Nobody tells you what the first session is really like. The booking page says “beginner friendly” and the photos look clean and inviting. But you show up not knowing quite what you’re walking into.
Here’s what happens.
Before you arrive
You need four people. Padel is doubles – there’s no singles format at club level. If you don’t have three friends who’ll commit, book a social session where the club pairs you with others. Many clubs run these specifically for new players.
Wear trainers with some lateral support – court shoes or cross-trainers are fine, running shoes are not ideal (they don’t support sideways movement). Bring a bottle of water. Everything else you can hire or borrow at the venue.
Don’t buy a racket for your first session. Hire one. They’re usually £3–£5 and you cannot tell the difference at this stage. Similarly, running shoes will do for now – but padel shoes do make a real difference once you’re playing regularly.
Walking into the court
The glass will disorient you. Padel courts are enclosed in glass and mesh, and the enclosed feeling is more pronounced than you expect from photos. Some people find it claustrophobic briefly. You won’t after a few minutes.
The court is small. After a tennis court, it looks almost absurdly compact. That’s fine – it’s meant to be played at a different pace and with different geometry.
The first fifteen minutes
If you’re in an organised beginner session, the instructor will walk you through the serve, the scoring, and the basic wall rules. Pay attention to the serve in particular – it’s underarm, bounced off the ground first, hit at or below waist height. This feels unnatural at first but you’ll get it quickly.
If you’re playing informally with friends, someone will remember that serves have to bounce first, someone will forget, and you’ll probably not enforce it too strictly for the first few points. That’s fine.
What will go wrong
You will hit balls into the net. More than you expect.
The court feels small, but the net is only slightly lower than a tennis net in the middle and the geometry is different from what you’re used to. The first twenty minutes involve recalibrating your sense of how hard to hit and where to aim.
The glass will surprise you. You’ll play what you think is a return from the back wall, and it’ll fly out because you misjudged how the ball came off the glass. This happens to everyone. After a few sessions you start reading it.
You’ll forget to use the walls offensively. Most beginners treat the court like a tennis court and don’t deliberately play the ball into the walls. That’s fine for a first session – just be aware that the walls are a weapon, not just a boundary.
What will go right
The rallies will be longer than you expect. Because you’re on a small court in doubles and a ball that has bounced stays in play off the walls, points last longer than in tennis. Even as a complete beginner, you’ll have rallies that feel satisfying.
It’s social immediately. Four people on a small court, communicating, recovering together – it clicks as a social format from the first session in a way that takes much longer in tennis.
You’ll start anticipating the walls. Probably by the end of the first session, definitely by the second. Once that happens, the game opens up.
Walking off
Most people finish their first padel session wanting to book the next one within about ten minutes of stepping off the court. When you’re ready to play with people you’ve never met, here’s how to find others at your level. Before your second or third session, it’s also worth reading the padel etiquette guide – the unwritten rules nobody explains but everyone is expected to know. If this first session is at a club you’re considering joining, the guide to choosing a padel club covers what to look for before you commit – including the questions most people don’t think to ask until they’ve already signed up. That’s not a marketing claim – it’s just what the sport is like. It’s accessible enough to enjoy immediately and deep enough to keep you coming back for years.
The two things you’ll probably think about on the drive home: when can I come back, and should I buy a racket. The answer to the second one is: not yet. Play three or four sessions first, hire rackets, figure out what feels comfortable. Then buy something in the £60–£100 range and you’re set.
Welcome to padel.