Belek Golfing Holidays And More On Offer In Turkey.
Turkey is a fantastic country that spans two continents Asia and Europe. This eclectic blend of Eastern and Western culture has created an extraordinary history, culture and tradition that once you have explored can greatly enhance a holiday. For the golfing holiday maker understanding a country’s history is not the most important part of the experience but it certainly helps to make the experience even better. After the fall of the Ottoman Empire after the First World War, a democratic republic was established this has lead to the rise of tourism in the country.
A while ago the Turkish tourist board realised that there was a huge economic value to attracting the serious golfing holiday maker. They have quickly taken to assisting with golf course development and now Turkey has become a premier golf destination through effective marketing and self promotion. Over the last 15 years Turkey has almost realigned its culture to effectively encourage the golfing tourists to visit their newly designed and built courses, bringing in a much needed tourist dollar to help with the expansion of the country.
They have been hugely helped by the fact that the relevant parts of the country are blessed with a perfect climate for golf. For a host of perfectly sound reasons, principally the presence of suitable terrain, a plethora of quality hotels and the close proximity of Antalya airport, Belek has been the focus for most of the golf activity. Take the land for example, originally swampy, pine trees have now been planted on the sandy soil to create ideal golfing terrain not unlike Surrey heathland or the forests around Pinehurst, North Carolina. It also has the benefit of a water table little more than a deep divot below the surface which supplies an attractive sprinkling of water features.
The hotels which are often large and have five stars to their names, are numerous and contain all the facilities one could need. From restaurants, spas, sports halls, swimming pools and live entertainment there is plenty for the non golfer to find to keep them busy. The airport in Antalya is approximately four hours from the UK and a short transfer from the main resorts in Belek. The golf courses have now grown in number and can all be compared with some of the finest courses in any part of the world.
From the beginning the courses that have been designed around the hotels in Turkey are quite extraordinary. The biggest names in course design have been employed to produce some fantastic tracks, which when combined with a very competitive price for both the golf and the hotel then you can be sure that you will be getting a great holiday for your money. Turks are not as keen on their golfing as they are on the football so despite the nature of the courses you can be sure that there will always be enough tee times for all your party.
Although Belek looks certain to remain at the top of Turkey’s golf league for the foreseeable future, it should prepare itself for some significant domestic competition as plans are being drawn up to provide additional first-class facilities in Istanbul, Ankara and Mugla. But they will have to go some if they are going to be anywhere near as good as the golf in Turkey to be found in Belek.
The Montgomerie Course at the Papillion Golf Club is one of a string of quality courses that lie just a little inland from the beach at Belek. Part of the $100m Papillion complex, its undulating holes weave through indigenous mixed pine trees making great use of the age old sandy ridges the run across it. There are quite a few water features, especially on the front nine, while the back nine provides some testing tee shots over large expanses of sandy wasteland. Colin Montgomerie worked with European design, which created two of the area’s most popular courses, the Sultan and the Pasha, to produce something special. With a nine hole floodlit academy course, driving range and first class practise facilities, Papillion is destined to become one of Belek’s main golfing holiday destinations.
YourGolfTravel.com golf holidays range from a day away in the UK to a week away golfing in the Algarve so have a look at their website for more details.
