Padel is spreading across the UK quickly, but the further you get from London, the patchier the picture. Exeter is an exception worth knowing about. For a city of 130,000 with a large student population, it now has 17 padel courts across three venues, and more than half of them opened in the last month. Slazenger Padel Exeter, a nine-court indoor club at Haven Banks, opened on 31 August 2026.
Here’s where things stand: what’s open, what it costs, and what’s on the way.
Exeter’s padel venues right now
| Venue | Location | Courts | Covered | Booking | Approx. cost/hr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City Padel Exeter | Hill Barton Business Park, Clyst Saint Mary | 6 indoor panoramic | Yes | Playtomic | £25–£61 (June check) |
| Slazenger Padel Exeter | Unit 1, Haven Banks Retail Park, Water Lane | 9 indoor panoramic | Yes | Playtomic | Not published (see below) |
| Woodbury Park Hotel & Golf Club | Woodbury, 7 miles east of Exeter | 2 outdoor | No | Direct (phone/website) | £28/hr (group with member); £7/pp (non-member in group of 4) |
Three venues, 17 courts, one city. The two indoor clubs give Exeter 15 covered courts, so a wet Devon evening no longer cancels your game.
City Padel Exeter: the South West’s flagship
If you’ve only seen padel at a leisure centre with a couple of courts tucked behind a tennis wall, City Padel Exeter will reframe what a dedicated padel venue looks like.
Located at Hill Barton Business Park in Clyst Saint Mary – a short drive from the city centre – the facility has six indoor panoramic courts on a single purpose-built floor, with a first-floor mezzanine overlooking the courts below. It’s the kind of setup you’d expect in Madrid or Barcelona, not Devon. Rated 4.9 out of 5 from 43 reviews on PadelFinders, which puts it among the most highly rated venues in the country.
The site includes a bar and snack area, a pro shop, equipment hire, and an on-site physio clinic. For anyone bringing a group of friends who are new to the sport, there’s no friction: no need to bring kit, no hunting for somewhere to eat or drink afterwards.
Booking is through Playtomic, which means you can see court availability in real time and pay per session without needing a membership. Prices range from around £25 per hour for off-peak slots to £61 during peak weekend times – split four ways, that’s £6–£15 per person for a session, which sits comfortably within the range for indoor padel in the UK.
The venue runs coaching programmes and social events suited to all levels, including beginners. If you’ve just started playing and want a structured route into the game, instead of booking a court and figuring it out from scratch, City Padel Exeter has that covered.
For a deeper look at the facility – its origin, courts, and what makes it stand out from a visitor perspective – see the City Padel Exeter club profile.
Slazenger Padel Exeter: nine new courts
Slazenger Padel Exeter opened on Monday 31 August 2026 at Haven Banks Retail Park, a site that has been a community sports destination for more than 45 years. It is Slazenger’s fourth UK club after Leeds, Swindon and Blackburn (our Slazenger Padel Clubs profile covers the brand).
The club has nine indoor panoramic padel courts and two pickleball courts. Slazenger lists a member bar and cafe, a pro shop, an equipment hire hub, changing rooms, free parking and coaching for all ages and levels, plus social mixers, beginner sessions and tournaments. If you play both racket sports, our padel versus pickleball comparison explains the differences.
Booking is through Playtomic. The listing shows opening hours of 6am to 10pm on weekdays and 8am to 8pm at weekends. It also shows a £20 monthly membership that includes a 20% court discount and lets members book 31 days ahead, against 7 days for non-members.
We could not find a published hourly court rate on Slazenger’s site or on Playtomic, so we are not quoting one. Playtomic shows live prices for each slot, and they may change as the club settles in after launch.
Woodbury Park: an outdoor option
Seven miles east of Exeter, set in 350 acres of Devon countryside, Woodbury Park Hotel and Golf Club has two outdoor padel courts as part of its health and fitness offering.
The context changes the experience. You’re playing in open air with rolling grounds around you instead of an industrial unit. That has its appeal – and its limitations. Outdoor courts in the South West mean you’re at the mercy of the weather, and neither court is covered.
Pricing works differently here. A court for a group of four costs £28 per hour if at least one player is a Woodbury Park member. For non-members joining a member’s session, that works out at £7 per person – a reasonable rate. If you don’t know anyone with a membership, the outdoor option is harder to access on an ad hoc basis.
Woodbury Park is best suited to players who want a day out alongside their padel – combining a session with use of the wider facilities, the spa, or the hotel’s surroundings. It’s also a reasonable option if you’re staying in East Devon and want to squeeze in a game without driving into the city. As a regular padel fix for an Exeter-based player, City Padel Exeter is the more practical choice.
How much does padel cost in Exeter?
City Padel and Slazenger both book through Playtomic, where live prices show per slot. Woodbury Park charges £28 an hour for a group with a member.
City Padel Exeter’s court hire ranged from roughly £25 to £61 per hour depending on the time slot when we checked in June. We have not been able to re-confirm those figures on a public page since, so check Playtomic before you budget. Peak pricing applies on weekend mornings and weekday evenings; the more affordable slots are mid-morning weekdays and later evenings. With four players on a court, even peak-rate sessions come to around £15 per person.
Woodbury Park’s outdoor courts cost £28 per hour for a group including a member, or £7 per person as a non-member in a group of four.
Slazenger Padel Exeter’s hourly court rate is not published, so we cannot compare it with City Padel yet. Its £20 monthly membership with 20% off courts will suit players who book most weeks.
There’s no walk-in, pay-on-the-day option at any of the three venues – advance booking is expected. Both indoor clubs use Playtomic; Woodbury Park requires a direct booking through their website or by phone.
For context on how padel costs compare across different types of venues in the UK, indoor dedicated facilities like City Padel typically sit at the higher end of the per-hour range, with local authority courts and leisure centres at the lower end.
Which Exeter venue suits beginners?
Both indoor clubs suit beginners: City Padel and Slazenger each offer coaching, social sessions and equipment hire, and both book through Playtomic.
City Padel Exeter is well set up for beginners. The equipment hire means you don’t need to invest in a racket before you’ve decided whether you like the game. The coaching programmes range from group introductory sessions to more focused technical development, and the on-site bar makes it easy to debrief after a session – which, for most players, is half the point. Slazenger Padel Exeter lists intro sessions and beginner-friendly sessions too, so it is worth comparing the two timetables on Playtomic.
The most useful first step is creating a Playtomic account, which lets you book courts and also see if there are any social sessions or beginner group bookings listed. Many players at venues like City Padel find their regular playing partners through the app’s social features without bringing their own group.
If you’re unsure whether padel is for you, the what padel is and why it’s taken off in the UK guide is worth a quick read before booking your first court.
What’s next for padel in Devon
The current picture – 17 courts across three Exeter venues – is still moving. Plymouth is next. City Padel has announced a centre at Kestrel Park on Burrington Way with seven indoor courts and one outdoor court, due to open on Friday 9 October 2026. It will be the first indoor padel venue in the city, and it makes the 45-minute drive to Exeter optional for Plymouth players. Our Plymouth guide has the existing outdoor courts at Marjon University.
Mid Devon councils are also exploring courts at Tiverton and Crediton, though those remain proposals. We will update this guide when any of them confirm a date.
Devon is building something here, and Exeter players now have a real choice of indoor club. Before committing to City Padel, Slazenger or Woodbury as a regular venue, the guide to choosing a padel club covers what to look for. For context on where the wider South West stands, Plymouth is 45 minutes west, and Bristol’s padel courts – 33 courts across multiple venues – are around 75 minutes north. Bath’s padel scene is also developing along the same corridor.
For court guides in other parts of the UK, browse the full directory of towns we cover.