Marsa floats the world's first seaborne padel court, moored just past the development boundary
When the islands run low on dry land, the sport simply takes to the water, on a barge filed, correctly, as Outside Development Zone.
The Planning Authority’s file gives the project four words: “a barge for padel.” We feel that undersells it.
In Marsa, a shipyard has proposed mooring a glass-walled padel court on a steel barge beside its slipway, just off the quay, which is to say on the open water. The application is filed, correctly, as Outside Development Zone, the zone in question being the sea. When the islands run short of dry land, the sport simply floats.
The court comes with glass walls 3.66 metres high, topped with steel mesh, so the rallies stay aboard and the sea stays out, mostly. The barge, we are pleased to report, is already on site, having arrived ahead of its own permit with the quiet confidence of a vessel that knows it will be welcome.
A Bigger Splash
Think of it as a David Hockney pool scene reversed: the players dry, the water on the outside, the whole serene tableau rising and falling with the tide. Few sports offer a built-in water hazard the size of the Mediterranean.
Scheduling is refreshingly elemental. Play proceeds in all conditions, and in a swell the service simply finds you. Our doubles pairings report a new closeness, born of a shared centre of gravity. There is no need to call a let when the sea provides one free of charge.
Plan your visit
The floating court awaits a recommendation, expected later this year, with representations open until July. Until then it sits at its mooring, glass gleaming, a sport and a barge in perfect buoyant agreement. Sea view guaranteed, from inside the court.
