Empordà Dunes is the open, wind-influenced half of Empordà Golf at Gualta, in the Baix Empordà countryside behind the Costa Brava. Robert von Hagge and Rick Baril developed the resort's contrasting eighteen-hole layouts in the early 1990s, designing this one around expansive sand-framed ground, lakes and open horizons. The course previously carried the Links name, but the resort renamed it Dunes in 2025.
The distinction is more than branding. This is not an ancient seaside links cut from natural coastal dunes. Its strategic character comes from modern shaping, exposed fairways, deep bunkering and the need to control a ball in shifting Mediterranean wind. Nearby Empordà Forest offers almost the opposite golfing mood.
Why You Should Play Empordà Golf – Dunes Course
Dunes gives golfers room to see their options. A broad fairway can make a tee shot feel simple until the position of the green, the bunkers guarding the preferred side and the day's wind direction come into focus. A good drive is one that leaves the right angle rather than merely travelling the farthest. The best players will see opportunities to take an aggressive line; others can work their way around the same obstacles and keep the next shot manageable.
The exposed environment changes the round from morning to afternoon. Wind can demand a lower, more controlled approach, and the large playing surfaces can receive a running shot when the slope offers a clear route. Water adds a different sort of hazard, sometimes closing off the safer ground-level approach. This mixture of links inspiration and inland-resort design is the reason to play Dunes on its own terms, not to compare it literally with Scotland's coastal links.
There is little sense of being pushed through an endless series of narrow corridors. The eye travels over open ground and the golfer has to choose where to place the ball within it. That makes the experience rewarding for someone who likes strategic width, contours and wind. A player who feels most comfortable shaping a drive between trees may prefer Forest, but playing both shows how differently the same design team could use neighbouring landscapes.
Why the Links Name Became Dunes
The resort renamed its former Links Course as Dunes in 2025. The newer name fits the shaped sand, open views and prominent water features of an inland layout rather than implying the course was formed from natural coastal linksland. The companion Forest routing, tucked among pines on the same estate, is a separately designed eighteen. Together they show how von Hagge and Baril used two sharply contrasting landscapes.
The Round and How to Choose It
Dunes is par 71 and measures 6,328 metres from White, 5,967 from Yellow, 5,327 from Blue and 5,021 from Red. The tee options suit a range of playing abilities, while the exposed terrain, water and wind still give the shorter configurations their own strategic demands.
Wind changes how the ball approaches and runs through the putting surfaces; at the same time, the lakes create moments where a low, running shot is not available. That tension between ground-level options and required aerial carries is one of Dunes' more unusual qualities.
Staying on the Costa Brava and Combining Courses
Empordà Forest lies on the same property, and Hotel Terraverda sits beside the two courses. This is an efficient base for consecutive rounds without changing hotels. A visit to the historic Golf de Pals, nearby in Baix Empordà, offers a third and older architectural perspective. Camiral Stadium is farther inland near Girona, requiring a separate planned course day.
Empordà Dunes welcomes visiting golfers with an official handicap certificate and a maximum handicap of 36. Its 2027 green fee is €125 for 18 holes, matching Forest. The location makes it possible to play both without a hotel transfer.