NAC Nueva Alcantara Club: World's Best Padel Club 3 Years Running

Why NAC Stands Apart

There are hundreds of padel clubs on the Costa del Sol, but only one has been named the World's Best Padel Club three consecutive years running. NAC — Nueva Alcantara Club, located in San Pedro de Alcántara just fifteen minutes from Marbella's Golden Mile, was awarded this title by PadelSpain in 2023, 2024, and 2025. The award evaluates investment, infrastructure quality, management, innovation, and user experience — and NAC has topped every category, every year.

Over 400,000 visitors pass through its gates annually, making it one of the busiest padel destinations in Europe. Yet the atmosphere never feels overwhelming. The club's thoughtful layout means sixteen courts, a 2,000 m² gym, a spa, and a full-service restaurant coexist without crowding. We spent two full days here in February 2026 to give you the most thorough review available.

The Courts

The headline statistic is sixteen courts — all outdoor, all panoramic, all surfaced with premium artificial grass. Panoramic courts have glass walls on all four sides rather than the brick-and-single-glass hybrid found at most clubs. This transforms the playing experience: you can see your opponents throughout every rally, read the ball coming off the back glass more easily, and enjoy a wide-open view of the Andalusian sky.

Range Rover Central Court

The centrepiece is the Range Rover Central Court — a full stadium format with permanent grandstands holding over 800 spectators. This court hosts A1 Padel Tour events, FIP Platinum tournaments, and the annual PadelSpain World Padel Awards ceremony. Watching a match from the grandstands with the floodlights on and the Sierra Blanca mountains in the background is genuinely spectacular. All sixteen courts are floodlit until 23:00, so evening sessions in the warm Marbella air are a pleasure year-round.

Court Quality

The artificial grass surface is among the best we have played on in Europe. The infill consistency and pile height are maintained to tournament standard, which means the ball bounces true and predictably even on the outer courts. Cheaper clubs on the Costa del Sol let surface quality slip on their back courts — NAC does not.

• 16 outdoor panoramic courts on premium artificial grass
• Range Rover Central Court — stadium format, 800+ spectator capacity
• Floodlit until 23:00 every day of the year
• Open 08:00–23:00 daily, 365 days a year
• Book online via Taykus at nac.taykus.com

The M3 Padel Academy

On-site coaching is where NAC truly differentiates itself. The M3 Padel Academy is widely regarded as one of Europe's leading coaching institutions. A bilingual team of six in-house coaches delivers everything from weekend beginner clinics to multi-week high-performance training programmes. Junior development, coach education certification, and organised padel tourism packages round out the offering.

In 2024 alone, the academy hosted over 3,000 sports tourists through its padel tour packages — typically four to seven nights of accommodation, daily coached sessions, and social matches arranged by NAC against other visiting groups. For a group of four friends visiting Marbella primarily to play padel, the M3 tour package is arguably the most complete experience available on the Costa del Sol.

Lesson pricing starts at around €35 per person for a 90-minute group clinic and rises to €120 per hour for private individual coaching. The coaches speak Spanish and English fluently; several also cover German and French.

Beyond Padel: Fitness, Food & Recovery

NAC was designed from the outset as a destination club rather than just a padel venue, and the non-court facilities reflect this ambition.

THE I/O Concept Gym

The on-site gym covers 2,000 m² of indoor and outdoor space. Classes include HIIT, yoga, pilates, Power, TRX, and open-weight training, running from 07:00 to 22:00 on weekdays and until 20:00 on weekends. The trainers here have specific experience working with padel players on rotational power, lateral agility, and shoulder injury prevention — the areas that matter most for court performance.

Soul by Breath Restaurant

Mediterranean cuisine served from a sun-drenched terrace overlooking the central courts. The menu leans healthy — grain bowls, grilled fish, açaí, and fresh juices — which makes sense given the active clientele. Brunch service runs from 09:00 until 13:00 on weekends and is particularly good. A post-match recovery meal here, watching the courts below, is difficult to improve on.

Oxygen SPA

The Oxygen SPA features a 30 m² normobaric oxygen chamber — rare in a padel club context — alongside professional physiotherapy and sports massage. Players doing intensive training weeks often book daily physiotherapy sessions to stay injury-free. An official Adidas pro shop and the Oculto Hair Club complete the lifestyle offering on site.

Membership & Pricing

One of NAC's most visitor-friendly policies is that no membership is required to play. Any visiting player can book a court directly via Taykus or by contacting reception. Court hire starts at approximately €24 per hour for a standard court; peak-time slots on the central panoramic courts run slightly higher.

For regular players and residents, three membership tiers are available:

• Paddle Member — €60/month: Discounted court hire, access to gym classes, and a dedicated locker. Best for casual players who want to play once or twice a week.
• Morning Member — €120/month: All Paddle Member benefits plus unlimited morning court access (08:00–14:00). Ideal for retired players and those with flexible schedules.
• Black Member — €450/month: Unlimited court access, full gym membership, a personal locker, and two Central Court matches per month. The premium choice for players who want to train seriously.

To book without membership: visit nac.taykus.com or send a WhatsApp to +34 639 779 315. Reception is open 08:00–22:00 daily and the team typically respond to WhatsApp messages within 15–20 minutes during business hours.

Getting There

NAC is located at Av. de Barcelona, 8, San Pedro de Alcántara, 29670 — a fifteen-minute drive from central Marbella along the A-7 coastal highway, and approximately twenty minutes from Puerto Banús. Free parking is available in the on-site car park. San Pedro de Alcántara train station (Cercanías C1 line) is a ten-minute walk from the club, making it accessible without a car from Málaga or Fuengirola.

The Verdict

NAC Nueva Alcantara Club earns its world ranking convincingly. The court quality, the depth of the academy programme, the lifestyle facilities, and the open-door policy make it the most complete padel destination on the Costa del Sol by a significant margin. Whether you are a beginner booking your first group clinic or an advanced player seeking high-performance coaching and tournament-standard courts, NAC has more to offer than any other club in the region.

For address, hours, direct booking links, and a quick overview, see our full NAC Nueva Alcantara Club profile. To compare it against other top clubs in the area, read our guide to the best padel clubs in Marbella.