Try For A Hole In One In Costa Rica

In a country that boasts unparalleled adventure travel and eco tours, corporations and individuals alike are happy that a good round of golf has not been overlooked. Not only does Costa Rica offer challenging courses in several locations, it offers them surrounded by ocean vistas and rain forest borders. What could be better at the end of a long day of meetings and workshops than an invigorating round of your favorite sport in such gorgeous surroundings?

Costa Rica is still considered a fairly new golfing destination but thanks to recently upgraded and designed courses by such well known course architects as Robert Trent Jones Jr., Mike Young and George Fazio, it is rapidly becoming a premiere golf destination. Most resorts in the country offer top notch accommodations for your corporate getaway by providing spacious meeting rooms, state of the art audio visual equipment, and catering services to make your conferences and seminars efficient and productive.

Golfing opportunities are often provided with the resort’s corporation packages, but if you want to explore some of the area’s golf courses on your own, here is a list of some of the best.

Parque Valle Del Sol
Located near San Jose, this course was redesigned by Tracy May in 1994 and provides a challenging and quite diverse course. Surrounded by mature trees that have been left in place and an abundance of rolling hills, it is a course to be enjoyed by players of any skill level.

Costa Rica Country Club
This is the oldest golf course in Costa Rica and is similar to what most would call an executive course, meaning it is short and uncomplicated. If you are staying in one of the major hotels in the area, you can usually arrange for a tee time here at the front desk.

Cariari Country Club
Also located near San Jose, the Cariari is considered the best course in Costa Rica. It was designed by George Fazio and has been open since 1973. It has hosted many international tournaments over the years and most players agree it is quite a challenge.

Hacienda Pinilla
This is a public course on the North Pacific shore. Designed by Mike Young, it is an 18 hole championship course covering 4500 acres of trees and cliff edges as well as beautiful ocean shoreline. This area of Costa Rica can get quite warm so it is best to try for early morning tee times if at all possible.

Melia Conchal
This course, designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr is often considered the most challenging of Costa Rica courses due to its substantial length and constantly changing elevation. Simply put, it is a large course with lots of water, rolling hills, shifting elevations, sweeping fairways and awesome scenery.

La Iguana Golf Course
The 18 hole, par 72 course, designed by Ted Robinson Jr, plays through the Los Sueños resort s private rainforest reserve. Play among exotic native plants, banana trees and orchids and native Costa Rica wildlife. More than 150 species of birds as well as monkeys and other wildlife have been identified on the grounds.

There are even more courses scattered throughout the country, but these certainly represent some of the most played and most popular.