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Golf guide • Spain • Region of Murcia

Golf in Murcia: Nicklaus, Dave Thomas and the mild winters of the Costa Cálida

The Region of Murcia, in south-east Spain, lines up a series of modern courses less than forty minutes from its capital: El Valle and La Torre, by Nicklaus Design, Dave Thomas's Santa Elena (formerly Hacienda del Álamo), and Altorreal, the oldest, on the edge of the city. Come for golf that is easy to organise, a mild, dry winter and honest regional cooking. The best time is from October to May.

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Murcia is an understated provincial capital, set in the Segura valley amid its huerta, its orchards and irrigated gardens. To the south, the Campo de Cartagena plain slopes down to the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean. It was on this dry, flat land, among almond and olive trees and bare sierras, that the region built a series of golf resorts in the 2000s, designed mostly by Dave Thomas and by Jack Nicklaus's teams.

The result is resort golf, consistent and well kept: wide fairways, lakes, white-sand bunkers and raised greens, with ochre hills rather than the sea as a backdrop. The climate does the rest: more than 3,000 hours of sunshine a year, barely 280 millimetres of rain and winter afternoons around 17 °C. You play in short sleeves in January while northern Europe sits under the rain.

Most golfers stay in the resort hotels, a few minutes from the first tee, and keep an evening or two for the city: its Baroque cathedral, its tapas squares and its Michelin-starred tables. Four to six nights allow three or four courses without rushing, with a day for Cartagena and its Roman theatre.

The courses

Green ringed by white-sand bunkers, dry grasses and ochre limestone cliffs in the morning light

El Valle Golf

  • Architect: Nicklaus Design
  • 18 holes
  • Par 71

Twenty-five minutes from Murcia, El Valle is the region's most spectacular course. Nicklaus Design laid it out in an almost desert landscape, where the green of the fairways stands out against ochre earth and limestone outcrops. The design is strategic: 115 bunkers, raised greens guarded by large bunkers, and two lakes beside the 13th and 14th, then the 17th and 18th. Par 71, 6,185 metres from the white tees. It hosted the Spanish Professional Championship in 2009. For players who like to vary their shots.

Official website

La Torre Golf

  • Architect: Nicklaus Design
  • 18 holes
  • Par 68

La Torre, a par 68 of 5,403 metres, is played at the heart of a residential resort in Roldán, about twenty minutes from Corvera airport. Nicklaus Design created a Florida-style layout here: wide fairways, large lakes, palms and bunkers in abundance. Its six par 3s and turtle-back greens, which send any misjudged ball towards the hazards, make it a test of precision rather than power. It hosted the Spanish Senior Professional Championship in 2011. Ideal for a first day or for a group of mixed abilities.

Signature hole. The 11th, a 170-metre par 3, is one of the hardest holes on the card: the iron shot has to hold a domed green without ending up in water or sand.

Official website

Santa Elena Golf Club (Hacienda del Álamo)

  • Architect: Dave Thomas
  • 18 holes
  • Par 72

Long known as Hacienda del Álamo, the Fuente Álamo course, now Santa Elena Golf Club, is the work of Dave Thomas. At 6,724 metres from the back tees for a par 72, it is one of the longest in Spain. Two loops of nine holes, each with two par 3s and two par 5s, wind between almond and olive groves, lakes and waterfalls, surrounded by natural terrain. Six practice holes complete a well-equipped academy. The course lies between the beaches of Mazarrón and Cartagena, about twenty minutes from the airport.

Signature hole. The 18th closes the round with a par 5 with water all down the left of the green: you are deciding whether to attack right to the end.

Official website

Golf Altorreal

  • Architect: Dave Thomas
  • 18 holes
  • Par 72

Opened in the early 1990s on the hills of Molina de Segura, about ten kilometres north of the capital, Altorreal is Murcia's historic course, long predating the resorts of the Campo de Cartagena. Dave Thomas designed a rolling par 72 here, more intimate than the big layouts to the south, where every hole has its own personality and you will use every club in the bag. It is the most practical choice if you are staying in the city, and a lively club, with its own restaurant and golf school.

Official website

Where to stay

Ona Hacienda del Álamo Golf & Resort

Right on the Santa Elena course at Fuente Álamo, the resort hotel lets you play without getting back in the car, with the academy and the tennis and padel courts close at hand. Ask for a suite with a private pool, the only category that has one, and dine at the clubhouse restaurant, which looks out over the course. The large outdoor pool opens in summer only. La Torre and El Valle are about half an hour's drive away.

Hotel Termas (Balneario de Archena)

On the banks of the Segura, the Romans were already using these warm springs. Opened in 1868, the Hotel Termas gained its neo-Nasrid decoration around 1898: arched corridors, a great dome and a replica of the Alhambra's Fountain of the Lions. Nicasio Pérez revived the spa from 1953. The thermal baths lie beneath the hotel, reached by a gallery; end the day at the Bar Azul by the river. Altorreal is about twenty minutes away.

Where to dine

Cabaña Buenavista

Holding two Michelin stars, Pablo González Conejero's restaurant at El Palmar, just south of Murcia, sits beneath a vast reed-covered hut. The meal begins in the garden and the "Living Lab", where nearly vanished local varieties are grown, and ends on the terrace by the pond. Closed at weekends and mostly a lunch affair, it is best kept for a day off golf; do not miss the panaché of vegetables with langoustines.

La Pequeña Taberna

Opened in 1980 in a 30 m² room and enlarged in 1989, this tavern on Calle General Margallo, in the centre, remains a benchmark for Murcian cooking. Start with a marinera and a zarangollo, courgettes and onions bound with egg, then order the Huevos de Miguel, a tribute to the founder. The Tradición Murciana tasting menu covers the region, and the cellar is serious. Book online.

Marineras, rings of bread topped with Russian salad and anchovies, and grilled vegetables on a marble counter

Beyond golf

Murcia, the cathedral and the Real Casino

The cathedral, originally Gothic (1394-1465), is best known for its Baroque façade of 1736-1754 and its tower, completed in 1792. A few steps away, the Real Casino, built in 1847, hides a Moorish-inspired patio modelled on the Alhambra. The Salzillo Museum rounds off the walk with sculptures by the local Baroque master, Francisco Salzillo. In the evening, order a marinera, Russian salad and an anchovy on a ring of bread, on a terrace.

Cartagena and its Roman theatre

In the south of the region, Cartagena has a Roman theatre built under Augustus, between 5 and 1 BC, for some 7,000 spectators. It was only discovered in 1988, by chance, during building works. Its museum, designed by Rafael Moneo, opened in 2008. A fine rest day, to combine with the harbour.

The Mar Menor

This salt-water lagoon of nearly 170 km², separated from the Mediterranean by a 22-kilometre sand bar, is no more than seven metres deep. Its warm, calm waters, about twenty minutes from La Torre, are perfect for an end-of-day swim from late spring to autumn.

Pedestrian street lined with orange trees and wrought-iron balconies, a Baroque bell tower beyond at dusk

When to go

From October to May, Murcia offers one of the most reliable golf climates in Europe: in January, highs are around 17 °C, nights are cool and rain is rare. Spring is ideal, with the courses in peak condition. Summer is very hot, around 35 °C in August inland, and playable only at sunrise.

Getting there

Región de Murcia International Airport at Corvera (RMU), opened in 2019, is 25 kilometres from the city and about twenty minutes from the El Valle, La Torre and Santa Elena courses. Alicante airport, with more flights, is just over an hour's drive away. Since December 2022, the AVE has linked Madrid with Murcia del Carmen station.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best golf course in Murcia?

El Valle, designed by Nicklaus Design amid ochre earth, is the most spectacular and hosted the Spanish Professional Championship in 2009. Santa Elena (formerly Hacienda del Álamo), a par 72 of 6,724 metres, is the longest.

Has Hacienda del Álamo changed its name?

Yes. Dave Thomas's course at Fuente Álamo is now run as Santa Elena Golf Club, within the Hacienda del Álamo Golf Resort; the resort hotel is an Ona.

When is the best time to play golf in Murcia?

From October to May. Winter is mild and dry, around 17 °C in the afternoon; summer often tops 35 °C and means playing at dawn.

Which airport should I fly into for a golf trip to Murcia?

Región de Murcia airport at Corvera (RMU), about twenty minutes from the main courses. Alicante (ALC), just over an hour away, has more flights.

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

Four to six nights: three or four courses, an evening in the city and a day in Cartagena or by the Mar Menor.

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