Italy is made for the golf trip where only one of you is sure to play. Coastal resorts with long spas, lakeside courses framed by villas, glamour on the Costa Smeralda and wine country in the hills: these are the six places we recommend first for couples, where the golf is genuinely good and the rest of the stay is even better. Ranked.
Photograph: Verdura Resort, a Rocco Forte Hotel, via Google
A couples golf trip lives or dies on what happens away from the course. So we judged these on the whole stay: the quality of the hotel and the spa, the dining, the setting and the things to do on a non golf day, then the golf itself. The ideal here is a resort where one of you can play a memorable course in the morning and both of you can spend the afternoon doing something neither of you will forget.
Every designer and detail was checked at the time of writing, and the order is our editorial view, weighted for couples rather than for the scorecard. Verdura leads because it does everything, but the romance of Lake Como, the beaches of the Costa Smeralda and the wine of Piedmont each make a case of their own. Tell us what the two of you want from the trip and our concierge builds and costs it.
The complete couples address in Italy. The Rocco Forte Verdura strings two Kyle Phillips courses along a kilometer and a half of Mediterranean coast, then wraps them in one of the country's great spa hotels, a private beach, several restaurants and a kitchen garden. One of you plays the East and West, the other never leaves the spa, and you meet for a long Sicilian dinner. Hard to better for a special trip.
A design hotel and spa with its own course in the wild, beautiful Maremma, beside the Orbetello lagoon and a short drive from the chic harbor of Porto Ercole. The golf rolls through hills and Mediterranean scrub, the wellness center is the heart of the place, and the Tuscan coast and its food and wine fill the days off. Stylish, restorative and quietly romantic.
Glamour and a great course in one. Robert Trent Jones Senior laid Pevero between two bays of the Costa Smeralda, with the turquoise sea in view across a layout he rated among his finest. Base in or near Porto Cervo and the days off write themselves: beaches, boats, the marina and long lunches. The most aspirational couples golf in Italy.
The most romantic setting of all. This classic 1920s par 69 sits in a forest above Lake Montorfano, minutes from Lake Como and its grand hotels and villas. The course is a charming, tree lined test rather than a championship monster, which suits the trip, and Como itself, with its gardens, ferries and lakeside dinners, is one of the world's great places to be a couple.
A relaxed, sun soaked alternative on the quieter south coast of Sardinia, where a mature resort course sits among hills and umbrella pines a short hop from long sandy beaches and the Roman site at Nora. Less glitzy than the Costa Smeralda and all the more easygoing for it, a good value couples base for golf, sea and Sardinian cooking.
For couples who travel for the table as much as the tee, Piedmont is the play. Royal Park I Roveri is the region's finest course, a Robert Trent Jones Senior parkland near Turin that has hosted the Italian Open, and it sits within easy reach of the Langhe, home of Barolo, white truffles and some of Italy's best restaurants. Golf in the morning, a great cellar in the evening.
Designers, opening years and host history verified June 2026 from resort and recognized ranking sources. The order is our editorial view, weighted for a couples trip. Always confirm access and fees directly before booking.
The right resort for the two of you, the tee times for the golfer, the spa, the table and the day trips for both: tell us roughly when you want to travel and what matters most, and one concierge builds and costs the trip to the head, with no obligation.
Verdura in Sicily is our first pick for couples: a Rocco Forte resort on the southwest coast pairing two Kyle Phillips courses with a long spa, fine dining and a private beach. Argentario in Tuscany and Pevero on the Costa Smeralda are the strongest alternatives, while Villa d'Este offers the most romantic setting of all on Lake Como.
Verdura and Argentario both build the stay around the spa and the table as much as the golf, so a non-golfing partner is well looked after. On Lake Como and the Costa Smeralda the scenery, the towns and the shopping carry a non-golf day easily. We plan these trips so one of you can play and the other can do nothing of the sort, happily.
Spring and autumn, roughly April to June and September to October, are ideal across the mainland and the islands, with warm, settled weather and the courses at their best. Sicily and Sardinia stretch the season at both ends and stay mild in winter, while the lakes and the north are loveliest in early summer and early autumn.
Green fees at the resorts here are an indicative 90 to 220 euro for 2026, dearest in spring and autumn, with strong value for resort guests on stay and play. The hotel is usually the larger cost on a couples trip, so we price the golf, the room and the extras together. All figures move with season, so always confirm directly before booking.
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Course facts verified June 2026. Last reviewed June 2026.