SESIMBRA, SETUBAL, TROIA & COMPORTA HOTELS
The best places to stay for golf holidays south of Lisbon.

Sesimbra is an older style Portuguese beach resort that has catered to thousands upon thousands of tourists over the years looking to profit from its stretch of sunny sandy beach.  The Hotel do Mar has one of the prime positions, at the western end of town cascading down the hillside to the sea.  The way the hotel is built backing into the hillside assures every room of a sea-view, if your room has a balcony so much the better (most rooms do at a small supplement).

Although an older hotel, the founder's family still run it and lavish sufficient care and attention on their pride and joy that it is always in tip top shape.  There is also an indoor pool in the spa area plus sauna and treatments available.

From the restaurant and bar with its wooden verandah there are lovely views over the long sandy beach and pool.  Lying to the West of Setubal, Sesimbra is well placed for the Quinta do Peru, Aroeira, Troia and Montado golf courses, getting across to the 36-holes at Riba will take a little longer, but the main roads and motorway are good.

If all you need for your golf holiday in Portugal is a simple, clean and tidy hotel that is surrounded by good golf and good restaurants, then the Esperenca Centro in the centre of Setubal (practically opposite the Troia ferry) will fit your bill nicely.
No pool or restaurant at this business-like hotel but there are many places to wine and dine in the streets all around the hotel.

If you can't get enough of the magical Troia and/or the amazing new Compota Dunas golf courses, then staying south of the Sado river on the Troia peninsula is the place to be.  At the very tip of the Troia peninsula is the recent marina development, where the shiny-new Troia Design Hotel towers over the boats in the harbour looking across the estuary to Setubal on the far bank.

The Troia Design Hotel is thoroughly modern, with a glittering atrium-style interior to its fifteen floors of modern, spacious bedrooms.  All of these have a sea-view as the place is surrounded by water!  Parking is easy too, with an enormous underground car-park (make sure you park in the right section or you'll have a bit of a walk!).

The hotel has a very upmarket restaurant on the ground floor, serving a truly gastronomic menu in its minimalist setting.  There is a good bar area too where lighter fayre is available in the height of the season.  Outside, around the quay, you will find half-a-dozen other establishments ranging from burger bars and grills to fine fisheries.  There is also the foot-ferry that departs from in front of the hotel, should you fancy a day or a night-out in Setubal.

The Design Hotel is a great place to relax post-golf with two large swimming pools (indoor and outdoor), sun decks for bronzing and an extensive spa with whirlpool, sauna, hammam and all manner of treatments available: plus sandy beaches within strolling distance for a dip in the Sado or the Atlantic - sweet or salty, the choice is yours!