HOTELS • June 2022
The world’s best golf hotels
The 150th Open (the oldest golf tournament in the world) is back again in St Andrews, Scotland, this July. Ahead of the legendary competition, we round-up the top golf hotels that will get you challenging 18-holers, plenty of willing opponents and a boost to your Avios balance. Ready for tee-off? Read on…
JW Marriott Hotel Cairo, Egypt
Among the finest green spaces in Egypt is the hotel’s Mirage City Golf Club, created by Swiss architect Peter Harradine, who has designed courses throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Test your talent on 27 holes spread over two verdant courses – the 18-hole, par-72 championship course is a favourite. The hotel is five-star-fabulous, with light, business-smart rooms, two giant swimming pools and a serene spa for massages if you’re footsore from the green. That just leaves dinner, breakfast and lunch. The hotel and the Mirage City Golf Club serve everything from Thai to Italian, steaks to sandwiches.
Holiday Inn Resort Ho Tram Beach, Vietnam
No list of top golf courses would be complete without The Bluffs Grand Ho Tram Strip, easily accessed from Holiday Inn Resort Ho Tram Beach. Two hours from Ho Chi Minh city, it’s “one of the best golf experiences in the world,” according to celebrated golfer Greg Norman. Expect views of aquamarine ripples and undulating dunes as you tee off. There’s plenty more to the actual resort, which is set in the entertainment capital of Vietnam. The spa does everything, from hydrotherapy to reflexology, and there are several must-try restaurants, including Lemongrass, which serves a very fine baby squid noodle soup.
Fairmont St Andrews, Scotland
St Andrews, Scotland, is known as the ‘home of golf’. Check in and choose between two very photogenic 18-hole humdingers, the Torrance and the Kittocks. Outbreaks of yolk-yellow gorse stand out against vast blue backdrops of sea and sky as you progress around the rolling fairways. Back at Fairmont St Andrews, afternoon tea awaits in the Atrium Lounge (the coronation chicken brioche is irresistible), followed later by lobster at St Andrews Bar & Grill. Or bed down early (the hotel has amazing Manor Rooms – aka villas sleeping eight – with golf-course views), and rise for the lavish buffet breakfast at Squire Restaurant.
Novotel Saint-Quentin Golf National, France
You’re barely 20 miles from Paris at this elegant four-star hotel in Yvelines, but you wouldn’t know it from the peacefulness of the place, situated southwest of the French capital. The views of Le Golf National, home of the annual Open de France and Ryder Cup, are unforgettable, and some Executive Rooms overlook the last four holes of the celebrated Albatros course. The 131 rooms are funky-modernist (think Scandi-cool colours). Even if you don’t partake in a spot of golf, you’ll be at home: breakfasts feature all-you-can-eat croissant supplies and the Gourmet Bar is a sociable space for wine and sharing plates.
Four Seasons Resort Nevis, St Kitts & Nevis
Nevis is the Caribbean at its most timeless and classy – and its Four Seasons property by Pinney’s Beach, doesn’t disappoint. Expect a canvas of chic, all shutters and gingerbread-trim roofs mimicking the vernacular architecture. There are studio suites with plunge pools, hillside villas with sunset views, and even a seven-bedroom estate overlooking the sea. The 18-hole, par-71 Robert Trent Jones II golf course is a real looker, all velvety and green, with a hazy aspect of neighbouring St Kitts across the waters. Amusingly it lays on ‘foot golf’ (played using a football). Oh, and don’t miss the dark rum cake with vanilla ice-cream at Mango.
Penha Longa Resort, Portugal
The Portuguese capital, as well as the postcard hill town of Sintra and the beach resort of Cascais, are all yours to discover at this rarefied retreat. In a nature reserve overlooking the Atlantic, it was once a residence for Portuguese royalty – that innate elegance shines through still, from the food (see the Michelin-glittery LAB by Sergi Arola and gourmet Japanese Midori) to the suave rooms (pick a Deluxe Natural Park View to look out over greenery and a monastery). And the golfing on the 27-hole courses? Superlative – Robert Trent Jones II’s Atlantic is ranked in the top 30 courses in continental Europe and the top ten in Portugal.
To collect Avios on hotel partners such as Booking.com UK (8 Avios per £1 spent) and Hotels.com UK (up to 12 Avios per £1 spent), click here
This article has been tagged Destination, Hotels
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