Recommendations for a 3-day adult camp in US

[surfandturf]

Looking for a quick getaway to focus on my tennis, preferably on the East Coast or *******.
So far my research has narrowed it down to:

Saddlebrook Resort in Tampa, FL
IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL
Cliff Drysdale at Omni Amelia Island, FL
Nike Training Camp in Amherst, MA

I'm a female 4.0 player in my late 30's, fit, fast, and wanting to get better.

Basically want the following:
3-4 hours of play time (can be varied: lessons, drills, match play, ball machine) per day
Focus on movement, strategy
HIGH INTENSITY - I'm not looking to have cheese and wine with others, I wanna run/sweat/hit tons of balls, and really make the most of my time there.
If they offer other training/conditioning as part of the program, even better.

I can handle lodging on my own - doesn't necessarily have to be included.

If anyone has personal experience from any of these schools or just really had a great experience as an adult player anywhere else, I'd really be happy to hear about it!

 

[jm1980]

Looking for a quick getaway to focus on my tennis, preferably on the East Coast or *******.

What's behind the asterisks? Is it Mid-west?

 

[Raul_SJ]

What about the McEnroe Academy?

 

[QuadCam]

Gigi Fernandez has camps too. I think they are doubles specific

 

[BounceHitBounceHit]

Amelia Island is nice but VERY laid back. IMG for high intensity. Saddle brook is showing its age.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[surfandturf]

Thanks all for the tips.
Yes, the censored word *was* the mid----west (area of the country west of the east coast, haha!)

From the looks of it, Saddle Brook DID seem kinda outdated. At least, their website seemed to be.
IMG from purely an online perspective, seemed to be the most impressive. I want intensity so thinking that might be the best bet for me for now.

Also looking at the NTC in Orlando - they seem to also do multi-day camps, but I don't want doubles specific as I'm mainly a singles player.

If anyone else has other advice, I'd be open to hearing about it.
Thanks!

 

[sureshs]

I have read that Drysdale offers women-only camps which are a huge success.

I have been to only one tennis camp many years ago in Florida but know many people who have attended such camps.

As long as you treat it like a fun vacation with health benefits, it is OK. But people come back with no improvement. Adults do not improve by doing some concocted clinic drills for 3 days, which usually are over before you figure out the complicated rules of what the drill is about. Most coaches are into socializing and keeping clients happy, and will not talk about real fundamental issues in the game. In fact, many camps have the official philosophy of working with what is there in the student, and doing minimal changes.

Also checkout the new adult camps run by Gigi Fernandes at the brand new Orlando National Tennis Center - the best tennis facility in the world (they have PlaySight):

https://reserve.ustanationalcampus.com/page.lasso?p=camps&l=3&pd=6

Camp Weekend Dates:

After April 1st: $450.00 per person
April 5-8 - NTRP 2.5-3.5
Aug 30-Sept. 2 NTRP 4.0 & above
October 18-21 NTRP 2.5-3.5
November 15-18 NTRP 4.0 & above
December 13-16 NTRP 2.5-3.5

Includes:

Free play all weekend
Playsight analysis
Unlimited ball machine use
Free racket demos from pro shop
Playsight technology use and overview
Lunch each camp day at the Net Post Grill
National Campus water bottle & T-Shirt

Weekend Schedule:

Thursday:

4:00pm-7:00pm- Check-in & Social Mixer

Friday:

8:30am-9:30am - Campus Tour
9:30am-11:30am - Drills & ******* Equipment Experience
11:30am-1:00pm - Lunch
1:00pm-2:30pm - Match Play
2:30pm-4:00p - Drills
4:00pm-6:00pm - Open Play

Saturday:

10:30am-12:30am - Drills
12:30am-1:30pm - Lunch
1:30pm-3:30pm - Match Analysis
4:00pm-6:00pm - Open Play

Sunday:

9:00am-11:00am - Skills Challenge

 

[OnTheLine]

As another female .. I am looking at doing a camp as well ... the national campus that @sureshs posted above looks really good. And the price if correct looks exceptionally low for what they are offering.

Except, as a high 3.5, why are they lumping 3.5s in with 2.5s and 3.0s? ugh. I want balls to actually come back across the net.

I agree with above that 3 days is not sufficient ... would prefer a full week or if I could swing it 2 weeks.

(I have thought about a week in Mallorca at Rafa's adult camp. Looks quite intense and not off the charts expensive.)

 

[Deleted member 23235]

Looking for a quick getaway to focus on my tennis, preferably on the East Coast or *******.
So far my research has narrowed it down to:

Saddlebrook Resort in Tampa, FL
IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL
Cliff Drysdale at Omni Amelia Island, FL
Nike Training Camp in Amherst, MA

I'm a female 4.0 player in my late 30's, fit, fast, and wanting to get better.

Basically want the following:
3-4 hours of play time (can be varied: lessons, drills, match play, ball machine) per day
Focus on movement, strategy
HIGH INTENSITY - I'm not looking to have cheese and wine with others, I wanna run/sweat/hit tons of balls, and really make the most of my time there.
If they offer other training/conditioning as part of the program, even better.

I can handle lodging on my own - doesn't necessarily have to be included.

If anyone has personal experience from any of these schools or just really had a great experience as an adult player anywhere else, I'd really be happy to hear about it!

lol, i've been here:
https://www.tennisresortsonline.com/trofiles/peter-kaplans-westhampton-beach-tennis.cfm
and it's in your backyard.
i had a great time... at the time basically private and semi private hitting with the local college kid pro...
highly recommend


guessing you're looking to get away from ny...

 

[silentkman]

As another female .. I am looking at doing a camp as well ... the national campus that @sureshs posted above looks really good. And the price if correct looks exceptionally low for what they are offering.

Except, as a high 3.5, why are they lumping 3.5s in with 2.5s and 3.0s? ugh. I want balls to actually come back across the net.

I agree with above that 3 days is not sufficient ... would prefer a full week or if I could swing it 2 weeks.

(I have thought about a week in Mallorca at Rafa's adult camp. Looks quite intense and not off the charts expensive.)

I had attended the National Campus in December had a great time. Unfortunately its a doubles specific camp. A ton of tennis for the price and you have access to the entire facility. The playsight feature is great. I'm hoping to get up nerve to watch myself on playsight. the coach player ratio was 4-1. They give you a voucher for lunch. All demos you want for free also.

 

[silentkman]

I had attended the National Campus in December had a great time. Unfortunately its a doubles specific camp. A ton of tennis for the price and you have access to the entire facility. The playsight feature is great. I'm hoping to get up nerve to watch myself on playsight. the coach player ratio was 4-1. They give you a voucher for lunch. All demos you want for free also.

Wow, the price has gone up a bit. I paid $340.

 

[OnTheLine]

that is still a REALLY fantastic price for the weekend

 

[sureshs]

As another female .. I am looking at doing a camp as well ... the national campus that @sureshs posted above looks really good. And the price if correct looks exceptionally low for what they are offering.

Except, as a high 3.5, why are they lumping 3.5s in with 2.5s and 3.0s? ugh. I want balls to actually come back across the net.

I agree with above that 3 days is not sufficient ... would prefer a full week or if I could swing it 2 weeks.

(I have thought about a week in Mallorca at Rafa's adult camp. Looks quite intense and not off the charts expensive.)

As another poster said, it is probably higher than it was. They might be starting low and then increasing the price depending on demand.

I would go there just to check out the PlayTennis analysis to brag about it in the club.

They may be lumping people together but might segregate on-site in an informal manner. You should register as a 4.0. You may find that many of the 4.0s are actually 3.5s. The coaches know that, so they will play along.

 

[silentkman]

As another female .. I am looking at doing a camp as well ... the national campus that @sureshs posted above looks really good. And the price if correct looks exceptionally low for what they are offering.

Except, as a high 3.5, why are they lumping 3.5s in with 2.5s and 3.0s? ugh. I want balls to actually come back across the net.

I agree with above that 3 days is not sufficient ... would prefer a full week or if I could swing it 2 weeks.

(I have thought about a week in Mallorca at Rafa's adult camp. Looks quite intense and not off the charts expensive.)

I attended 4.0 camp and that's what I would recommend for you. all of the women were 3.5 or 4.0. I stayed near Disney World which is about a 30 minute easy drive. They do have some hotels in the Lake Nona area. They are planning to build a hotel on the grounds in the future.

 

[damazing]

Sea Colony Tennis in Bethany Beach Delaware has some 3 day adult programs. I've only done their clinics and cardio tennis programs in the Summer and they were well run and I hit a ton of balls.

https://www.seacolonytennis.net/pages/index.cfm?siteid=11530

 

[sureshs]

I attended 4.0 camp and that's what I would recommend for you. all of the women were 3.5 or 4.0. I stayed near Disney World which is about a 30 minute easy drive. They do have some hotels in the Lake Nona area. They are planning to build a hotel on the grounds in the future.

There are two hotels almost right on campus. They may offer discounts. Details are on the NTC site.

 

[atatu]

I know you aren't looking for something in the Southwest, but when I went to Newk's over Christmas a couple of years ago there were a lot of 4.0 women there, so it might be worth considering.

 

[muddlehead]

Avoid anything called a "tennis camp". If I was you, surfandturf, I would find a tennis resort you want to go to. Book yourself a room there or at a hotel. Call up the pro or pro staff. Tell 'em about yourself and that you want to play as much tennis as you can. Should be zero difficulty in finding you hitting / playing partners as a 4.0 in your thirties. I'm on the west coast so the three that come to mind - look 'em up on the web to get an idea - La Quinta Resort and Tennis Club, La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club, JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort and Spa.

 

[sureshs]

Avoid anything called a "tennis camp". If I was you, surfandturf, I would find a tennis resort you want to go to. Book yourself a room there or at a hotel. Call up the pro or pro staff. Tell 'em about yourself and that you want to play as much tennis as you can. Should be zero difficulty in finding you hitting / playing partners as a 4.0 in your thirties. I'm on the west coast so the three that come to mind - look 'em up on the web to get an idea - La Quinta Resort and Tennis Club, La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club, JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort and Spa. In Florida, Longboat Key Tennis Club would be great, but, they went out of biz a bit back.

I am on the call list of a noted tennis resort. They try to get their guests partners within the club, but often reach out to me because they cannot. Guests will end up paying for lessons if partners cannot be found.

I have also been to a resort in Hawaii attached to a tennis club and to a resort in Arizona. In both cases, I had to pay for lessons, and then was allowed to hang around and scout for partners for free.

So I don't think it is that rosy of a picture. The availability of partners also depends on weather and weekday/weekend. Sometimes there will be junior/adult tournaments going on at the time of your visit.

With a camp, you are guaranteed play. Only issue can be weather. Orlando NTC seems to have 6 indoor courts and probably campers may be accommodated there.

 

[gvsbdisco]

I went to Saddlebrook 2 years ago for 5 days, 5 hours of tennis a day (we got rained out one day). At the time ~4.0 player, 50 yr old male with little formal instruction in my past.

They will work you hard. I thought they were very good in ensuring the clientle got what they wanted. Like you, I wasn't there to socialize; I wanted to improve. The tennis program seemed healthy but the accommodations were getting old (but they were clean). I went in May and it was a dead zone except for the tennis. At the end of the day, if you are doing the group lesson thing (max 4 per group), your satisfaction will be dependent on the quality of your group members. It worked out fine for me but it is not something you can control unless you show up with your own group.