Beyond the Pickledome Tours

What is Pickleball?

1. A fun sport that combines elements of tennis, badminton, and table tennis

2. Played both indoors and outdoors on a badminton sized court with a smaller tennis net

3. Played with a paddle and plastic ball with holes in it

4. Played as doubles, singles, or skinny singles

5. Can be enjoyed by all ages and skill levels

It is a fun, social, friendly sport where the rules are simple, and the game is easy for inexperienced players to learn. For more experienced players it can be fast paced & competitive.

Welcome to Beyond the Pickledome!

What is the Pickledome? A Pickledome is to Pickleball what centre court is to tennis. It is the main court where the championship match is held.

Beyond the Pickledome was created due to the Pickleball community growing rapidly and to offer something new and exciting in the way of Pickleball travel tours to destinations far and wide both in Australia and abroad. Pickleballers are a bunch of enthusiastic, socially dynamic, passionate people who have all grown to love this crazy named sport. I believe by offering Pickleball tours with a fun and engaging recreational style of playing Pickleball will appeal to the many who join their local clubs across Australia for a regular hit.

Beyond the Pickledome specialises in customised travel Pickleball tours. Based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia our team of experienced travellers have created a Picklelball exclusive tour aimed at the passionate Pickleballer. Our tours provide a custom experience for all Pickleballers of all skill levels whether beginners through to advanced you will enjoy the many varied days from recreational play to skills and drills clinics offered by reputable coaches that will enhance your Pickleball journey. Our tours combine the love of Pickleball with travel, fun, sun, sightseeing, meeting new people, making new friendships and best of all no single supplements as we are accommodated in apartments with all the comforts of a luxury tour. We will interact with the local Pickleball clubs at our destination with the chance to play amongst the locals and test our skills.

What to expect on one of our tours

Tour Overview:

Pickleball and travel, anyone?

If you love to play Pickleball, meet new people and enjoy travelling then come and join Beyond the Pickledome Tours for their inaugural Pickleball tour with a difference. The beautiful coastal town of Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast Queensland will be our perfect base for some fun in the sun with like-minded Picklers from beginners to intermediate and advanced. We may have the option to play with and against local Pickleballers from the various clubs on the Gold Coast. We will enjoy plenty of Pickleball from instructional clinics to social rec play and games with approved coaches culminating in a full fun day of Pickleball with the local enthusiastic members. This will pit our new-found skills with some friendly competition with the local Gold Coast Pickleball community. All our Pickleball days will offer some free play and it will be played in a fun and friendly atmosphere.

The added extras to the tours include a wonderful relaxing day trip to the Gold Coast Hinterland with its stunning scenery, food & wine scene, where we will enjoy some of the region’s finest local produce. Some free time to explore the quaint hinterland village of Mt Tamborine and the beautiful Canungra National Park.

A welcome dinner to the Gold Coast to meet your new fellow Pickleballers at a renowned Burleigh Heads Restaurant and a farewell to the tour dinner on the Gold Coast Broadwater with a sunset and cruise will see the week of Pickleball end until next time.

For non-Pickleballers you may join in the activities that suit you and you will have enough free time to explore the region at your leisure. There will be times during the day where all parties have enough time to enjoy and relax the surrounding areas – beaches, national park, shopping, sporting pursuits, theme parks – the Gold Coast has plenty of offerings to enjoy a relaxing getaway.

A highlight of the day will be getting to know your fellow Picklers at the “Dink Responsibly Happy Hour - don’t get smashed!

Tour Includes:

• 4* Quality Apartment Accommodation
• No Single Supplements
• Transfers from Gold Coast Airport if your flight arrives around the designated pickup time of 1:30pm (subject to airline schedules)
• Transfers to Gold Coast Airport if your flight departs around 12 Noon or later (subject to airline schedules)
• Transport 25-Seater Mini-Bus
• Welcome Dinner Sunday Night
• Farewell Dinner Saturday Night
• Meals included – breakfast daily & 5 Dinners
• Pickleball with a qualified QLD coach/3.5+ level player – 3 days of 3 hours each day with a combination of group coaching, skills & drills, social rec play and pickleball games designed for your level of Pickleball
  • 1-day exclusive fun Pickleball Day Out
• Exclusive Day Trip to the Gold Coast Hinterland
  • includes morning tea at a mountain top restaurant
  • Gallery Walk – Tamborine Mountain’s arts and crafts precinct with locally made products
  • an opportunity to play Pickleball at Mt Tamborine
  • a guided leisurely sub-tropical rainforest walk to Curtis Falls
  • a picnic lunch including a wine paddle at O’Reilly’s Canungra Valley Vineyard
  • O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat – tree top walk, wild bird feeding, Stinson plane
  • Kamarun Lookout
• Sunset and Dinner Cruise Gold Coast Broadwater
• Exclusive Gift Pack

Tour Excludes:

• Flights
• Airport arrival/departure taxes, levies, excess baggage charges
• Travel Insurance – highly recommended
• Meals not specified – lunches, 2 dinners & snacks
• Own Paddle Required
• All items of a personal nature including but not limited to alcoholic beverages, drinks, souvenirs, laundry services, personal clothing, medical expenses, email or phone charges, other activities not mentioned in itinerary

Flight Information to/from Gold Coast Airport:

• Currently flights to the Gold Coast from Melbourne to meet the 1:30 pm transfer to the accommodation (at current airline schedules – will be determined closer to departure)
  • Virgin Airlines – Departs 11:10 Arrives 13:15 or 12:10 – 14:15
  • Jet Star – Departs 12 Noon Arrives 14:00
  • Qantas – Departs 11:05 Arrives 13:05 or 12:00 – 14:00 (Jetstar)
  • Rex – Departs 14:15 Arrives 16:20 (flight arrives too late for start of tour)

• Currently flights from the Gold Coast to Melbourne that meets the transfer departure from our accommodation at 10:00am
  • Virgin Airlines – Departs 11:55am Arrives 2:20pm
  • Jet Star – Departs 11:35 – 13:55 or 14:40 – 17:00
  • Qantas – Departs 11:35 – 13:55 (Jetstar) 13:45 – 16:00
  • Rex – Departs 17:00 – 19:15

Itinerary:

Accommodation in Gold Coast

Gold Coast - A sun-kissed city by the sea, Australia’s Gold Coast is a place defined by an unmistakable energy. Each year, over 13 million visitors flock to the city, eager to soak up the sun, feel the sand between their toes and take part in the near-limitless range of attractions and experiences. With 57 kilometres of sand and surf, 100,000 hectares of World Heritage listed rainforests, award winning dining, active pursuits, and an ever-evolving calendar, along with more than 300 days of sunshine, the Gold Coast is the perfect destination to add a few extra days pre or post your Pickleball tour. To plan your extended Gold Coast experience, we recommend you visit www.DestinationGoldCoast.com

For our Gold Coast Destination Pickleball Tour we choose to stay at Burleigh Heads.

Situated between glistening Surfers Paradise and laid-back Coolangatta, Burleigh Heads is famous for pumping surf breaks, towering pine trees and 'to be seen' hip dining.

Hit the Burleigh foreshore any day of the week, a hive of families and roaming entertainment, to make use of the water's edge barbecues with fresh produce from the farmers' market. You could also spend sunset at an alfresco restaurant people-watching or from a luxurious apartment perched high on the hill. Spot the endless stream of surfers and fishermen day and night walking through the Burleigh Heads National Park, from The Cove to Echo Beach. Rise early and join them for a paddle in a protected corner of swell.

A visit is not complete without meandering the James Street shopping strip with a freshly squeezed juice in hand while admiring the handmade bespoke pieces, and The Village Markets featuring over 100 chic local designers.

Pickleball Co-ordinator & Tour Photographer – Nay Pinkerton – Gold Coast

Nay grew up as a child in Tokyo, Japan and excelled as a junior representative playing Badminton. As a 28-year-old she came to Australia to pursue a professional career in Surf-Lifesaving but quickly realised she needed something more substantial to pay her way. She undertook studies to learn English and become a nurse of which she has done for the past ten years. Married with four kids – 2 boys & 2 girls she has a ready made Pickleball team in the making.

Thanks to her new-found friends on the Coast, they introduced Nay to Pickleball, and she quickly found her passion for this new game excelling as a Level 3.5+ player competing in the QLD Pickleball Tournament (QPT) at the Open level. Nay and her doubles partner Travis won the golden ticket which allows them to go straight through into the tournament finals in the mixed doubles.

Nay’s passion for helping others learn this great game of Pickleball, with her infectious warm and engaging style of coaching will help any Pickler improve their game.

Nay’s other great passion in life is her photography. As she regularly plays on the QPT Pickleball circuit she has grown to know all the top players who allow her great access in their matches. The players relaxed in her company, leads to capturing amazing action shots and those full of emotion. With an understanding of the game, she knows when & how to get that money shot. The shot that captures the emotion of the moment.

Nay was the National Australian Pickleball Championships Photographer at the latest championships held in Brisbane in October 2022.

Nay describes her photography as “capturing moments of happiness.”

Let's Go!

If you're interested in joining this Pickleball Tour to the Gold Coast, then let’s get ready to Pickle by contacting Karen Miles of Beyond the Pickledome Tours.