Golf bucket list destinations don’t always require intercontinental flights or jetlag. A tour through Europe with selected highlights.
At this point, it’s not to repeat the old saying, \”Why wander far when the good is so near?\” But that’s ultimately the point: in uncertain times with globally eroding societies, against the backdrop of inflation and exploding energy costs, and perhaps out of consideration for the ecological footprint. Intercontinental flights or heavy fuel-powered ship journeys across the great oceans are less favored among sustainably minded sports enthusiasts than ever before—or rather, they should be.
\”Everyone just wants to get out again\”
\”Everyone just wants to get out again,\” said a fellow passenger in the queue before the check-in counter at Edinburgh Airport, the Scottish capital, after the official end of the COVID-19 pandemic. That still applies today. In fact, it almost seems that travel has become even more unrestrained since SARS-CoV-2 no longer holds the world in its grip.
Travel portals have also noticed a clearer focus among customers on environmentally conscious travel and sustainable accommodations. For example, \”Booking.com\” found after the pandemic that 50% of travelers in Germany and 71% worldwide want to travel more sustainably. Over 25% of respondents stated they choose destinations closer to home, and so on.
Golf enjoyment near the Limes
Golf travel remains an ambivalent matter. And let’s be honest, who wouldn’t give in when a bucket list destination far away beckons? Still: Sometimes the good is so close.
Many happy places have already been described at Golf Post: the Spa & GolfResort Weimarer Land in Thuringia and the Budersand Hotel – Golf & Spa on Sylt, for example. Or the Andreus Resorts and the golf region in South Tyrol. Below is another tour through nearer golf grounds from personal experience, naturally without any claim to completeness.
It is a phenomenal course on minimal space: Architect Christian Althaus succeeded at Hofgut Georgenthal by fitting an 18-hole links-style course plus a 3-hole course and practice facilities on a mere 48-hectare bowl-shaped area, without impacting the UNESCO World Heritage site of the historic Limes border. \”The landscape here in the Untertaunus has character. The golf course should not be a disruption,\” explains Hofgut manager Brita Hankammer. \”Hence the somewhat rougher appearance.\” The estate itself exudes rural elegance and offers, according to Hankammer, \”art and culture, culinary delights, sports, wellness, or simply indulgent relaxation. If you want to get away from everyday life, this is the place.\” The Hofgut Georgenthal celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2025.
Where George Clooney Golfs
In a mountain fold above Lake Como lies a golf course that seems a bit out of time. On the Croce plateau, five-time champion John Henry Taylor, one of the \”Great Triumvirate,\” laid out 18 narrow holes in dense forest back in 1907—all feels as if it just happened yesterday. The Menaggio & Cadenabbia Golf Club is above all a feeling of life and secluded peace