Vale do Lobo Ocean Course
Vale do Lobo's Ocean Course carries the pedigree of few others in the Algarve: it was shaped by Sir Henry Cotton, a three-time Open Champion and the first professional golfer ever knighted for his service to the game. Two of his original nine-hole layouts, opened in 1968 and 1972, were finally combined into today's eighteen in 1995, completing a vision he never got to see finished.
The course builds gradually, its fairways undulating past a protected nature reserve before easing down toward the Atlantic. Everything sharpens on the closing stretch. The 11th and 14th, both testing par 4s, deliver some of the finest views in the region, and the par-3 15th plays right along the beach, close enough to hear the sea over your backswing. It is a round that rewards shot-shaping over brute force, exactly the kind of test Cotton favoured, and one that guests consistently rate among their Algarve favourites.
Facilities include a full driving range, a resident academy, and a clubhouse restaurant well placed for a post-round drink with a view. The Ocean Course sits alongside its sister course, the Royal, giving golfers a natural two-round pairing without leaving the resort. For anyone chasing that classic Algarve postcard, holes along the water, sea breeze in play, Cotton's design still delivers it.
Reception: 6:45am to 7pm(Summer) / 6pm(Winter)
Golf Clubs: Standard
Club House: With Restaurant and Snack bar
With driving range
With an Academy
Trolleys: Manual and Electric
With locker room
Pro Shop: 6:45am to 7pm(Summer) / 6pm(Winter)
Golf Lessons: Resident professionals
With putting green
Juniors: Up to 16 years oldVale do Lobo Ocean Course - latest comments and reviews
Renato Guerriero
2026-11-02
Beautiful course well kept, only minor negative is the practice. It is not possible to practice clubs above 9 iron
Angela Pott
2026-10-31
Beautiful course, nice scenery, well maintained. We had fun and will play there again.
Patrick Kelly
2026-10-30
A very pleasant and smooth experience
Ted Kennedy
2026-10-29
Great time had by all. Course in great condition. Staff very friendly and helpful. Thanks to teetimes for all their help and support in booking everything we needed for our group.
Ronny Hermansen
2026-10-28
What an incredibly beautiful golfcourse. For me as a mid handicapper, plenty of challenges, yet very playable. Great greens, lush fairways, very hospitable personel, and so beutiful surroundings. Can’t wait to play the Royal in a few days. If there is one tiny thing, a buggy selling a few items to eat or drink during the round would be great, but again, the clubhouse had all you needed at the turn, so it really was not a problem.
Mark Brooks
2026-10-27
Very impressed with the Ocean course today. Great design and test from the back tees.
Steve Richmond
2026-10-23
We always love playing this course. Great layout with some wonderful scenic holes and although tough we always enjoy it. Terrific clubhouse and facilities.
Lauermann Andreas
2026-10-22
Great course in very good condition. Greens not too fast. Fairways and bunkers well maintained
Mark Clancy
2026-10-20
Love the challenge of the ocean course ,always find it more difficult than royal but fair.again staff very friendly
Aidan Heneghan
2026-10-20
Course was in excellent condition, no hold ups in play, got around the 18 holes in less than 4.5 hours. Lovely course to play and the ocean views were wonderful. Great experience.
Scott Templeton
2026-10-18
Fantastic golfing experience! The staff were super helpful and the course was in fantastic condition. This is a must play course on a trip to the Algarve! Holes 14 and 15 were fantastic playing down by the beach.
Kelly Bains
2026-10-05
very busy so getting buggies was a challenge
Tecnicals
*Parkland - Mainly Parkland, with 5 links style holes around the coastline
*Undulated - More so on the back 9
*Mixt Course -
*Buggy Recommended - Essential
*Signature Hole - 11th
*Water hazards - Few holes on the front 9
*Tree Lined - A few Eucalyptus and Cork trees strategically placed
*Exposed - On the links holes
*Dogleg -
*Comments - Excellent course, hard to do 36 points
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