Spain’s World Heritage Cities are a good alternative when it comes to planning a golfing holiday. You can enjoy your favourite sport and also discover monuments that will leave you speechless. Seeing is believing: Spain is perfect for golfers who also like art and culture. Here is the proof.
Play golf with sea views or surrounded by mountains. Admire buildings with different artistic styles and stroll through streets packed with history. See for yourself just how varied Spanish gastronomy is… These are just a few of the options available on this kind of sporting holiday: those to be found at Spain’s World Heritage Cities.
Salamanca, Segovia, Santiago de Compostela, Cordoba… You have probably considered these places as perfect destinations for a cultural holiday. And for a day’s golf? They are ideal too – you will find one or more golf courses close to all these cities. In general they are modern facilities with good access and excellent value for money. What is more, there are courses to suit all tastes, ideal for experts and beginners alike. So get your clubs ready, because in Spain’s thirteen World Heritage Cities you will have the chance to discover some of the country’s most important monuments, and have fun getting over obstacles on the green.
Exploring the interior…
Several of these cities are located in central Spain. In Alcalá de Henares, just 30 kilometres from Madrid, don’t miss the University, Main Street and the birth house of Miguel de Cervantes; later, practise your swing at the Encín Golf or El Robledal golf courses. In the Castile-La Mancha region there are two further destinations: Toledo and Cuenca. In the former, you should explore the narrow streets of its historic old town, where Muslims, Jews and Christians once lived together in harmony, and later you can play a few holes at the Layos Golf Club. In Cuenca you will love its unique setting and famous Hanging Houses. For golf, you can choose between the La Vereda and Villar de Olalla courses.
If you come to the region of Castile-León, you should visit the cities of Segovia, Ávila and Salamanca. They are fairly close by, so you can discover their most emblematic monuments in just a few days: the Segovia Aqueduct, Ávila City Walls, Plaza Mayor Square in Salamanca… Furthermore, several golf courses await you around Segovia (La Faisanera, Club Campo de Tiro and Los Ángeles de San Rafael are closest to the city), three in Ávila (El Fresnillo, Club Deportivo la Almarza and Casino Abulense) and two in Salamanca (Villamayor and Salamanca Golf Course).
If you head south, to Andalusia, in Cordoba you can look back at the splendour of Moorish culture at the magnificent Great Mosque, and play a few holes whenever you like, at its Country Club. Úbeda and Baeza are monumental sites with palaces and churches built in the 16th and 17th centuries. Linares golf course is only a short distance away from these cities. In the neighbouring region of Extremadura you should not miss the wealth of monuments in the historic centre of Cáceres and, of course, Mérida and its Roman Theatre. Later, you should go to Club Don Tello.
Mountains and beaches
In the far northwest of Spain, in the region of Galicia, is Santiago de Compostela and its magnificent Cathedral, the final destination on the famous Way of Saint James. Golf Val de Rois is one of the nearby places to get out the clubs. Still in the north, but now on the eastern coast of Catalonia, you have the chance to visit Tarragona, where you can see its major Roman archaeological site. You can then choose between the Costa Dorada Club, Reus Aigüesverds, the Port Aventura Golf Club and Bonmont Terres Noves when it is time to play golf.
There are World Heritage Cities on the islands, too. In the Balearic Islands, the island of Ibiza is outstanding for its biodiversity and ancient monuments, and is also home to the Ibiza Golf Club. In the Canary Islands, on the island of Tenerife, you will find the city of San Cristóbal de la Laguna, with its unique architecture and urban layout. Close by you will find the Real Club de Tenerife. However, just a short distance away you can also enjoy the island’s other golf courses.
