Court is used

Any surface, with the exception of concrete, asphalt or tiles will do. Best is not too soft however on a regular soft sandy beach, for instance, the boules will drop dead, without rolling any further. But most beaches do have a harder part, e.g. close to the dunes, which is perfect. Very short grass will do as well. The best is hard soil, like clearings in the woods, baseball diamonds or an unpaved backyard. Some fine gravel enhances drainage and makes it more exciting and unpredictable. There are no limits as to maximum size of the court. The generally accepted minimum is 4 meter 12 ft wide by 12 meter 39 ft long. Actually the word court is a misnomer. We use it here because many people search for that term. Petanque is by nature a game one can play without a setup, sort of like frisbee. You could start one one end of a driveway, and end up at the other end, 300 ft further, when youre done. A player can toss a target ball towards a tree, to be in the shade for the next round, or into a rougher area, because thats his her favorite surface, or wherever he she likes to play. Obviously, if you want to play in your garden, and your space and or budget is limited, a rectangle is the logical shape. But we always like to convince those who are designing a larger playing area not to stick to say 6 neat independent rectangles, but rather a plain open area that fits into the surroundings. A tree here and there makes it so much more enjoyable.