Best Golf Courses in the Algarve, Portugal

With its winning combination of picturesque beaches and sea cliffs, sunny climate, good food and cheap prices, the Portuguese Algarve has long been one of Europe's leading beach destinations. However, those same elements have made it a major destination in the growing sector of European golf tourism as well. The Algarve enjoys the largest concentration of golf courses in Portugal, making it a prime destination for a golf vacation. Yet that collection of over two dozen golf courses confuses the picture, making it more difficult to prioritize where to spend precious vacation time on what will probably be just a few rounds of golf.

Monte Rei Golf and Country Club
Monte Rei boasts an 18-hole championship golf course designed by none other than Jack Nicklaus. Unlike the majority of golf courses in the Algarve, which are located along the coast and in the central part of the region, Monte Rei is in the eastern Algarve and situated north of the major east-west highway. That location puts the truth to the "Country Club" part of Monte Rei's name, and ensures a tranquil, rural setting for a round of golf. Yet while the setting is tranquil, the course is among the most challenging in the country. The course is long (7,181 yards) and sports tricky water hazards and some of the best bunkering in Portugal. Not a single hole at Monte Rei could be described as easy, and a second course (also from Jack Nicklaus) is currently under construction there.

The Old Course from Oceanico
Once known simply as the "Vilamoura Golf Club" and now as "The Old Course," this is the Grand Dame of golf in the Algarve. The course was bought by the European golfing moguls at Oceanico, who promptly constructed a series of other golf courses around it, creating a four-course complex. The Old Course is not the most difficult of Oceanico's Algarve selection, but it has a certain timeless quality that makes it a must-play. It's the sort of place that wears its age very well, and at a first glance looks deceptively easy, yet every hole has its particular puzzle.

Quinta de Cima
Quinta de Cima is the better of the two golf courses at the Quinta de Ria resort. Designed by Rocky Roquemore, whose fingerprints are on golf across the Algarve. The course has a striking, scenic quality to it, as it is located in the middle of a national park and the middle holes enjoy a gorgeous view of the sea. Unlike de Ria, the Quinta de Cima course was designed specifically with tournament play in mind, and makes solid use of a pre-existing stream and man-made water hazards to pose challenges that even a pro golfer will find intimidating.