I changed from a bjj gym with an MMA/kickboxing and wrestling focus to a Gracie Barra, and so far it's been a bit of a mixed bag with pros and cons

The good parts of my old gym were we rolled from day one against all belts, there was a lot of legit grapplers to get ruined by.

The bad was it took me over an hour each way to get there (the main reason I left), it was very popular and became very crowded to the point it was difficult to roll without constantly hitting people. Also they only did nogi once a week.

The new place I'm at the good outweighs the bad for me. The location is 5 mins from my house so I can go every day, they do a couple of classes a week nogi and sparring is available 6 nights a week. The classes are also much smaller and there is space to roll freely.

The main bad points are you need to get 3 stripes before you can even roll (!) which I find ridiculous, but the stripes seem to come fast (ie 3 months), also you have to buy their gear (gi, rashies etc). On top of that unlike my old gym they're all into the bowing and ossing which I cringe a bit at tbh. There are a few other minor pros and cons that I've had to weigh up but none that are particularly significant.

The thing I find kind of interesting is I've learnt quite a lot at my new place quickly because my mind was forced to reengage a bit as the methods/drilling and details are a bit different to my old place, and also because I can now attend twice as often.

I've picked up a few new details on techniques I thought I already knew because the instructors have very different styles from my old instructors - They are younger, lighter and more mobile and I think it's reflected in certain aspects of their game and what they teach people, not better or worse just cool to get a bit of a different perspective.

All up I think I've made the right decision because I feel like I've addressed my most important priority which was simply quality time on the mat.