Elite Traveler January-February 2019

A LUXURIOUS MIDDLE EAST GOLF CRUISE Brothers Colin and Gordon Dalgleish founded PerryGolf in 1984 to introduce enthusiastic golf travelers to the best links experiences in their native United Kingdom. Leveraging connections they made during their amateur playing careers (Colin played on the 1981 Walker Cup), the brothers gradually expanded their coverage areas. About seven years ago, PerryGolf partnered with Azamara Club Cruises, a collaboration resulting in 19 unique golf itineraries that set sail around the world. One of the most intriguing is an 11-night Arabian Gulf Golf Cruise, which embarks and disembarks from Dubai on board luxury cruise ship Azamara Quest. It includes five rounds of golf at distinct courses, such as the Royal Golf Club, a private links and desert course designed by Colin Montgomerie in Bahrain, and the Majlis Course at Emirates Golf Club, which hosts the Omega Dubai Desert Classic every year. Featuring seven fresh and saltwater lakes, as well as hundreds of indigenous species of flora and fauna, the course impresses with its immaculately maintained fairways and greens, as well as unobstructed views of Dubai’s skyscrapers. According to Gordon, all of the courses that make up the itinerary benefit from a similar attention to detail, from groundskeepers and superintendents. “You can go in with high expectations and you won’t be disappointed,” he says. “There’s absolutely nothing that’s not done first class.” With lengthy stays in each port, the cruise offers the opportunity to play golf and sightsee throughout the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain. Best of all, Gordon acknowledges that travelers can safely play their way through the exotic region of the world in total comfort. “You don’t have to be adventurous as a traveler,” he says. “You just have to have a desire to see the big world.” From $6,874 per person, contact Cameron Reid, vice president of sales and operations, cameron.reid@perrygolf.com, +1 910 795 1048, perrygolf.com

From top The Majlis Course at Emirates Golf Club, Dubai; Yas Links, Abu Dhabi