Become a Sportkation Certified Partner — Open Your Venue to Pickleball Travelers

Sportkation started with a single 1-hectare estate in the Mekong Delta. But the vision was never to stop there. As pickleball tourism grows across Vietnam, we're opening our platform to existing B&Bs, guesthouses, homestays, and pickleball courts that want to tap into this booming market.

The Sportkation Certified Partner Program is simple: if you have a venue that meets — or can meet — our quality standards, we'll help you get there, list you on our platform, bring you guests, and handle the booking and payment infrastructure. You keep running your business. We bring the clients.

Think of it as the Airbnb model applied to sports tourism. You provide the space and the hospitality. We provide the brand, the booking engine, the marketing reach, and a growing community of pickleball players looking for their next retreat destination. We take a commission on each booking — the same way Airbnb does — and you get access to a customer base you'd never reach on your own.

We're looking for two types of partners across Vietnam:

Accommodation partners — B&Bs, guesthouses, homestays, boutique hotels, or resorts that have (or can add) pickleball courts or are located near existing courts. You don't need courts on-site if there's a quality venue within 10 minutes. What you do need is comfortable accommodation, clean facilities, and the willingness to offer a curated guest experience that matches the Sportkation standard.

Court partners — Existing pickleball facilities, sports clubs, or recreation centers that want to attract traveling players. If you have well-maintained courts and can offer a booking-friendly experience (reserved time slots, equipment rental, coaching options), you're a candidate.

Ideal partners are located in areas with tourism appeal — coastal towns, countryside retreats, mountain regions, or near cultural attractions. But we're open to any location that can deliver a compelling pickleball getaway experience.

Certification isn't just a badge — it comes with real business value.

Platform listing and booking engine: Your venue gets a dedicated page on sportkation.com with professional photos, descriptions, pricing, and a live booking calendar. Guests book directly through our platform, and you receive confirmed reservations with guest details and payment handled.

Marketing and visibility: We promote partner venues through our blog, social media, email newsletters, and SEO-optimized content. Your venue benefits from the Sportkation brand — a name that's becoming synonymous with pickleball travel in Vietnam.

Operational support: We provide detailed operations guidelines covering court maintenance standards, guest experience protocols, safety requirements, and service quality benchmarks. These aren't arbitrary rules — they're the same standards we apply to our own Mekong Delta estate.

Revenue management: Our platform handles pricing recommendations, seasonal adjustments, and package creation. We help you structure weekend packages, group rates, and add-on experiences (coaching, equipment rental, local tours) that maximize your revenue per guest.

Community access: Your venue becomes part of the Sportkation network, which means cross-referrals from other locations, inclusion in multi-stop itineraries, and access to our tournament and event calendar.

Getting certified is straightforward but rigorous. We want every Sportkation partner to deliver a consistent quality experience.

Step 1 — Application: Submit your venue details through our partner application form. Include photos, location, current facilities, and your vision for hosting pickleball guests. We review every application within 14 days.

Step 2 — Assessment: Our team visits your venue (or conducts a detailed virtual assessment for remote locations) to evaluate facilities, accommodation quality, court conditions, and surrounding attractions. We'll identify what meets the standard and what needs improvement.

Step 3 — Gap analysis and support: If your venue needs upgrades, we provide a clear action plan. This might include court surfacing recommendations, equipment specifications, guest experience protocols, or facility improvements. We connect you with trusted suppliers and contractors where needed.

Step 4 — Certification: Once your venue meets all standards, you receive official Sportkation Certified Partner status. We create your platform listing, integrate your booking calendar, and launch your venue to our audience.

Step 5 — Ongoing quality checks: We conduct periodic reviews (announced and unannounced) and collect guest feedback to ensure standards are maintained. Partners who consistently exceed expectations earn 'Premium Partner' status with enhanced visibility.

Every Sportkation Certified Partner follows a shared set of operations guidelines. These ensure guests have a consistent, high-quality experience regardless of which partner venue they visit.

Court standards: Courts must meet regulation dimensions (6.1m × 13.4m with adequate run-off). Surfaces should be in good condition with proper line markings, regulation-height nets, and adequate lighting for evening play. Equipment (paddles, balls) must be available for rent or included.

Accommodation standards: Rooms must be clean, well-maintained, with functioning air conditioning, hot water, fresh linens, and reliable Wi-Fi. Common areas should be welcoming and well-kept.

Guest experience: Partners must provide a welcome briefing covering court access, local attractions, dining options, and emergency contacts. A designated contact person should be available during guest stays. Check-in should be smooth and efficient.

Safety: First aid kits must be accessible. Courts should have water stations. Emergency procedures must be posted. Insurance covering guest activities is required.

Sustainability: We encourage eco-friendly practices — waste reduction, local sourcing, energy efficiency. Partners who demonstrate strong sustainability practices receive a 'Green Partner' designation.

Our commission structure follows the Airbnb model — transparent, predictable, and fair.

We charge a commission on each booking made through the Sportkation platform. This covers the booking infrastructure, payment processing, marketing, customer support, and brand development that drives guests to your venue. The exact rate depends on your partnership tier and is agreed upon during certification.

What's included in the commission: platform listing and maintenance, booking engine and payment processing, marketing and SEO promotion, customer support for pre-booking inquiries, guest review management, and access to the Sportkation partner dashboard with analytics.

What you keep: full control of your venue operations, direct relationship with guests during their stay, ability to set your own pricing (with our guidance), freedom to accept direct bookings outside the platform, and all revenue from on-site extras (F&B, equipment rental, tours).

We handle the demand generation. You handle the hospitality. The commission is only charged on bookings that come through our platform — your existing direct bookings remain 100% yours.

Vietnam's pickleball scene is growing fast. Over 50 venues, 150+ courts, and a growing international profile with events like the PPA Tour Asia choosing Hanoi. But most of this infrastructure is concentrated in cities. There's a massive gap in the market for retreat-style, destination pickleball experiences — and that's exactly what the Sportkation network fills.

Early partners benefit the most. You'll get priority placement on the platform, more marketing attention, and the advantage of being established when the wave of pickleball tourism really hits. The sport is projected to continue its explosive growth across Southeast Asia through 2030, and Vietnam is positioning itself as a regional hub.

If you have a venue with potential — whether it's a beachfront guesthouse, a countryside B&B, a mountain lodge, or a sports facility with courts — now is the time to join. We're building the network that will define pickleball travel in Vietnam, and we want the best local partners to build it with us.

Ready to apply? Contact us through our website or email us directly. Let's build the future of pickleball hospitality in Vietnam — together.