Paris is playing host to the one of the greatest golf matches in the world in September 2018. The Ryder Cup, a contest between between the top golfers of Europe and the visiting team from the United States will be hosted at Le Golf National course, at Guyancourt, near Paris.

Ryder Cup Paris 2018

From September 25-30 2018, golf history will be made at the spectacular Le Golf National course. At just 30 kilometres from the city centre it is easy to get to for spectators. This course is also where the  golf competition in the 2024 Paris Olympics will take place.

The Ryder Cup origins

First played in 1927, the match is named in honour of a British entrepreneur and business man, Samuel Ryder. He took up golf at the age of 49 and established the Ryder Cup as a contest to challenge American golfers who had the reputation of being well-backed. Since then, the drama, tension and sportsmanship of the Ryder Cup has become legendary. It is now among the most eagerly-anticipated and fiercely-contested events in world sport.

Going to the Ryder Cup Paris

It is estimated that around 200,000 spectators will visit Paris to watch the three days of match play in which the European team, led by Thomas Bjørn, will battle to win back the Cup from an American team, captained by Jim Furyk. It is only the second occasion that Europe has hosted the event outside the UK.

It will be the first time, the Ryder Cup takes place on the fringe of a capital city, and with Paris’s network of international airports, train stations and motorways, it will probably make this the most easily accessed Ryder Cup in history. Both teams will be based at the renowned and luxurious Hotel Trianon, in nearby Versailles, which with the beautiful palace and gardens of Versailles a stroll away, is one of Europe’s most compelling tourist destinations.

With its world famous and iconic landmarks from the Eiffel Tower, the Arc du Triomphe and the Champs Elysees as well as many other architectural to the architectural splendours of Versailles,  Paris will provide the perfect backdrop to the excitement of the 2018 Ryder Cup.

Golf in France

France has more golf courses than Spain and Portugal combined with a rich and varied terrain for great golf in magnificent and welcoming surroundings. French golf is relaxed, affordable, friendly and fun.  A vast range of courses is available across the whole of France including spectacular seaside golf and dramatic mountain courses.

Informality doesn’t mean undemanding, and the appetite for the game across France and across age groups and genders just keeps on growing. There are more than 600 courses around France to choose from, with 150 listed among Europe’s most beautiful courses, and 22 of them ranked in the 1000 best courses in the world.

If you’re taking your golf clubs to France, you won’t be disappointed, there’s loads of choice for a game.

Golf in the north

Within easy reach of the Channel ferry ports are great golfing regions such as Hauts de France, Brittany, Normandy, and of course, Paris, with Le Golf National and nearby Golf de Rochefort, as well as several others.

France’s northern coast is within easy reach of the UK and is rich in great seaside golf courses. Less than an hour from Calais, Le Touquet, Hardelot and Wimereux offer some of the most demanding and highly rated courses in Europe

Further round the coast and close to the ferry ports at St Malo, Roscoff, Caen and Cherbourg are classic coastal courses such as Granville, Pen Guen and St Malo itself.

But the south-west and Atlantic coast, the Alps and Provence-Alpes Cote d’Azur also host many great courses.

Golf in the south

Wine lovers can indulge in a long weekend in legendary wine capital Bordeaux with great golf close at hand, for example at Golf du Medoc and the beautiful Arcachon lagoon.

Provence and the Cote d’Azur offers perhaps the ideal location for combining a family holiday with golf. Long, sunny days, fine wines, inventive cuisine and the proximity of the Mediterranean’s coastline all make this region one of the world’s best holiday destinations. From the Severiano Ballesteros designed Pont Royal, in the valley of the beautiful Luberon hills of Provence, to the stunning course at Servanes in the shadow of the Alpilles, or, further along the Cote d’Azur, the run of courses, including those at Sainte Baume, Golf du Chateau de Taulane, Terre Blanche, and Roquebrune, are all within easy reach of the perfectly blue waters of the Mediterranean.

The oldest course in France is Pau Golf Club 1856, which is also the oldest course outside Great Britain. Dinard in Brittany also has a long history, founded in 1887, it has a beautiful and characterful clubhouse plus stunning sea views.

If it’s the high life you’re after, then there are plenty of golf courses in mountain settings, surrounded by the most spectacular vistas. Chamonix, Megeve and Morzine all have courses above 1,000 metres in altitude, while the course at Tignes, the highest in Europe, tops out at a breath-taking 2,100 metres among the towering peaks of the Val d’Isere.

Find out more here: uk.france.fr/en/golf-1; www.europeantour.com/rydercup

What to do in Paris

Dine out – the choice is fabulous: 6 of the best historic restaurants in Paris; 3 restaurants in Paris the locals love for an indulgent dinner experience
Get off the beaten track and discover the Promenade Plantée an abandoned elevated railway track that’s now a garden in the sky
Sainte-Chapelle, the church that looks like a jewellery box in the shadow of Notre Dame
3 brilliant English language book stores that book worms will love

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Summer is coming very soon, and for many of us, it simply means that it is the time for golf and vacation.

If you are currently planning a golf trip to Europe, make sure to include France on your list. Being one of the most popular golf destinations in Europe, France is the home to so many world-class golf courses offering a wide variety of challenges and experiences.

So, picking the best golf courses in France is actually a pretty daunting task. There is no short answer to this, as many of the courses are highly enjoyable with their own classy layouts and beauties. Yet, here are our top five picks:

Le Golf National (Albatros Course), Paris

It will be very difficult not to pick the host of the 2018 Ryder Cup and the home of the French Open in this list. Le Golf National is located very close to Versailles, and there are three world-class golf courses including the famed Albatros course, one of the most renowned championship golf course in Europe. The Albatros course is a 7217-yard par-72 course that hosts the Open de France since 1991, known for its pristine, outstanding greens and excellent hazards.

The whole Le Golf National is an inland links course, and what’s unique about it is how it perfectly captured the stadium feel with a dune-like landscape. The last four holes of the Albatros are arguably the highlights of the course, surrounding dramatic lakes giving you dramatic challenges and mesmerizing views.

The best part is that the Le Golf National is a public course, featuring a variety of special offers for visiting tourists. You might want to opt for the all-inclusive golf day featuring, obviously, a round of golf on the Albatros, a VIP breakfast, on-course catering, and more. Definitely one of the best golf destinations in France – perfect to enjoy a day in the sun alongside your golf cart.

Terre Blanche Hotel Spa Golf Resort, Southeast France

Terre Blanche is a fairly new golf resort opened in 2004, back then a resort run by the Four Seasons before it went independent in 2012. The resort features not just one, but two world-class tournament courses Le Chateau and Le Riou, and for those looking for a luxurious golf vacation, this one is an excellent pick.

Both the courses are designed by Dave Thomas, the designer of the famous three-time Ryder Cup host The Belfry. The Le Chateau and Le Riou are quite distinct from each other, especially regarding the terrain and shot values. The Le Chateau plays relatively tougher and longer, rich with obstacles with virtually every turn. There are always ponds, trees, or bunkers to offer adequate challenges with each and every shot. Not only it is a challenging course, it is also beautiful where natural beauties serve as obstacles, like how a waterfall is smartly placed on the par-3 second hole.

Le Riou, on the other hand, is more about variety, galloping up and down with a very interesting terrain. It is 700 yards shorter than Le Riou and is arguably more accessible for all skill levels. Yet, only resort guests and members can play on the Le Riou.

Golf de Fontainebleau, Paris

One of the oldest gems in France, Fontainebleau was opened more than a century ago in 1909.

Originally designed by Tom Simpson, the course has undergone several modernizations, although many original features and overall shape were left intact. The Fontainebleau area itself is one of the largest and most beautiful forests in France, and so we can expect the course to be dominated by forest views and terrain.

The course itself is relatively short, only a little above 6,600 yards. Yet, the greens are quite small and cleverly guarded, and so you can expect enough challenges with small targets to aim at. If you are looking for a challenge to improve your short game, the Fontainebleau is the perfect spot.

The surface is sandy and well drained, and it cleverly integrates many of its natural features to add more challenges to the course, like how it incorporates many of the natural sandstones to enhance views while acting as obstacles.

Golf Du Medoc (Châteaux Course), South-west France

The Golf Du Medoc resort is located just north of Bordeaux in the Pian Medoc area. It is a relatively small resort, yet is quite luxurious, as you might not have expected while going through the suburbs before reaching the resort.

The Châteaux course was an award-winning course including the Best French Golf Course in 2014 by the World Golf Awards. The Bill Coore design was unique in many ways, especially in how it cleverly utilize its prime terrain with extremely frequent changes of direction. The course is mainly heathland, and perhaps the 7th hole will best summarize the whole feel of the Châteaux: an extreme driving hole with not one, but two bunker obstacles while also featuring heather bursting out the sandy scrapes. Perfect to practice tough golf shots.

Every April, the Châteaux plays host to the French Schweppes PGA Championship, and so there’s no question about its quality.

Golf de Chantilly (Vineuil Course), Paris

Another course in Paris, the Golf de Chantilly is set amidst the Île-de-France forests, just around 30 miles north of Paris. Founded in 1909, the club has played host to numerous French Opens, and what we have today is mainly from the Tom Simpson redesign in the 1920s. Being an English architect, Tom Simpson is responsible for giving the Vineuil a distinctive British feel.

Being a forest course, obviously one of the key highlights of the Vineuil is the avenues of trees, giving you just that extra challenge in fairway placements. Out of others in this list, Golf de Chantilly is probably the most traditional, including a classic clubhouse that is very British. It might not offer as much challenge as the others, but the Vineuil will be a test of accuracy to avoid the forests.

Bottom Line

There are obviously more choices of golf destinations in France, as we have mentioned at the start of this article. Yet, these five offers some of the most unique experiences in France, while also providing you with enough challenges, varieties, and beautiful views.

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When Napoleon Bonaparte arrived at the stunning seaside resort of Golfe-Juan on the Cote d’Azur Napoleon on March 1, 1815, it wasn’t a holiday he had in mind. Unlike those of us who go there for the sea, sand and sunshine, the quirky shops and art galleries in the quaint and narrow winding streets, the local gastronomy – Napoleon was there for a quite different reason.

He had just escaped exile on the island of Elba and with 600 men under his command he was bent on return and revenge. His march to Paris, commemorated by the Route Napoléon, and the campaign that led to his ultimate defeat at the Battle of Waterloo are known as the “Hundred Days”.

Golfe-Juan, a historic shoreline

The bicentenary of Napoleon’s landing in Golfe-Juan will take place Saturday, February 28 and Sunday, March 1st 2015 when a major re-enactment event will take place.

After landing, Napoleon took a short rest in what was then just a little fishing hamlet, this “land of the brave”. By the light of a lantern he declared “Victory will march at ‘the pas de charge’, the eagle fly in the national colours from steeple to steeple until it alights on the towers of Notre-Dame”.

His  proclamation induced fear in the monarchs of Europe and the famous route he took later became known as the “Route Napoleon”. In 1932 it became the first ever French Tourist route of a historical nature.

Napoléon in Golfe-Juan

In March 2015 a huge re-enactment of the landing takes place with old rigging, actors, Napoleonic troops, weapons and campaign equipment. For a few days during this highly original spectacle, the town and all of its activities take on an imperial flavour. Visitors will discover exhibitions, soldiers’ bivouacs on the beach, windows decorated and shop staff dressed up in costume and many events such as war games and a temporary post office.

It promises to be an amazing weekend of historic proportions in the heart of the French Riviera…

Find out more: www.visitcotedazur.travel

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