Recommended Courses available on our packages with transport included. All these are full-length 18 hole courses of very high quality.
Price Guide £= very good value, ££= mid range, £££= expensive
Central Area (good for golfers staying at Vilamoura, Tavira or Albufeira)
Laguna (£)
Very open with few trees and much-loved by big-hitters, but clever sand and water traps mean your approach play has to be sharp. It is a very popular course that can be enjoyed by players on all handicaps. But it plays tough if the wind blows off the nearby ocean. One of our best-selling courses. Lightly undulating, open countryside. Easy walking.
Millennium (£+)
A varied course: There is a very attractive and challanging tree-lined section that contains a couple of the best holes in the Algarve. But there are also many holes with open fairways that invite you to get the driver out. And there is some water to spice things up. Overall, it's a very enjoyable course that has lots to keep you interested. Very popular. Easy walking.
Old Course (££+)
One of the most famous courses in Europe, tee times can be very hard to get at peak times. Some people book 12 months ahead. A thoroughly satifying course, especially for lower handicappers. Maximum men’s handicap allowed is 24. Undulating parkland.
Pinhal (£)
This is the course our customers book the most. Pinhal is the sister course to the Old Course. It is still challenging to better players, but a bit more forgiving than the Old Course, with the trees being well-spaced and the fairways wide enough for most players. It's main defence are some long par fours, where a bogey is a good score for most players. Lightly undulating parkland.
Victoria (£££)
This Arnold Palmer design was opened in September 2004 as Vilamoura’s flagship course, and has already hosted the Golf World Cup. It's a long course with fast, open fairways that beg you to get the driver out of the bag. There isn't a weak hole on the course. Lower handicappers will enjoy Victoria very much, but higher handicappers will get round okay if they use their heads, and older players have the option of playing off senior's tees. Open countryside. An easy walk.
Vila Sol (££) (27 holes)
Arguably the best parkland course in Portugal, and 3 times host to the Portuguese Open. The course is shaped by attractive umbrella pine trees that are the course's main defence, as there is little bunkering. This is thinking-man's golf at it's best. We particularly like the way there are many interesting elevation changes, yet it is also a comfortable walk. A classic Algarve course.
Quinta do Lago (££) (36 holes)
Quinta do Lago is one of Europe's top golfing venues and an upmarket experience. 8 times host to the Portuguese open. Now divided into the North and South courses. It's undulating, and is tree-lined but without being particularly tight, as the fairways are reasonably generous and the trees are well spaced. Very fair greens. Visually stunning in places. Quality from start to finish.
Vale do Lobo Ocean Course (£££)
An inspiring course. The front nine meanders gently inland with views to the distant hills. The back nine is stunning, with greens set against the backdrop of white sand and blue sea, and we think this is among the best nines in Portugal. Expensive, but a beautiful, feel-good course, a delight to play. Links and undulating parkland.
Vale do Lobo Royal Course (£££)
An immaculate, tree-lined course, with clever bunkering and tricky greens, and demanding accuracy off the tee. The sixteenth hole, a par 3 carry over a ravine with the beach below, is possibly the most photographed golf hole in Europe. Expensive, but you will treasure that photograph of yourself on the tee at the famous 16th. Undulating parkland and cliff-top.
Eastern area (good for golfers staying at Tavira or Vilamoura)
Benamor (£+)
A popular and friendly course with some shorter par 4s to help you get a score going, before building to a strong finish. Superb greens. Great views both to the sea and the mountains. Undulating Parkland.
Quinta de Cima (££)
Named in the 2005 Peugeot Golf Guide as the best course in Portugal. A long course, designed to host tour events, but wide enough off the tee for higher handicappers. A real star, highly recommended. Set in quiet, lightly undulating open countryside, easy walking.
Quinta da Ria (££)
A highly attractive course, with several holes running along the Atlantic coast. Slightly shorter and a little easier than it's sibling Quinta de Cima, this is a great course for all levels of golfer. Rated in the Peugeot Golf Guide as joint-second best course in Portugal. Parkland and seaside, easy walking.
Isla Canela (£+)
A well-presented resort course near the sea on the Portugal-Spain Border. Orange, eucalyptus and olive trees frame the course, and water meanders by several holes. Mainly flat, so an easy course to walk.
Western Area (good for golfers staying at Albufeira, Carvoeiro or Lagos)
Alamos (£+)
Set in attractive countryside with some great views, it is refreshingly free from development. Highly strategic course with a wide variety of holes that will challenge your tactics off the tee. An excellent course to get away from it all and enjoy some really relaxing golf. Undulating countryside, on the same estate as Morgado.
Morgado (£+)
The location is a very attractive, secluded valley below the mountains, away from main roads and free of development, just a pure golfing experience. The course is open countryside, characterised by fast-running fairways and linksy-looking bunkers. It's mostly easy walking, apart from the start of the back nine, which is a little hilly. Used on the Europro Tour.
Gramacho (££)
A highly-manicured course with hardly any rough, set among an attractive villa development. It is the sister course of Vale da Pinta If you like one, you'll like the other. Used for some European Tour Events.
Vale da Pinta (££)
A course with an established international reputation, Pinta is a pretty and well-presented course that is full of interest. Off the yellow tees, it gives a relaxed but memorable day of golf for average handicappers. But there are white and also black (championship) tees for those who demand more of a challenge. A David Leabetter academy is just across the road from the first tee for your warm-up. Used for European Tour events.
Silves (£)
A course carefully laid-out to fit in with the existing Algarve countryside, and a complete contrast to the big resort courses. A varied design with lots of interest, including some great elevated tee shots. A very enjoyable course. Undulating countryside.
Palmares (££)
A famous course with stunning sea views. The first few holes are links, running by Lagos beach, before turning inland where the holes are undulating parkland.
Price Guide £= very good value, ££= mid range, £££= expensive
Our recommended golf courses for golfers staying at the Costa Caparica, Lisbon.
All these courses are on the same side of Lisbon as the hotel, so it is not necessary to drive through the city to reach them. All these courses are very good, full-length 18-hole courses.
Courses around Lisbon are busier at the weekends, so if you can play during the week, you will find the courses are much quieter.
Aroeira 1 and 2
Aroeia 1 is one of the longest-established courses in the Lisbon area, and a past host to the Portuguese Open. A classic parkland course close to the coast, designed by Frank Penninck. The famous scottish course architect Donald Steel added the more stategic Aroeira 2 in 2000. Both are easy courses to walk. These two courses are just a few minutes drive from the Costa da Caparica hotel.
Quinta do Peru
In our opinion, this is one of the finest parkland courses you will find anywhere. Every hole is a treasure, the setting is beautiful, the quality is first-rate. If you have the chance, you must play Peru - it is pure golfing pleasure. Lightly undulating terrain makes this a comfortable walk. Designed by William Roquemore
Troia
Widely regarded as one of the best courses in the whole of Europe, Robert Trent Jones' classic links is a course of some mystique, set on a narrow peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic. Sand dunes and tall Atlantic pines set the challenge. It’s hidden-away location does mean you have to make more of an effort to get there than the other courses, but you are rewarded with a stunning course by the ocean that is rarely over-crowded. A must-play for serious golfers. A comfortable course to walk, with some tee shots next to the Ocean. Not recommended for high-handicappers.
Ribagolf 1 and 2
The rising star of the Lisbon area, Ribagolf provides a classy golfing experience, aimed at attracting tour events. Although these courses are not yet well known abroad, they are a big draw for the better golfers of Lisbon. Both the courses are cleverly intergrated among mature features, such as ancient cork trees. With 3 sets of tees for men and 2 for ladies, you can play the length of course to suit you. Ribagolf 1 is the longer of the two courses. Both are a comfortable walk. Very good.
