World's First Indoor Floating Pickleball Court to be Featured at Toronto International Boat Show
- BoatBlurb Contributor
- 5 hours ago
- 2 min read
The world's love affair with pickleball knows no bounds.
The booming sport for athletes of all types is even breaking into the boating world, thanks to it's inclusion at this year's Toronto International Boat Show.
The annual event, hosted in Toronto's Enercare Centre and North America's largest indoor boat show, is already home to the world's largest indoor lake.
The man-made attraction takes over the attached Coca-Cola Coliseum, where the AHL's Toronto Marlies play, by converting the entirely of the 200-foot hockey rink into an indoor lake, complete with a dock, watertoys, and even launch ramps for the daily wakeboarding show.
The 2026 event will now add the world's largest indoor pickleball court -- another unique attraction making TIBS a standout event for North American boaters. 'The Lake' hosts daily events including watersports shows, product demos, seminars, and boat rides. Now boaters can also get in a quick game of pickleball between boat shopping sessions.
For those unfamiliar with North America's fastest growing sport, pickleball is a hybrid of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong. The game is played with ping pong-style paddles on a badminton-sized court with a tennis-style net. The court is 20'x44' with a 34" high net and uses a hybrid ruleset based on doubles tennis. The sport has exploded in popularity in over the last decade, with over 40 countries registering official pickleball associations and professional leagues popping up across Canada and the U.S.
The sport has become so popular among boaters several superyacht shipyards have now built vessels with a pickleball court integrated into the deck. Both the Royal Caribbean and Cantiere delle Marche shipyards launched superyachts with a built-in court over the last year.
The pickleball court will be available for the first five days of the show, January 17th-21st, and will be open to the public, although players must register at the lake directly in advance. The court will be available from 10:30 am to 3:45 pm Saturday to Monday, and from 12:00-3:00 pm and 6:00-7:00 pm on Tuesday January 20th. Wednesday the 21st has a large window for playing from 12:00 to 6:00 pm. The full schedule shows all of the lake's upcoming events. If you're unable to get a game in on the court, 'The Lake' hosts daily events and shows allowing boaters to either get on the water or catch some on-water action.
The Toronto International Boat Show runs from January 17th to the 25th. Over 500 exhibitors will be on display with over 1000 boats, including paddlesports, fishing boats, dayboats, and larger vessels including yachts and cruisers.
Be sure to check out the show highlights for info about which events to explore. You can also visit BoatBlurb in Booth 1844 inside the main entrance throughout the event.
