The luxurious Finca Cortesin Hotel & Golf Club is located on the Mediterranean coast of Spain known as the Costa del Sol (The Sun Coast). It can, however, just as easily be referred to as the Costa del ‘Golf’ for its abundance of golfing options.
The hotel’s palatial design is inspired by traditional Andalusian architecture — big, bright and spacious.
Despite being accustomed to visiting impressive luxury hotels, we were still a bit intimidated by all the splendor this amazing resort was offering. We simply fell in love with their extravagant amenities — picture a bathroom larger than your average living room.
Hotel Finca Cortesin
Finca Cortesin seduces guests from the minute they drive through the gate. The courtyard of the 5 star hotel resort leads to the grand entrance where a valet offers the first of many wonderful services: complimentary parking. Gentlemen might well be advised to keep an eye on the missus as old world charm — such as a hand kissing salutation — is the norm at this exclusive hotel.
The warm welcome from the staff — in addition to their excellent service — is almost overwhelming! Instead of the usual administrative formalities one is used to at arrival, we were immediately escorted to the picturesque terrace garden. There, a glass of white wine was offered, accompanied by ham and cheese snacks. May the pampering begin!
To date, the only resort that has equaled such an exceptional reception has been Thailand’s Rayavadee Resort .
The property itself is impeccable. The resort is encased in a serene environment including olive and acebuches (a local pine species) trees, flowers, spacious gardens and of course, several golf courses.
The Finca Cortesin Hotel completes its top-notch offerings with a spa, two outdoor and one indoor pool, tennis and paddle courts, plus the aforementioned golf courses — some of the finest in the Costa del Sol!
Hotel Rooms at Finca Cortesin
Our suite offered everything necessary to ensure a relaxing stay; a kitchenette, a comfortable living room and bedroom plus the opulent bathroom that could easily have been larger than the size of our flat!
The contemporary interior design featured a mixture of grey, ivory, and white color hues highlighting the fine furnishings. Every suite has a private garden or terrace, leaving you with the difficult choice of deciding which table is most suitable for unpacking your laptop or which to read travel magazines on.
The room rates may not be the most inexpensive around, but they are definitely a good value for the money. Besides the aforementioned services and amenities, the hotel resort offers other courtesies such as a refillable, seasonal fresh fruit bowl, premium water, golf shoe cleaning services and chocolate treats.
The Restaurants at Finca Cortesin
There are four restaurants at this exclusive hotel. El Jardin serves fresh regional dishes. The golf clubhouse and the pool restaurant both serve all manner of delicious, high-end snacks and finally the Schilo restaurant (arguably the star of the show) specializes in Asian-Arabic fusion cuisine.
We didn’t have the opportunity to sample Schilo, but can highly recommend the dinner we enjoyed at El Jardin. Once again we were impressed not only with the quality food but by the outstanding service from the waitstaff. No detail was spared — the friendly waiter even brought a little velvet stool for my cumbersome DSLR camera!
We must also mention the breakfast (which is served a la carte at El Jardin); it was delicious, varied and tasty. The fine weather and fantastic views, (enjoyed from the terrace) only enhanced our dining experience. Breakfast in paradise. It just doesn’t get any better than that!
Golf at Finca Cortesin
Finca Cortesin Golf Club is ranked one of the best golf courses in Spain. And of all the numerous courses we’ve played on in that country, we would definitely rate it as one of the finest.
Normally, when traveling, we rarely return to the same place twice. Not because we didn’t enjoy the experience, but because we fear we may be missing out on another great location. The Finca Cortesin golf course is an exception. We would be happy to play on it again given the opportunity.
In fact, on this very trip we’ve had a chance to re-visit another of our favorite courses in Almeria. Desert Springs Golf, a Phoenix, Arizona inspired golf course offers an impressive desert-style layout.
The green fee is €170, the rental clubs (latest TailorMade model) are €56, while the golf buggy adds another €47. Expensive, yes, but well worth the money due to the constant attention lavished upon you. Every aspect of your golf experience is meticulously catered to. Strolling on the fairways is like walking on cotton. All you need to do is swing the club and focus on your game.
The layout of the 2006 Finca Cortesin golf course provides a challenging course. The architect Cabell Robinson truly created a spectacular place. The course is not only home to the European Tour, the Volvo World Matchplay Championship, but its great variety of natural vegetation (including olive and cork trees) allows even amateur golfers to enjoy a reasonable round of golf.
The course leads through a dramatic valley offering a stunning view of the Estepona Mountains as well as the Mediterranean Sea, until ending up at the signature hole 13. It is easily the most beautiful green we have ever seen! And we have seen a few…
We absolutely recommend renting a buggy. Not only because of the size of the course (at more than 7,000 meters, it is evidently one of the longest golf courses in Europe). But because of all the amenities that come along with it. Some popular features include: a GPS system with a distance indicator between holes, hazards and a red alert button to order extra food & beverages from the restaurant. Before you even leave the clubhouse area, your buggy is fully stocked with refreshments. During your game, a “fruit buggy” will be along to offer you fresh fruit to enjoy. How cool is that?
These buggies may look standard to the untrained eye, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they were powered by McLaren since they are the fastest we ever tried. In my opinion, it is the closest one can get to the “go-cart feeling” while on a golf course. So watch your speed on those tricky turns!
I can’t stress enough how much a friendly and savvy staff makes all the difference! The knowledgeable caddy master ( a guy who annoyingly looked like a young Richard Gere) gave me sound advice regarding the driver model I should try to improve my lousy golf handicap. Of course, he didn’t put it that way, but it’s a fact. Anyway, his suggestion had my golf balls taking off the driving range like rockets!
For more information, check out Finca Cortesin’s homepage.
Here are some more photos from our unforgettable stay at this outstanding hideaway.
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