Paddle Tennis
 

I'm a Paddle Tennis player and am excited to see that there is a PT court on the top of the ship we're sailing to Alaska on-The Sun Princess. <BR>Does anyone have any ideas of what times they allow you to play and/or do they have &quot;tournaments&quot;? Really looking forward to playing PT on the Sun Princess!<BR>Shadow

Table Tennis/Ping Pong Tables have been on all the ships I've sailed on. Usually they have a ball and paddles nearby to play any time of the day. I don't remember any official touraments however.

No, no!! Paddle Tennis is NOT Table Tennis/Ping Pong! Paddle Tennis is its own game-its very much like tennis but the court is smaller (that's why you see it on cruise ships often), its an underhand serve and its played with a paddle that is heavier and bigger than a ping pong paddle. Its not ping pong at all-its more like tennis! <BR>Its a fabulous game!<BR>I know there is a court on the top of the Sun Princess but I was just wondering when you can play and how its organized.<BR>Paddle Tennis anyone?<BR>Shadow

Shadow thanks for enlightening me. I thought maybe it was just one of those language issues.

Barbara-no problem!! I just love the game but I do spend a lot of my time explaining it-most people DO think I am referring to Ping Pong!<BR>On my brochure for Princess Cruises it is listed on almost all of their ships and when we went to Alaska previously on the Westerdam (Holland America) there was a a Paddle Tennis court on the top deck (Sun Deck possibly). It was a blast playing as we cruised the Inside Passage-we would stop and just look at the beauty all around us-for us PT players it was sublime!<BR>Check out the PT web site: www.paddletennis.biz for more info.<BR>Anyway, does anyone know how they coordinate it on the Sun Princess?<BR>Shadow

Shadow - I don't know if they still do it this way, its been six years ago, now since I sailed the Sun. On the Princess ships, they close the pool sometime around 11:00 at night. I think on Tuesdays and Thursdays, they cover the pool with a wooden deck with the paddle tennis court boundaries already painted on. They set up the net and wala, paddle tennis. As I understand it, paddle tennis is played in the dark with no lights - sometimes the moon is out and thats the best time for the spectators. The really good pt players can tell by the sound of the ball hitting the paddle where its going and they can pick up the sight of the ball about ten feet from them. They have cat-like reflexes and its not unusual for them to have fifteen or twenty minute rallies. That why the first one to score three points wins.<BR><BR>As I recall on the Sun Princess, the problem was finding more than one pt player, as I think there are only a couple dozen in the world that can play. The guy on our cruise was so good that he played himself to a three to three tie and then lost to himself in the tiebreaker.<BR><BR>Good luck on your cruise.<BR><BR>Peter

Wow !!!!! Now THAT would have been worth seeing.

That answer shows that the kids are up too late....<BR>Shadow

Well, I guess most of you have not played Paddle Tennis-so I would suggest you check it out if you are a regular tennis player or if you are someone who enjoys racquet sports-Paddle Tennis is fantastic!! <BR>It appears that most of the Princess Ships have a PT court on the top of the ship. And, I know that Holland America's<BR>Westerdam has one (or at least they did in '94 when we cruised to Alaska).<BR>Shadow

I played paddle tennis on the Star Princess. I found it fairly easy to learn if you have any experience playing regular tennis. It was fun! I do not recall if there were any organized tournaments though.

Patty-glad to hear someone else has played! I'm hooked! I play as often as I can.....its a great sport for all ages-young and old alike especially since it covers less ground than tennis but has the same principles...<BR>Really looking forward to it-mainly while &quot;at sea&quot;.<BR>Shadow<BR>