Business Traveller

PGA Catalunya

The PGA Catalunya resort has two of Spain’s top golf courses, plus a five- star hotel with striking modernist architectu­re

- WORDS TOMOTLEY

You don’t need to have fabulous views for golf, but it can help take your mind off how you’re playing. A round of golf is often described as “a good walk spoiled”, but with rolling fairways, mature forests surroundin­g the course, frequent lakes and then the Pyrenees on the horizon, even hooking your ball into an ornamental lake causes only a moment’s displeasur­e. Your mindful game may be spoiled though if you inadverten­tly cause the ball to skip along the top of the water, and then get a cheer from a neighbouri­ng green (as happened to me). Yet it would be a shame to let one bad shot ruin perfect moments such as this.

Set in mature forests about 20 minutes’ drive from Girona, perhaps the most successful aspect of the PGA Catalunya developmen­t is that it disguises how close it is to everything else. Well connected by road and rail to Girona to the north and Barcelona to the south, both of which have internatio­nal airports, the 300-hectare site was first conceived as a location for a future F1 track.

When that didn’t work out (the track was subsequent­ly built in Montmelo near Barcelona), the plan was for a golf course to be developed to host the Ryder Cup in 1997. Two courses were planned and eventually built – the Stadium championsh­ip course and the Tour course. Delays meant that in the end the Ryder Cup went to Valderamma in 1997, but the courses and the surroundin­gs are outstandin­g. They benefit from having been planned together, but also from landscape design by two outstandin­g course architects – Angel Gallardo and Neil Coles.

Like most modern golf course developmen­ts, the plan was to sell real-estate around the property. There was a four-star Melia hotel on site, and the prospect of many apartments, townhouses and villas. But more than a decade later in 2007-8, Spain had more than half a million residentia­l units around golf courses planned or for sale – and little prospect of many of them being sold. At PGA Catalunya, the decision was made to do things a little differentl­y, by insisting on all developmen­t being modernist in design; this alludes to the area’s associatio­ns with modern art, and with modernity generally. The so-called “Dali Triangle” of the surrealist artist’s three star attraction­s are at nearby Figueres, Portlligat and Pubo, and Catalonia was also the home of Picasso for many years. The result is that unlike the majority of recreation­al and residentia­l developmen­ts, the estates look distinct,although all have clean white lines and lots of glass. The buildings fit with one another so when walking or jogging around the resort, or taking bikes out for the day, or playing either of the courses, the clusters of buildings appear to be all of a set, even though they were designed separately.

Three architectu­ral agencies were brought together to create a brand playbook for developers to follow, with

the detailing even going down to the type of gardens to be planted and the forbidding of fencing so that each property is a part of the overall developmen­t. The gardens lead straight down on to the golf courses. The resort has 24-hour gated security at the entrance, for those worried about safety.

If you stay at the 149-room Hotel Camiral, you benefit from a recently completed €33 million renovation of the old Melia hotel to fit in with the modernist aesthetic. Every room and public area has been transforme­d under designer Lazaro Rosa-Violan, who is also responsibl­e for Barcelona projects such as Soho House, the Cotton House hotel and the new Edition. The three-storey lobby atrium of the rejuvenate­d Camiral has windows overlookin­g the swimming pools, golf courses, villas and the Pyrenees beyond; light floods into the building. There are huge walls of wooden drawers with the names of local flowers on them, a threestore­y mirror-backed bookcase and lots of comfortabl­e seats where you can flop down to stare at the decoration and the view. It’s a stunning lobby area, and sets the scene for a re-positionin­g of the hotel, the

...golf courses and the real-estate. It is five-star luxury, and as far away from the traditiona­l, outdated perception of golf as can be imagined.

Golf resorts face a double challenge today. Many do not project a modern enough image, and they are suffering a drop in playing numbers in many markets. Golf has never been fashionabl­e, but it has long been aspiration­al, reason enough for all those real estate developmen­ts beginning with the golf course. Today’s time-strapped executives find it difficult to justify time on the golf course, while those with the time for a half day to spare, prefer Lycra and heading out on expensive bicycles. To appeal to a new generation of golfers, while at the same time pleasing their families, more than just a golf course is required. At PGA Catalunya, a wellness resort is being planned alongside the hotel, plus vineyards, a manmade

recreation­al lake, an equestrian centre, and football pitches (footballer­s love playing golf, since it’s one sport they can enjoy without the risk of injury).

In the meantime, the Hotel Camiral is a relaxing place, with excellent service, and modern rooms refurbishe­d to the highest standards. Those on the pool side have balconies, while rooms at the back overlook the small car park, practice ground and then those forests and mountains. There’s a choice of restaurant­s, from the Clubhouse Bistrot with fabulous views, to 1477 fine-dining restaurant. There are meeting facilities, providing the venue for several high-spirited groups while we were there, although the place is so large we hardly noticed them. Finally, there are those wealthy enough to buy one of the properties here – which will be capped at 400 units, whether townhouses, villas or apartments. It can be fun working out who these multi-millionair­e owners are, but once you’re on the golf course, everyone is equal and subject to the vagaries of their swing or putting touch on the day.

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 ??  ?? CLOCKWISE: A lake view across the Stadium Course; the Tour Course; a balcony at Hotel Camiral; infinity pool with lounger at Hotel Camiral
CLOCKWISE: A lake view across the Stadium Course; the Tour Course; a balcony at Hotel Camiral; infinity pool with lounger at Hotel Camiral
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