In the heart of the Costa del Sol, in cosmopolitan Marbella, five minutes away from its famous Puerto Banús, in the no less emblematic Golf Valley, there is an exceptional club with a course to match: Aloha. Inaugurated in 1975 and designed by the prestigious Basque architect Javier Arana, the course stands out from the usual average and is among the best we have in our country and in Europe. And the same can be said of the club, with a lively and friendly social life throughout the year, a formidable clubhouse and a restaurant that leaves no one indifferent due to its quality.
With impeccable maintenance, the pampering and care that is applied to everything here is noticeable. Unfortunately it is no longer common to build courses like this, without houses, spacious, and in the best possible area.
The scene of European Tour tournaments and important amateur competitions, Aloha is a course in constant evolution and renovation, and in the last four years there has been a major upgrade of the club’s facilities to improve its level. “We have recently renovated the Club House, the Chiringuito on Hole 9, and expanded the parking lot with an additional new floor. At the end of last year we inaugurated our new Health Club, expanding our range of services for our Members (Restaurant, Swimming Pool, Physiotherapy, Golf School) and making Aloha one of the most complete Clubs on the Coast,” says the club’s director, Rafael García Buitrago.
“We have always taken care of the field,” he adds, “but now, if possible, we are doing it even harder to make sure it is perfect. I think we have done our homework very well, and also with the added value that Aloha has made this great effort in a time of crisis. With this commitment to quality, we will continue to be a reference club on the Costa del Sol”.
The director points out that Aloha is a very active club in terms of competitions, both open and for members. “Our least active season is the summer,” he explains, “because our members are mostly from northern Europe and many return home at that time, so we can take advantage of this to organize open sponsored events.
Among them is the Aloha Cup, an initiative of the club’s president, Rafael Fontán, scheduled for mid-August. “We want people to come and enjoy our club,” says García Buitrago, “and the best time is the summer, when we are quieter and the members’ play is not affected so much. We are finalizing details, what type of competition, a trophy by invitation, not overcrowded, with a limited number of teams, and with the idea that it will be a competition where apart from playing golf people will have a lot of fun, that is, there will be dinner, there will be a good prize-giving ceremony, there will be a party… a great event. We want people to enjoy themselves and want to come back.
Another important event at Aloha is the Andrés Jiménez Memorial Pro Am, which has been organized by the club in December for many years and features the stellar participation of Miguel Ángel Jiménez. “It is held over a weekend, brings together many professionals and there is a tremendous atmosphere,” comments the club’s director.
Aloha also hosts the tournament in favor of children with butterfly skin syndrome, a very emblematic competition on the Costa del Sol, with almost 200 players, the Golf Valley tournament with Las Brisas and many other competitions.
OPINIONS
To get the opinions of amateur golfers who have either played at Aloha before or are playing for the first time, we met with members of two matches after finishing their rounds and enjoying lunch at the clubhouse restaurant.
Javier Burgués, director of Casino Marbella. “We had a great day here. First we had lunch in the clubhouse, the best golf course restaurant I know, and then we enjoyed a course with magnificent facilities. It is a long course, a great design by Javier Arana, strategic, with magnificent greens. I would like to congratulate the management of Aloha for the great maintenance of the course because the course is impeccable”.
Esteban Rodríguez Sevillano, businessman “I would like to emphasize the variety of shots that this course offers, and the enormous variety of holes it has. Of course, I will try to play here whenever I can”.
Manuel A., lawyer
“One of the things that has struck me the most is the great social life in this club. I think it is a very welcoming second home for the members. As for the course, for me it is among the best on the Coast, without a doubt. There is an obvious distinction between the front nine and the back nine. The first, for a player of medium and low handicap, invites to play them in two ways: either to place the ball or to be brave and achieve a good result. The second nine are wider, where the difficulty, from my point of view, is in the greens, which are very moving and fast. It has been a long time since I played this course and I have found it phenomenal”.
Saad Azzam, Managing Director of the Hotel Gran Meliá Don Pepe
“Aloha is one of Marbella’s benchmarks. It is an extraordinary course, with deadly greens because they are fast and fantastic. It is not easy to find courses of this quality. Few have fairways and greens as well maintained as Aloha. I loved the day and I think it is a highly recommendable experience”.
Rika Vidáts of Ré Lounge (Events & Leisure) “This course is one of the best I have ever played, and I have played many, many courses around the world in my life. “The course was in spectacular condition. The post-game lunch couldn’t have been better. I already knew that Aloha ate very, very well, but it’s always surprising that on a golf course there is this quality of top-notch restaurant. This club has been renovated and improved a lot in recent years.
Marco Polacci, delegate of IAGTO (International Association of Golf Tour Operators) in Andalusia.
“Aloha is a great place, of course. I had played it before, but now I find it in unbeatable conditions. It is one of those courses that any golfer has to play. It is, I would say, a must. The clubhouse, after the renovations, has been fantastic, and the club has the most activity of any I know in the area. There are few with this social life every day of the year, with a unique atmosphere”.
José María Río, general manager of Viajes Master “This is the first time I have played this course. I know all the courses in the area, but I missed this one. I enjoyed it very much, the morning was fantastic and the course is beautiful, very well kept. You can tell they put a lot of love. The staff that I have seen working, you can see that they do it with desire, not just to cover the record. I think it is one of the best courses on the Costa del Sol at the moment”.
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