Golf Costa Rica – Pura Vida

Golf the Pura Vida in Costa Rica

By Dave Finn as published on pages 36 and 37 of  the January Issue of  Golf Central Magazine

Costa Rica is one of the most environmentally conscious countries in the world.  In fact, 25% of the land mass is dedicated to parks, marine reserves and wildlife refuges.  It’s no wonder they have adopted the motto “Pura Vida” which translates to “Good Life”.

Costa Rica offers temperatures that hover between 70 and 80 degrees all year round. Perfect weather for golf.  There are two main seasons – the ‘dry season’ and the ‘green season’ which starts in mid May and lasts until mid November.  Either way you can always get you round in during the mornings as it only rains like clockwork in the afternoon.  There are 11 golf courses to be tested and below are my favourite 4 courses in descending order.

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Top 3 Golf Courses on the Silver Coast of Portugal

Golf with a Silver Lining (Surf & Turf Portugal)

Top 3 Golf Courses on the Silver Coast of Portugal

By Dave Finn as published in the December issue of Golf Central Magazine

World Renowned Surfing in Peniche at Baleal Beach

If you are looking for perfect year round weather, delicious food, incredible wines, and an inexpensive winter getaway, look no further than Centro Portugal. Also known as the ‘Silver Coast of Portugal’, it is most famous for having some of the best surfing beaches in the world and more than a few excellent courses to test your game. Here are my favourite three:

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Riviera Maya Golf

Monumental Memories of Riviera Maya Golf, Mexico

By Dave Finn as published in the October 2024 issue of Golf Central Magazine

What’s your pleasure?  Is it wading into the Caribbean Sea or plunging into the crystal-clear freshwater cenotes?  It is exploring the many archeological sites or simply chilling around the pool with a cool beverage.  Either way the Riviera Maya Golf in Mexico is the perfect winter getaway – me included, on more than one occasion.  It stretches over 140kms along the eastern Yucatan Peninsula from Tulum to just south of Cancun and is home to several world-class golf courses just waiting to be played.  Here is a quick rundown of the courses I’ve recently played just to ‘whet your whistle’.

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Sailing the Greek Isles

Bird on a Wire – Sailing the Greek Isles

Join Jane Finn as she sails the Greek Isles and develops a new circle of friends.

by Jane Finn as published in Issue 28 of Planet Golf Review Magazine

The instructions read like a scavenger hunt: Find your way to Dia Noche Café in Piraeus, where you’ll meet fellow travellers and your skipper. So here I am, scanning the bar, with both excitement and a tinge of trepidation, wondering how will I recognise the people we are destined to meet, and will we be compatible?

Dave and I are about to embark on a weeklong sailing journey with seven people we’ve never met. This trip has been postponed and rescheduled many times for several reasons, so I understand why I’m thrilled to be here and at the same time, anxious to connect with our group so we can get under way. Suddenly, a peal of laughter ripples across the room and I’m drawn to six folks tucked away at the back of the restaurant. Their gear bags are piled high in the corner, but the conversation seems too animated, too easy, too natural for strangers who have just met.

That’s when I lock eyes with a vivacious redhead whose voice rings out loud and clear. “Are you guys looking for G Adventures?” I nod, and she promptly responds, “Well then, get over here; we’ve been waiting for you!” – not in the sense that we are late, but in the sense that they’re waiting to welcome us.

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Bermuda Grand Slam of Golf

Bermuda Grand Slam of Golf

By Dave Finn as published on pages 38 and 39 of November 2024 issue of Golf Central Magazine.

Port Royal Golf Course – Hole #16

Rich with history and architecture, blessed with safe friendly people, Bermuda offers world-class golf, pink sandy beaches, crystal clear water and magnificent restaurants all within an easy 2½ direct flight from most major cities on the eastern seaboard of North America.  The weather is perfect year-round, and the scenery is second to none.

For us golfers there are five 18-hole championship courses, one 9-hole and an 18-hole par-3 to test your skills.  In fact, Bermuda boasts as having the highest concentration of golf courses per square mile in the world that takes up almost 17% of the country’s 21.6 square miles of real estate.

From 2007 to 2014, Bermuda proudly hosted the PGA Bermuda Grand Slam of Golf in mid-October pairing the winners of all four majors in a 36-hole event vying for bragging rights and a $1.3 million prize purse.

Here you can play some of the more picturesque courses in the world as well as follow alongside the footsteps of the most decorated professional golfers. 2010 participant Martin Kaymer reportedly said, “It’s like a paradise, playing golf in paradise” and I could not agree any more.

During my brief visit I only got a chance to play four of their courses and I was not disappointed.

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Cali Colombia – Salsa Capital of the World

Dancing in the Streets

Join Jane as she dances her way through the Capital City of Valle del Cauca, Cali, in Colombia

by Jane Finn as published in Issue 29 of Planet Golf Review Magazine

Cali is hot, hot, hot in more ways than one, but before this trip, Columbia’s third largest city wasn’t even on my radar. A bit like Cinderella, she lives in the shadows of her sisters, Bogotá, Medellín, and Cartagena. Colombians who don’t hail from here consider her a bit gritty, not as charming as her siblings. But beneath the surface I discover a bold beauty and a wildly beating heart that strikes a chord within me. A place where I can easily find my rhythm.

Slowly I adjust to the heat and humidity. In comparison, Bogotá was much cooler and no matter the time of day, the roads were congested. Here traffic flows like the seven rivers that run through the city. And unlike Medellín, most of the heritage architecture has been preserved, often interspersed with modern apartment and office towers, creating an eclectic urban landscape.

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