Phuket - Padel and Pad Thai
One of the benefits of living in Singapore, is it's proximity to all that Southeast Asia has to offer. You can hop on a plane and after a ~2 hour flight, you can find yourself in exotic destinations like Bali, Cambodia, Borneo, Vietnam and the OG of tropical destinations, Thailand.
I've been fortunate enough to have visited Thailand a number of times since 2006 when I first holidayed there, and to this day - it still offers so much in terms of it's beauty, things to do and delicious food! So when a close friend in Hong Kong suggested we meet in Thailand for a Padel weekend - I was all in!
Thailand, like so many other countries in the last 2 years - has seen Padel explode and this has led to increased investment to build world class facilities to attract players. To this end, I had heard of a mythical Padel Club that neighbored a water theme park in Bang Tao (a district in Phuket) so naturally - I was super keen to try it out!
I'm of course referring to Padel Phuket at Blue Tree 😍
After doing some research and asking around, I got a few recommendations from friends that had played at the club about how long we should go for and where to stay. We decided to book our flights from Thursday to Sunday, and 2 rooms at the Hilton Garden Inn which is conveniently close to the club itself. Timing wise, we were really lucky we booked when we did as later on that week we found out that the next leg of the Thai Padel Series was being hosted that same weekend! This not only meant that the flights were cheaper before this was announced, but so was the hotel.
The weekend was coming together perfectly. We could play Padel all weekend AND we could attend a National tournament, for free!
🙌🏻 BOOM! 🙌🏻
BUT, this also meant that booking courts, and finding available players at Padel Phuket was going to be difficult. I tried to coordinate as much as possible with the club itself but only managed to book 1 match, which definitely wasn't enough so we looked around for for other places to play.
As it turned out, the hotel was also close to another Padel club (Padel Bay), which we soon found out was indoors and air-conditioned. Something neither of us had ever tried so we decided to play there too.
So read on to find out how those 3 days in Phuket unfolded:
Day 1 - Padel Bay (Thursday)
Needless to say, my friend and I couldn't contain our eagerness to try our first indoor club. We had only heard of indoor courts in Europe, Dubai, Kuwait and a few other places, so were interested to experience what it would be like to play not only indoors, but a club that is air conditioned.
That night the club was running a 16 player Silver/Gold Mexicano - so we signed up and hoped for the best. When we showed up on the day, we noticed how modern and high spec the club was. No expense was spared when building it. It has a small reception with some Padel gear you can buy, incredible shower facilities, 4 high quality courts, a really high roof, and a bar on the upper floor with a great vantage point of all the courts while you enjoy some food and drinks.
We didn't know what to expect but warmed up while all the players arrived. Shortly after that, the matches started and even though I started off slow, I found myself playing on Court 1 with the stronger level of players. The games were intense, super competitive and of high quality. After all was said and done, I knew I was in with a chance at finishing somewhere near the top of the rankings but to my surprise, I not only finished near the top - I went on to win the whole thing! 🏆
Top: Mexicano Players, Bottom: My winning prize, John and I
Needless to say, we had a fun night playing Padel and besides my first place finish, we met some nice people and really enjoyed the indoor experience. It was definitely easier and quicker to recover between matches and we were no where as sweaty as when we've played outdoors. If you haven't played indoors yet - it's fantastic!
Shout out to Arnis and Hafit for the invitation to play and for running an awesome event!
Day 2 - Padel Phuket @ Blue Tree (Friday)
We started the day with a pretty awesome breakfast at the hotel before swiftly making our way to Padel Phuket at Blue Tree - which is easy to get to by cab/scooter. It's in a massive water theme park with the Padel club at the bottom corner.
At this point I had seen a lot photos of the place, but actually seeing in real life was something else! Walking in, the excitement continued to build seeing some players already on the courts, a few Padel balls dotted around and signs going up for the Thai Padel Series event taking place over the weekend.
The club itself has 6 courts in total - 4 covered with a 15 meter high roof and 2 that are open-air. There is a small reception office which doubles up as a pro store selling Padel gear, as well as some snacks, refreshments and of course, beers.
From left to right: John, Me, Mats and Sergei
John and I were lucky enough to play against Mats (SWE) and Sergei (RUS) who although older than us, were wily in their ways, moving us around the court, and offered a competitive match. In the end, John and I won 3-1 in sets and managed to sit down with some of the coaches (Gabriel and Alfonso) after the games, while we enjoyed a few beers in the sun.
The few beers in the sun turned into an afternoon and evening of beers where we went exploring the town, the beach clubs (Maya was great btw) and of course a few restaurants. In particular we stumbled across a restaurant on the beach called Big Bump Bar and Restaurant where we had probably the best Beef Massaman I've ever had.
All in all - a pretty perfect day in Phuket!
Thai Padel Series (Saturday)
After dusting ourselves off given how gingerly we were feeling from the day before, we set off back to the club to watch the Thai Padel series. At this stage, we had already met and played with some of the players that had entered so it made for some great viewing.
For those that aren't aware, the Thai Padel Series takes place across venues in Thailand and placing count towards the National Thai Padel League so the level of matches was pretty high.
It was a pretty lazy day for us but a great way to end off our trip. Our respective flights left early on Sunday so we weren't around to watch finals day, but as soon as I got home - I popped on the TV and watch the livestream, of course.😉
From left to right: Coach Alfonso and I, my first look at Padel Phuket, Saturday's Sunset, my Beef Massaman and Guinness' on the beach FTW!
Overall Padel Phuket is a great all round venue that should be visited by all Padel enthusiasts. It's also really set up well for tournaments, and it's no wonder the latest addition of the Asia Pacific Padel Tour (APPT) is being hosted there as well. Phuket, and Bang Tao as a location in general should be on your list of places to visit the next time you're planning a Padel holiday. It has a lot to offer and has a few other commutable clubs which I'll be trying for sure the next time I visit.
Let me know in the comments below if you're played at either of these clubs (of others) in Phuket - I love recommendations. Also, please show your support and give me a follow - it means a lot!