Golf spring on the Channel Islands - Part 2
Excursion to Guernsey
A good hour with the Condor Ferries, then you reach the neighboring island of Guernsey and land in the middle of the capital St. Peter Port with its 13th century trading port. It is a lively little town with pretty houses that run up several gentle hills, while the harbor area boasts a long waterfront and picturesque views of the sea and fishing boats. This is of course also where the yachts of the rich are moored, as the island is considered a financial stronghold for investors. The French writer Victor Hugo, who lived in Hauteville House - now a museum - after his exile from France, is still the most prominent resident here. It takes around two hours to drive around the island. For me, it feels like a journey back in time to Victorian Britain - in the Candie Gardens, in Saumarez Park with its exotic plants or in the five-star boutique hotel "Old Government House", where you should definitely try a cream tea with scones. The world's smallest church, Little Chapel, built by the French monk Déodats and completely decorated on the outside with shells and porcelain shards, is also a real eye-catcher. Things get romantic in the south-east of the island with picturesque bays between densely overgrown cliffs where the sea spray breaks or in the south-west, where Vazon and Cobo Bay invite you to swim on beautiful sandy beaches. And the Grand Mare Hotel with the 18-hole Country Golf Club of the same name is also located on this very beach.
Golf for everyone
Those staying at this 4-star hotel have an advantage: they can tee off before the start times and enjoy the varied 18-hole course in relative peace and quiet. You also need this to play over the many water hazards, which take the form of rivers, biotopes or lakes. Otherwise, the flat parkland course with its mature trees is a paradise for wildlife. The tournaments on this course and the celebrations afterwards are particularly popular. The hotel bar "The Club" in particular is known as the "golfer's home" and is packed every evening. The 9-hole St. Pierre Park golf course with adjoining resort is a completely different story. The course winds up and down hills between huge old trees, with small lakes in between and a few blind holes. The best opportunity to practise your short game and, as a hotel guest, to play a relaxed round in between. The third in the group also has a "Royal" in its name and has been around for 130 years, even though the course was rebuilt in 1949. Today's Royal Guernsey Golf Club is an 18-hole links course in the hilly terrain of L'Ancresse and as the course is overcrowded, Lynn and Angie take me out for a round. Just as well, because tall bushes often obscure the view, brambles swallow balls and deep bunkers are a real challenge. On the other hand, the balls run super fast on the grass-free surface and are rewarded with pars and birdies. It's curious that the road leading to the beach is crossed three times and that the area is open to the public. Afterwards, Lynn recommends the cider farm and a fine meal in the evening at "Le Nautique", the best fish restaurant in St. Peter Port, where the German Günther Botzenhardt has been cooking for 20 years. Too bad, I wanted to stay here longer, because I would like to get to know the island of the "Donkeys", as they are affectionately called, better. So the only thing left for me to do is read Charlotte Link's "The Rose Grower", an exciting story set on Guernsey.
Infos Guernsey:
www.visitguernsey.com www.visitguernsey.com www.visitguernsey.com/event/seafront-sundays
