Open Padel Data Standard (OPDS)

Q: What is the Open Padel Data Standard (OPDS)?

The Open Padel Data Standard (OPDS) is a universal, open data format designed to standardize how padel court availability is shared across the digital ecosystem. Instead of fragmentation where every booking app (Playtomic, CourtReserve, etc.) has its own closed system, OPDS provides a common "language" that allows BestPadel to aggregate that data in real-time, providing players with a single source of truth for court availability. Key benefits: For Players: See live slots from any club without switching between 5 different apps. For Clubs: Increase occupancy by showing live availability directly on search results and club pages. For Booking Apps: Reach more players by becoming a "Certified Partner" and syncing data automatically.

Question 1

What is the Open Padel Data Standard (OPDS)?

Accepted Answer

The Open Padel Data Standard (OPDS) is a universal, open data format designed to standardize how padel court availability is shared across the digital ecosystem.

Instead of fragmentation where every booking app (Playtomic, CourtReserve, etc.) has its own closed system, OPDS provides a common "language" that allows BestPadel to aggregate that data in real-time, providing players with a single source of truth for court availability.

Key benefits:

For Players: See live slots from any club without switching between 5 different apps.
For Clubs: Increase occupancy by showing live availability directly on search results and club pages.
For Booking Apps: Reach more players by becoming a "Certified Partner" and syncing data automatically.

Question 2

How do I connect my club's booking system to OPDS?

Accepted Answer

Connecting your club is a simple 3-step process that takes less than 2 minutes:

Log in: Go to your club profile on BestPadel and log in as an owner or administrator.
Booking Section: Scroll to the "Court Availability" section and click "Connect booking system".
Enter Credentials: Select your provider (e.g., Playtomic) and enter your API credentials (Client ID/Secret).

Once connected, our system will automatically fetch and cache your availability every 15 minutes. You can test the connection immediately to ensure everything is working correctly.

Question 3

Is there a cost for clubs to use OPDS?

Accepted Answer

BestPadel does not charge commission on bookings driven through OPDS.

The standard is designed to help the community grow. When a player sees an available slot on BestPadel, they click a "Book Now" link that takes them directly to your booking provider (Playtomic, CourtReserve, or your website).

By using OPDS, you get:

100% direct traffic to your booking engine.
No middleman fees from BestPadel.
Improved SEO ranking because Google sees your live, fresh data.

Question 4

I have a custom-built booking system. Can I still join?

Accepted Answer

Yes! OPDS is designed to be highly flexible. If your custom system can export in iCal format or provides a JSON API, you can use OPDS.

If you have an iCal URL (provided by many calendar-based systems like Google Calendar or specialized sports software), you can simply paste the URL into your "Booking Integration" panel, and we will sync the events as unavailable slots.

If you are a developer or have a tech team, you can implement the OPDS specification directly in your API. Visit /opds to see the technical JSON schema.

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