Sport in the city, the best activities to book last minute
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Choosing a city other than your own for a period of smart working has countless advantages. You break out of your routine by exercising your flexibility, you can find many activities to do in your spare time while broadening your mind and, perhaps, your friendships.
Take a walk in the city centre before starting your working day, have lunch in a charming place before going back to work or have an aperitif at the end of the day to experience a bit of the city. Those who love sport and physical activity have at their fingertips many facilities in which to train or relax before or after a busy working day.
Gyms, sports centres, indoor or outdoor swimming pools, tennis clubs and beach volleyball courts that can be booked last minute: in Italy you really are spoilt for choice with so many state-of-the-art facilities equipped with all the necessary amenities.
If you’re looking for suggestions for a spot of recreation after work, to relieve tension or keep fit, here are the best facilities that you can book even at the last minute in the biggest Italian cities, without the need for a membership.
Where to play sports in Turin
The elegant city of Turin boasts one of the best-equipped university sports centres in Piedmont, which is accessible to citizens and visitors of all ages who are not enrolled at the university.
The CUS Torino offers sports facilities that promise to satisfy your every need and passion: beach volleyball courts, tennis courts and many courses that you can attend even outside the more traditional working hours.
A good alternative is the Circolo Amici del Fiume (Friends of the River Club), a sports association that since 1979 has allowed everyone to experience the river through social initiatives as well as cultural and sports activities.
Currently, the club has three clay tennis courts and three beach volleyball courts, open and available for booking throughout the year.
Where to play sports in Milan
If you are in Milan, you have even more options. The prestigious Quanta Club, surrounded by greenery and less than half an hour by metro from the city centre, is the perfect place to play sports and focus on your well-being in all seasons, indoors and outdoors. There is everything you need here: swimming, padel, tennis, beach volleyball, hockey and roller skating.
If you prefer swimming, you can opt for the central Gonzaga Sport Club with its six-lane 25-metre pool. And for more options, visit the Aspria Harbour Club, a small oasis in the city with 18 tennis courts, an outdoor Olympic-size pool and a 25-metre indoor pool.
Where to play sports in Genoa
Genoa has two highlights that may be just right for you.
The Cristoforo Colombo Beach & Paddle Club awaits you with two beach volleyball and tennis courts that are covered in winter, and two padel courts with synthetic grass.
If you're interested in tennis, however, we can recommend the Tennis Club Genova 1893 with its six clay courts and a greenset court.
Where to play sports in Florence
In Florence, we recommend the Olympus Club for pool activities, long beach volleyball and tennis matches, and an indoor heated court in the winter season. If you are not interested in the pool, check out the Florentia Sporting Club with its beach volleyball courts with sand from the beach and tennis courts, some of which are covered with pressostatic structures in the winter season.
Where to play sports in Palermo
In Palermo, on the other hand, we have to mention an oasis of greenery in which you can spend a few hours after work amidst tennis and beach volleyball courts, a splendid swimming pool for swimming on your own or where you can take scuba diving or free-diving courses. The Sporting Club Palermo also focuses on culture, with a calendar full of activities throughout the year including music, theatre and comedy.
All Italian cities, as you will have gathered from these far from exhaustive indications of what this country has to offer those who love sport, will give you the chance to find - even at the last minute - a sporting activity to enjoy alone or in company, perhaps before an aperitif or to start the day with a little extra energy!
