There is a common misconception that the only difference between regular volleyball and beach volleyball is that the later is played at the beach. The game is very similar and uses the same type and size of ball, but a beach volleyball team consists of only two players.

Despite the name, a beach is not required at all. The game became popular in the sand along the beaches of California in the 1920's and has continued to grow. It is now an Olympic sport and many of its professional players have become celebrities. In the professional game, there are some slight rule variations concerning the use of fingertips, but they are not of much concern to the casual player.

The Date Activity

There are few places that are better to take a date, or indeed to meet a potential date, than the beach. There are several reasons that make this so. The warm weather and the fresh ocean air make the beach ideal for the active person. The list of aquatic sports and things to do in the water is long and varied. Bathing suit fashions can not be discounted either as a spur to romantic ideas.

Beach volleyball takes its place along all the other outdoor activities that can make a day at the beach memorable. All you really need is a couple of willing bodies, a net of some sort, and a ball. There are few thrills quite the equal of a bikini clad young lady jumping to knock the volleyball back into your face.

On Your Own / With Friends

The official rules of beach volleyball do call for teams of two, but that pick up game at the beach doesn't necessarily have to be restricted to two people. There are some that might argue that if you have more than two players per side, you are not really playing beach volleyball. They will argue this even if you are in a bathing suit, barefoot, and on the sandy court. Well, they may be right, and you can save a lot of trouble by yielding the point, and then go have fun. That is what beach volleyball is all about anyway. You can play it with any number of people, and you can play it just as easily on a sandy field in Kansas as on the beach in San Diego. The only real rule is to have fun and get a little exercise.