Golf in Funchal

Portugal Golf – 8th Madeira Golf Trophy registers record number of entries

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Madeira Golf Trophy 2023. Santo da Serra will host the 8th Madeira Golf Trophy.

Santo da Serra will host the 8th Madeira Golf Trophy

Clube de Golf Santo da Serra, who is hosting the eighth annual Madeira Golf Trophy on June 10th, has announced a new record number of registrations for the tournament.

The organization estimates “the presence of around 300 people”, which, it adds, “will lead for the first time to the use of the 27 holes of the Santo da Serra golf course, simultaneously, to guarantee the dignified and high participation of all players, regional, national and international”.

“There are many influential individuals from the political and commercial worlds who go to Madeira just for the tournament, and this has a positive effect on the island’s profile”, as noted by the same source.

“All of this is possible thanks to the commitment of the Regional Government, the personal commitment of the management of the Santo da Serra Golf Club and all of its staff, and Gilda Paredes Alves, a media person that has collaborated with the organisation since 2008”, says the same source.

Santo da Serra board believes that 2023 will be a year with excellent prospects for growth, thanks to the excellent quality of the course, which continues to prove that golf is vital for the regional economy.

The golf club remembers that it was “the first in this idyllic destination to apply a totally eco-friendly system, by carrying out a series of upgrades on the course in order to make the golf experience even more memorable and distinctive for all its members and guests”.

The Madeira Golf Trophy is modelled after the Funchal City Tournament, which was first organised in 2008 to celebrate Funchal’s 500th anniversary, an initiative of Miguel Albuquerque, former Mayor of Funchal and current Regional President of Madeira.

Book your golf holidays in Madeira with Tee Times Golf Agency and play on some of the best golf courses in Portugal.

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Portugal Golf Holidays – Ryanair debuts in Madeira with new base and ten routes, including Lisbon and Porto

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Ryanair debuts in Madeira with new base and ten routes, including Lisbon and Porto

Ryanair debuts in Madeira with new base and ten routes, including Lisbon and Porto

Low cost carrier announces its arrival in Funchal. Flights are expected to start in the summer of 2022 and may revolutionise prices in the Madeiran airline market.

And finally, 18 years after its debut in Portugal, the aircraft carrier of low-cost flights will arrive at the major Portuguese airport it was missing, Funchal, which will be a new operational base for the company from March. In Madeira, Ryanair will start with ten routes, with five new direct destinations and 40 weekly frequencies, highlighting the connections to Lisbon, with two daily flights, and Porto, with one daily flight.

Among the routes guaranteed and already available on the company’s website, in addition to domestic connections, are Marseille, Manchester, London Stansted, Milan Bergamo, Brussels Charleroi, Dublin, Nuremberg and Paris Beauvais. The debut prices, which should take place in March 2022, start at 29.99 euros per leg, it is announced in the campaign activated in the meantime: tickets for the routes are already on sale for spring-summer.

The investment announced is US$200 million (¤178 million, essentially linked to the value of the aircraft), with the creation of “over 60 direct jobs in the region and over 400 indirect jobs”, said Ryanair in a statement. The operation should guarantee 350,000 new seats, a potential 22 percent increase in passenger transport. According to the company, the Madeiran base will have two aircraft positioned.

The details were revealed at a press conference at Cristiano Ronaldo Airport, attended by Ryanair CEO Eddie Wilson, and also attended by the Minister of Economy, Siza Vieira, Miguel Albuquerque, President of the Regional Government of Madeira, and Thierry Ligonnière, CEO of ANA Aeroportos de Portugal/Vinci.

Until now, Funchal–Lisbon flights were only guaranteed by TAP and Easyjet. The two companies also operate the Funchal–Porto connection, in this case competing also with Transavia.

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Madeira declared Europe’s ‘up and coming’ golf destination

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Palheiro Golf Course. Madeira declared Europe’s ‘up and coming’ golf destination

Madeira declared Europe’s ‘up and coming’ golf destination

“Madeira has been named Europe’s ‘up and coming’ golf destination by Square Mile, the luxury magazine for those working in the City of London’s financial industry.”

Madeira‘s latest award enhances the Islands growing reputation as a golf destination, which sees it offer an excellent climate with hot summers and mild winters and three excellent golf courses, created by three of the industry’s biggest names: Seve Ballesteros, Cabell B Robinson and Robert Trent Jones Snr.

Palheiro Golf, the par-72, 6,656-yard (6,086m) golf course, designed by Robinson, is situated within the magnificent Palheiro Estate, which is more than 200 years old. At nearly 1,640ft above sea level, the location enjoys dramatic views of Madeira’s mountainous skyline and the ocean, and just 10 minutes away you’ll discover the island’s capital, Funchal.

Porto Santo Golf Course

Porto Santo Golf Course

Santo da Serra’s original golf course, dating from 1937, was redesigned in 1991 by Robert Trent Jones Snr, who created a new and spectacular 27-hole complex. The third and fourth holes of the Machico course are regarded as the signature holes, sitting on top of cliffs more than 2,200ft above sea level, providing views of the bay of Machico.

Porto Santo Golf, the 27-hole, Severiano Ballesteros – designed golf course, par-72, 7,036-yard (6,434m), opened in 2004 and comprises of two distinct nines. The southern route, a US-style layout, is dotted with lakes, requiring a long and precise game. The northern route is on top of fantastic cliffs. The signature hole is the 200-yard par-three 13th, which requires a shot over a gorge to reach a cliff-top green.

In its annual golf awards feature, Square Mile said: “(Madeira) may not be the first destination that springs to mind when thinking of prime golfing real estate, but it is an excellent year-round location to tee it up”.

“These volcanic islands, warmed by the Gulf Stream, enjoy blazing summers and mild winters, while quaint picturesque villages, stunning vistas, and natural beaches mean there’s plenty to occupy your time off the fairways, as well as three world-class golf destinations that will command your attention”.

“Porto Santo, Santo da Serra and Palheiro all enjoy picture-perfect coastal views but the former, designed by Seve Ballesteros, is a true hidden gem. Weaving past beaches and two extinct volcanoes, it is one of a kind.”

Santo da Serra Golf Course

Santo da Serra Golf Course

The accolade is not the only one received by Madeira in recent weeks. Earlier this month, it was named the world’s ‘leading island destination’ for the fourth successive year and Europe’s ‘leading island destination’ for a fifth time, at the World Travel Awards.

Located just 500km from the African continent – a flight of less than four hours from most UK airports.

Madeira, also known as ‘the islands of eternal spring’, has a population of only 260,000. On the same latitude as Morocco, the Atlantic archipelago has a sub-tropical climate, a rich volcanic soil and a unique eco-system. It is one of the only places in the planet where banana trees grow next to vineyards.

In 1999 the Island group was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site and five areas have been declared nature reserves. The Madeira Nature Reserve covers a substantial two-thirds of the main island, where development is prohibited.