Portugal golf holidays

Portugal Shines in Time Out’s Top 10 Most Beautiful Places in the World

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Portugal has a habit of turning up on lists like this. This time, it is Time Out doing the honours — and the Douro Valley has landed in the top five of the world’s most beautiful places.

The List

The magazine’s ranking of 51 destinations was assembled by an international network of travel editors and writers. Each place was selected for its scenic beauty, cultural distinctiveness, and visual impact. The Douro Valley came in at number four, sitting alongside entries from Spain, Indonesia, the United States, and England. Not bad company. (Idealista)

Vale de Oura Vinyards

Why the Douro

The region combines terraced vineyards, a winding river, and historic hillside villages into a composition that is genuinely difficult to rival. The terraces alone — hand-carved into steep mountainsides over centuries — create a visual drama that shifts with every season. At harvest time, the whole valley turns gold.

The Alto Douro Wine Region has held UNESCO World Heritage status since 2001, recognised as a living cultural landscape. That designation matters. This is a place shaped by human hands, yet it never feels anything less than wild.

The Golf

The Douro Valley does not have courses carved into its slopes — the terrain has other ideas — but it sits at the centre of one of Portugal’s most rewarding golfing regions. Porto is the natural base, less than two hours from the valley, and the courses clustered around the city are well worth the journey in their own right.

Oporto Golf Course Seafront

Oporto Golf Club is the oldest in Portugal, established in 1890 by British residents who clearly had their priorities in order. It is a links-influenced course set close to the sea at Espinho, with small, fast greens and a wind that rarely takes a day off. Estela Golf Club, a few kilometres to the north, is cut from similar cloth — a traditional seaside layout with narrow fairways, elevated greens, and the kind of conditions that reward ball-striking over heroics.

For something altogether different, Vidago Palace Golf sits around an hour and a half east of Porto, deep in the Trás-os-Montes hills. Originally designed by Mackenzie Ross in 1936 and rebuilt to USGA specification, it is one of the most characterful courses in the country — a parkland layout set within a grand spa estate, and the sort of place that earns a second visit.

Vidago Golf Course Autumn

A Douro break, then, is not simply a wine trip with a round attached. It is a genuine golf destination with a landscape that happens to be ranked among the four most beautiful on the planet.

Browse our Oporto golf holidays and find the right combination of courses, hotel, and valley time.

Portugal — Still Making Headlines

Rio de Oura Waterfront

The Douro’s recognition is not an isolated moment. At the 2025 World Travel Awards, Madeira was named Europe’s Best Island Destination, Porto took Europe’s Best City Destination, and Lisbon claimed Europe’s Best City Break Destination. Portugal, it seems, is not planning to leave the front page any time soon. (Turismo de Portugal)

For golfers yet to explore the country as a whole, the full range of Portugal golf holidays covers everything from the Algarve south coast to the Atlantic-facing links of the north.

The Douro is beautiful. The golf is excellent. The two rarely need much further convincing.

MADEIRA IS GETTING A MAJOR MAKE-OVER

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MADEIRA IS ABOUT TO BECOME A VERY DIFFERENT DESTINATION

There is a moment in every destination’s story when it stops being a well-kept secret and becomes something rather more significant. For Madeira, that moment may be arriving sooner than most people expected.

The Madeira government has confirmed plans to open 36 new holes across the archipelago over the coming years. That is not a minor adjustment to the programme. For an island currently offering three golf venues and 63 holes, it represents a visionary transformation. And at the centre of that transformation is one of the most eagerly anticipated course openings in European golf.

A CLIFFTOP COURSE TWENTY YEARS IN THE MAKING

Ponta do pargo golf course madeira cgi render faldo design

The site of Sir Nick Faldo’s course at Ponta do Pargo was originally conceived more than fifteen years ago, before construction was halted by the global financial crisis in 2009. The dream did not disappear — it simply waited. Construction restarted, and the par-72 layout is now in its final stages, perched high on the clifftops of Madeira’s westernmost point with sweeping views across the archipelago and out to the Atlantic.

Faldo himself has been characteristically direct about what he found when he returned to the site. He described it as “a golf course designer’s dream” — a site where the natural landscape does much of the work, and where the designer’s role is as much about restraint as invention. Sustainability has been central to the process from the start. The decision to install Madeira’s native Kikuyu grass — which thrives on natural rainfall without irrigation — is expected to dramatically reduce the course’s water consumption throughout the year.

The course covers 120 hectares of natural landscape and will be supported by practice facilities including a driving range, short game area, a nine-hole pitch and putt course, and a clubhouse, restaurant and hotel. The opening is anticipated for 2027.

SANTO DA SERRA GETS EVEN BETTER

The oldest golf club in Madeira, Clube de Golf Santo da Serra already boasts three nine-hole loops — the Machico, the Desertas and the Serras — all designed by Robert Trent Jones Snr, and has hosted the European Tour’s Madeira Islands Open on ten occasions. An additional nine-hole layout will take it to 36 holes. The project will also include the construction of two new lakes for water collection and sustainable water management, with the stored water used to irrigate the course.

Santo da Serra golf course madeira couple fairway

It is worth noting that Santo da Serra does not arrive at this moment of expansion from a position of weakness. The course was recently named Portugal’s Best Golf Course in the Players’ Choice category at the 2025 Golfamore Awards — an honour decided entirely by golfers, based on more than 160,000 reviews logged across a voting pool of over 100,000 players. It also recently completed a €2.5 million investment programme aimed at enhancing the playing experience for both members and visiting golfers. A course that is already the best in the country, now adding nine more holes. Not bad.

PORTO SANTO JOINS THE EXPANSION

The expansion does not stop on the main island. Porto Santo Golfe — set on Madeira’s quieter sister island, famous for its seven-kilometre beach — is also in line for a new nine-hole addition. For golfers who have already played the existing 18-hole course, that is a significant development. Porto Santo has long been the kind of place you visit once, intend to return to, and somehow never quite manage. More golf holes may finally provide the decisive nudge.

THE DESTINATION RIGHT NOW

Madeira island golf destination Portugal

All of this is coming. But the case for a Madeira golf holiday does not require a building site. International rounds played across the islands rose by more than ten per cent in 2025, with Madeira’s four biggest overseas markets — Scandinavia, Germany, the UK and France — all posting growth. The destination earned the World Golf Award for World’s Best Emerging Golf Destination in 2025.

The Madeira Golf Passport remains one of the most popular ways to experience the destination, offering three rounds of golf at either Santo da Serra or Palheiro Golf from €290 per person, including complimentary transfers between hotel and course. For the value it represents — on an island with this much drama, this much scenery, and this much to do beyond the fairways — it is one of the better deals in European golf travel.

Tee Times covers Madeira in full, with tee times at Santo da Serra, Palheiro Golf and Porto Santo Golfe. Book now, before the word properly gets out. 

The Remarkable History of Golf in the Algarve

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The history of golf in the Algarve true begining occurred in 1966, when architect Sir Henry Cotton opened the first traditional grass course, The Penina.Golf’s journey from Scotland to the sun-drenched fairways of the Algarve is a remarkable tale of cultural expansion, innovation, and timeless appeal. Though the game began with feather-stuffed balls and windswept dunes, it found fertile ground in Portugal during the early 20th century, capturing the hearts of players with its elegance and challenge.

The Algarve’s introduction to golf dates back to the 1920s, inspired by the sport’s growing popularity across the British Empire. The region’s first course, between Portimão and Praia da Rocha, was rudimentary—its greens made from sand and oil due to a lack of freshwater. However, the true transformation occurred in 1966, when legendary golfer and architect Sir Henry Cotton opened the first traditional grass course, The Penina, now called the Sir Henry Championship Course. Spanning 360 acres and featuring tree-lined fairways, lakes, and a five-star resort, the Penina set the standard for what Algarve golf would become.

Sir Henry’s vision ignited a golf revolution. Architects from around the world flocked to the region, drawn by its mild climate and stunning landscapes. The Algarve quickly became a top destination for golf tourism, especially in the cooler months. The Portuguese Open cemented the area’s reputation, attracting elite players and international attention.

Tee Times and the History of Golf in the Algarve

For over 30 years, Tee Times Golf Agency has played a pivotal role in this story. Based in Portugal, we have become synonymous with excellence in golf tourism, offering curated packages that combine world-class golf with the region’s rich culture, cuisine, and hospitality. From the iconic Penina to the finest courses across Vilamoura, Quinta do Lago, and Monte Rei, Tee Times connects golf lovers with the best Portugal has to offer.

Whether you’re chasing birdies under blue skies or soaking in the rich history of golf in the Algarve, the region delivers a truly unforgettable experience. With Tee Times by your side for the best golf holidays, your next break is more than a trip—it’s part of a legacy.