Now that I have received my second vaccination on Friday, I feel like I have to travel abroad to play golf. Two years ago I wrote that we should visit less known Portuguese golf resorts because often they can surprise us positively.
Such were for me then the Palheiro Golf Club (Madeira) and the Quinta do Peru Golf Course. This year I will bet on Onyria Quinta da Marinha Hotel (25km from Lisbon). They have got a par 71 Robert Trent Jones designed golf course.
What is interesting is how they developed their hotel in the last 5 years. The 198-room hotel underwent a fresh makeover last year – at a cost of an estimated €5m.
It seems like they understood they must offer multi-generational holiday solutions (e.g. free kids club). The prices are starting from €140 per person in a double room for the months of July and August.
All meals – breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack, and dinner – will be included, as will the bar, which is open from 11 am to 11.30 pm, while younger guests will be entertained and occupied throughout their stay with a free kids club for those aged between four and 12 years old.
Onyria Quinta da Marinha Hotel
It is very good that they want to offer more and more experiences for their guests and promote wellness. Resorts should embrace wellness as part of their core mission.
For the sake of comparison, the Spanish Lumine Golf Club has just launched 30 (!) new bespoke experiences at the resort that will be split into four exclusive categories: Culture / Gastronomy / Wellness / Family. Experiences will include Historic Tours of Tarragona, Wine and Olive Oil Tasting, Oyster Tasting, Scuba Diving etc.
The Onyria Quinta da Marinha Hotel is offering:
- yoga;
- stand-up paddleboarding on the lake;
- a golf clinic, while more experienced golfers can play the course at a special rate;
- outdoor pool, the heated indoor pool, as well as the sauna, Turkish bath, and sensory showers.
- other activities available at an extra cost, including bike tours, horse riding, tennis and padel courts, surfing lessons, and private guided tours to Sintra and Lisbon.
I know the two resorts are not in the same league. However Onyria Quinta da Marinha Hotel‘s intention is good.
What they should not forget is that we are living on the internet & mobile-first world. They must redevelop their website and align it to the latest online communication & web design trends. Here are some ideas:
- Offer mobile-optimized booking engines and guest messaging platforms;
- Cooperate with online tee time marketplaces (e.g. Greenfee365) & tee time channel manager platforms (e.g. Zest.Golf).
- Find technology solutions that enable you to hyper-personalize your offers and solutions. Utilize chatbots!
- Use hotel virtual reality tours! The Italian Toscana Resort Castelfalfi used this technology solution to present itself at the IAGTO in 2018!
- Offer a guest app!
- Use artificial intelligence to offer the most relevant services. It can help you to improve booking rates on your website.
Conclusion
Despite the poor quality website and the not-so-flattering rating on Leadingcourses.com (7,4), Onyria Quinta da Marinha Hotel has got the potential to surprise you positively. Let’s not forget Sintra is out of this world.