After confidently proclaiming it can never be too hot for tennis I have to confess it can be and it has been! Paris has seen record temperatures in the last week, but when today dawned cool and blowy I wasted no time in getting on the website to book a court. Amazingly this one was available in the Marais - the first time I've ever seen it pop into the list because there is only one court and it seems to be permanently booked. Tennis Neuve Saint Pierre is practically local for us - a stone's throw from my children's school, but although I've walked along the street many times I've never noticed it in spite of an unusual sculpture over the entrance.
Rue Neuve-Saint-Pierre runs parallel with the Rue St Antoine not far from St Paul Metro station. The court is slotted in between a higgledy-piggledy collection of apartment blocks and a primary school. The walls of the surrounding buildings form a barrier on two sides while one side is open and the other fenced with some rather holey netting which necessitated lots of running out to collect balls from the neighbouring basketball court or from the entrance. You are guaranteed to have the place to yourself, though we counted a few spectators in various open windows. The court surface was excellent, but a mishmash of markings sometimes makes it difficult to remember which line is which. It was cool, breezy and there were even a few drops of rain, a refreshing change from the sweltering heatwave. A nice enough court, but I won't be rushing back even if it were possible to get another booking.
7 out of 10.
5-7 Rue Neuve-Saint-Pierre
75004 Paris
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