- La Hacienda is ranked No.17 in Golf World’s Top 100 Golf Resorts in Continental Europe.
- La Hacienda Links Golf Resort is the highest new entry in the updated list.
- The resort’s five-star Fairmont La Hacienda Costa del Sol hotel opened in 2025.
La Hacienda Links Golf Resort, the 36-hole venue overlooking the Mediterranean with the Rock of Gibraltar as its backdrop, has gone straight in at No.17 in Golf World magazine’s updated Top 100 Golf Resorts in Continental Europe, the highest new entry in the ranking.
Golf World‘s panel judges each resort on four categories: course, accommodation, amenities and setting. La Hacienda’s accommodation and setting were rated among the “best of the best”.
“A splash new entry in the top 20 for a resort that didn’t exist two years ago,” it said. “The addition of the swish Fairmont hotel, alongside the Links and Heathland courses, gives Andalucia a fourth entry in the top 20, making it the golf resort capital of Europe.”
“The Links is an especially appealing course, ranked in the inaugural World X Factor Top 100 list earlier this year. The Heathland is a solid no.2 and the beachfront hotel is absolutely gorgeous. Modern and luxurious, but with a real touch of class,” the panel added.
From Alcaidesa to La Hacienda
The resort, in the Cadiz municipality of San Roque and a near neighbour of Sotogrande, is a rebrand of Alcaidesa Golf. The original Links course opened in 1992 to a design by Peter Alliss and Clive Clark, and has since been redesigned by Kurtis Bowman. The Heathland was laid out by former Ryder Cup player Dave Thomas. Both are par-72 layouts.
The investment programme, rolled out between 2022 and 2025, also brought a new clubhouse and dining facilities, a new halfway house, a beach club, upgraded academy facilities and real estate. The centrepiece is the Fairmont La Hacienda Costa del Sol, which has 150 guest rooms, 156 suites and 47 villas, plus a spa and wellness centre, family facilities and preferential tee access to both courses.
Javier Jimenez Casquet, the resort’s director general, credited the hotel with the leap. “The opening of Fairmont La Hacienda Costa del Sol has been a real game changer, complementing our two championship courses and elevating the entire guest experience,” he said.
A busy year in the rankings
The No.17 placing caps a strong 2026 on the lists. La Hacienda is 94th in Golf World’s Top 100 Golf Resorts in the World and 16th in its Top 100 Luxe Resorts in Europe, while National Club Golfer ranked it 24th among Europe’s golf resorts. The Links came in at 67th in Golf World’s inaugural World’s Top 100 X Factor Courses.
Both courses were in use in June when the resort hosted the second edition of Pau Gasol’s charity Golf Experience, won by Adri Arnaus’ team.
For more information on La Hacienda, click HERE.
Related: Pau Gasol’s charity golf experience returns to La Hacienda Links as Adri Arnaus takes victory
Simon Bale
Simon Bale is the publisher of Golf Today. A low single-figure handicap golfer, he was previously a major shareholder and course reviewer for Top100GolfCourses.com for over a decade, starting in 2010. Through this role, he developed extensive knowledge of golf course design and architecture while playing more than 300 courses worldwide.