be included w/ purchase. Additionally, one of the useless rubber tips that were in place seemed to be stuck. Went back in the store 5 minutes later and told the assistant manager about the problem (side note - same guy sold me the poles without the tips and said nothing. There was a mesh bag that was supposed to come with the poles - should have been obvious). Assistant manager tells me the rubber tips currently in the poles were just caps for the carbide tips, despite a clear diagram on the packaging sleeve indicating that the tips were to be screwed in and that the carbide tips were separate (I tried explaining this to him). Rather than check the other poles to see if they come with the tips, this guy then proceeds to grab a wrench from the bike shop and spends several minutes try to rip off the rubber cover (not actually a cover, supposed to unscrew) and damages rubber tip (I have no use for rubber tips so this didnt really matter to me). Eventually gives in to the fact that he was wrong and retrieves carbide tips (takes a couple minutes as he did not realize they existed before this moment). Gives me carbide tips and tells me to use pliers to remove the other rubber tip. No apology or anything, treated me like an inconvenience the entire time, and had next to no knowledge about the product he had sold me despite being a manager. I will be taking my future business to other EMS locations or other outdoor stores.

My favorite outdoor sports retailer in the area. It can get expensive quick, but they equipment you wont find anywhere else in Albany. This is also their biggest store in Albany. Note, regarding a previous review: For a short time they didnt have a bicycle mechanic, but I think they did at my last visit

The staff were very helpful. Range of options and sizes were limited

Upon arrival in NYS for vacation I noticed one of the mounts for my Thule Hulivator had slipped backwards making it difficult to remove kayak. After visiting several other sporting stores that would not help me I went to EMS in Albany. Alan, the manager witwith no hesitation was able to restore mount to original location. A big THANK YOU Alan. My return to Florida will have one less worry.

Steve was incredibly helpful and knowledgeable and made sure I got what I needed! Thank you!

Bought kayak carrier. They hooked it up and tighten thule bar. Excellent service.

The store is a little small, but convenient

Quick to help and answer questions.

They have good stuff but its not cheap.

They sell bikes at this location but do not service them. I bought a Kona bike here and needed to get it repaired under warranty. They told me I had to take it to Woodstock, NY to a cycle center that actually serviced the bikes.

It would be swell if they would accepted returns for their own branded merchandise without a recipe....oh wait the people who actually pay for goods or receive gifts from people who pay for goods have to endure the consequences of thieves. Cashier was not polite in the least. Done with you EMS.

Helpful staff, easy exchange process.

Great outdoor gear, helpful staff!

Poor selection and staff never even offered to help. Not the EMS that I used to know.

No food no filtration devices no backpacking for us....haha its like a store for tourist or something I dont even know

A little pricey but they always have my hiking needs in stock

Good gear decent prices

Great camping gear.

Outfitted me since I was little

Good service.

Awful service