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Let’s hope their dinks don’t sink. That’s the first thing I thought this week when I saw photos of M/Y Aretha, a yacht in the Adriatic with a full-sized, over-water, inflatable pickleball court at its side.

The images have gone a bit viral but the concept of floating pickleball has me asking some questions. Does your paddle double as an actual paddle if the court drifts away? Do you get points for hitting a dolphin? This being a yacht, does the pickleball “kitchen” come with steak tartar and caviar?

The company behind the venture, Via Croatia, promises that the court is firmly attached and will not end up afloat on its own. The platform takes the crew approximately four hours to inflate and deflate. Once it’s up, the court remains playable in calm seas for up to two days. As for balls that fly into the water, the company’s Chief Exploration Officer, Gabriella Ribeiro, assures us: “The crew is extremely attentive and makes every effort to retrieve any stray balls from the water.”

Via-croatiaPlay Pickleball on a Yacht in Croatia | Via Croatia

My pickleball game is unsteady enough without having sea legs to contend with, but I give these people credit. As you’ve undoubtedly heard, pickleball continues to be among the fastest growing sports. Just ask anyone who lives near a court and can’t stand all the pinging and thwacking. Or tennis players and other net-game lovers, whose courts have been overtaken by the pickle-palooza. We here in Los Angeles play a game by the beach called paddle tennis that’s been around since the early 1960s. It uses the same size court as a pickleball court (which is about a quarter the size of a standard tennis court). But we paddle players have been fighting hard to preserve our sacred asphalt.

In addition to the blow-up court, the Aretha has 15 cabins with room for up to 30 guests and 12 crew members. There’s a water slide, jet skis, multiple hot tubs, a pool, cinema, massage suites and an onboard chef.

Of course, it’s not just about sea pickle. The Aretha cruises through Croatia (here’s the itinerary), where the yacht makes stops at ports with “land pickle,” too. There are courts in Croatia in Zagreb, Brac, Split, and Veli Losinj. And In Dubrovnik, the company converts existing tennis courts into pickleball courts.

None of this comes cheap. Chartering the Aretha costs between $65,000 and $95,000, depending on the season. It does not include docking or drinks, and tips are extra, too.

Here’s one tip: Keep your serves under control and your net game in check. You definitely don’t want to go overboard on this court.



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