Moving to Seattle

[Madden]

Hi guys!
I'm an NTRP 3.0 recreation player, and I'm moving to Seattle from Ukraine next week.
What I need to know - is courts & clubs rules. How all this work in the US?
In Ukraine, for example, all courts are paid and should be rented in advance for the cold season. If you want to play in winter you even should pay for court for the whole season, cause in another case you will be without court at all.
How about rules and court availability in Greater Seattle Area?
What tips can you give me?
How to search for a partner? Any apps, or chats?

 

[travlerajm]

Hi guys!
I'm an NTRP 3.0 recreation player, and I'm moving to Seattle from Ukraine next week.
What I need to know - is courts & clubs rules. How all this work in the US?
In Ukraine, for example, all courts are paid and should be rented in advance for the cold season. If you want to play in winter you even should pay for court for the whole season, cause in another case you will be without court at all.
How about rules and court availability in Greater Seattle Area?
What tips can you give me?
How to search for a partner? Any apps, or chats?

A few tips:

Most of the year, you can play outside with perfect weather for tennis.

A few months of the year ( the cold rainy season in the winter ), the courts are often wet. I personally have learned to enjoy playing on wet courts, but most people only play indoors then.

Each club is different. Most clubs have indoor time slots that you can reserve, typically for 75 minutes at a time.

The demand for indoor courts in Seattle is high, so the more friends you know who are members at different facilities, the more opportunities you will have to play.

The further you go out from the city center, the cheaper it is for indoor court options.

In the summer, the Lower Woodland park courts are a good place to meet new players. There are about 50 regulars who are there almost every day. It’s sort of like a tennis club, but free. It gets crowded at primetime.

 

[Injured Again]

Hi guys!
I'm an NTRP 3.0 recreation player, and I'm moving to Seattle from Ukraine next week.
What I need to know - is courts & clubs rules. How all this work in the US?
In Ukraine, for example, all courts are paid and should be rented in advance for the cold season. If you want to play in winter you even should pay for court for the whole season, cause in another case you will be without court at all.
How about rules and court availability in Greater Seattle Area?
What tips can you give me?
How to search for a partner? Any apps, or chats?

Welcome to the Seattle area. The weather is just starting to get nice so outdoor tennis is going to be more regularly possible.

There are many public and free courts. There has also been a boom in the number of players so courts may be hard to get. There are six well maintained tennis courts near me and they are always packed on nice days, with a 1-2 hour wait being typical.

You can use this link to find courts:

633 Tennis Courts and Tournaments in Seattle, WA | Tennis Maps

Map of public and private tennis courts and tournaments in Seattle, WA. See parks, schools, tennis centers, clubs, apts/condos/HOAs with hard, clay, grass, lighted, and indoor courts. Find tennis tournaments, organizations, and lessons.

www.tennismaps.com

There's an app called MeetUp which I understand has several large groups who regularly gather to play.

Amy Yee Tennis Center is Seattle's public indoor/outdoor tennis facility.

Citywide Tennis, and Amy Yee Tennis Center - Parks | seattle.gov

In addition to the Amy Yee Tennis Center, offering 10 indoor courts, 6 outdoor courts and a wide array of programs, you can rent any of 100+ outdoor courts around Seattle by calling the Amy Yee Tennis Center.

www.seattle.gov

Sand Point Tennis Center is also a lower cost alternative.

Get Started

tenniscentersandpoint.com

There are some private tennis clubs in the area. Initiation can range from a few thousand to many tens of thousands of dollars.

Feel free to ask more questions!

 

[Injured Again]

I was told I didn't answer the primary question that @Madden had about courts in winter.

If you want to play tennis during the winter, you will most likely have to play indoors. In the past several months when we've been locked down on and off due to the pandemic, it was very difficult to have dry weather for us to play even once a week, and sometimes that was on damp courts. The weather will be cold, and often it will be breezy. To play more than that and/or to play consistently means indoor tennis from about November through March.

I think it's about $40 for a 75 minute reservation to play singles at Amy Yee. Costs at Sand Point are probably roughly similar.

The club I belong to is a private, member-owned club. Currently, the initiation is $6000 and monthly dues start at around $225 a month but there are no court fees. So if you play eight times a month, the costs are the same outside of the initiation costs. If you play more than eight times a month, joining a club can very often be the least expensive way to enjoy tennis year round. Our club has 12 indoor courts and six outdoor courts, a few fitness areas with equipment, and a swimming pool/barbecue area for the summer, all included with your membership.

Let me know if you have any questions.

 

[Madden]

Let me know if you have any questions.

Wow, cool and useful information about clubs.
Think I will need an invitation to some private club next autumn.

Also, it is not a problem for me to play in cold and wet conditions. Yes, this is not very cool to be wet because of wet balls, but we also have a lot of rainy days in Kyiv.

 

[Injured Again]

Wow, cool and useful information about clubs.
Think I will need an invitation to some private club next autumn.

Also, it is not a problem for me to play in cold and wet conditions. Yes, this is not very cool to be wet because of wet balls, but we also have a lot of rainy days in Kyiv.

For many clubs such as the one I belong to, you don't need an invitation - they are open to anyone to join. Only the very few exclusive (and expensive) clubs require an invitation and/or testimonials from existing members to be allowed to join. Our club will give you a free pass to try out the courts before joining and I think that's pretty common at most other clubs as well.

 

[Madden]

Cool. Definitely will return to this question in 6 months.
I hope I will beat jetlag soon and will try to come and play on some public courts.

 

[travlerajm]

Wow, cool and useful information about clubs.
Think I will need an invitation to some private club next autumn.

Also, it is not a problem for me to play in cold and wet conditions. Yes, this is not very cool to be wet because of wet balls, but we also have a lot of rainy days in Kyiv.

The good thing about playing on wet courts in Seattle in the winter is that only crazy people play then, so courts are not crowded. I use a heavier racquet than my friends, and the wet balls amplify my advantage because the ball is much heavier. My friends always say they play badly on wet courts.

 

[Injured Again]

Cool. Definitely will return to this question in 6 months.
I hope I will beat jetlag soon and will try to come and play on some public courts.

Looks like the weather will be getting nice starting in about a week. When that time comes, you can look here to start:

Find Events & Groups | Meetup

Find Meetup events and groups so you can do more of what matters to you and meet people near you who share your interests.

www.meetup.com

Good luck!

 

[joah310]

The good thing about playing on wet courts in Seattle in the winter is that only crazy people play then, so courts are not crowded. I use a heavier racquet than my friends, and the wet balls amplify my advantage because the ball is much heavier. My friends always say they play badly on wet courts.

The wet courts really help out the flatter shots. I think everything feels faster along with the balls being heavier. Sliding was another thing... Thankfully things are drying up. Not today though

 

[JEDI MASTER]

I wish I could move back to the Seattle Area... nothing like home sweet home..
Nothing like playing in Lower Woodland.. late at night and in the Fog..

instead i'm stuck in the Bay area...

GO DAWGS!
GO HAWKS!

 

[Corey Klein]

Welcome to the Seattle area. The weather is just starting to get nice so outdoor tennis is going to be more regularly possible.

There are many public and free courts. There has also been a boom in the number of players so courts may be hard to get. There are six well maintained tennis courts near me and they are always packed on nice days, with a 1-2 hour wait being typical.

You can use this link to find courts:

633 Tennis Courts and Tournaments in Seattle, WA | Tennis Maps

Map of public and private tennis courts and tournaments in Seattle, WA. See parks, schools, tennis centers, clubs, apts/condos/HOAs with hard, clay, grass, lighted, and indoor courts. Find tennis tournaments, organizations, and lessons.

www.tennismaps.com

There's an app called MeetUp which I understand has several large groups who regularly gather to play.

Amy Yee Tennis Center is Seattle's public indoor/outdoor tennis facility.

Citywide Tennis, and Amy Yee Tennis Center - Parks | seattle.gov

In addition to the Amy Yee Tennis Center, offering 10 indoor courts, 6 outdoor courts and a wide array of programs, you can rent any of 100+ outdoor courts around Seattle by calling the Amy Yee Tennis Center.

www.seattle.gov

Sand Point Tennis Center is also a lower cost alternative.

Get Started

tenniscentersandpoint.com

There are some private tennis clubs in the area. Initiation can range from a few thousand to many tens of thousands of dollars.

Feel free to ask more questions!

Thank you for posting this. My wife and I just moved to Renton, WA from Palm Desert, CA and couldn't find anywhere decent to play locally. Had to drive up to Redmond and Bellevue to find decent public courts. Looks like a couple of the high schools around here are good.

 

[Injured Again]

Thank you for posting this. My wife and I just moved to Renton, WA from Palm Desert, CA and couldn't find anywhere decent to play locally. Had to drive up to Redmond and Bellevue to find decent public courts. Looks like a couple of the high schools around here are good.

I hope it helps! I live in Redmond so I'm not that familiar with the courts down in the Renton area. There's the Boeing tennis center if you need indoor courts, and Robinswood which is off 148th near I-90.

Some nice days coming up! I played outdoors this afternoon and will again tomorrow morning. A bit chilly but still so nice to be outside. And no more mask requirement at the indoor clubs as of this past Monday.

You're doing the reverse move of most of the older tennis guys I know. I've played with a group of eight or nine guys who several years ago all stayed in this area. Now, about half of them own a second home in the Palm Desert area, another couple are thinking of buying there in the next year or two, and one spends the winters in Hawaii.

 

[Corey Klein]

I hope it helps! I live in Redmond so I'm not that familiar with the courts down in the Renton area. There's the Boeing tennis center if you need indoor courts, and Robinswood which is off 148th near I-90.

Some nice days coming up! I played outdoors this afternoon and will again tomorrow morning. A bit chilly but still so nice to be outside. And no more mask requirement at the indoor clubs as of this past Monday.

You're doing the reverse move of most of the older tennis guys I know. I've played with a group of eight or nine guys who several years ago all stayed in this area. Now, about half of them own a second home in the Palm Desert area, another couple are thinking of buying there in the next year or two, and one spends the winters in Hawaii.

My wife and I are in our early 30s so not near retirement age yet. I am a healthcare professional and worked there year round for 2.5 years. It's a fine place for tennis and golf and tennis in the winter, but miserably boring year round. I believe we had 60+ days 115 plus this past summer, nothing nice about that. Anyway, thank you again for your tennis tips. Wish I had moved to the Seattle region years ago.

 

[Madden]

Thanks all for your responses!
I was lucky to rent a beautiful apt in Bothell with a tennis court in the complex!
Hope, after all business will be done, I will have more time to play around with different people.

 

[zipplock]

Thanks all for your responses!
I was lucky to rent a beautiful apt in Bothell with a tennis court in the complex!
Hope, after all business will be done, I will have more time to play around with different people.

Jackpot!!!

 

[Madden]

So. If anybody from Bothell or neighborhood wants to play - just pm me. I have court, racket, balls and desire to play)

 

[onehandbh]

I wish I could move back to the Seattle Area... nothing like home sweet home..
Nothing like playing in Lower Woodland.. late at night and in the Fog..

instead i'm stuck in the Bay area...

GO DAWGS!
GO HAWKS!

I tried playing there once when the court was partially covered with snow.

 

[JackSockIsTheBest]

I hope it helps! I live in Redmond so I'm not that familiar with the courts down in the Renton area. There's the Boeing tennis center if you need indoor courts, and Robinswood which is off 148th near I-90.

Some nice days coming up! I played outdoors this afternoon and will again tomorrow morning. A bit chilly but still so nice to be outside. And no more mask requirement at the indoor clubs as of this past Monday.

You're doing the reverse move of most of the older tennis guys I know. I've played with a group of eight or nine guys who several years ago all stayed in this area. Now, about half of them own a second home in the Palm Desert area, another couple are thinking of buying there in the next year or two, and one spends the winters in Hawaii.

I would suggest spending the summers here in Oahu or any other island because of how nice the weather is 95% of the time. If you got money spend it on the Four Seasons Hotel at Ko Olina it has a tennis center with a restaurant & gym. Also if anyone does visit hit me up, I wouldn't mind playing when I am not busy with school

 

[Injured Again]

I would suggest spending the summers here in Oahu or any other island because of how nice the weather is 95% of the time. If you got money spend it on the Four Seasons Hotel at Ko Olina it has a tennis center with a restaurant & gym. Also if anyone does visit hit me up, I wouldn't mind playing when I am not busy with school

A retired doctor who is part of our group spends the winter months in Hawaii. A bunch of guys always goes over at some point during the winter to spend a week or two there, though I think many of these guys own places in the palm desert area.

I haven't yet traveled away for the winter for tennis because we have 12 indoor courts at our Club, but we're having a sunny streak right now and I have to say I've really missed just being out in the sun and warmth. So this coming November, I'm heading down to the Palm Springs racquet club for a couple of weeks to give it a try.