Escape the Winter: Top 5 Golf Trips

If you want to keep playing golf this autumn and winter, here’s five fantastic golf resorts offering you an escape route to sunshine. 

West Cliffs Golf Links

Obidos, Portugal (50 mins north of Lisbon Airport)

Golf course

West Cliffs is rated by All Square as the second best course in Portugal. Opened in 2017, it’s a pure links layout which runs alongside the coast with stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean. Rolling sand dunes mix with coastal vegetation, while the pine groves overlook the ocean from above. This exclusive location challenges you to tame the forces of nature.

Resort 

West Cliffs is the newest addition to the five-star Marriott Praia D’el Rey Golf and Beach Resort. The resort offers two styles of accommodation: 179 bedrooms (including nine opulent suites) and luxurious 1-4 bedroom self-catered apartments. The resort boasts an array of world-class amenities, including an exceptional spa.

Costa Navarino

Peloponnese, Greece (40 mins east of Kalamta Airport)

Golf courses

The resort has two golf courses: The Dunes, designed by Bernhard Langer and rated by All Square as the best golf course in Greece, and The Bay. The best two layouts in the country, both play alongside the beach with spectacular sea views and tall dunes. They are both enjoyable for players of all levels with plenty of risk-reward holes.

Resort

Costa Navarino, resting on a breathtaking stretch of sandy beach along the coast of the Ionian Sea, has two five-star accommodation options. The Westin Resort has more than 400 rooms and suites in the form of low-rise villa clusters, and The Romanos has 321 modern, elegant rooms, suites and villas. There’s a luxury spa and 13 restaurants.

PGA Catalunya

Girona, Spain (10 mins south of Girona Airport)

Golf courses

The resort has two golf courses: The Stadium, venue for the Spanish Open in 2014 and rated by All Square as Europe’s fifth best golf course, and The Tour. These are two beautiful par-72 parkland/woodland layouts. The Tour is slightly easier with wider fairways. Both have pretty lakes and are framed by pine tress and the Pyrenees mountains.

Resort

The golf courses are on the same site as the five-star Hotel Camiral. Built in low rise art deco style, it has 144 stylish rooms with views over the golf course or driving range, as well as a luxury spa.

Finca Cortesin

Casares, Spain (25 mins from Gilbraltar Airport & 90 mins from Malaga Airport)

Golf course 

The golf course at Finca Cortesin is rated by All Square as the fifth best in Spain. It’s an immaculately manicured 18-hole championship-level layout which hosted the Volvo Match Play Championship three times. Extremely enjoyable to play, each hole has several tee boxes that cater for all levels of golfers.

Resort

Finca Cortesin is regarded by many as the most luxurious golf resort in Spain. It’s situated between the beautiful coastal towns of Sotogrande and Marbella, on the road to the beautiful mountain villages of the Casares. Built around two main palatial courtyards, the hotel boasts 67 spacious, light-filled and exquisitely designed suites and an opulent spa.

Quinta do Lago

Algarve, Portugal (20 mins west of Faro Airport)

Golf courses

The three courses at Quinta do Lago all offer excellent quality golf. The South, North and Laranjal layouts are all of outstanding beauty, and each offers a different test. They are rated by All Square as the 8^th, 12^th and 15^th best courses in Portugal respectively. There is also the Paul McGinley Golf Academy and southern Europe’s only TaylorMade Performance Centre.

Resort

The Magnolia Hotel at the resort offers a stylish, boutique experience with 74 elegant rooms and seven vintage cabin-style cottages. The resort as a whole was awarded ‘Europe’s Best Golf Destination’ at the World Golf Awards in 2015 and 2016.