Preregistration information on our classes can be found through the Offerings page, or via the Locations page.

You can also subscribe to our Monthly Newsletters to be notified of new classes.

To take a lesson or get into any of our programs, including free programs, you can Register online in one of our Registration forms on the specific page for the specific class.

– The exception is for our classes that we offer through the Alexandria City Parks and Recreation department. For those classes our webpages will have links to the Alexandria City RPCA website for Registration.

Some of our offerings may have a Signup form rather than, or in addition to, a Registration form.  Examples include:

– Player grouping is a signup form

– The Positively Tennis Academy use a 2-step process where you signup before you Register.

Early registration for any of our group classes is a good idea as these many of our classes fill quickly.

Payments

You can see payment types and also pay for privates, semi-privates, family privates and self-formed groups from here on our Payments page. 

All credit card payments to us are processed by the security of PayPal. We never receive your financial information such as credit card numbers.

We use Google Calendar invites to integrate several things, including an additional means to communicate with you if a weather cancellation or some other unforeseen event occurs. 

– It also lets us and you know that the court is reserved (when that applies).  

– We can sometimes email you through the calendar when your coach is traveling or already on the courts.

– If you use the calendar invitation you can also use it to send us an email.  

The calendar invite you receive is for your convenience if it is useful to you, or you can disregard and/or delete.

Fixed Price / Fixed Schedule programs are exactly as they sound.   The schedule for a certain number of classes is prescribed, and the cost for the entire set of classes is also prescribed. 

– We may use Fixed Price / Fixed Schedule programs, for example, when we only have the courts available for a certain number of weeks.

Private classes and most Self-Formed Groups are Flex programs.  They are scheduled with your coach at the time and place you agree on.

Beginners and children should come to the courts a few minutes before lesson time and be ready to walk on the court at the scheduled start time, in appropriate non-marking athletic/court shoes. 

Intermediate and advanced players should be warmed up before coming onto the courts.  Ask your coach if you need to upgrade your warm-up routine, or to give you a warm-up routine to do.

Remember to wear clothes appropriate for exercise in the environment – outdoors or indoors.

Bringing water is recommended.

For outdoor classes remember to also consider sunscreen, sun glasses and/or a hat.

For a child’s first lesson, if he/she has a junior racquet already they should bring it; or she/he can borrow one of ours and we’ll advise you regarding what size of junior racquet to buy.

There are 4 common sizes of kids racquets. We will evaluate you/your child’s ability to handle a racquet’s size, weight, balance and stiffness based on you/your child’s size, strength and stroke tendencies/playing style to recommend what size and characteristics of a racquet may suit you best.

Junior racquets (19”, 21”, 23” and 25”) are available for purchase with class registration if desired. A general guideline for a child and their junior racquet is that if they stand upright with their hands at their sides, the racquet on end will come up to about their finger tips.

We are happy to discuss racquets, gripping and stringing with you.  

For adults, you need to bring your own racquet after the first class, if you have one.

The first racquet you purchase should be inexpensive, assuming you are a beginner.  An adult racquet should cost less than $50 for a 27-inch adult beginner racquet, and commonly less than $30.  You can get a beginner racquet about anywhere, including Walmart, Target, Dicks Sporting Goods, or Amazon.  

If you are an intermediate player and ready to purchase a new racquet, we recommend that you demo racquets.  Contact us and we’ll give you ways and methods to demo racquets effectively and efficiently.

Adult racquets (27” or longer) come in various grip sizes, the most commonly sold in the US is 4 3/8 inches, or a number 3. If you have larger or smaller hands than average you can go up or down a couple sizes, typically as high as number 5, or as low as number 1. A general guideline is that when your hand is wrapped around your grip you should be able to fit the index finger of your other hand between the end of your ring finger and your palm.

If you are ready to buy a more expensive racquet, e.g. $150 to $300, we suggest that you Demo some racquets.  Talk to your coach about what types of demo racquets to get and how to test them.

Here are some links to reliable demo programs (these all open in a new tab in your browser)

Tennis Zone Plus in Northwest DC

Tennis Warehouse (Online)

Tennis Express (Online)

It is better to come late than not at all. If you know you will miss your class or arrive late the instructor will appreciate being told before class, ideally at least a day in advance.  Class plans my change based on attendance.

Our outdoor classes may be subject to weather cancellation in case of rain, high winds, lightning or other extreme conditions. However, our classes are not pending perfect weather.  

We will strive to provide registered class members notification of status for outdoor group classes as early as possible.  In the summer we try to notify of cancellation email at least an hour before class time.  In the colder months we rely more on the forecast and try to decide and notify 12 to 24 hours in advance.  You can always check with your coach.  

Example: It can be raining at your house, but may not be raining on the courts; or, it can be raining at the courts, but if the courts are not wet enough to pose a danger (pending the activities and the students) then the class may be held.

The heat, humidity and air quality can all be issues in the Northern Virginia region during the summer. 

In the summer we work to only cancel classes based on actual conditions as much as possible; in the winter we are more likely to cancel classes based on the forecast of cold, windy or wet weather.

In cold weather, it is comfortable for performance-material clothed players to play in calm sunny days in the 40s, or calm overcast days in the low 50s.  However, most balls lose their bounce in the 40s unless they are kept warm by the sun or by your hitting or your pocket.  Tennis lessons may not be offered in these conditions pending the coach and the players inputs.

We are working to extend our ability to teach down to the calm low 40s with work-around process for the balls that are more applicable to some players/classes than others.

You can see our complete weather policy here. 

For a Fixed Schedule and Price Program, if you know in advance that you/your child will need to miss the first session or two of a class series you may be able to enroll in advance at a pro-rated amount equal to the remaining number of classes. You will have your spot reserved by registering in advance.

Students may enroll in a series of classes already in progress for a prorated rate if there is room in the desired class.

For fixed length/fixed price programs we like to give your second (and third…) enrolled family member a discounted rate, however the option to do so may depend on the class sponsor and the business arrangement we have with them.

Contact us for more information.

As Fixed Price/ Fixed Rate Programs are frequently grouped in a series or set such as 4, 6, or 8 lessons.  If you know in advance and let us know when you register for a series of classes that you will miss “a week” you may be eligible for a prorated rate. A class would need to have registered beyond minimums before we could prorate. After the fact class misses are not granted a refund, but we do have a general satisfaction guarantee policy.