Nineteen places we haven’t been yet: each with a walkable town centre, a proper boutique hotel, good golf within 40 minutes, and restaurants you can reach on foot. All within a day’s reach of Zürich.
Annecy 🇫🇷
Alpine lake town with canals, a walkable old town, and a strong bistro scene. The French answer to an Italian lago – minus the crowds.
| Key Courses | Golf du Lac d’Annecy (~15 min), Golf d’Esery, Golf de Bossey (~30–40 min) |
| From Zürich | ~4 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → GVA ~4 h (direct seasonal), then 40 min drive |
| Nearest Airport | Geneva (GVA) – 40 min |
Canal-side aperitifs and mountain golf – a smaller, quieter Annecy delivers both.
Cascais 🇵🇹
Historic seaside town near Lisbon with a walkable marina and old centre. Outstanding seafood and some of continental Europe’s finest links-style courses.
| Key Courses | Oitavos Dunes (top 60 globally), Quinta da Marinha, Penha Longa, Estoril GC – all 10–25 min |
| From Zürich | ~2.5 h flight |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → LIS ~4 h (direct), then 30 min drive |
| Nearest Airport | Lisbon (LIS) – 30 min |
World-class links golf, Atlantic light, and grilled fish on the harbour. Hard to argue with.
Lucca 🇮🇹
Car-free walled Renaissance city with a dense trattoria scene. Cycle the ramparts, eat exceptionally well, play golf in the Tuscan hills.
| Key Courses | Montecatini GC, Cosmopolitan GC, Alisei GC Pietrasanta – all 30–40 min |
| From Zürich | ~5 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → PSA ~4.5 h (1 stop), then 30 min drive |
| Nearest Airport | Pisa (PSA) – 30 min |
Tuscany without the tourist crush. The town itself is the destination.
Évora 🇵🇹
UNESCO-listed medieval city with a Roman temple and exceptional regional cooking. The Alentejo is Portugal’s slow-food heartland.
| Key Courses | Troia Golf and Ribagolfe – 60–90 min |
| From Zürich | ~2.5 h flight |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → LIS ~4 h (direct), then 90 min drive |
| Nearest Airport | Lisbon (LIS) – 90 min |
Roman ruins, cork oak plains, and pork cheeks braised in red wine. The golf is a bonus.
Honfleur / Deauville 🇫🇷
Impressionist harbour town with seafood platters, calvados, and the kind of light that made Monet famous. Deauville adds a touch of old-money glamour.
| Key Courses | Golf Barrière de Deauville, Golf de Saint-Gatien (15–20 min), Golf d’Étretat (~45 min) |
| From Zürich | ~7 hours by car / Paris + 2 h |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → CDG ~3.5 h (direct), then 2 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Paris (CDG) – 2 hours |
Normandy cream, cider, and clifftop fairways. The most French week imaginable.
Aix-en-Provence 🇫🇷
Cours Mirabeau, Provençal markets, rosé country. Elegant without trying too hard – a town that’s been perfecting the art of living well for centuries.
| Key Courses | Golf d’Aix-Marseille, Set Golf (10–15 min), Pont Royal, Domaine de Manville (30–40 min) |
| From Zürich | ~6.5 hours by car / 1.5 h flight |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → MRS ~4.5 h (1 stop), then 25 min drive |
| Nearest Airport | Marseille (MRS) – 25 min |
Plane trees, rosé at noon, and Nicklaus-designed fairways in the garrigue.
Verona 🇮🇹
Walkable medieval centre, Valpolicella wine country, outstanding trattorias. Close enough to feel easy, Italian enough to feel like a proper escape.
| Key Courses | Ca’ degli Ulivi (~20 min), Garda Golf (~25 min), Arzaga Golf (Nicklaus, ~40 min) |
| From Zürich | ~4.5 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → VRN ~4.5 h (1 stop), then 15 min drive |
| Nearest Airport | Verona (VRN) – direct |
Amarone, arena, and Nicklaus. Verona has everything except an excuse not to go.
San Sebastián / Hondarribia 🇪🇸
Highest Michelin star density per capita in Europe. Pintxos scene, Atlantic coast, Basque soul. The culinary destination to end all culinary destinations.
| Key Courses | Real Club de Golf de San Sebastián (~20 min), Biarritz and Anglet courses (30–40 min) |
| From Zürich | ~2 h flight |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → BIO ~4.5 h (1 stop), then 1 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Bilbao (BIO) – 1 hour |
Where the food alone justifies the trip. The golf is just the excuse to stay longer.
Baden-Baden 🇩🇪
Elegant spa town with a walkable Altstadt and the Lichtentaler Allee. Nine courses in the Baden-Alsace region, Brenners Park for a nightcap. Old-world glamour done right.
| Key Courses | Baden-Baden GC, Baden Hills Golf & Curling Club (10–15 min) |
| From Zürich | ~2.5 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → FRA ~3.5 h (direct), then 1.5 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Baden Airpark (FKB) / Frankfurt (FRA) |
Thermal baths, Black Forest cake, and fairways through pine woods. Civilisation at its most comfortable.
Bamberg 🇩🇪
UNESCO old town with extraordinary brewery and restaurant density. Franconia is Germany’s best-kept gastronomic secret – Rauchbier, river walks, and Baroque churches.
| Key Courses | GC Hauptsmoorwald Bamberg (~10 min), GC Reichswald (~30 min) |
| From Zürich | ~3.5 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → NUE ~4.5 h (1 stop), then 45 min drive |
| Nearest Airport | Nürnberg (NUE) – 45 min |
More breweries per capita than anywhere in Germany. The golf is just something to do between meals.
Regensburg 🇩🇪
UNESCO medieval city on the Danube with historic wine taverns and a 12th-century stone bridge. The old town is remarkably intact and thoroughly walkable.
| Key Courses | Golf- und Land-Club Regensburg (~15 min), Golfanlage Sinzing (~20 min) |
| From Zürich | ~3.5 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → MUC ~4 h (direct seasonal), then 1 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Munich (MUC) – 1 hour |
Danube sunsets, Bavarian Helles, and a town that hasn’t changed much since 1400.
Heidelberg 🇩🇪
Romantic old town on the Neckar with the castle, strong wine bar scene, and a European Tour venue course nearby. Germany at its most postcard-perfect.
| Key Courses | GC Heidelberg-Lobenfeld (Harradine, ~20 min), GC St. Leon-Rot (European Tour, ~25 min) |
| From Zürich | ~3 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → FRA ~3.5 h (direct), then 1 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Frankfurt (FRA) – 1 hour |
A castle, a river, and a European Tour venue within 25 minutes. Heidelberg doesn’t need to try hard.
Freiburg im Breisgau 🇩🇪
Sunniest city in Germany with the Münster, Bächle canals, and Kaiserstuhl wine country next door. A short trip from Zürich – almost suspiciously convenient.
| Key Courses | GC Tuniberg (~10 min), Alsace courses across the border (20–30 min) |
| From Zürich | ~1.5 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → BSL ~4 h (1 stop), then 1 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Basel (BSL) – 1 hour |
The closest destination on this list. Pinot Noir, sunshine, and cross-border golf into Alsace.
Kitzbühel 🇦🇹
Medieval cobblestone centre with upscale Alpine dining. The ski resort you forget is also a summer gem – and home to one of Austria’s best courses.
| Key Courses | GC Kitzbühel-Schwarzsee (Kyle Phillips, ~5 min), GC Eichenheim (~20 min) |
| From Zürich | ~3.5 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → INN or SZG ~4.5 h (1 stop), then 1.5 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Salzburg (SZG) or Innsbruck (INN) – 1.5 hours |
Kyle Phillips designed the course. The medieval town centre does the rest.
Innsbruck 🇦🇹
A proper city with a walkable Altstadt (Golden Roof, Hofburg), strong restaurant scene, and mountain golf that plays against a backdrop of 2,000-metre peaks.
| Key Courses | GC Innsbruck-Igls (Harradine, ~15 min), Seefeld-Wildmoos (~30 min) |
| From Zürich | ~3 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → INN ~4.5 h (1 stop), then 15 min drive |
| Nearest Airport | Innsbruck (INN) – direct |
Golf at altitude, schnitzel for dinner, and the kind of mountain light that makes photographers weep.
Luzern 🇨🇭
Chapel Bridge, lakefront promenades, walkable Altstadt. And a golf club established in 1903 that’s literally five minutes from the centre.
| Key Courses | Luzern GC (est. 1903, ~5 min), Küssnacht and Engelberg (20–30 min) |
| From Zürich | ~1 hour by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → ZRH ~3.5 h (direct), then 1 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Zürich (ZRH) – 1 hour |
Five minutes from hotel to first tee. Luzern makes the logistics absurdly easy.
Interlaken 🇨🇭
Compact town between two lakes with the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau panorama. Home to what is arguably Switzerland’s most scenic golf course.
| Key Courses | GC Interlaken-Unterseen (18-hole championship, at town’s edge) |
| From Zürich | ~2 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → ZRH ~3.5 h (direct), then 2 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Bern (BRN) – 1 hour |
Teeing off with the Eiger in your sightline. No course in Switzerland can match that view.
Bern 🇨🇭
UNESCO Altstadt with arcaded streets, relaxed capital-city dining, and one of Switzerland’s best courses within 20 minutes. Understated and underrated.
| Key Courses | GC Blumisberg (~20 min, one of Switzerland’s best), GC Oberburg |
| From Zürich | ~1.5 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → ZRH ~3.5 h (direct), then 1.5 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Bern (BRN) – 15 min |
The federal capital is quietly one of the best food cities in Switzerland. The golf matches.
Passau 🇩🇪
“City of Three Rivers” where the Danube, Inn, and Ilz converge. Baroque old town on a peninsula, walkable and atmospheric. Bad Griesbach’s championship golf is a short drive away.
| Key Courses | Donau GC Passau-Raßbach (~15 min), Bad Griesbach resort (multiple championship courses, ~30 min) |
| From Zürich | ~4 hours by car |
| From Reykjavík | KEF → MUC ~4 h (direct seasonal), then 2 h drive |
| Nearest Airport | Munich (MUC) – 2 hours |
Three rivers, one peninsula, and Bad Griesbach next door. Passau is the wildcard that delivers.
