Play Scotland’s most iconic golf courses and then return to your own fortress.

No sooner have you arrived at your 17th-century Scottish castle, your private staff are waiting to meet your every need; at the five-star Turin Castle, you choose the experience you wish to have. You could be greeted by the sound of bagpipes before hosting your own feast complete with highland dancing, before taking a dram of the finest Scottish whisky in front of the open fire. The next morning, after waking to views of the 20 acres of beautifully manicured gardens and the distant Angus Glens, you ready yourself for the first round of golf.

The options include Scotland’s finest, with St Andrews, Carnoustie, Gleneagles, Royal Aberdeen and Trump International anything from 20 minutes to 75 minutes away, all within easy access. Alternatively, stroll along the sandy shores of nearby Lunan Bay Beach, get taken to the very best fishing spots, or take a tour of the best whisky distillers Scotland, or indeed the world, has to offer.

To play The Old Course, St Andrews is a rite of passage for every golfer.

Watson v Seve; Faldo v Norman; Daly v Rocca; and Tiger Woods at his absolute pomp, just standing at the first tee overlooking that famously vast opening fairway takes your breath away. As the starter signals for you to begin your journey, so many moments from golf history rush through the mind and, with six centuries of golfing history, there’s plenty to choose from.

Once you do hit that, thankfully wide, first fairway, you then have the course to sharpen the focus. Aside from the whistling winds from the North Sea, and even the rain that’s compulsory to have a truly authentic experience, there’s also the double-greens; the ball-hungry bunkers, including the infamous 300 sq ft of Hell on the 14th; and the 17th ‘road hole’, one of the toughest in golf. But at least, once you’re done, you get to pose on Swilcan Bridge Nicklaus-style as you begin the home strait on the 18th.

It’s fair to say, even if you finish with a scorecard to forget, the golfing memory of playing the Old Course at St Andrews is one that will last forever.

Fishing, falconry, archery and horse riding, combined with golf at luxury Gleneagles.

The Ochil Hills are a 25-mile stretch of mountains, occasionally peaking at a cloud-piercing 2,000 ft that stretch from the Firth of Tay to Stirling, playing their role in making this part of Scotland so spectacular. Beneath the Ochils in prime Perthshire countryside you find the 850 acres of the Gleneagles estate, where you can indulge in, almost literally, an A-Z of country pursuits. Making the most of the greatest of great outdoors, you can ramble, horse ride or cycle through endless woodland, cairn, riverside and forest trails that inspired the likes of Wordsworth.

Try your hand at everything from falconry and clay or game shooting to archery, salmon and trout fishing, or even work with gundogs and ferrets. When you’re tired from the day’s adventures, you’ve got the splendour of the 232-room Gleneagles hotel, arguably the world’s most luxurious golf hotel, dating back to the 1920s era of railway resorts, now thoroughly modern, but in all the right places, still boasting character and first-class service at every turn. Later, dining at the two-Michelin-starred Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, you have the perfect day, and that’s before you tackle the three Championship course, including the two original King’s and Queen’s courses and the PGA Centenary Course, host of the 2014 Ryder Cup and 2019 Solheim Cup.

Traverse a dramatic landscape shaped by the Atlantic ocean, while taking in six of Ireland’s most spectacular courses, including the acclaimed Ballybunion.

Curling around Ireland’s west coast from Derry in the north to Cork in the south, the Wild Atlantic Way is high on the list of everyone’s road trip bucket-list, but add in six of the country’s top golf courses and it’s impossible to resist. 

The coastline’s otherworldly feel is the result of its age-old battle with the Atlantic resulting in gargantuan rock formations towering over the ocean: karst landscapes; vast swathes of sandy beach; and fortress and castles that could withstand the enemy but not the weather. Around every turn there’s another romantic ruin or chance to hop to another island or islet and the wildlife – from rare seabirds to dolphins – is abundant whichever way you look. You’ll go from fishing towns and villages that still brave the wild waters in search of the freshest seafood – ocean to oven is double quick here – to abandoned ancient settlements and iron age forts that tell a thousand stories. And, of course, the links golf here also is out of this world.

From Old Head, south of Kinsale, where you’re almost playing in the middle of the ocean, surrounded by the Atlantic, on a headline stretching two miles; west to Waterville where you’re teeing off between a stunning lake and the big blue; then to Arnold Palmer’s first European course Tralee; Ireland’s No.1 Ballybunion; future Ryder Cup host Adare Manor; and Lahinch, which has been touched by the golf architect genius of not only Old Tom Morris, but Alister McKenzie too. It’s the perfect triumvirate of iconic courses and an iconic road trip in the most hospitable country in the world.

"All that one would hope to find in the ideal golf club is in abundance at Sunningdale." Sir Michael Bonallack

There are many clubs, both ancient and modern, that are lucky enough to have two courses; courses that compliment one another, one perhaps more difficult, one easier, one for fourballs at the weekend, one for singles, one maybe long and wide open, one short but narrow. Few though would argue that Sunningdale’s pair are as fine a set of thirty six holes as you’ll find anywhere.

For many the Old is quite simply the best inland course in the country, scarcely altered since Willie Park Jnr wove it in amongst undulating heather and pine more than a century ago, yet still a test to intrigue stranger and old friend alike. Despite the advent of metal heads and titanium shafts, it still demands care and attention to get round, while at the same time charming all who play it. Above all it creates that most important of golfing emotions – the desire to play another nine holes after tea.

Had it not been for the presence of the Old next door, the New would probably be rated the best of the Surrey and Berkshire heathland courses, if not in the whole UK. It is mostly the work of the finest golf course architect this century, Harry Colt, who also just happened to be Sunningdale’s first club Secretary. The difference in the two courses is that whereas the Old flatters and charms, the New demands and examines to the point of undoing all who are not totally in control of themselves or their game.

One of Scotland's Finest

The Carnegie Links is at the very heart of the Club. An 18-hole Championship course on the shore of the Dornoch Firth, it offers players 6,903 yards of golfing genius. There are no tee times, so members are free to play as and when the mood takes them.

Whether it’s the big-bodied Macallan or the sweeter, lighter Glenlivet, Speyside in the Scottish Highlands has long been a heartland for single malt whisky, with a higher concentration of producers than any other region of Scotland.

The 485-acre Macallan Estate on the banks of the River Spey, licensed to distil since 1824, is one of the many iconic distilleries set within this Highland utopia, where forests are abundant in wildlife – from wildcats to red deer to red squirrels with golden eagles soaring above – and the waters are home to some of the world’s best salmon (wild Atlantic). Throw in visiting whales and dolphins and, of course, the shaggy-haired highland cow grazing the verdant rolling hills, and you have a picture-perfect vision of wild Scotland.

And given Scotland’s status as the home of golf, this mountainous land with its lochs, rivers and wild coastline, has naturally been put to good use on the golfing front, with courses that blend into nature, created by some of the sport’s legendary designers. Old Tom Morris has made his mark here, Donald Ross was born here, and modern names have been keen to get involved too, ensuring the Highlands doesn’t just have the perfect ingredients for golf, it has been touched by those that know the right recipes too.

The Quinta da Marinha Golf Course, in Cascais, has 18 holes with 5.870 meters of pure nature and big challenges. This par 71, designed by the legendary Robert Trent Jones, offers fantastic views over the Atlantic Ocean and the Sintra Mountains..

In this course you can really see the style of Robert Trent Jones in the elevated Greens & Tees, many bunkers in play and, as expected, some water hazards.
Every hole is different, you will have to use all the clubs in the bag and play with strategy to make a good score.

Founded in 1922, Lisbon Sports Club can actually trace its origins back to the Lisbon Cricket Club, which was established by British people working on the railways some fifty years earlier.

The club’s first course was a 9-hole layout at Alto da Ajuda, with putting surfaces made of sand and oil, but a new 9-hole course was established at Casal da Carregueira in Belas following a move there in 1964.

Another five holes were added soon after – members completed a full 18-hole round by playing holes 2 to 5 twice – before the final four holes were brought into play in 1992.

The club is historically important within the country, as it was one of four founding members (along with Oporto, Estoril and Miramar) of the Portuguese Golf Federation in 1949.

Today, the course extends to a very modest 5,309 metres from the back markers, playing to a par of 69. There are six par threes and three par fives on the card, with four of the par fours measuring less than 300 metres.

from Lisbon and passing through the pleasant and lively seaside towns of Estoril and Cascais will soon bring us to the resort of Quinta da Marinha. Located in the Sintra-Cascais National Park, sensitive development of the area has been underway now for a number of years and has already included a fine hotel and golf course.

Oitavos Dunes is a most recent addition in golfing terms to the area and was inaugurated in September 2001. The location of Oitavos Dunes is on land at the most westerly tip of Europe and the course mixes wondrous views of the Atlantic Ocean with the stunning backdrop of the Sintra Mountains. Designed by the renowned Arthur Hills, Oitavos Dunes is one of only two European courses that bear his name. Most of Hills’s courses are in the USA and as a consequence there was always the danger that he may have built a stereotypical US ‘target golf’ course. Thankfully, Oitavos Dunes has none of that feel and is a wonderful test that perfectly utilises the rich tapestries of this area of Portugal to create eighteen challenging but playable holes.

Aroeira Golf Resort is a 900-acre paradise for golfers and non-golfers alike. It's situated on the Setubal Peninsula within a glorious preservation area. Lisbon is a mere 20 kilometres to the north, so naturally Aroeira benefits from a temperate microclimate that allows all-year-round golf, which is fortunate as the resort boasts two top quality golf courses.

Frank Pennink, the master architect, designed Aroeira (Pines Classic) and it opened for play in 1972. The course measures 6,122 metres and is a traditional par 72 layout that wends its way through a dense pine forest. Aroeira (Pines Classic) was an immediate hit and was described as the “Wentworth of Lisbon” by the British press. The course hosted the 1996 and 1997 Portuguese Opens.

The Algarve has remained popular with visiting golfers for many years providing an array of golf courses to suit all tastes and abilities. Some of the courses, like anywhere, are better than others in terms of conditioning, degree of difficulty and their ability to create a desire to return after the first visit. At Monte Rei Golf Club things are very different.

The club is located away from the concentration of courses that are abundant around the Albufeira area – Monte Rei is set in the hills northeast of Tavira towards the Spanish border and the mountain setting is very special, which is evident on arrival where stunning views greet you, providing a taster as to what to expect during the round ahead.

This is one of only a few Jack Nicklaus ‘Signature’ courses in Europe and the first to reach Portugal. The layout provides an unforgettable experience and we can safely say that this is a quality golf course, which deserves its high rating in the Portuguese and Continental European rankings.

The course features an abundance of water hazards and some of the very best bunkering we’ve seen for some time.

Ranked in the top 30 Courses in Continental Europe and top 10 in Portugal, the 27-hole course at Penha Longa Resort designed by the famed Robert Trent Jones, Jr. is escapist golf at its best. With its bold drives, courageous approaches, and artful greens, it is both an adrenaline rush and a soothing journey through one of Portugal's most inspiring landscapes. Exciting at every turn, this championship challenge and host to the Portuguese Open, is a master test of variety and thrills. Penha Longa Golf Course presents two circuits: Atlantic Championship and Monastery, providing completely different experiences throughout the amazing hills of Sintra. The Penha Longa Golf Club, founded in 1992 hosts more than 100 golf members, extending the five-star service of Penha Longa Resort to members and visitors, offering tailored activities such as competitions with other golf clubs and social events.

Located between the town of Belas and Vale de Lobo – a short drive (by car) from Lisbon city centre – is the pretty golf course of Belas Clube de Campo.

Belas opened for play in 1997 and it stretches out to a healthy 6,112 metres from the tips, representing an enjoyable challenge for all standards of golfer. “Carved through valleys and over the rolling slopes of Carregueira, an area of fairly inhospitable hills, Belas was something of a tour de force for American designer Rocky Roquemore.” Wrote Michael Gedye in his Golfer’s Guide Portugal. “The rugged hillsides, with sparse vegetation, only accentuate the lush green succession of gently mounded fairways, large scalloped bunkers and areas of penal water. To build a golf course here was an achievement in itself; to produce one in such superb condition, nestling comfortably within the succession of rolling hills, is a triumph.”

Valderrama played host to the 1997 Ryder Cup matches between the USA and Europe. Team Captains were Tom Kite (US) and Seve Ballesteros (Europe). The first Ryder Cup to be hosted on mainland Europe was a tale of Europe’s five rookies who produced an impressive performance in the pairs during the first two days, giving Europe a five-point lead going into the singles. The US rallied during the final day, winning the singles 8-4, but it came down to the last match between Colin Montgomerie and Scott Hoch which ended in a halve after Monty sportingly conceded Hoch’s 15-footer on the final green. Europe 14 ½ - USA 13 ½. The Ryder Cup was played at Oak Hill in 1995 and at the Country Club, Brookline in 1999.

Everybody has heard about Valderrama “the Augusta of Europe” but its success is really down to Jaime Ortiz-Patino and a few of his golfing mates. In 1985, the industrialist billionaire bought what was then a fairly average course. He then spent an absolute fortune on it and now it’s one of the best courses in the world.

It is very rare to find a golf course on the Spanish Costa del Sol that was constructed more than 50 years ago and even rarer, that after five decades, it still provides a stern test to even the best golfers. Both are true of the Real Club de Golf Sotogrande.

Back in 1964, Sotogrande was a largely uninhabited area just north of Gibraltar, with only a few pockets of population located in a few country estates. An American citizen, Joseph McMicking, who lived in the Philippines, visited the area and could see the land's great potential, with its excellent weather, wonderful mix of countryside and proximity to the stunning coastline. In that same year he initiated what is now regarded as one of the best developed residential and tourism areas in Europe and its first golf course: Real Club de Golf Sotogrande.

Situated in the Albufera Nature Park on the shores of the Mediterranean, not far from Valencia lies El Saler, or Campo de Golf El Saler to be precise. Javier Arana designed El Saler and it opened for play in 1968 to a rapturous standing ovation. In fact, shortly after the course opened, it was acclaimed the No.1 layout in Continental Europe.

Arana built only ten Spanish courses in a design career spanning thirty years, from 1946 to 1975. El Saler, the ninth course that he constructed in a very high-class portfolio, is widely regarded as his crowning glory.

The Costa Brava is the jewel in the crown of the Eastern Spanish coastline, nestling at the foothills of the Pyrenees and escaping the intense summer heat that burns the more southern parts of Spain. Catalonia (Catalunya), of which the Costa Brava is part, feels at times like a completely different country. The local food is very different - heartier than more southern Spanish fare – and the local Catalonian language has more of a French feel.

A visit to this area of Spain is a must for any golfer as there are a number of excellent courses that all offer thoughtful design in great surroundings. The various designers have created excellent challenges that are usually in superb condition due to the cooler northern climate. The best of these has to be the Stadium course at Camiral (originally called the Green course at PGA de Catalunya), ranked in Europe's Top 100 ever since it opened at the end of 1998.

The Stadium course is the culmination of more than a decade of planning and design by the European Tour. They wanted to build their own Players Championship course to rival the PGA Tour's Sawgrass course. It has to be said that it was a decade well spent. The PGA is so good that within months of opening, it hosted the 1999 Gene Sarazen World Open and the Spanish Open in 2000. The Spanish Open returned to the Stadium course in 2009 (won by Thomas Levet) and 2014 when veteran Miguel Angel Jiménez extended his own record as the oldest winner in European Tour history winning a three-man play-off.

There are many golf courses in the Malaga area of Spain’s Costa del Sol, but there is no doubt that Las Brisas is one of the best and it’s also one of the eldest. It’s a 1968 RTJ masterpiece and Robert Trent Jones was obviously freshly inspired having just completed Sotogrande. His creation at Las Brisas is just as good, especially following its facelift in 2014 by former Robert Trent Jones Jr. associate, Kyle Phillips.

Las Brisas was one of the first courses in Europe to use bent grass and the brave decision was quickly rewarded by being chosen as the host venue of the 1973 World Cup of Golf, which saw the USA (Jack Nicklaus and Johnny Miller) as the winners just ahead of South Africa (Gary Player and Hugh Baiocchi). More recently in 1987, England’s Nick Faldo won the Spanish Open here at Las Brisas.

With more than 50 golf courses on the Spanish Costa del Sol any additional layouts need to be very special to succeed in this market. The course at Finca Cortesin Golf Club opened for play in early 2007 and has already received promising accolades attracting the serious golfing aficionado.

Finca Cortesin is set a short distance inland from the Mediterranean Sea and is routed through a dramatic valley. Cabell Robinson designed the course, which is one of Europe’s longest layouts measuring almost 7,000 metres from the tips. Robinson’s vision was to create a golf course where “no hole has less than championship quality”. This vision is rapidly turning into a reality.

The absence of property development around the course provides a welcome change and with so many great holes at Finca it’s really difficult to pick out the best. However, a few holes deserve special mention and the 3rd is a delightful par five with an approach over water. The 10th, a long down-hill par three, has far-reaching views of the Estepona Mountains and then straight after is the 11th, a long double doglegged par five which is a great test and thrilling to play.

Real Club La Moraleja was established in 1973 and the club’s original No.1 course, designed by Jack Nicklaus, was unveiled three years after its formation. The No.2 course followed in 1990, designed by Ron Kirby of Nicklaus Design.

La Moralaja’s ambitious expansion plans were financed by the sale of an 82-acre plot of land, allowing the club to develop another two courses (No. 3 and No. 4) in the nearby municipality of Algete, around 20 kilometers from its main sports complex near Madrid airport.

Moraleja (3) is a Jack Nicklaus Signature course and it’s tucked away in a secluded setting, with sand-capped fairways routed around four large lakes. A lot of soil was shifted during construction to create a little movement in a rather flat landscape and newly planted trees will add definition to the holes as they mature.

Strategy is more important than length off the tee on this course, with the Golden Bear forcing golfers to think carefully about each and every shot in order to give the player a better option for the shot that follows next.

Established in 1895 in Madrid, Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro is one of the oldest, most traditional and most exclusive golf clubs in Spain. Six years after the club's formation, nine holes were ready for play at the Hippodrome la Castellana.

In 1907, fuelled by golf's growing popularity, a new course was laid out at Cuarenta Fanegasone, one kilometre from the Hippodrome, but the city's expansion forced the club to relocate in 1912 to a much larger site in the neighbourhood of Puerta de Hierro a few kilometres north west of Madrid city centre.

Situado entre las montañas de Benahavís en el corazón de la Costa del Sol, encontramos el campo de golf de Marbella Club Golf Resort. Este campo de 18 hoyos, con notables vistas a la montaña y a la costa mediterránea, lo diseñó Dave Thomas e inauguró en 1999. Con un recorrido de 6.247 metros y unas calles muy bien delineadas, encontramos en el campo cascadas y bunkers colocados de forma estratégica. Además, cabe destacar sus instalaciones como su casa club o su restaurante

Midnight golf, cod fishing and a round on a Norwegian Arctic links course.

The dark skies of Norway’s Arctic north are the celestial playground of the most famous light show in the world, the Northern Lights. Seeing nature’s pyrotechnics is a wonder of travel worth making every effort for, but then combine it with golf at Lofoten Links and you have a very special experience. On a land famed for the Viking adventures of its former chieftan, Tore Hjort – there’s two Viking tombs on the course – you can begin a golf adventure amid a landscape carved among snow-capped Arctic mountains.

The course first follows alongside the crystal-clear icy waters of the Norwegian Sea, before heading back towards those mountains. Holes that were once protected by deep-blue water now have craggy rock borders or deep bunkers, the Troon-managed course holding signature holes for everyone. Or, as the greenkeeper puts it: ‘sixteen signature holes, and that’s being unfair on the other two’. The course is on the island of Gimsøya, part of the Lofoten archipelago far north of Norway’s Arctic Circle, an area that gives so many unique experiences to the traveller from catch and cook codfishing experiences to the most refreshing of swims in icy waters.

It’s enough of an adventure just to tackle the winding roads of the Swiss Alps, tackling hairpin bends, through valleys, past glacial lakes, ascending and descending mountain passes, with the snow-capped peaks towering above you, and breath-taking landscapes at every turn. Throw your dream car into the mix – a Lamborghini, Ferrari, McLaren, Porsche, or maybe a Bentley, Audi or even a Mini Cooper – and you’ve already got one of life’s ultimate experiences.

Now, make your first stop – having picked up your car in Zurich – the Andermatt Swiss Alps Course, right in the heart of the mountains, designed by renowned German architect Kurt Rossknech is perched at an altitude of 1,500m, Andermatt is one of the most spectacular settings for 18 holes you’re likely to find. Overnight you’ve got a luxury befitting your supercar-drive status at The Chedi Andermatt, one of Europe’s finest, then next day you’re driving the famed Furka Pass. At 2,429m, this mountain pass connects the Urseren Valley with Goms, amid more jaw-dropping Alpine landscapes before you stop off for more five-star indulgence at LeCrans Hotel & Spa, and then a round at the Seve Ballesteros-designed Crans sur Sierre Golf Course. The timber houses and emerald lakes [and golf] of Interlaken are next before cruising alongside Lake Lucerne back to Zurich.

Take in the ultimate in grande dame luxury and golf at Italy’s Lake Como.

Even if James Bond hadn’t actually filmed in Lake Como [Casino Royale], your thoughts would still turn to the glitz of the fictional hero’s world the moment you set eyes upon this most luxurious slice of Italy’s northerly Lombardy region. 

Alongside Lake Garda, Lake Maggiore and five other lakes on the southern edge of the Alps, it forms the Italian Lakes. And around its inverted ‘Y’ shape shoreline, together with its spectacular background canvas of mountains, you’ll find elegant, cobble-streeted villages; historic luxury hotels; the finest of restaurants and glamour, lots of it. Ferraris, five-star everything, A-list movie stars, and lots of people dressed like A-list movie stars.

The effortless style of Milan – just over an hour or so south – is all over Lake Como, but reflected in everything from the neoclassical villas to ancient lakeside villages to decadent hotels. The grandest of grande dame hotels is Villa d’Este where suites and rooms overlook the lake, and it’s surrounded by ten hectares of private park, and the building itself is split into two, the Cardinal Building and Queen’s Pavilion – names that reflect the regality and privilege of what lies within. Awash with art, both inside and out, the Villa d’Este is a masterpiece itself, with a history dating back to the 16th century when it was built for the Cardinal of Como, later owned by Caroline of Brunswick, Princess of Wales, and Prince Torlonia, before a Milanese consortium takes over to turn it into a hotel. Gaining national monument status in 1913, the hotel is now in its 150th season, and integral to those seasons since its launch in the 1960s, has been The Sporting Club.