Riviera. The term refers to a coastal region with a balmy climate, but it also carries an air of romance. So it is with the Riviera Nayarit. Stretching some 200 miles along the Pacific coast of Mexico, north of Puerto Vallarta to the port of San Blas, the sun-splashed destination beckons with tropical beaches, tranquil fishing towns and arresting ocean views. It also brims with world-class golf. As prime golf season approaches south of the border, here are some of the finest spots to play in and around the Riviera Nayarit.
Punta Mita Golf Club
There are many ways to tell the story of golf at Punta Mita, a 1,500-acre resort and residential community set along a vast expanse of white-sand beaches. A good place to start is with the “Tale of the Whale.” That’s the moniker for a one-of-a-kind par-3 that features the world’s only natural island green. The hole, which requires a 194-yard carry from the tips to a rock-ringed putting surface lapped by ocean waves, plays as hole 3B on the Pacifico Course. It is, in other words, an ‘alternate’ hole on the scorecard. But it’s not an experience you want to miss (note: at high tide, the green is only accessible by motorized boat). The Pacifico Course is one of two private Jack Nicklaus Signature designs at Punta Mita that makes tee times available to resort guests, offering pristinely manicured golf on palm-fringed fairways with sweeping ocean views. Both courses also play host to one of the most popular golf and lifestyle events in Mexico, the Punta Mita Invitational, a five-day food-and-wine filled gathering where winners from the major professional golf tours play alongside amateur participants in an easy-going atmosphere.
Vidanta Neuvo Nayarit-Vallarta
This sprawling resort, just north of the Puerto Vallarta airport, covers more than 3,500 acres, allowing room for dozens of swimming pools, scores of bars and restaurants, nine miles of wooden footpaths, and golf. Lots of golf, including signature designs by Jack Nicklaus and Greg Norman. The latter, which hosts the Mexico Open, is fringed by lush jungle and features the longest golf-cart suspension bridge in the world, stretching over the Ameca River from Nayarit into the neighboring state of Jalisco. More recently, the resort cut the ribbon on the Lakes course, a night-lit, 10-hole par-3 layout designed by Nicklaus. Set in a small valley, the course offers beautiful resort views in a stadium-like atmosphere for spectators and passersby. Guests looking to fine-tune their games can also visit the Jack Nicklaus Golf Academy, a state-of-the-art facility that adjoins the Nicklaus championship course.
Tigre Golf & Country Club at Paradise Village
At more than 7,200 yards from the back tees, with a course and slope rating of 75.4/144, this Robert von Hagge course has been described as one of the toughest in Mexico. It certainly has a lot of teeth. A menagerie of animals live on property, including crocodiles and monkeys. The par-3 17th, which plays over water to a peninsula green, is all the more nerve-racking for the hazard just behind it: a large enclosure inhabited by tigers, which were rescued by the property’s director of golf.
Higuera Golf Club
Formerly known as Fig Tree Golf Club, this Greg Norman design moves gracefully between the coast and the forested inland, with two signature holes set hard along the beach in the city of Punta de Mita, not to be confused with the private residential community of Punta Mita.
Flamingos Golf Course
Built in 1970, this Percy Clifford design is one of the OGs of the area, and it offers a traditional tropical experience. Its gently rolling routing winds through a backdrop of mangroves, lagoons and lush rainforests. Though coastal winds are a near-constant presence, the fairways are forgiving and the greens roll as purely as any around.
Nayar Country Club
Tucked into the foothills of San Juan Hill, the nine-hole layout is a tranquil tropical retreat, winding through a lush, forested landscape on a rolling terrain spliced by imposing ravines. Slender fairways add to the scenic, shot-making challenge.
Bonus Nines
The region also has two-nine hole practices, which are open seasonally: Las Huertas Golf Course, an entertaining layout surround by fruit orchards and abundant gardens, and Ensueno Golf Course, close to the charming fishing town of Sayulita.