Aberdeen Tennis Centre

Long before padel’s recent UK boom, Sport Aberdeen added two covered outdoor padel courts alongside its existing indoor and outdoor tennis courts at Westburn Park, opening in May 2023 as Scotland’s 17th and 18th padel courts. Run by the city’s leisure charity rather than a private padel operator, the centre lends out bats and balls at no extra cost and books courts through ClubSpark rather than Playtomic. Tennis Aberdeen’s coaching pathway, which already covers juniors from age three through to adults, extends to padel sessions too. It sits on a First Bus route with on-site parking, a short trip from Aberdeen city centre.

New to padel? What you need for your first session

Most UK padel venues hire rackets by the hour, so you do not need to buy anything before your first game. Check this club’s booking page for hire availability and prices.

Once you have played a few times and want your own kit, this is the order we would buy in.

• Court shoes first. Clubs hire rackets, they do not hire shoes, and running trainers slide on padel courts. This is the single purchase that most improves your first month. See our best padel shoes for UK players.
• Then a racket. Once your technique has settled you will know whether you want control or power. Start with our best beginner padel rackets, or read how to choose your first padel racket.
• Balls last. Most clubs provide balls for casual sessions. When you start playing regularly, see our best padel balls for UK courts.

🛒 Shop padel kit on Amazon UK →

Never played before? Read the rules of padel and how padel differs from tennis before you turn up.

Affiliate disclosure: we may earn a small commission from links on this page at no extra cost to you. It never affects which kit we recommend.