Destination Canada has launched what it’s calling the first winter pickleball spa in an effort to attract U.S. visitors who are fans of both the sport and spas.
Dubbed the “DinkDunk Pickleball Spa” – which was developed with Initiative on media, Rethink on creative and Praytell on PR – its name acknowledges the pickleball “dink” shot and the cold plunge “dunks” enjoyed at spas. Among the adult U.S. population, 14% have tried pickleball at least once.
The spa features an outdoor pickleball court and high-end luxury amenities, set in a ‘winter wonderland’ landscape in Quebec. It is available as a pop-up experience from March 16 to 23. The supporting campaign, which ends Feb. 11, is running on YouTube, Meta and strategically placed DOOH boards all across New York City near pickleball courts.
“Our 2023 winter campaign invited international travellers to try something new in Canada, a destination that offers a safe space to get out of your comfort zone,” says Gloria Loree, SVP of marketing strategy and CMO of Destination Canada. “We wanted to push that message further, so we asked ourselves: what if instead of a traditional tourism ad, we created an entirely new experience?
“Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in America, especially among avid travelers. And the desire to recharge is also a key travel driver. ‘Top spa destinations’ is a permanent category in high-end travel publishers. So as the video says, ‘we mashed those two things together.'”
Loree says an extensive search was conducted across multiple provinces and territories to find the “unicorn” location, a property that was previously a spa and had the infrastructure to support the pickleball court, indoor sauna and massage studio. The court and outdoor materials were then constructed with the brand in mind.
“Canada is a winter playground, and the Charlevoix region of Quebec is a perfect example of this,” Loree says. “The area offers plenty of new experiences for international travellers to try, from skiing to snowshoeing to dogsledding to trying their hand at some French. We wanted to create a magical experience that would be truly irresistible to our target market, and given the skyrocketing popularity of pickleball and cold plunges, a luxury pickleball spa tucked away in a winter wonderland fit the bill.”
The spa has two time slots per day for four guests who get the space entirely to themselves. The experience is part of a three-night luxury vacation package that includes boutique hotels and private drivers. Sign-ups happened quickly the day the video went live mid-January, and there is now a waitlist on the campaign website.
