Ireland golf vacation

Golfing vacations in Ireland - Donegal Golf Club

Golf courses are now seen as a venue for relaxation and a way to relieve stress. That’s why so many overworked weekend golfers have set their sights to having a dream golf vacation. And one of the more popular countries that have emerged as a Mecca for golf vacations is Ireland.

With its mesmerizing natural beauty and the landscape that was seemingly created for the game of golf, many golf courses have been erected and patronized both by local and tourist golfers. It is no wonder that some of the golf courses in Ireland has been celebrated as among the top golf courses all around the world.

One of these is a golf course found in the northwest area of Ireland in a town called Donegal. The Donegal Golf Club was founded in 1959 and was erected in the edge of the town at Tullycullion. It stayed there for 14 years until it moved to the Murvagh Peninsula were it is situated until today. It has been the venue of prestigious championships such as the 1979 Irish ladies Close Championship and the 2003 Mens Irish Close Championship, a testament to its great design and world class amenities and facilities.

This full 18-hole championship par 73 golf course is measured at 7280 yards and is a classic links. The course is expansive and wide open and is mostly made up of low dunes. The play is hard and fast on this course but the scenic ambience allows a player to stop for a while and just soak in the view. The Atlantic Ocean gives out a stunning scenery as well as the mountains that are easily seen in the other side of the course.

Before you go out to challenge the course, you can hone your skills and warm up in what the Donegal Golf Club boasts as the best practice facilities in Northwest Ireland. There you can find facilities such as a driving net, a chipping green with bunkers, a putting green, a driving range with an automatic ball dispenser and there is even a par 3 Junior course.

The Donegal Golf Club's course Pro is also all too willing to provide lessons for beginners and novices.

Conquering the course is one thing, but at the end of the day, you can get the chance to enjoy the club's facilities and just relax and soak in the events of the day.

You can go directly to the locker room and freshen up with its state-of-the-art amenities and wonderful service. Visitors lockers are available and shower facilities are first rate.

After freshening up, you can go to the restaurant for a hearty meal of sumptuous Irish cuisine. Or if you want, you can take your golfing buddies with you are meet some of the locals at the bar for some drinks. Keep your memories alive of your golf vacation trip at Donegal with some logo embedded clothing at the club's shop.

When it is finally time to pack up your bags and head on to Ireland, the Donegal Golf Club should always be on your Ireland golf vacation itinerary.

Golfing vacations in Ireland - Dooks Golf Club

Ranked no 16 in the world as one of the best golf courses, no. 8 in the top 10 courses for welcome, no. 6 in the worlds 10 most difficult courses and no 1 in the world in the 10 best value courses, indeed, the Dooks Golf Club is one of Irelands best attractions and it has continued to draw in tourists to its vast and rolling greens.

Found along the Dingle bay with mountains bordering its three sides, the Dooks Golf Club offers a course that combines flat and wide greens on some holes and highly elevated greens on the others. Its length of 6500 yards is filled with blind shots and trees and contradictory flat and easily visible holes.

Established in 1889, the Dooks Golf Club was promoted by the Royal Horse Artillery to the nearby aristocratic golfers while being stationed and training in the area. It is now one of the oldest golf links in Ireland. Its location itself has provided many of its members and visitors a chance to experience true Irish traditional culture and the famed traditions. For every golfer that has been looking for a golf course that can offer a tranquil environment, the Dooks Golf Club epitomizes this concept.

Starting out as a nine hole course, it has evolved into an 18 hole course almost a century after in 1970 when its members decided to add some holes.

This golf club has never failed to leave a good impression in every golfer that has played a round in its course and has left a lasting mark with its habitat, amazing wildlife, and features of its lands. There you will see the vast number of flora that dots its courses and captures the imagination and appreciation of those that have walked its greens.

For those who love bird watching as much as they do golf, this is a nesting ground for many beautiful birds like the Skylark, Pennyroyal and the Whimbrel among a host of others.

Aside from its natural beauty, the Dooks Golf Club also offers modern state of the art amenities that are affixed with traditional designs that showcase the history of Dooks Golf Club and its evolution to a world class link golf course.

Its clubhouse alone has been the recipient of extensive remodeling in the past years but still is able to retain its rustic and friendly ambience and atmosphere. You can get superb Irish and other meals in their restaurant or have a relaxing drink at the end of the day in their bar.

Many golfers have neglected this course and have set their sights to the more popular golf courses in Waterville. But to those who have decided to slow down and check out Dooks, they have made one of the best decisions they could ever make.

Rarely would those golfers who have had a taste of Dooks have a bad thing to say about the course. Many of them have been returning since then and have regarded the place as one of the best golf vacation spots in Ireland.

Found in Glenbeigh, County Kerry, this Irish golf gem should always be on top of a golfer's vacation wish list. The next time you have the time to experience golf at its finest, check out Dooks Golf Club and play golf the way it should be played.

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