A golf holiday for two and a golf holiday for sixteen are different trips, and treating them as the same one is how people come home disappointed. A couple wants the golf to sit alongside everything else: a spa afternoon, a beach, a proper dinner, a half day
What couples actually want from a golf holiday
Most couples who book with us fall into one of two camps. Either both of you play, in which case the questions are whether the courses justify the trip and whether a day off is built in. Or one of you plays and one does not, in which case the hotel matters more than the golf, because the non-golfing partner has to want to be there too.
For the both-play couple, the recipe is walkable golf, a hotel you do not have to leave between rounds, and dinner that does not involve a 40-minute drive. For the one-plays couple, it is a spa, a pool or a beach within reach, a town worth a wander, and golf you can finish at roughly the same time the other half finishes their afternoon, so the day still feels shared. Tell us honestly which of you plays, and how much. It changes the recommendation completely.
Where we send couples: our two picks
For a both-play couple wanting warmth and a short hop, the Western Algarve is hard to beat. The golf is concentrated, the standard is high, and you are never far from the sea. Quinta do Lago – North Course is the sort of course both halves of a golfing couple come home talking about, and there is plenty around it for an easy day off. If you would rather build the trip around Lisbon instead, Dolce CampoReal Hotel at Turcifal, from
For the couple where one plays and one wants a spa, a pool and somewhere beautiful to do nothing, we point people at the South of France. Terre Blanche Hotel Spa Golf Resort is built for exactly this: serious golf for one of you, a full spa for the other, and a resort neither of you minds being stuck at. It is not the cheapest way to do it, but where the non-golfer has to be looked after, it earns its keep. If the flight itself is the sticking point, Le Manoir Hotel at Le Touquet Golf Resort, from
What a society or group trip actually needs
Group golf is a logistics problem dressed up as a holiday. The golf is the easy bit. The hard bits are consecutive tee times for 8, 12 or 16 players so nobody stands around for two hours, rooms that match what people paid for (so the man in twin number four does not feel short-changed), transfers that actually turn up, and a single person who knows the whole plan when something moves.
That is the part organisers underestimate. Book direct with a resort for a group and you become the switchboard. Every change, every dietary request, every late flight comes to you. Societies use a tour operator not for the price but so that one named specialist holds the whole thing, and you get to play in your own trip instead of running it.
Where we send societies: our two picks
For a buddies trip built around volume of golf in the sun, Spain and specifically the Costa Del Sol are the workhorses. Courses sit close together, there is range across budgets, and you can put a marquee name like Valderrama Golf Course in as the trip’s big day while keeping the rest sensible. Our pick of the bases is the Barcelo Occidental Fuengirola, where
For a society that wants the trip to feel like an event, Belek in Turkey is our pick. The resorts are large enough to hold a big group under one roof, courses such as Cornelia Faldo Golf Course are championship standard, and all-inclusive board removes the nightly who-paid-for-what conversation that drags on group trips. It is further afield, so it suits a week rather than a weekend, and the flight is long enough that you will not want to do it for three nights.
Tee times, rooming and the society day
For a group, the three things to get right early are the tee sheet, the rooming list and the shape of the big day. On tee times: tell us the group size and we block consecutive slots so the field goes out together and finishes together, which matters as much for the bar afterwards as for the golf. Leave it late and the good morning slots are gone.
On rooming: decide your singles, twins and doubles before we price, and decide how you are splitting the single supplements. Groups that sort the money rules up front never fall out over rooms. We give you one rooming list to fill in and we hold it.
Most groups make one round the big one, with their own competition and a presentation back at the bar. That side stays in your hands. Our job is to set the day up around it: a centrepiece course on the tee sheet, the slots held together so the group plays as one, and transfers timed so it runs smoothly. If the big day is the whole point of the trip, consider building it at home. The Belfry Hotel and Resort, from
Closer to home, and one point of contact
Not every couple or group wants a flight. For a serious golfing pair, Scotland and Ireland are the obvious calls, and resort hotels such as The K Club Hotel handle couples and groups with equal ease. In England, a couple who want golf, sea air and a quiet dinner should look to the Suffolk shore, where a coastal weekend at Thorpeness Golf Club & Hotel starts at
Whichever way you go, the same thing holds for couples and groups alike: one named specialist, a real golfer, handles your trip from first enquiry to your last round. We are a UK tour operator with PTS and IATA protection, and when we add flights to your trip it is ATOL protected with your money safe until you travel. You pay nothing to enquire, our Google reviews sit at 4.9, and we reply promptly. Tell us who is playing, how many of you there are, and what the non-golfers need, and we will come back with a plan built around your dates.
Frequently asked questions
Do you only book the golf, or the whole trip?
The whole trip. We are a hand-built golf tour operator, so we handle hotels, tee times, transfers and rooming, and we can add flights too. When we book flights your trip is ATOL protected with your money safe until you travel. Golf is ground-only and hand-built around what your couple or group actually wants.
How far ahead should a society book?
Earlier than most people expect. Resorts release group space and group tee times well ahead, and the best courses and the good morning slots go first. For 12 to 16 players, committing early is the difference between consecutive tee times and a scramble. Couples have more flexibility, but popular spa resorts still fill in peak months.
Do we have to pay anything to enquire?
No. There is no payment at enquiry. You tell us who is playing, how many of you there are and roughly when, and your specialist comes back with a plan and a price. You decide from there. We reply promptly and you are dealing with a real golfer throughout.
Can you plan a trip where both of us play but we still want a day off?
Yes, and we encourage it. For a both-play couple we build in good walkable golf plus a half-day or full day that has nothing to do with par, whether that is a spa, a beach or a town worth exploring. The Western Algarve and Portugal more widely suit this well, with golf concentrated enough to leave time for the rest.
Are you ABTA protected?
We hold PTS and IATA protection, and when your trip includes flights it is ATOL protected, with your money safe until you travel. We are a UK tour operator and have planned hand-built golf trips since 1981. Our Google reviews sit at 4.9 across real customers.
Come and play with us
Wherever you're travelling from, you're welcome on a Golf Planet hosted tour — a small group, a host with you from the first tee to the last, and every round, transfer and dinner taken care of. You just bring the clubs.
