Dartford sits right on the M25, wedged between the Dartford Crossing and the Kent countryside, and until recently that position counted for nothing if you wanted a game of padel. One club has changed that, and a second is trying to change it further.

If you’re searching for padel near Dartford, here’s what’s open, what’s coming, and what to expect from each.

David Lloyd Dartford

David Lloyd Dartford runs three outdoor padel courts, refurbished and open now. They sit alongside the club’s tennis and squash facilities as part of its standard racquets offering.

Access follows David Lloyd’s usual members-first model. Full membership runs roughly £75-230 a month depending on tier and contract length, with padel included on the Platinum level. If you’re not a member, the only route onto court is a guest pass booked through someone who is – guest passes run around £25-35, and you’ll need a member to name you at reception before you can book. There’s no walk-in pay-and-play option, so anyone without a padel-playing contact locally will need to join or wait for an alternative.

For west Kent players who already have a David Lloyd membership or know someone who does, three courts on a decent surface is a solid starting point. For everyone else, it’s a reminder that Dartford’s padel scene has, until now, run entirely through one members’ club.

What’s coming: Pulse Padel at Hawley Garden Centre

Pulse Padel has applied to build a five-court venue – four doubles and one singles – on land at Hawley Garden Centre, just off the M25 near Sutton at Hone. The plan would convert existing polytunnel, paddock, and storage space into a covered court structure with changing rooms, showers, a café with a social area, a sports shop, and a 35-space car park including EV charging.

The application has drawn strong local backing: 245 letters of support against a single objection, and the LTA has thrown its weight behind the scheme, pointing to national padel numbers that grew from 6,000 players in 2019 to 129,000 in 2023 as evidence of the demand a town like Dartford is currently missing.

Planning status is still the thing to watch. Local coverage through early 2026 described the application as under consultation, and Pulse Padel’s own venue page lists the Dartford opening as “subject to planning” without settling on a firm month – different pages on the operator’s own site have shown different target windows. Until Dartford Borough Council issues a decision, treat any opening date as provisional. If approved, this would be Dartford’s first dedicated padel venue, run as a standalone club rather than an add-on to an existing gym.

Why a garden centre site makes sense

An out-of-town garden centre plot next to the M25 looks like an odd home for a sports venue until you think about who’s likely to book it. Padel courts built for drive-in access, with dedicated parking and a café to hang around in afterwards, suit players happy to travel 15-20 minutes for a game – exactly the audience a commuter-belt town like Dartford has in spare supply. The Dartford Crossing puts Essex within reach too, widening the pool beyond the town itself.

It’s the same logic that’s put padel courts in retail parks and leisure centres across the country: cheaper land, easier parking, and a captive audience already driving past.

Getting a game without David Lloyd membership

If you don’t fancy a David Lloyd membership just to access three courts, your options in Dartford itself are limited right now. The realistic paths are: find a member willing to book you in as their guest, join for the racquets tier if you’ll use tennis and squash too, or look slightly further afield.

Bluewater’s leisure cluster sits a few minutes down the A2 and is worth checking for pay-and-play options as operators expand into the area, though nothing padel-specific has opened there yet. Beyond that, the nearest established multi-court scenes are further into Kent – Ashford and Tunbridge Wells both have pay-and-play booking through Playtomic, no membership required, if you’re willing to drive 30-40 minutes for a proper choice of courts and times.

That’s the gap Pulse Padel is aiming to fill. A café-led, drive-in venue with Play & Pay pricing (the operator’s own term, though rates haven’t been published) would give Dartford its first booking-app-accessible court, no membership required – assuming the application clears planning.

Padel elsewhere in Kent

Dartford is playing catch-up on padel compared with the rest of the county. Ashford has Square One Padel & Social Club, Kent’s largest indoor venue at seven courts, plus two more outdoor courts approved nearby. Tunbridge Wells has its own established scene further south. Both give a sense of what Dartford could look like once Pulse Padel’s plans clear planning – multiple venues, different formats, and enough courts that booking on a weekday evening doesn’t mean fighting for the one slot in town.

For now, David Lloyd Dartford is the only certainty. Keep an eye on the Pulse Padel application before you plan around it.

See how this compares elsewhere with the full directory of UK padel court guides, organised by region.