Region: Crete, Rhodes, Corfu & Halkidiki, Greece | Best Time: April–June & September–October | Nearest Airport: Athens (ATH), Heraklion (HER), Rhodes (RHO), Corfu (CFU)
Editor’s Note: Greece is European golf’s most exciting emerging destination. The country has invested significantly in championship-standard courses over the past decade, recognising that its extraordinary natural setting — ancient olive groves, Aegean sea views, wild herb-scented hillsides — creates a backdrop for golf that simply cannot be manufactured elsewhere. Costa Navarino in the Peloponnese has twice won European Golf Resort of the Year; its Dunes Course is the finest in Greece and the most naturally spectacular in southern Europe. Combined with antiquity, mythology and the finest seafood in the Mediterranean, Greece rewards the golfer who looks beyond the obvious.
The 5 Courses to Play
1. Costa Navarino — The Dunes Course, Peloponnese ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Robert Trent Jones Jr. (2010) | Par/Yardage: 72 / 6,975 yards | Rating: 74.5 / 138
- Why Play It: Greece’s finest golf course — carved through ancient olive trees, sand dunes and wild Mediterranean vegetation above the Ionian Sea. Trent Jones Jr. worked with the natural topography to produce a course of extraordinary visual beauty; every hole has sea views and the fragrance of wild thyme and oregano is present throughout. Twice named European Golf Resort of the Year. The Romanos and Westin Navarino Bay resorts provide five-star accommodation on site.
- Book: costanavarino.com | Green fees from €160
2. Costa Navarino — The Bay Course ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Robert Trent Jones Jr. (2010) | Par/Yardage: 71 / 6,708 yards
- Why Play It: The sister course to The Dunes — broader, more forgiving but equally spectacular in its use of Navarino Bay views. Olive trees older than the Byzantine Empire line the fairways. Playing both courses in a day at Costa Navarino — ending with a sunset on the Dunes 18th above the bay — is a genuinely transcendent golf experience.
- Book: costanavarino.com
3. Aphrodite Hills Golf — Cyprus ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Cabell Robinson (2002) | Par/Yardage: 71 / 6,259 yards | Rating: 72.3 / 133
- Why Play It: On the clifftops above Aphrodite’s birthplace — the legendary goddess is said to have risen from the sea at the bay below. Robinson’s routing uses every metre of the dramatic coastal terrain; the par-3 7th plays entirely over a deep ravine to a clifftop green above the Mediterranean. Host of the Cyprus Open (European Tour). Year-round golf in 300+ days of sunshine.
- Book: aphroditehills.com | Green fees from €110
4. Crete Golf Club — Hersonissos ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Robert Trent Jones Jr. (2003) | Par/Yardage: 72 / 6,568 yards
- Why Play It: The largest island in Greece has one championship course — and it’s a gem. Trent Jones Jr.’s layout uses Crete’s rolling olive-grove terrain with views of the Aegean Sea and the Lassithi plateau. The unique Cretan landscape, the extraordinary local cuisine (Crete has a distinct culinary tradition separate from mainland Greece) and the island’s ancient Minoan history make this a genuinely special golf and cultural experience.
- Book: crete-golf.gr | Green fees from €95
5. Corfu Golf Club — Ropa Valley ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Donald Harradine (1972) | Par/Yardage: 72 / 6,209 yards
- Why Play It: The oldest and most charming course in Greece — in Corfu’s extraordinary Ropa Valley, hidden from the coast in a lush inland paradise of wild orchids, rare birds and ancient olive trees. Harradine’s layout is compact, playable by all standards and surrounded by a natural landscape of exceptional beauty. The Ropa Valley is completely unknown to most visitors to Corfu, which makes discovering it all the more rewarding.
- Book: corfugolfclub.com | Green fees from €65
Where to Stay
- The Romanos, A Luxury Collection Resort — Costa Navarino (5★): Greece’s finest golf resort hotel — infinity pools above Navarino Bay, multiple restaurants, spa and direct access to both courses. Check availability on Expedia →
- Amanzoe, Peloponnese (5★ Aman): Aman’s Greek resort — Grecian-style pavilions in the Peloponnese hills above the sea. 45 minutes from Costa Navarino; the most exclusive base in southern Greece.
- Aphrodite Hills Resort (5★): Cyprus’s finest golf-resort hotel — on the clifftop estate, direct course access, spa and exceptional Cypriot cuisine.
- Corfu Palace Hotel (5★): Classic Corfu hotel above Garitsa Bay — 30 minutes from the Ropa Valley golf course with spectacular views of Albania’s mountains across the water.
Practical Information
- Getting There: Athens (ATH) is the hub — 3h 30m from London. Costa Navarino is 3 hours by road from Athens, or fly to Kalamata (KLX) — 45 mins away. Corfu (CFU), Crete (HER) and Cyprus (LCA/PFO) all have direct UK flights. Cyprus is technically a separate country but included here for proximity and cultural affinity.
- Best Time: April–June for wildflowers, olive blossom and pleasantly warm temperatures (22–26°C). September–October for post-summer calm, warm sea and grape harvest season. July–August can be extreme heat (35–40°C in the Peloponnese) — early morning tee times essential.
- Cultural Integration: Greece’s golf courses sit within a landscape of extraordinary historical depth — Mycenae is 45 minutes from Costa Navarino; the Temple of Zeus at Olympia is 1h 30m. Combine a round with an afternoon among the antiquities; nowhere else in world golf offers this depth of cultural context.
- Food: Greek cuisine is at its finest far from tourist areas. In the Peloponnese — grilled octopus, slow-cooked lamb with orzo, local honey and aged graviera cheese. In Crete — dakos salad, fresh sea urchin, Cretan olive oil. Eat where locals eat; the most extraordinary meals cost almost nothing.