Costa del Sol Golf Holidays
by Gerry Kerkhof
The Costa del Sol is one of Europes top golf destinations attracting vast numbers of golfers from all over Europe. With Malaga Airport serving as a gateway to over 60 courses which lie within an hours drive away the popularity of the so called Costa del Golf has never been greater.
Most arrivals are from northern Europe who make the most of the age of the budget airline and head down to the south of Spain for a few days where they rent a car and play several courses over a few days before heading home. With over 300 days of sunshine a year this short golfing break is a year round option. In fact with the oppressive heat of the peak summer months it is now most common to select off season golf holidays when flights are cheap and there are plenty good deals on accommodation ranging from luxury villas to self-catering apartments.
Golfers of all abilities will find Costa del Sol Golf Courses to suit them ranging from straightforward 9 hole courses where you can arrange to have lessons with the resident professional to the daunting Valderrama course which was home to the Ryder Cup in 1997 and now hosts the annual Volvo Masters.
There are courses east of Malaga with several new ones being constructed so if youre heading to the Nerja area for your holidays youll never be far away from a course. However, if youre coming out specifically for a golf holiday then you really ought to head west of Malaga where youll be spoilt for choice.
Deciding on where to stay for your golfing holiday is not a simple decision. First stop as you head west from Malaga is Torremolinos. Forty years ago Torremolinos was a quaint fishing village but then tourism arrived and it expanded in all directions to reach concrete jungle proportions. It has fine beaches and great range of accommodation so it works well as a family holiday location from where dad can escape for a few rounds of golf during the week or two that youre there.
Benalmadena is the next resort along with all the same facilities as its neighbour but with the added advantage of a great marina area with a selection of good restaurants and bars to help you enjoy the evenings. Fuengirola is probably the most Spanish of these three neighbouring resorts, all of which provide easy access to inland courses.
The nature of Costa del Sol tourism goes increasingly upmarket as you head further west with Marbella still a popular destination with that reputation for better class tourism. Here youll find many exclusive private villas and apartments for rent as well as more affordable self catering options. Puerto Banus is the playground of the rich and famous where an evening is well spent wandering around the multi million dollar yachts anchored next to playboy Ferraris and Mercedes with Arabic number plates.
Estepona is a popular Spanish resort further west on the way to Sotogrande which is just over the provincial border in Cadiz and home to the great Valderrama course as well as Sotogrande and San Roque which are also very challenging.
As director and webmaster of Spanish-Fiestas Ltd.. Ive been travelling around Spain for many years. The insider knowledge gained has enabled me to put together one of the internets most comprehensive Spain travel websites. This article comes from our Costa del Sol Travel Guide. Hope you find it useful.
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