The Courses Voted More Beautiful Than World's Tourist Hotspots

A new study reveals the courses voted more beautiful than the world’s most well-known tourist destinations

Old Head Golf Links
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Mike Hall
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When people think of tourist destinations fit for Instagram, names like the Eiffel Tower, Venice or the Leaning Tower of Pisa often come to mind. However, a new study by Your Golf Travel has found that some of Ireland’s golf courses beat the world’s most renowned tourist traps for beauty. The travel website asked holidaymakers to compare images of some of the country’s most picturesque courses against the world's most famous tourist attractions to determine the most Instagrammable, and the results were remarkable.

Old Head Golf Links

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Located in Kinsale, County Cork, Old Head Golf Links stretches two miles over the Atlantic. The 7,100-yard course is known for its natural beauty and regularly features in lists of the top 100 courses in the world. However, it can add another accolade, with the study finding holidaymakers rate it more beautiful than either the Eiffel Tower or the Colosseum.

Tralee Golf Club

Tralee Golf Club

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Tralee Golf Club in County Kerry is a par 72 course whose 17th hole features in the 1970 Robert Mitchum film, Ryan’s Daughter. Another claim to fame is it's the first European course designed by Arnold Palmer, who remarked: “I have never come across a piece of land so ideally suited for the building of a golf course.” Holidaymakers taking part in the study would agree, declaring the course more beautiful than either Venice or the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel.

Trump International Golf Links

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Trump International Golf Links in County Clare is the only course designed by Greg Norman in the UK and Ireland. It’s a challenging course filled with par 3s and par 5s that’s on many a keen golfer’s “must play” list. However, it also benefits from stunning beauty, overlooking the Atlantic and making the most of its natural dunes and rugged landscape. But how Instagrammable is it? Exceptionally so, according to the study, which found holidaymakers prefer its beauty over the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

- Read more on this Your Golf Travel survey

Mike Hall
Mike Hall
News Writer

Mike has over 25 years of experience in journalism, including writing on a range of sports throughout that time, such as golf, football and cricket. Now a freelance staff writer for Golf Monthly, he is dedicated to covering the game's most newsworthy stories. 

He has written hundreds of articles on the game, from features offering insights into how members of the public can play some of the world's most revered courses, to breaking news stories affecting everything from the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to developmental Tours and the amateur game. 

Mike grew up in East Yorkshire and began his career in journalism in 1997. He then moved to London in 2003 as his career flourished, and nowadays resides in New Brunswick, Canada, where he and his wife raise their young family less than a mile from his local course. 

Kevin Cook’s acclaimed 2007 biography, Tommy’s Honour, about golf’s founding father and son, remains one of his all-time favourite sports books.

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