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Welcome to our 7th Newsletter Issued on Friday, April 11th, 2025 |
| 🌺 Happy Masters’ Week everyone 🌺 |
| Hello to our fellow passionate golfers and travelers,
How exciting to be celebrating Golfers’ Day with Day 1 of the Masters yesterday!…and also, CONGRATULATIONS to Poppy McIlroy for her fabulous putt on the par 3 competition…that was awesome!!
We don’t know about you but the time flies when you are having fun! We still can’t believe we are already in April… golfing season is now in full swing, and so is golf travel demand, especially across the pond. We are seeing an incredible amount of enthusiastic travelers willing to go on a golf adventure, whether this is their first golf vacation abroad, or their second or third trip to Europe. The search for the very best quality golf courses in Europe and unique experiences is certainly the trend we are witnessing in all of our requests.
Newsletter 7 is packed with great information and we hope you’ll find it helpful, inspiring and engaging. First, we take a peek at the status of travel authorizations in Europe, we also share about our latest golf trip itineraries, our growing golf course portfolio and the elevated experiences we craft alongside the tee-times. We have included a full color itinerary of a self-drive golf trip to France, Spain, and Portugal which might inspire you to take the road as well.
We’ve also included our newly created “Golf Travel Consulting Sessions” framework, detailing this additional service we offer to golfers and their accompanying non-golfers. You will also learn about the recent and upcoming blog posts we are working on as well our internal processesses taking shape as we grow our agency. Lastly, our destination of the month is the Spanish Basque Country, a hidden gem destination not well known to international visitors, although well worth it when you start looking at it closely. The region is culturally dynamic and boasts fabulous landscapes, interesting museums, old market places, awesome restaurants serving the world-famous pintxos and historic golf courses featuring breathtaking seaviews. Although very private, CHASEGOLF is glad to share that we have gained access to 2 of the best golf courses in the area; Real Sociedade de Golf de Neguri, and Golf Club de Pedreña, through our network of friends. if you are interested in learning more about these courses, you’ll find our descriptions in the full color itinerary we have included in this newsletter.
As we expand our network and reach, we are able to secure priority as well as preferred rates with the hotels and the top golf clubs, allowing golfers to benefit from discounted rates in their trip package and having a golf travel agency organize and pre-pay for everything on their behalf. We enable golfers and their accompanying members to create FIT (free independent traveller) itineraries from beginning to end and play the very best golf courses while experiencing the ultimate vacation in Europe.
Happy reading and happy golfing season to everyone,
Let’s CHASEGOLF adventures.
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| ✈️ Updates on the European Travel Requirements ✈️ |
| Great news! As predicted by many in the Travel Industry, the ESTIAS which stands for European Travel Information and Authorization System has been once again delayed and will now be required in January 2026. All international visitors traveling to Continental Europe next year, will need to apply for this authorization starting in January of next year.
On the other end, the ETA, the Electronic Travel Authorization for the UK, is in place since January 8, 2025.
After observing the trends, gathering travelers’ feedbacks and chatting with other travel agency owners over the past few months, we strongly advice our clients traveling to the UK this summer to complete their ETA application well in advance of their travel dates.While it may seem straightforward, the process can occasionally encounter complications, such as requiring additional documentation or experiencing processing delays. Applying early provides a buffer to address any potential issues.
Stay tuned for more details in our upcoming newsletters, where we’ll break down everything you need to know about these new travel requirements. |
| | ⛳️ Our new trips and updated portfolio of courses, hotels and tours ⛳️ |
| This spring, our team is busy creating unique golf trips throughout Europe and we are happy to share more details below: A 2026 trip to Scotland for a golfer and his wife, a non-golfer: Together, they will spend 13 nights in Scotland starting in Edinburgh. Next, they will spend a few nights in North Berwick before heading to the Scottish Highlands and they will end their trip in St Andrews. Here is a summary of their trip including advanced guaranteed tee-times on amazing courses, charming & luxury boutique hotels and curated tours. Please let us know if you are interested in receiving the full color itinerary for this trip.
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|  |  |  | A 2025 Trip to Costa del Sol, Spain for a couple. They will stay a few days at the luxurious SO/Sotogrande Golf Resort & Spa, followed by a stay at the amazing Finca Cortesin, hosting venue of the 2023 Solheim Cup. Below is a summary of their trip and we would be happy to share it with you if you are interested – shoot us a request!
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|  |  |  | A 2025 golf trip to Central Europe for a golfer and a non-golfer: This 10-night itinerary starts in the Netherlands, heading south to Belgium, crossing over to Luxembourg and finishes on Lake Geneva in Switzerland. Our client, a well-traveled member of the American Society of Golf Historians has asked us for assistance building a trip to play at least “1 round of golf” in each country and includes a multi-day English-speaking private chauffeur for the whole duration of their trip.
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|  |  |  | Lastly, a self-drive through the French Côte d’Azur, South West France, Northern Spain and Northern Portugal.For this specific itinerary, we are grateful we were able to secure extraordinary tee-times at private clubs through our network, friends and colleagues in Europe – please note, we have altered some of the information for file sharing purposes.
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| | Available itineraries for viewing are Belgium, France, Northern Ireland, Netherlands (the), Portugal, Scotland and Spain. Next in our agenda, the creation of sample itineraries in England, Italy, Switzerland, Greece and Wales.
Feel free to reach out to us to receive a high-quality custom-made itinerary! We make magic happen ✨ |
| | 🏌️♀️ Golf Travel Consulting Sessions Available🏌️♂️ |
| In addition to our Tour Operator business, we offer consulting sessions; perfectly suited for independent golf travelers in need of some assistance with their trip planning. This month, we were able to provide consulting sessions for a group of 4 travelers visiting Italy and Switzerland , as well as a couple playing golf in Normandy, France. |
|  |  | | ✍🏻 Our latest and upcoming inspirational posts ✍🏻 |
| In case you did not see, we’ve recently published the following articles in our Inspiration section of the website. Our aim is to share authentic and unheard-of golf travel content and hopefully inspire you to travel and experience these fabulous courses and hotels.
We are also excited to share about the upcoming articles we have been thinking of and will be publishing in the coming months on this page: The forgotten links courses of Europe A journey through the Scottish Whisky Distilleries and their specialties The unexpected golf adventure in The British Channel Islands
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| | ✈️ Focusing on Customer Experience ✈️ |
| We are excited to share some of the recent internal procedures we’ve been working on to deliver a flawless customer experience and help our clients prepare for their trip. Among these new processes, we have created the following ready-to-go guides: “What to expect next?” : This helpful guide is sent to each client after they book through our online platform. We share the actions they need to take (travel insurance, passport, travel authorization, flights…) as well as our progress booking their trip. This communication tool helps streamline processes and answers questions our clients may have from the get-go.
CHASEGOLF Restaurant Guides: These guides will not only help our clients decide where they can eat and drink during their golf trip, but also, how to book a table with a direct link to the restaurant reservations’ system. Detailed and filled with great information, we have separated the restaurants in 4 categories in each destination: Casual/Traditional Restaurants, International Cuisine, Fine-dining, and Drinks, Cocktails, Entertainment. Take a peek at the Scottish and the Germany Restaurant Guides in this quick Loom video we added here.
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|  | Our Partnership with Vamoos: We were fortunate to meet with Tony Bean, the founder of Vamoos, a fantastic Travel App specifically created for travel agencies and tour operators like us during the 2024 IAGTO conference in Malàga, Spain. Since then, we have been anxiously waiting to offer our clients access to this App. The Vamoos App is the very best all-in-one solution gathering all our clients travel documents on the go and includes the following features in one single mobile app:
✔️ Flights Alerts and Flight Hub
✔️ Travel Documents
✔️ Customisable Mapping
✔️ Points of Interest
✔️ Notification System
✔️ Itinerary builder
✔️ Messaging
✔️ Online Quotation Tool
✔️ Inspirations
✔️ Feedback
✔️Customizable Weather
✔️ Countdown
✔️ Offline Functionality
…and much more. This App creates a tremendous added-value to our trips and we can’t wait for our clients to try it out and rely on this app during their trip. Here is a quick introduction video to some of the main features. |
|  | | ⛳️ Golf Destination of the month: Spanish Basque Country 🇪🇸 |
| | | |  | Discover the Spanish Basque Country on a fabulous golf trip
The Spanish Basque Region, known locally as Euskadi or País Vasco, is an autonomous community in northern Spain, nestled along the Bay of Biscay and bordering France to the northeast. The Basque Country boasts a diverse landscape, from rugged coastlines with picturesque fishing villages and beaches to rolling green hills, mountains (including the western Pyrenees), and verdant valleys. The Spanish Basque Country is world-renowned for its strong cultural identity and exceptional cuisine. From Michelin-starred restaurants to traditional “pintxo” bars (serving Basque-style tapas), food is a central part of Basque culture. Fresh, high-quality local ingredients, particularly seafood, meats, and seasonal produce, are staples.
The Spanish Basque Country is home to dynamic cities like Bilbao, famous for the Guggenheim Museum, and San Sebastián (Donostia), a sophisticated coastal city known for its beauty and culinary scene. Charming smaller towns like Guernica, with its historical significance, and coastal villages like Lekeitio also offer unique experiences.
Check-out some of the greatest courses in the Spanish Basque Country: ⛳️ Real Golf de Pedreña ⛳️ Real Sociedade de Golf de Neguri ⛳️ Club de Golf Ulzama ⛳️ Golf de Santa Marina
Some unique experiences we can craft along your golf experience include: Private walking tour of San Sebastian, including Concha Beach, Monte Urgull and the world-famous Pintxos Bar alley Private food tour with pintxos tastings in San Sebastian Private cooking-class learning the Basque Country traditional recipes, followed by a meal Private day-trip to the French Basque Country with a driver-guide to explore the French Markets, drive on the famous Cheese road, taste the famous Basque Cake, or Piment d’Espellette…and going off-the-beaten to visit local producers. Private guided tour of the San Juan de Gaztelugate, pictured above. Private guided tour of the Guggenheim Museum with an English-speaking guide Private day-trip to the Rioja wine region to visit some wineries with a local lunch and many more. We create new experiences on demand.
In essence, the Spanish Basque Region offers a captivating blend of ancient traditions and modern dynamism, stunning landscapes, a unique language, and a globally celebrated culinary heritage, making it a truly distinctive part of Spain.
We are well-versed with this hidden gem golfing destination and look forward to crafting more itineraries there. Please don’t hesitate to reach out. |
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Do you want to share and/or add something to our next Newsletter?
Please send us your comments and let us know at info@chasegolftravel.com |
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