Tag Archives: Travel

Some Great Golf Vacation Ideas

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The day to day stress of working and life in general can make it hard to step back. However, this is important, especially if you have a family who needs some of your time too. One of the easiest ways of having some time away from the grind is through a weekend golf vacation. Spending time with your family for a few days to get away from the grind is hugely beneficial. Especially if you can enjoy the time at a golf resort and have a golf vacation at the same time.

A vacation where you get to golf can be beneficial to the whole family. Taking time out to unwind on the course, enjoy some fine dining and sight seeing is a full meal deal. But remember, not everyone in your family might like to golf. So look for vacation packages that offer a wide variety of options so that everyone can have some fun too. Even better is getting discounts if you go in with another family. But also pay attention to the vacation spot. You don’t want to have any trouble, so play it safe.

Remember the most important thing in choosing your golf vacation packages is that you want to be well taken care of and feel especially pampered. Customer service is most often the key to enjoying your vacation whether golfing or otherwise, so spend time to seek out reviews. Also take a look and see if the vacation comes with a package or special deals. Often you’ll be entitled to certain benefits like free driving range practice or free golf balls. Things like that are of great benefit.

Golfing is a popular worldwide sport that is available in practically every country you might want to visit. Of course Europe is a destination for any serious golfer, especially if you’re going to head to the birthplace of golf which is of course Scotland. But some of us might want a golfing holiday closer to home. Both Canada and the USA are very popular destinations with a lot of variety. Check out British Columbia in Canada and Hawaii in the USA as a couple of examples. And if you’re looking for something more exotic, perhaps Jamaica or Honduras will do. Both have excellent courses and golf vacation packages for the whole family.

The golf vacation is for relaxation, connecting with nature, enjoying the natural beauty of your surroundings and spending quality time with your family. But it can also be more adventuresome. There are golf courses available in many of the world’s desert. How about golfing in the desert of Dubai? Now that would be an adventure. But as we said in the beginning, this vacation is for the whole family, and any golf vacation package of worth will have multiple options for all sorts of tastes.

Traveling to Athens

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Did you know that when you are traveling Greece you are traveling with over 17 million other tourists per year? Greece is one of the top travel destinations of the world. People are attracted to the Mediterranean country because of its climate, its beaches, its historic sites and its natural beauty. A visit to Athens, the capital city of Greece, is inevitable if you arrive by air and while it doesn’t offer much of the natural beauty that the islands boast, there still is much to do.

Spend a few days in Athens, abide by these Athens travel tips and you will have a wonderful time. If you are traveling to Athens in the near future you may want to keep abreast of the demonstrations and where they are taking place. At the moment you will best be served to avoid the Syntagma Square area as there are protests currently being held there. It is a shame to miss the public square as it is part of daily Greek life and houses the Parliament building and the newly restored Grande Bretagne Hotel. The biggest draw of Athens, of course, is the Acropolis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the ancient fortified town of Athens. The Acropolis dates back to the Late Bronze Age and is the site of the best buildings of the Greek Classical Age, including, the Temple of Athena Nike, the Erectheion and the Parthenon. If you are a history nut you will enjoy that the entry ticket into the Acropolis also covers entry into up to 5 different sites.

Upon arriving in Athens you will notice that the new metro system will take you almost anywhere you want to go. Once you are near the Acropolis you can walk by foot to many of the other historical sites. Athens, although a sprawling metropolis, is actually quite easy to get around especially if you travel smart and avoid the heat and the crowds that the summer season brings.

Best Places To Play In The Algarve – Golf Holidays Portugal Style

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In terms of European golf holidays Portugal has spent two decades trying to attract holidaying golfers away from the likes of Spain and Britain. This post focuses on the Algarve region as the Portuguese have developed numerous courses in the area with designs on a par with their neighbors.

Any golf holiday in the Algarve will most likely involve some time in and around Vilamoura. The town now hosts dozens of courses thanks to the councils drive to boost tourism (after seeing how successfully this went in Spain).

While not all resort courses ever prove to be truly satisfying the Vilamoura Old Course and the Victoria are two which definitely are worth making a b-line to. The maturity of the greens and landscaping throughout the Old Course makes it rightly popular while the more modern design on the Victoria makes it a more technical course to play (i.e. requires accurate pitches to the green and good course management to know when to lay up).

The nearby Quinta Do Lago Golf club actually has two courses. Both are a joy to play and regularly feature on critic’s top 25 European golf course lists. While both are immaculately kept with excellent as reflects the green fee costs it is the south course which is more of a challenge (and possibly more scenic too).

Heading to the western Algarve is a great option (to avoid the hustle & bustle of Vilamoura) and it also makes for some great scenery at some of the more remote/secluded courses. Playing courses like Parque Da Floresta with its elevated views of the countryside and the sea is truly memorable. And there is no shortage of challenging championship courses with the Penina being one of the most difficult while some of the newer courses (e.g. the Oceanico Faldo desert course and the O’Connor parkland course) sport world class design and landscaping to use the terrain and sea breezes to bring a dynamic challenge to how the course play.

When it comes to golf holidays Portugal has to compete with the likes of Britain and Ireland when it comes to course design and with Spain for scenery. With all the work that has been done on the Algarve the courses and resorts are certainly on a par with the neighbors, and possibly even pulling ahead.

Doolin Hotels: Three Wonderful 3 and 4 Star Hotels In Doolin Ireland

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The selection of accommodation choices in Doolin Ireland has grown over the past decade as many visitors from nearby Galway & Cork choose to holiday closer to home. The Doolin hotels selected here are firm favorites in the region for their sea/countryside views, friendly service and great culinary treats.

The best example of one of the newer, almost boutique style, hotels in Doolin is Tir Gan Ean house. Located on the outskirts of the village, the hotels striking Celtic architecture gives it a very charming style of its own.

Inside, the 12 contemporary styled spacious rooms are all air-conditioned and have modern en-suites, plasma TVs and under-floor heating as standard. While some may wonder about the lack of its own restaurant they do provide the best breakfast in town with a wealth of menu choices from scrambled eggs with smoked salmon and banana bread to the obligatory full Irish breakfast.

Closer to town the Ballyvara Guest House is a popular spot with outdoor enthusiasts and traditional Irish music fans due to its range of rooms and proximity to Doolin’s bars (the setting for nightly traditional music sessions).

The guest-house was originally envisioned to incorporate studio apartments (open-plan design with their own kitchen), family rooms (with balconies), luxury suites (with spa baths and king-size beds) as well as standard twin/double rooms. There is a welcoming atmosphere to this family run guest house and the eclectic room styles make staying here feel much more personable than a homogeneous hotel chain.

Lastly, the more traditional style of the Aran View House Hotel overlooking the sea (and the Aran Islands) has been welcoming guests for decades. The hotels large comfortable rooms and country manor style decor is very much in keeping with the region. The best sea views are available in west facing rooms and in the hotel’s own bar and restaurant, both of which have hearty lunch & dinner menus of great Irish cuisine that is popular with guests, non-residents and locals alike.