Padel in Mallorca: a guide for UK players

The courts

Almost every town of any size has a club, and most clubs have several outdoor courts, many of them panoramic (glass all the way round) and floodlit for evening play. Surfaces are the standard artificial turf with sand; the ball sits up a fraction more in the heat, which flatters attackers and punishes lazy lobs.

Club culture is relaxed but organised. Courts are booked in ninety-minute blocks, you turn up ten minutes before, and the bar is very much part of the club. Nobody minds a group of Brits as long as the group is on time.

How the locals play

Slower than you think, and then suddenly not. Spanish club players are patient: lots of lobs, lots of resets off the glass, and a willingness to play twelve balls to win a point. The winner usually comes from the bandeja and the víbora at the net, not from the big smash you've been practising.

If you play social matches with locals (we can arrange them), expect to be out-lobbed for the first set and to learn more in the second than in a month at home.

What to bring

Your racket if you're attached to it (hire is easy if not), court shoes with a clay or omni sole, a cap, and more sun cream than seems reasonable. In summer, plan padel for mornings and evenings under the lights; the midday sun is for the pool.

From October to April, bring a light layer for the evenings. Courts stay open all year and the winter is mild enough for shirt-sleeves most days.

Fitting the island around the padel

The trick is geography. Stay near your courts, keep the nights on foot, and use the afternoons for the island: a cala you can't reach by road, the mountain road to Sa Calobra, a long lunch in Sóller. Mallorca is small enough that nothing worth doing is more than an hour away, and big enough that you'll want to come back.

If you'd rather not plan any of that, that's what we're for. One conversation on WhatsApp and the courts, beds, chef and drivers are sorted.