Pickleball Vacations 2024: Play Your Favorite Sport in Paradise

(Originally published December 7, 2023)

As 2023 draws to a close, you might be planning a trip for the holidays or a winter getaway to warm weather. If you want to get away but not from pickleball, you’re in luck. With the sport’s rise in popularity, tons of vacation destinations provide their guests with a place to play.

Resorts with Pickleball Courts

Resorts across the U.S. have started converting some of their tennis courts to ones suited for pickleball. Here are a few that really stand out:

With 17 (yes, you read that right) courts, the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa in Phoenix, AZ has become a pickleball haven of sorts. Guests can shop for by state-of-the-art equipment at the racquet club and their grounds even have the seating capacity to host tournaments. After you step off the court, you can float down their lazy river of pick from two 18-hole golf courses.

Located on the tip of an island in northeastern Florida, the Omni Amelia Island features seven stunning pickleball courts where the resprts hosts clinics and matches three times a week. Trade your paddle for a paddle board, as this resort also offers several water sports – in addition to their beach views of course.

Staying in the tropics, albeit in a different ocean, the award-winning Hualalai Resort in Hawaii has clinics and lessons to go along with their pickleball courts by the beach. Operated by the Four Seasons, the resort also provide guests with opportunities to explore the island’s local marine life.

Across the state in Kauai, the Lodge at Kukui’ula has nearly identical pickleball offerings. Guests can also pick fruits, veggies and flowers from a local organic farm.

For a combination you didn’t know you needed, the Montage in Healdsburg, CA offers pickleball courts in the middle of Sonoma wine country. In a way the pairing makes perfect sense though, since pickling is a great use for wine that’s turned to vinegar. So resourceful of them. Meet local winemakers every Friday, or hike through the local hills when you’re off the court.

Colorado Springs’s the Broadmoor doesn’t just host pickleball tournaments and camps. The property hosts an event called Pickleball, Pizza and Pasta, offering their guests the opportunity to dink while learning Italian cooking from their on-site chefs. The AAA five-diamond resort is located in the heart of the mountains, perfect for adventurous types.

Win or Lose, at Least You'll be on a Cruise

Thought you could only pickle in vinegar and not seawater? Think again. Nearly every major cruise line offers pickleball courts these days. But there are also a handful of companies that plan specialty trips for enthusiasts.

Pickleball in Paradise, a branch of vacation planners Straight Away Paradise, offers packages on Royal Caribbean ships that include private clinics and private open play. The destination service sails to Alaska, the Mediterranean and the Caribbean.

The Holland America cruise line recently partnered with the Professional Pickleball Association and now offers top deck courts on all their ships.

PickleballCruises.com, started by Annette Barnette Travel, organizes custom group pickleball cruises. Get a group together and they’ll work with you to find the perfect pickleball voyage. You can also join one of their existing trips to Turks and Caicos or Canada and New England.

Take a Pickleball Trip Without the Planning

If you don’t want to put in the effort of planning a trip on your own, you still can find trips with private lessons, pickleball clinics and itineraries set to the minute.

Pickleball Trips is sending enthusiasts to Japan, Belize and Glacier National Park this year. Each trip includes two instructors who lead a clinic, along with full afternoons of recreation play.

Not to be outdone, Pickleball Getaways is taking sign-ups for vacations to the Mayan Riviera, Costa Rica, Spain and Portugal. Their vacations include daily clinics in the morning and recreational matches in the afternoon.

See you there in 2024!