The Padel Trip That Doesn't Exist

There’s plenty to be said for booking a good padel retreat (not least because someone else has done all the hard work). You know which hotel you’re staying in, there’s guaranteed courts and the coach is secured. Your only real responsibility is packing your racket and getting on the plane. The problem comes when someone else’s perfect combination isn’t quite yours: right place, wrong dates; a week when you have a weekend; a group of strangers when you already have your four.

Courts abroad routinely take visitors and most don’t ask for membership, a licence or much beyond a credit card. Which means the padel trip you actually want can often be put together with four or five individual bookings when you factor in travel and accommodation.

The catch? Somebody has to make the bookings. However, if the retreat you want is three days shorter, more (or less) luxurious or for you or your friends, there is another option. 

Consider this unassembled version. Five trips, five different shapes, built around what you want first and where you want to go, second. 

The short one 

Palma, Mallorca

Ideal for when you have two days, not seven. Take a Friday night flight out of Gatwick at 21.35 and by Saturday morning you’re on the court. Plan it well and you can squeeze in another game before you leave on the 19.55 BA flight home on Sunday. There’s not much of an itinerary, but that’s kind of the point. Pádel Club Mallorca charges €8 per player for 90 minutes on a weekday evening and €6.50 on Sunday morning. Courts can be booked through Playtomic up to seven days ahead, while the airport is around 15 to 20 minutes from Palma which makes the whole thing pleasingly achievable. Two nights is enough to play twice, eat properly and still return home before Sunday has turned into Monday. There’s only one catch. The club has no system for placing solo players into games, so this one works best if you bring your own four.

Best for: Players who want a padel trip but only have a weekend.
When: Friday to Sunday; example flight and room pricing is based around late October to early November 2026.

Stay: Hotel Palma Bellver offers rooms from €120 per room, per night.
From: £35 return flights plus approx. €135–215 per person on the ground, based on two sharing at Hotel Palma Bellver.

Includes: Two nights sharing and two court sessions in our working calculation.
Level: No published level bands. Best suited to players arriving with their own game.

The cheap one

Orihuela Costa, Alicante

Finding a cheap court is easy, finding one where somebody will actually play with you is more useful. And this is exactly the appeal of Orange Padel as you can turn up without a four and still get a game. Its Winners Court sessions allow individual sign-ups, with the club finding you a partner before play starts. Plus, there are also Pay and Play sessions open across levels which removes the awkward bit: persuading three other people to have exactly the same weekend free. There’s very little to organise, simply a flight to Alicante, somewhere to sleep and a place in the game. Flights are available from £47 return, with rooms from around €90 a night. A game on the Winners Court costs €12 per person. The saving here isn’t only money, it’s effort. You simply book the bits you want and leave the rest alone.

Best for: Players travelling alone or as a pair who want the game organised, but not the entire weekend.
When: A two-night weekend.

Stay: Dña Monse Hotel Spa & Golf offers rooms from €90 per night
From: Returning flights were showing £47 when we checked. €115–180 per person, based on two sharing.
Level: Winners Court is listed at level 2–3; Pay and Play is listed for all levels.

The coaching one

Marbella, Spain 

If the reason for going is to get better, start with the coaching and work backwards. Real Club Padel Marbella makes that unusually easy because almost everything is published. A private class is €65 for up to two people, or five classes cost €300 and can be used over three months, with coaching available for all ages and levels. For two players splitting five sessions, the coaching comes to €150 each. Add three nights in an apartment and a return flight to Málaga, and you have something that looks remarkably like a short training camp without having bought one. More importantly, you control the rhythm. Book five sessions in three days if you’re feeling ambitious. Fewer if a leisurely lunch is on the cards. 

Best for: Players who want improvement to be the point of the trip, but want control over how much coaching they actually do.
When: Three nights; indicative travel and room costs are based around late October to early November 2026.

Stay: Apartments are available from €130 per night. Merbella Club Hotel is from €450 per room, per night
From: £32 return flights plus approximately €345–510 per person, based on two sharing and splitting five classes.
Level: All ages and levels accepted; no entry requirement is stated.

The expensive one

Pine Cliffs, Algarve

Pine Cliffs makes a persuasive case for choosing the hotel first and letting the padel follow thanks to its on-site Annabel Croft Tennis & Padel Academy. Courts start at €32 an hour in the low season, while private lessons start at €75. There’s even a Wednesday tournament with individual registration for €20. Which means you can book the hotel because you want to stay there, then add exactly as much padel as the weekend requires. Admittedly, this sits close to the traditional retreat model, but the difference is that nobody’s decided your programme for you. Perhaps it’s one lesson rather than five, or a court for the morning. Maybe even a tournament if Wednesday happens to suit. The assembled trip doesn’t always have to be the economical version, sometimes it’s about spending exactly where you want to.

Best for: Players whose first non-negotiable is the hotel and who want padel to fit around the stay, rather than the other way round.
When: Three nights; rates shown are indicative low-season 2026 pricing.

Stay: Deluxe double rooms start from $194 per room, per night.
From: £49 return flights, approximately US$330 accommodation per person and around €130 of padel in the working calculation.
Level: No level requirement is published for general court hire.

The long one

Stobreč, Split

If you can spare a week, it’s no longer about trying to fit a holiday around padel; you have enough time to let the game appear when you feel like playing it. Padel Club Dalmatia, just outside Split, sells a value card that gives you ten hours of court time plus one free for €270. It’s valid until August 2027 and can be used across eight courts, four of them indoors. Split the card between two players, and you have eleven shared hours of court for €135 each across a seven-night holiday. How the week looks is then up to you. Play on Monday, leave Tuesday racket-free, book another court later in the week because the forecast changed (or because dinner the night before lasted longer than expected). Private training can be added for €60 a session, including the court and a certified coach, but it doesn’t need to be the driver. That’s the advantage of a longer trip. Padel becomes part of the holiday’s rhythm rather than the reason every hour has been accounted for.

Best for: Players taking a proper holiday who want padel threaded through the week rather than concentrated into a programme.
When: Seven nights; the 11-hour value card is valid until August 2027.

Stay: Holiday Apartments Stobreč start from €90 per room, per night. 
From: £52 return flights plus approximately €450–695 per person, based on two sharing and splitting one value card.
Level: No published level band for court hire. Private coaching is available separately.

Prices shown were correct at the time of publishing but are subject to change and availability. Please check the provider's website for up-to-date pricing before booking.