Archive for the ‘Golf holidays in Spain’ Category

No meerkat needed to find discount golf holidays on the Costa del Sol

Thursday, May 3rd, 2012

You don’t need to be a meerkat to get a cheap golf holiday on the Costa del Sol, just check out the golf holiday accommodation at PackYourClubs.com. Golf villas and golf apartments, on the golf resort or in the beach resort – we’ve got the lot. And, meerkats look away, they’re all available at ‘direct’ prices. No commissions or booking fee from us, just a great selection of Costa del Sol golf holiday accommodation.

If you want to know a bit more about what the Costa del Sol has to offer for golf holidays check out the Costa del Sol Holiday Guide at PackYourClubs.com.

If you already know the Costa del Sol as a golf holiday destination and want to find the golf villa which is perfect for you then check out the list of Costa del Sol Golf Holiday Rentals at PackYourClubs.com.

And, as if that wasn’t enough. There’s even the chance of last minute Golf Holiday Special Offers to be had, but get them soon before the school holidays booking season starts and the prices rise with the temperature!

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Bargain golf holidays in Spain and Portugal

Friday, April 27th, 2012

Reading the latest on the European debt crisis has left me pondering what next! We’re creeping (slowly) out of the bog but Spain is back in recession with a staggering 50% of under 25s unemployed and Portugal is also struggling.

So you start to think about how you can help, and it’s obvious. You need to book a golf holiday in Portugal, a golf holiday in Spain or perhaps a golf holiday to both Portugal and Spain. Genius…

But, whilst smugly congratulating yourself on your ingenious solution to help your fellow Europeans – you get a golf holiday whilst redistributing some of your money to those in need – you suddenly remember that you’re not exactly flush with cash yourself! What a bummer, and it was such a great idea.

Then your brain kicks in again and you think – If I could get a Special Offer on Golf Holiday Accommodation ie a golf holiday which doesn’t cost a fortune then it all works again.

A quick check of the Golf Special Offers at PackYourClubs shows a golf apartment for six people near Benamor Golf Club, Algarve on offer for £250 for the week, a three bedroom frontline golf villa on Bonalba golf and spa resort, Spain for €495 and others.

So, £40 – £60 per person for a week in your own golf apartment or golf villa. Unbeatable value!! Check out  the deals for yourself at PackYourClubs Golf Special Offers (and then book some…)

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Volvo World Matchplay at Finca Cortesin Golf Club 2012

Monday, March 26th, 2012

Matchplay has got to be the best competition format for spectators in golf.  Mano-a-mano, watching the battle sway back and forth, shot by shot, hole by hole until the victor emerges (in anything from 2 – 5 hours!).

It is fantastic to watch, to be able to pick a match and then follow those specific players around the course in the sunshine, watching their personal battle against each other unfold until the war is over and the victor emerges is simply heaven.

And, luckily for us, the Volvo World Matchplay at Finca Cortesin Golf Club on the Costa del Sol is back for 2012 on 17th to 20th May.

For those of you not familiar with the Costa del Sol, where have you been! This region of Southern Spain offers over 120 golf courses, all but perfect year round weather and breath-taking scenery. As a consequence it is recognised as one of Europe’s most popular golf holiday destinations.

And just South of Marbella you’ll find Finca Cortesin, one of the best golf courses in the world. This 18 hole championship course was designed by Cabell Robinson and is a massive  7,442 yards off the back tees. But it’s not just long. meandering through rugged coastal terrain with huge variations in elevation, each hole provides breathtaking views of the Mediterranean Sea and Estepona Mountains. This is a superb course.

You can of course watch the Volvo World Matchplay 2012 on the TV, but believe me nothing compares to combining a few days on a Spanish golf course with a few days watching the best players in the world fight it out for the World Matchplay crown.

Last year Ian Poulter seem to deny probability to come from behind in every round to win a nail biting final against Luke Donald. The field isn’t announced yet (it’s invitation only based on world ranking) but it will inevitably contain the current top 12 with the remaining 12 places arguably still up for grabs with a few extra world ranking points.

This will be a fantastic spectator event. Don’t miss out.

See PackYourClubs for a superb range of golf holiday accommodation on the Costa del Sol, golf apartments, golf villas and other golf accommodation for rental. Then book your tickets and add a few rounds of golf for yourself. What a way to get into the swing of summer.

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Costa del Sol golf holiday to beat the winter blues

Friday, January 27th, 2012

It may be the mildest winter in UK recorded history but mild or not a cold, wet January day in England doesn’t come close to matching the attraction of a Spanish or Portuguese golf holiday. Unsurprisingly you might be heard to utter!

But where to go?

There is much talk of how the Algarve has been forced to reduce its prices to attract customers. Bars, restaurants and golf courses all noticeably cheaper (and emptier) than last year (interestingly a survey by The Post Office Travel Money has seen the Algarve move from 10th to 1st in the list of value for money from UK popular holiday destinations). But to my mind, as good as it is, it still comes a close second to the Spanish Costa del Sol. Here the golf and après golf is just that bit more varied and that bit cheaper.

So, it’s a Costa del Sol golf holiday for me…

Accommodation was easy I perused the myriad Costa del Sol golf villas available at PackYourClubs.com and decided on a villa just down the coast from Fuengirola (I was tempted by golf accommodation actually on the golf resorts but decided to be ‘in the midst of it’).

Getting there was easy, British Airways flight was cheap and civilised, but why oh why do they have that very, very annoying policy of NO REFUND UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE. Charge me an exorbitant admin fee, but don’t just say NO, it’s annoying.

Golf was fantastic, an opening round on the Europa Course at La Cala Golf Resort where I scored an impressive (and handicap reducing) 39 Stableford Points was followed by a few beers on the superb terrace of the golf clubhouse overlooking the Asia Course. Then the next day I failed to do justice to beautiful course at the Santana Golf & Country Club, but my ‘skill’ (lots of unfair mutterings about luck) returned for a final round at Mijas Golf Club (another beauty of a course).

A short break but good company, superb courses, great off-course fun and sun on your back into the bargain. In the immortal words of Arnie – I’ll Be Back…

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Golf holidays in Spain on the Costa del Sol / Costa del Golf

Friday, December 2nd, 2011

The Costa del Sol, alternatively know as the Costa del Golf, is the beautiful 100 mile stretch of Mediterranean coastline centred around Malaga in southern Spain. This area is generally considered to be Spain’s premier golf holiday destination, a claim supported by it being named “Europe’s Established Golf Destination of the Year for 2009” in the IAGTO Awards.

Golf holidays in Spain don’t get any better than this. The availability of golf holiday accommodation on the Costa del Sol is simply vast with a range of golf villas and golf apartments to rival anywhere in the world and, as you would expect the golf here is simply fantastic. This 100 mile stretch of Mediterranean coastline offers over 60 Costa del Sol golf courses, ranging from pleasant local tracks to world class courses; no less than nine of which were designed by Robert Trent Jones senior, that doyen of golf course architects.

In the south there is Valderrama, one of five golf courses on the fantastic 6,000 acre Sotogrande estate. Whilst Valdarrama is generally considered the star of the area (recently voted “Europe’s Third Best Golf Course” by Golf World) it is given a good run for its money by other super local golf courses like its exclusive next door neighbour San Roque or Alcaidesa, the picturesque coastal Links course perched above a sweeping beach and offering fantastic views of the Rock of Gibralter.

Slightly further north, around Estepona, you have the absolutely fabulous Finca Cortesin, the home of the Volvo World Matchplay Championship. Although it only opened in 2007 Finca Cortesin has quickly established itself as one of the best courses in Spain and at 7,438 yards from the back tees it is certainly one of the longest. Interestingly, Finca Cortesin was designed by Cabell B Robinson, a superb golf course architect in his own right and a man who worked as part of the senior design team at Valderrama under Robert Trent Jones senior.

From Mijas up to Marbella there is a cluster of courses including the two 1960s creations of Golf Rio Real and Santa Maria Golf & Country Club plus the beautiful parkland layout of the Santa Clara course.

In the aptly named “Golf Valley” by Marbella it would be hard to avoid the golf courses even if you wanted to. Here you find the undulating golf course at La Quinta Golf Club, the rolling layout at Los Naranjos (another Robert Trent Jones senior design), the lovely Guadalmina Golf Resort, plus the visually spectacular and challenging Monte Mayor Golf Course plus of course the Flamingos Golf Resort where the original course has been joined by the much longer, par-73, Gran Flamingo course and the Gary Player designed El Paraiso.

Between Marbella and the regional capital of Mallaga the golf continues apace with literally dozens of top quality golf courses scattered along the coast; Rio Real, Santa Clara Golf Club, Santa Maria Golf Club, Miraflores Golf Club, Calanova Golf Resort and the former Spanish Open venue Torrequebrada (this wonderful hilly course, with panoramic sea views is the home course of local legend and Spanish Ryder Cup star Miguel Angel Jimenez).

This part of the coast is also home to La Cala Golf Resort, Spain’s largest golf complex. This massive resort, stretched across 1,000 acres of rolling terrain 5 miles inland from the Mediterranean behind Fuengirola, offers thousands of residential units, a hotel, golf clubhouse complex, a David Leadbetter teaching academy and three championship length 18 hole golf courses. All three of the 18-hole courses at La Cala Golf Resort (Campo America, Campo Asia and Campo Europa) were designed by the renown American golf architect Cabell B Robinson (also the designer of Finca Cortesin Golf Resort). All three of the courses at La Cala were constructed to the same high quality standard but they each offer a markedly different golfing experience.

In summary, the Costa del Sol has earned its reputation as being the place for golf holidays in Spain and, wherever you choose to stay along this beautiful 100 mile stretch of Mediterranean coastline, you can be assured of easy access to multiple quality golf courses.

Check of PackYourClubs.com for the best range of golf holiday accommodation on the Costa del Sol.

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Denia, Costa Blanca for fantastic winter golf holidays

Friday, November 4th, 2011

How about Denia for that winter golf holiday in Spain?

Turn up the coast from Alicante, speed past Benidorm with your eye fixed firmly forward, and you come to the coastal city of Denia.

With its laid back style, beaches and beautiful backdrop courtesy of the Montgo Mountains Denia is certainly not on everyone’s radar for the perfect golf holiday but it certainly deserves to be considered.  The area offers everything required of a great holiday destination, relaxed atmosphere, restaurants, bars, shops, beautiful beaches, water sports, golf holiday villas and lots of sun, but Denia is also a great destination for golf holidays.

Denia itself offers the fantastic La Sella Golf Course. This championship length 18 hole track was designed by none other than Jose Maria Olazabal and laid out in the grounds of the 5* Denia Marriott Hotel.  With beautiful views of the surrounding countryside offered from many of its tree lined fairways La Sella Golf Club has been cleverly designed as a balanced course which will challenge the best whilst also offering an enjoyable round the less gifted player (you won’t score well but you’ll enjoy the experience!).

A short drive further up the coast brings you to another cracking golf course the Olive Nova Golf Course. A fantastic challenge designed by the legend of Spanish golf, Severiano Ballesteros. Whilst the area is naturally beautiful anyway Severiano certainly worked his magic by designing a course that will challenge any level of golfing expertise. Numerous lakes and wide inviting fairways provide a fantastic golfing challenge, a golfing challenge course which will not disappoint.

Then, once the golf is over, you can retire to the pool of your Golf villa with perhaps a BBQ in the garden or, for a change, Denia has over 20km of beautiful sandy beaches with a variety of bars and restaurants along the coast road to sate your thirst when you’re tired of sunning yourself.

All in all, it’s hard to see why Denia isn’t on the ‘1st choice’ list of more golf holiday makers.

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Self-Catering Golf Villa or Hotel, what’s best for your Golf Holiday?

Sunday, July 17th, 2011

Golf Villa or Hotel, what’s best for your Golf Holiday?

No one can have missed the massive construction boom in golf holiday resort since the mid-90s.  Whilst there is variety, these golf holiday resorts all have a common theme – set within easy striking distance of the coast, with a top quality golf courses as the centrepiece (offering an oasis of green, a sense of peace and fantastic views) and offering numerous other leisure activities (swimming pools, tennis courts, football pitches, cycling paths, bars, shops and restaurants, plus a range of holiday accommodation to suit every requirement (budget golf apartments, stylish townhouses, luxury golf villas and perhaps a golf hotel). In fact, everything required to make the resort a ‘one stop’ centre for golf holidays and activity packed family holidays.

So, the resorts offer the environment and all the leisure activities you need for fantastic golf holidays, but with a range of holiday accommodation options which is best for you?

Self-catering Golf Holiday Accommodation or Hotel?

Most obviously your choice of holiday accommodation is dictated by how you intend to spend your holiday.

If your holiday routine is: get up, want breakfast, get ready, get to course by 11am ready for 11:30 tee time, finish golf at 4pm, couple of beers at the clubhouse then, quick change, out all night, bed by 1am, start again tomorrow.  Then all you need is a bed and someone presenting you with breakfast, so a cheap hotel is probably your best bet.

If on the other hand your holiday is more than that, if it’s more varied, or not so booze soaked, if you want more than a single room, the flexibility of catering for yourself, your own drinks available from your own fridge any time you want them, the ability to lay in until midday or perhaps laze by the swimming pool or have a BBQ, then you need the flexibility which can only come from renting self catering golf apartments or golf villas.

So, group of boozy golfers, probably hotel. All other holiday makers, self catering golf holiday accommodation is definitely your better choice – cheaper, more flexible, more of a ‘group’ holiday experience.

PackYourClubs.com, the self-catering golf holidays accommodation specialist offer a superb range of holiday accommodation at ‘direct from the owner’ prices plus an online golf tee time booking facility. PackYourClubs has a range of Golf Holiday Accommodation to suit every requirement – from budget golf apartments to 12 bedroom luxury golf villas with private gardens and private pool. From golf holiday accommodation on the beach to frontline golf villas on the golf holidays resort.

So for cheap golf holidays in Portugal or golf villas in Spain look no further than PackYourClubs.com

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La Cala Golf Resort, the best place for golfing holidays in Spain?

Monday, April 18th, 2011

La Cala Golf Resort, set in the hills overlooking the lovely little town & beach resort of Cala de Mijas (on the Costa del Sol between Malaga and Marbella), is a fantastic oasis of flowers and green rolling fairways contrasting strikingly with the mixed, sometimes dense dark green scrubland of the surrounding countryside.

Who in 1989 looked at this steep, hilly, rolling terrain with no access roads or services, land probably only fit for goat herds (of the hardy variety!) and thought “with a 1,000 acres of this I could create a fantastic, luxury resort for golfing holidays” is unknown to me, but vision of an extraordinary nature he/she must have had.

22 years later and the La Cala Golf Resort of today is a fantastic place for golf holidays offering three, very different, championship length 18 hole courses plus a David Leadbetter Golf Academy and a Par 3 Excecutive Course. In fact, following the addition of the third golf course and the latest housing development, it is now billed as the largest golf resort in Spain, having taken the crown from La Manga Golf Resort, further north in Murcia.

But, to think of La Cala Resort only as a destination for golf holidays is to miss the point. It is a residential community comprising low density developments of high quality apartments, townhouses and golf villas plus it offers a wide range of other general holiday activities including cycling, squash, tennis, swimming pools, a football academy, pilates classes… In fact I’d guess that, despite the quality of the golf facilities, at least 50% of the people on the La Cala Golf Resort are there just for a fantastic family holiday rather than a golf holiday, viewing the golf courses as simply a nice area of manicured greenery to make the resort even more beautiful.

Planning My Golf Holiday at La Cala Golf Resort

My story begins in January when I decided that, following the long winter layoff, I was in need of a ‘golf tune up’ prior to the onset of the all too short English Summer. Having pondered the options I concluded that a few golf lessons could best be tied in with a couple of games of golf all crammed into a short golfing holiday with the guys somewhere in the sun (so I could concentrate on my golf I suggested to an obviously sceptical wife). Anyway, after a bit of deliberation we decided on a golf ‘mini’ school at the David Leadbetter Golf Academy at La Cala Golf Resort then a couple of games on the one or more of the golf courses at La Cala Golf Resort.

The logistics…

Having never been to La Cala Golf Resort before I searched the web and concluded that, as good as the resort sounds, it would be best to stay within walking distance of multiple bars and restaurants in the small town & beach resort of Cala de Mijas.  There were a good selection of golf villas and apartments to choose from on PackYourClubs.com – so accommodation sorted!

Getting there was easy enough, an Aer Lingus flight from Gatwick was a pleasant surprise, seats with more legroom than BA and a cheerful, professional flight crew.

Car hire was a little trickier as I didn’t want to bother with the offsite car hire companies (even if most of them are only 400 yards from the terminal – it’s not walkable!) but the onsite ones have appalling reputations (high excess on the insurance, forced to purchase a full tank of petrol even for a  three day hire, etc, etc) but then I found Auriga Crown Car Hire – office in the airport terminal, full insurance with no excess as standard (except windscreen and tyres) and with a good reputation.

Finally, that age old conundrum of whether to take your own clubs, pay the exhorbitant airline charges and still risk damaging them or just hire a set once you get there. Having gone through the process of custom club fitting only last summer I discovered (as apparently many people do) that I needed clubs with a standard shaft, standard flex, standard lie, I guess just call me Mr. Standard… So, not needing anything out of the ordinary, I hired a set of TaylorMade R9s from ClubsToHire.com as they are exactly the same as my own clubs (except I wanted to try the new TaylorMade ‘White’ driver so I asked that that be included).

The Resulting Golf Holiday…

Aer Lingus flight arrived on time in Malaga, hire car collection in the terminal was painless but where are ClubsToHire?  It transpires that they are with the hire car companies in a strip of buildings along the exit road 400 yards from the terminal. When we arrived we were welcomed with a smile and a personal greeting (they know your flight and so are expecting you) and the clubs were there waiting for us, all shiny and new. After a quick photocopy of my credit card and passport we were off.

Accommodation definitely up to scratch and Cala de Mijas is a very pleasant little town with a lovely beach and good mix of bars (Biddy Mulligans, Fluters, The Sports Bar to name but a few) & restaurants (Spanish, Italian, Chinese) plus the usual assortment of banks and shops.

La Cala Golf Resort is an 8-10 minute drive into the hills behind Cala de Mijas (or a €10 cab ride). On entering the resort you get a great view of the La Cala Europa Golf Course and then the La Cala America Golf Course before climbing up past the hotel and, finally, arriving at the Golf ‘Centre’ comprising a Golf Reservations office, large Golf Pro Shop, Caddy Master and a lovely Bar/Restaurant with indoor area and a huge terrace (some covered some not) looking across the La Cala Asia Golf Course and down to Cala de Mijas and the Mediterranean. Fantastic.

Unlike most other Portuguese and Spanish golf resorts I’ve seen La Cala Golf Resort has resisted the urge to line every fairway with golf villas. This gives a lovely feeling of space – you look over the clubhouse terrace and you see green rolling fairways with the luxury apartments and golf villas set well back higher up the hills away from the golf course – lovely…

Our first day activity was a game of golf on the La Cala Europa Golf Course (the baby of the three). On the strength of the advertising literature (flatter ground along the river valley…) we considered walking the course but decided that perhaps we’d have the buggy. What a result! The La Cala Europa Golf Course is about as flat as the foothills of the Himalayas and the walk green to tee is sometimes enormous. It’s a fantastic course, well designed, immaculately maintained and a great challenge but we concluded that if not for the buggy they would probably have found us lying face down on the 6th fairway, clubs still on our backs, unable to move further due to exhaustion!

Following a welcome beer on the terrace after the game we headed back to our accommodation for something to eat and an early night ready for the start of our golf school the next day.

The David Leadbetter golf school at La Cala was initially a bit of a disappointment. A large ‘log cabin’ type wooden building attached to the driving range. However, it was obvious that James Jewell, our instructor knows his stuff and quickly identified the myriad of problems with my swing and set about developing a few training exercises to unwind the worst of my bad habits.

Perhaps not the best way to build on our golf swing lesson, but the afternoon was spent playing the La Cala America Golf Course. This is a lovely course, probably best described as a ‘resort’ course it offers wide tree lined fairways and less opportunity to get into trouble than the Europa Course. Some of the views from the elevated tees are spectacular and, perhaps because of the late start, we didn’t see another soul on the course. A great investment of €59.

In summary, I’d fully recommend La Cala Golf Resort for golfing holidays or even for family holidays (with or without golf) as it offers possibly the best combination of scenery, location, quality, golf courses & low density golf villas which I have seen in Europe.

My Recommendations…

Definitely look at La Cala Golf Resort

Consider hiring your clubs at Malaga Airport (check out ClubsToHire.com)

If you prefer a leisurely afternoon/evening, perhaps around your own private pool followed by a BBQ then consider a Golf Villa on La Cala Golf Resort

If you prefer to be able to walk out to multiple bars & restaurants then consider holiday rental accommodation in Cala de Mijas or Calahonda

Play:

-          La Cala America Golf Course

-          La Cala Europa Golf Course (if you have a handicap of 18 or less)

-          Santana Golf & Country Club (in the next valley but much flatter)

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Murcia, the perfect golf destination to escape the English Winter?

Tuesday, February 15th, 2011

The fantastic golfing region of Murcia is part of the Spanish Costa Calida, a beautiful region on the Mediterranean coast one hour south of Alicante and easily accessible from most UK airports with flights of a little over 2 hours available to either Alicante or San Javier airports.

This coastal area of Spain is protected by the magnificent Sierra del Puerto mountains giving Murcia its own ‘micro climate’. Here the annual average is for 320 days of sunshine with an average winter temperature of 15c and clear blue skies.

Two hours from the UK, a winter climate which is warm, with sunny days and clear blue skies, a location offering a backdrop of imposing mountains and views out across the crystal blue Mediterranean sea… not really a surprise then that the Murcian region has been for some years the top location for golf course construction in the whole of Spain.

Currently the region boasts sixteen luxury golf resorts including world famous names like La Manga, Roda, Hacienda del Alamo and the Jack Nicklaus Polaris Resort courses at La Torre, El Valle, Mar Menor and Hacienda Riquelme plus the new Jack Nicklaus ‘Signature’ Course at Alhama. In addition further courses already under construction include a number designed by golfing greats such as Seve Ballesteros, Maria Jose Olazabal and of course Jack Nicklaus.

Luxury Golf Resorts

The majority of these high quality golf courses are built as the focal point of large self-contained holiday resorts. Typically these luxury resorts offer a huge range of holiday accommodation from cost-effective duplex apartments to luxury green side detached villas plus fantastic golf and leisure facilities including swimming pools, tennis courts, cycling routes, shops and of course, multiple bars and restaurants. In fact everything you need for a fantastic family holiday with something for everyone and perhaps the option of a round or two of golf for you, or as the centre for a 100% focused golf break with friends.

Where to Stay

If there are two of you then perhaps a room in a hotel is the cheapest solution, but for families or larger groups undoubtedly the best, most flexible and cost-effective option is to rent a holiday apartment on the complex or perhaps a luxury golf villa with private pool and green side views. Whether it’s a short break for you and the guys or a holiday for all the family to include a round or two of golf, renting a golf apartment or golf villa is definitely the way to go.

Who to Go With

PackYourClubs.com, one of the market leaders, offer a superb range of golf apartments, golf villas and other golf holiday accommodation in Murcia at direct from the owner prices. Plus they offer online tee time booking at discounted prices.

Mediterranean coast, fantastic golf courses, 320 days of sunshine, huge range of holiday accommodation to suit all requirements and only 2 hours from the UK. What’s not to like?

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