Before Quinta do Lago, before Vale do Lobo, before Monte Rei — there was Penina. Three-time Open Champion Sir Henry Cotton designed the course in 1966 on land previously used for rice cultivation, planting more than 360,000 trees and shrubs to transform flat agricultural ground into the wooded, parkland-style championship layout that became the first 18-hole course built in the Algarve. Everything the region’s golf industry became started, in a genuine sense, here.
Sir Henry Cotton planted 360,000 trees on former rice paddies to build this course in 1966. Every Algarve golf resort that followed owes something to what he started here.
The courses: what you are actually playing
The Championship Course, par 73 at 6,273 metres with a slope of 131, has hosted the Portuguese Open on numerous occasions, most recently in 2006. Tight fairways alongside streams and ditches demand accurate tee shots, subtle slopes and raised greens add further challenge, and the long par-3s — particularly the 13th, over 200 yards with a lake guarding the entire right side to the green — are widely regarded as the course’s toughest test. The Resort Course, a shorter 9-hole par-35, offers a genuinely relaxed alternative for less experienced players or a quick second round.
The hole worth knowing
The 13th, the course’s signature hole — a long par-3 over 200 yards with a lake running the full length of the right side to a well-protected green, demanding a strong, accurate shot with essentially no margin for error on the dangerous side.
The resort: what families actually need
Penina Hotel, 5-star with 188 elegant rooms and suites, sits within a 360-acre estate that includes tennis courts, a football pitch, and a running track alongside the golf. The resort’s genuine appeal for families is the ability to walk from breakfast straight to the first tee, with extensive practice facilities (driving range, short-game area, large putting green) making it a genuinely relaxed base rather than a purely competitive one.
On-site hotel: which one and why
Penina Hotel itself is the only choice and a strong one — recently refurbished while preserving its original character, with private balconies or terraces offering pool, garden, or mountain views across the full 188-room property.
Best time to go
April–June and September–October, standard for the Algarve, with Penina’s inland position near Alvor offering slightly more shelter from coastal wind than the more exposed clifftop courses further along the coast.
Getting there: the logistics reality
Faro Airport (FAO) is the standard hub, roughly 65 kilometres and under an hour by car, with Penina sitting conveniently close to both Portimão and Lagos for anyone extending the trip along the Western Algarve.
What to wear: the Inesea style edit
Warm cream, soft sand, gentle olive — a heritage-leaning palette that acknowledges the course’s genuine 1966 history without reading as costume.
Three pieces worth packing
A Daily Sports piece in warm cream — Scandinavian ease that suits the resort’s relaxed, walk-to-the-tee atmosphere.
A Lacoste polo in soft sand — French heritage register appropriate for one of the region’s founding courses.
Fair Liar accessories in gentle olive — Korean precision fabric practical for the eucalyptus-lined fairways Cotton himself planted.
The honest family verdict
Who should book it:
History-minded golfers who want to play where the Algarve’s golf industry actually began. Families wanting a relaxed, walk-to-the-tee resort format.
Who might look elsewhere:
Golfers prioritising dramatic coastal views over historical significance should choose Vale do Lobo or Monte Rei instead.
Official site
About the author
Diana Suke
Diana Suke is the founder of Inesea and Europe's leading editorial voice on women's golf fashion and culture. A business transformation director by profession, she coordinates junior golf programmes across Malta and travels the Mediterranean circuit with two competitive junior golfers. She came to golf in her mid-thirties and hasn't looked back.
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