Padel courts edge out tennis and golf at Britain's upscale retreats

London is hosting a Premier Padel tour event this week, but the real growth story is playing out away from the professional circuit. Across the UK, Europe, the Middle East and North America, padel courts are displacing tennis courts and golf courses as the must-have amenity for high-end hotels and private members' clubs.

The sport, a hybrid of tennis and squash played on an enclosed court roughly a third the size of a tennis court, passed one million UK players this year. Its appeal is straightforward: lower barriers to entry, faster rallies, and a social doubles format that works equally well for men and women. For venue operators, the economics are equally compelling, four padel courts fit in the footprint of two tennis courts.

A members' club built around the game

Chris King, founder of Crafted at Powdermills, a "life-friendly" hotel and members' club that opened in East Sussex late last year, made padel the anchor sport after discovering it while living in Spain. "I wanted to introduce the game to people here, and when I've been looking for places to birth Crafted I'm always looking where the padel courts go rather than where tennis courts go," he says.

The club, backed by Swiss private equity firm Limestone Capital, sits just over an hour from London and bundles padel with wild swimming, a sauna, pottery, co-working space and a craft barn. King says members who joined for the gym or the social scene are now booking Saturday morning mix-in sessions weeks in advance. "People are now having to book those because they're getting full very quickly," he adds.

Corporate away days drive midweek revenue

The sport's gender balance is proving a draw for corporate clients. "If you go to any corporate golf day, I guarantee, unless it is highly, highly curated towards a female audience, there will be 90 per cent men there," King says. Padel's accessibility means mixed groups can play together almost immediately, making it an easier sell for HR teams designing away days.

We're bending over backwards to say yes wherever we possibly can. Provided it's not illegal or immoral, generally the answer will be yes.

King plans to replicate the padel-first model at future Crafted outposts across the UK and Europe. With the UK player base still heavily urban, venues that bring courts to the countryside, and package them with wellness and hospitality, are betting they can unlock the next wave of growth.

What comes next

Expect more hotel groups and private clubs to convert underused tennis infrastructure. The Lawn Tennis Association has already flagged court conversions as a trend to watch. For operators, the calculation is simple: higher court utilisation, broader demographic reach, and a product that sells itself to the corporate market that fills midweek rooms.