Club de Golf Bonalba

Bonalba occupies a rugged stretch of sierra terrain just inland from the Costa Blanca, in the municipality of Mutxamel — a quiet agricultural town a few kilometres northwest of Alicante city. The course was designed by José María Olazábal, the two-time Masters champion, and opened in 1997. It's one of the more serious designs on Spain's southeast coast: Olazábal used the natural contours of the dry limestone hills to create a layout that demands both shot-shaping and course management, with dramatic elevation changes, rocky outcroppings, and panoramic views toward the Mediterranean on clear days. The almond and carob trees that punctuate the rough give the course a distinctly inland Valencian character, a world away from the flat, manufactured resort tracks that dominate the coastal strip.

Bonalba functions as a semi-private club with a solid regional membership, though visiting golfers are welcomed. The back nine in particular plays through the hillier ground, where the terrain tightens and the wind off the sierras can make club selection genuinely tricky.

For golfers touring the Alicante region, Bonalba offers something the beach-adjacent courses cannot — a sense of real Spanish landscape and an architect's pedigree that rewards attention.