If you could happily spend many a day on the golf course improving your handicap, you can guarantee you will relish a golfing trip away with your buddies.
However, there are many considerations to make before you head off on the fun getaway, which will ensure you can fully embrace your favorite sporting activity. To ensure you each have plenty of fun from beginning to end of a trip, here are the six steps to planning a superb golf holiday.
Step One: Select the Right Friends
It is important to choose like minded people when booking a golf holiday abroad. The last thing you will want to do is invite people along who will clash during the break away.
So, if you don’t want to be up until 4am drinking beer and are instead hoping to regularly enjoy an early night to ensure you wake up bright-eyed and bushy tailed, invite compatible buddies to avoid conflict or resentment during the trip.
Step Two: Choose the Best Golf Spot
To make the most of a golf holiday, you will need to take your pick from many bucket list spots for the sport. While the likes of South Africa, Scotland and Africa can be ideal, they cannot compare to the many world-class golf courses you will find in Portugal – and there are more than 70 to choose from, which you could find in the Silver Coast or the Algarve.
Plus, when you and your travel buddies aren’t swinging an iron on the fairway in the glorious sunshine, you will be able to lounge on a sun-soaked beach and enjoy magnificent coastlines when booking Portugal holidays. Perfection.
Step Three: Confirm Travel Dates
Once you and your golfing buddies have decided on a destination, you must identify a date that complements each of your needs. The probability of selecting dates to suit everyone’s schedule will more than likely be determined by the number of people going on the sporting holiday. If you are planning a trip with a large group, it is unlikely you will be able to find a date to match everyone’s needs.
It is, therefore, wise to accumulate everyone’s availability to select a date that complements most people’s busy schedules. If you choose to make it an annual break away, it will eventually become easier for people to adjust their calendar to embark on the golfing holiday.
Step Four: Book in Advance
To avoid disappointment, it is an intelligent idea to book your flights, accommodation and tee times at least a month in advance. If a golf course is popular with locals and tourists, you may need to book a little earlier to secure your spot; otherwise, you might be forced to settle for a second-rate course that could tarnish your experience at your chosen destination.
Every club will be different, so research their recommended booking times to ensure you don’t leave it too late to confirm a tee-time.
Step Five: Establish a Daily Schedule
Don’t allow yourself to be appointed as the group leader during a golfing holiday, if you don’t want to be, which can add stress and pressure into your getaway. As you will more than likely want to relax, unwind and have fun on holiday with your travel buddies, you should establish a daily schedule prior to the trip.
For example, you should set times for:
- Your arrival at a destination
- A tee-off
- Dinner reservations
- Leisure time
An itinerary will ultimately prevent your buddies from relying on you for various answers, as they will know what they are going to do throughout the day and when they are going to do it. So, sit down and write a plan of action before travel to ensure you are each 100% happy with an itinerary. You can then embrace a trip that will make you forget all about life’s stresses and strains.
Step Six: Make Time for Relaxation
Golfing can be physically demanding. After spending many days on the fairway and green, you can guarantee you and your buddies are bound to feel the strain in your muscles. It is important to find ways to relax and unwind in between games, so you will feel refreshed the next day to perfect your swing. So, enjoy an early night, relax by the pool, or treat yourself to a much-deserved massage, which will eradicate all pain and tension from your body.
If you want to enjoy a fun, friction-free golfing getaway in 2019, you should follow the above tips for a great break with your buddies.
