The hills are alive with the sound of golf balls

SpanishHolidayHomesTen miles inland from the Costa del Sol, a large low density golf and country club is being built on a private mountain estate. Jack Fagan looks at golf homes with a difference

One of the most spectacular golf and country clubs in the south of Spain is being launched on the Irish market this week.

Monte Mayor Golf and Country Club, hidden away among 900 acres of mountain terrain, is about 10 miles inland from the Costa del Sol and less than 30 minutes' drive from Marbella.

The decision by La Perla Living, a Dutch owned multinational company, to pitch the selling campaign at the Irish market before rolling it out in the UK may well be due to the fact that 16 Irish investors are among the first 180 couples to have booked homes on the gated estate. Most of the other buyers are from the UK and the Continent.

Visitors to the Costa del Sol will be aware that the coastline has one of the heaviest concentrations of golf courses in the world - there are no fewer than 57 of them within half an hour's drive of Monte Mayor.

The owners of most of these commercial courses invariably sell off adjoining land to a number of different developers who build a range of high density apartment blocks.

Once these are sold, the green fees soar as golfers tee off every four minutes during the busy months.

The formula at Monte Mayor could not be more different. It is not a golf course with property for sale. It is a vast private estate with a seven-year development programme for only 665 homes - easily the lowest density in the south of Spain.

And unlike other clubs, more than half the future residents will not be golfers. For them the appeal is likely to be the tranquillity and privacy of the place or the range of other attractions including ancient nature walks, equestrian sports, a spa and swimming pool, tennis courts, driving range and top class cafés and restaurants.

All this will be helped by the fact that the area has some of the finest weather found anywhere in Europe with a warm climate and 10 months of sunshine.

For those whose preference is golf, the Monte Mayor course is very special because of its unique setting deep in one of two wooded valleys.

It was developed in 1989 by Spain's most famous golf architect, Joe Gancedo. The unusually challenging nature of the course stems from the fact that it was built without using bulldozers. The natural contours of the terrain were adapted to maximise the challenge and to maintain the maturity of the place. It has all the appearance of a course that has been in use for many decades.

Unlike most country clubs along along the Costa del Sol, those buying homes at Monte Mayor will be entitled to family golf membership covering not only two partners but children under 16. In addition each adult can have three guests per day free of charge.

The annual membership, currently at €2,000 per annum, will rise to €4,000 when all the public facilities are in place.

La Perla's marketing programme at this stage is concentrating on the sale of 300 plots - or sites - and 135 townhouses.

A broad selection of plots is available for those who want to build a villa to their own specification.

All of them will be dotted around the mountain range and in all cases the price - ranging from €235,000 to €750,000 - is determined by both the size of the site (usually at least three-quarters of an acre) and which of the five views are chosen: straight up through the golf valley, directly over a green or fairway towards the sea and the North African coastline, or a combination of mountain, golf and sea and coastal panoramic.

A typical four-bedroom, four-bathroom house with a swimming pool costs around €600,000 to build. However, the club insists that the houses must have a rustic appearance externally in keeping with the area.

Those buying plots can engage their own builders or have the club look after the design and build work. For those who don't want to spend anything like that sort of money, La Perla is building 135 townhouses in a traditional village style development overlooking the second valley which is essentially a nature reserve.

The houses, all different in style and layout, reflect the understated style of the Andalusian region but internally they are top notch.

They have huge reception rooms, working fireplaces, double glazing, underfloor heating, beautifully finished kitchens, individual climate controls in each room, garages, swimming pools or plunge pools and gardens to take advantage of the superb views.

Cobblestone streets, fountains and squares complete the atmosphere of a traditional Andalusian "pueblo" or village.

Two-bedroom townhouses with 126sq m (1,356sq ft) of floor space start at €450,000; three-bedroom homes with 192 to 240sq m (2,045-2,583sq ft) run from €650,000 to €800,000 while four-beds with 192 to 252sq m (2,066-2,712sq ft) generally sell for between €650,000 and €800,000.

The next phase of Monte Mayor will include apartments and semi-detached villas which should also prove a good investment as well a superb holiday home. Irish sales are being launched by Newfound Property Ireland at 046 9430823.