The Best Golf Courses in Europe

The culture and customs of golf have translated readily to regions where Britain’s ancient game has caught on. Still, there’s pleasure in the subtle differences a traveler will find on a tour of European courses. Here are some Continental outposts to consider, along with icons of Ireland and the UK, each chosen for their quality as well as their proximity to Exclusive Resorts residences in the area. Here are a few of our favorite exclusive golf resorts.

St. Andrews: Kingsbarns Golf Links, St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland 

No golfer planning to spend time in The Cradle of Golf needs any prompting to play The Old Course. Even the choice offered here, Kingsbarns, is self-evident. An instant classic when architect Kyle Phillips gave it his sign-off in 2000, the course is one long ode to the sea. There are ocean views on every hole and the very ground you walk on mimics the rolling, cresting contours of the briny deep. 

Drive time from residence — The Eden Club: 25 minutes 

Tuscany: Royal Golf La Bagnaia, Siena, Italy 

The finest courses in the portfolio of Robert Trent Jones, Jr. combine strategic challenge with a painterly beauty, and this 6,600-yard layout hits on both attributes. Lightly treed, it qualifies as an “inland links.” The soft-edged pot bunkers and views of medieval Siena above golden, knee-high fescue rough merely add to the experience. 

Drive time from residence — Casali di Casole: 20 minutes 

Paris: Golf de Morfontaine, (Grand Parcours) Senlis, France 

Considered one of the world’s finest and most picturesque parkland golf courses, the “Grand Parcours” 18 at this historic, 27-hole club was carved from rolling woodland in the 1920s by Cambridge-educated Tom Simpson and brilliantly restored some 80 years later. The look and feel of the golf landscape is all of a piece, while the hole variety and the array of shots you’ll need to score well are manifold.  

Drive time from residence — The Peninsula Paris: 50 minutes 

London: Walton Heath (Old Course), Tadworth, Surrey, UK  

This romantic, heath-country landmark is famed for patches of heather in a deep amethyst hue, stacked-sod bunkers of lovely proportions, firm fescue to hit off, and a wide Surrey sky above its tree-dotted landscape. Walton Heath dates to 1904, hosted the memorable 1981 Ryder Cup, and owns a long tradition of warm welcomes to the visiting golfer. 

Drive time from residence — Taj 51 Buckingham Gate: 60-75 minutes 

Ireland: Golf the Emerald Isle (Experience Collection) 

The best way to offer golf guidance for this beloved destination is from Lahinch and Ballybunion down through Tralee, Dooks, Waterville, and Adare Manor. It’s all the golf and dune-topped beauty a lover of the game could wish for. 
 

Barcelona: Royal El Prat Golf Club (Pink Course), Barcelona, Spain 

Located a half-hour north of the city, Royal El Prat is a 45-hole complex whose 18-hole Pink Course is the star of the show. Its dramatic mounds and dazzling bunker patterns are the work of Greg Norman, who brought a visually bold design approach. Attention to fine detail is obvious throughout, even in the course’s grooming and maintenance.   

Drive time from residence — Casa Oller: 35 minutes 

Cote d’Azur: Golf Course du Roquebrune, Roquebrune-sur-Argens, France 

Routed in skillful fashion over a relatively compact parcel of excellent terrain, this Michel Gayon-designed course provides plenty of challenge to go with its inspiring vistas. Well located between Cannes and St. Tropez, Roquebrune’s fairways have good bones and nice movement, with many of their centerlines pointing to alluring distant features, framing a golfer’s targets gracefully. 

Drive time from residences: 40 minutes from Villa la Colline; 60 minutes from La Retraite  

Lake Como: Golf Club Villa d’Este, Montorfano, Italy 

While the challenges of this tree-shaded hideaway derive not from length but from narrow corridors, Golf Digest has ranked the course No. 2 in Italy and players across the skill spectrum sing its praises. Take in your Lake Como views from the clubhouse and surrounding lawns, because the golf experience is woodland all the way. 

Drive time from residence — Villa Pendido: 45 minutes