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Golf guide • Portugal • Algarve

Golf in Lagos: the western Algarve, between golden cliffs and dunes

Lagos, a historic port in the western Algarve, has four courses within twenty minutes of its old town: the 27 holes of Palmares, redesigned by Robert Trent Jones Jr. above the bay, Boavista, Espiche and Penina, the region's first championship course, designed by Henry Cotton. Golfers come to play facing the Atlantic and dine in a town on a human scale, ideally from February to May and from September to November.

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Lagos closes off the Algarve to the west, where the coast of big resorts gives way to ochre cliffs and coves. It is a port town before it is a resort: Henry the Navigator spent most of his life here, Gil Eanes sailed from here to round Cape Bojador in 1434, and it was the capital of the Algarve from 1576 until the earthquake of 1755. The 16th-century ramparts still enclose the old town, its cobbled lanes and the church of Santo António, gilded from floor to vault.

The golf is played all around, never far away: Boavista is ten minutes off, above Porto de Mós beach, Palmares a quarter of an hour away on the far side of the bay, Espiche and Penina around twenty minutes. Four courses of very different character, from links in the dunes to a tree-lined 1960s parkland, enough to fill a week without playing the same first tee twice. From several of them, the Serra de Monchique closes the horizon to the north.

It is also a real town rather than a mere holiday complex, with its old quarter and a marina from which boats leave for the grottoes of Ponta da Piedade. Four to seven nights let you play three or four courses while keeping a day for the coast. In the evening you dine in town, on foot, after a last drink overlooking the bay.

The courses

Fairway sloping towards an estuary and a beach, white sand bunker, marram grass and almond trees in blossom

Palmares Golf

  • Architect: Frank Pennink; Robert Trent Jones Jr. (2010)
  • Opened 1975
  • 27 holes

Laid out by Frank Pennink in 1975 between the bay of Lagos and the Alvor estuary, Palmares was reworked in 2010 by Robert Trent Jones Jr., who took it to 27 holes in three loops of nine. Alvor, on the higher ground, plays as parkland among the trees; Lagos mixes lakes and parkland before dropping towards the dunes; Praia is a true links by the sea, in the sand and the wind. The club promises an ocean view from 90% of its tees. A varied course for every level, one you can replay without tiring of it.

Signature hole. On the Praia loop, four holes run along the shore: two fine par 3s and two demanding par 5s, played at the ocean's edge.

Official website

Boavista Golf & Spa

  • Architect: Howard Swan
  • Opened 2002
  • 18 holes
  • Par 71

Designed by Howard Swan and opened in 2002, Boavista is the course closest to town, ten minutes by road, above Porto de Mós beach. A par 71 of 6,167 metres from the back tees, it first climbs to the highest point of the estate, where the 9th tee opens onto the bay of Lagos to the east and the Serra de Monchique to the north, then drops back down to the lakes and little bridges of the homeward stretch. The course runs through a residential estate, but the terrain makes for a lively round, ideal for a first day.

Signature hole. At the top of the course, the par-3 6th and the par-5 8th both require you to carry the ball over a ravine.

Official website

Espiche Golf

  • Architect: Peter Sauerman
  • Opened 2012
  • 18 holes
  • Par 72

Begun in the 1990s and only opened in 2012, Espiche is the work of South African Peter Sauerman, in an ecological reserve west of Lagos. A par 72 of 5,890 metres: few bunkers, narrow fairways, streams and lakes, olive, fig and almond trees, and a property development kept well away from the course. The views take in vineyards and the Serra de Monchique. The clubhouse, which has won architecture awards, is built on the foundations of an old farm, with its stones. A pleasant course to walk, for those who prefer countryside to sea.

Official website

Penina – Sir Henry Cotton Championship Course

  • Architect: Henry Cotton
  • Opened 1966
  • 18 holes
  • Par 73

The Algarve's first championship course, designed by Henry Cotton, three-time Open champion, and opened in 1966 between Portimão and Lagos. Cotton laid it out on former paddy fields, digging streams and ponds and planting more than 360,000 trees and shrubs. A par 73, with ditches and raised greens that catch out even the most cautious, it has hosted the Portuguese Open ten times. Around twenty minutes from Lagos, it is the historic round of the trip, the one to keep for the day your swing has settled in.

Official website

Where to stay

Casa Mãe

A once-abandoned estate enclosed by stone walls a short walk from the old town, taken on by two London friends and neighbours, Christian Kraus and Veronique Polaert. Ask for one of the five suites in the 19th-century house rather than a room in the new building; lunch is at Orta, the restaurant supplied by the estate's kitchen garden. You walk back from dinner, and Boavista is ten minutes away.

Boutique Hotel Vivenda Miranda

A small hotel set on the cliffs above Porto de Mós beach, seven minutes from the centre and close to Boavista. The rooms, few in number, are each decorated differently, in traditional Portuguese or bohemian style. Ask for a Deluxe sea-view room rather than the garden side, and keep one evening for the Mirandus restaurant at sunset, facing the Atlantic.

Palmares Signature Apartments

Contemporary apartments at the heart of the Palmares estate, between the course, the Alvor estuary and the long beach of Meia Praia, 700 metres away. Designed for longer stays and an adult clientele, they offer views of the coast and the first tee a few minutes away. Plan on a car: the old town of Lagos, where you will dine, is almost four kilometres off.

Whitewashed house with blue windows, a pool, bougainvillea and an olive tree in a stone-walled garden

Where to dine

Avenida

The restaurant of the Lagos Avenida hotel, recommended by the Michelin Guide, facing the marina. Dutch chef Roeland Klein serves tasting menus and an à la carte menu where seafood sits alongside dry-aged meats from El Capricho. Ask for the counter in front of the open kitchen. Smart dress required, no beachwear.

Casinha do Petisco

A handful of tables in an old-town lane, Rua da Oliveira, with a family in charge: the father in the kitchen, the mother and son out front. People come for the cataplana, served in its copper pan; order the mixed one, prawns and clams, billed for two but enough for three. Closed on Sundays. Book in person on your first evening or queue before opening.

Gecko

The restaurant in the Espiche clubhouse, an award-winning building by architect Nadine Berger, with a terrace looking over the course and the Algarve countryside. Chef Elisabete Oliveira cooks Algarve recipes through the seasons. Breakfast is served from 8am, in time for an early tee time, and lunch until 6pm, but there is no dinner service.

Beyond golf

Ponta da Piedade

South of town, the headland of Ponta da Piedade lines up golden rock cliffs some twenty metres high, arches and stacks rising from pale green water. Several grottoes can only be visited by boat, departing from Lagos; the lighthouse dates from 1913. Go early in the morning, when the light skims the stone and the sea is still calm.

The town of the Discoveries

In the old town, the church of Santo António hides behind a sober façade an interior covered in 18th-century gilded woodwork and azulejos; the regional museum adjoins it. The fort of Ponta da Bandeira, completed in 1690, guards the harbour entrance. Nearby, the Mercado de Escravos building is a reminder that Lagos was, from 1444, the first African slave market of modern Europe.

Meia Praia and the Serra de Monchique

East of the harbour, Meia Praia unrolls one of the largest open bays in Europe, with calm water well suited to water sports, below Palmares. For a day off golf, the roads north climb towards the Serra de Monchique, visible from the tees at Boavista and Espiche, and to Silves, the first capital of the Algarve.

Golden rock arch above pale green water, a small fishing boat passing beneath the cliffs

When to go

Golf is played all year round. Spring is the best season: the almond trees blossom in early spring, and from March to May highs rise from 17 to 22°C. Autumn is just as pleasant, still 26°C in September and 22°C in October. Summer, at 27 to 28°C, is dry and very busy: tee off early. Winter remains mild, around 15°C, with most of the year's rain.

Getting there

Faro airport (FAO) is 85 kilometres away, an hour and five minutes on the A22 motorway. Lagos is also the western terminus of the Algarve railway line, which links it to Faro. From Lisbon airport, allow around three hours by road. A car remains essential to reach the courses.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best golf course in Lagos?

Palmares, for its 27 holes redesigned in 2010 by Robert Trent Jones Jr. and its seaside Praia loop. Penina, designed by Henry Cotton and host of ten Portuguese Opens, is the historic course of the area.

How many golf courses are there around Lagos?

Four courses within twenty minutes of the old town: Boavista (ten minutes), Palmares (a quarter of an hour), Espiche and Penina (around twenty minutes).

When is the best time to play golf in Lagos?

From February to May and from September to November. Summer is hot and very busy; winter remains mild, around 15°C, but wetter.

Which airport is best for a golf trip to Lagos?

Faro airport (FAO), an hour and five minutes by road on the A22. Lisbon is around three hours away.

How many days do you need for a golf trip to Lagos?

Four to seven nights: enough to play all four courses without rushing and keep a day for Ponta da Piedade and the old town.

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