Paddling at the foot of the Mediterranean, the castle of La Napoule watches from the top of its medieval keep its two emerald-colored treasures while the Siagne snorts in the heart of this case of the Alpes-Maritimes nestled in the shade of the big brother of Cannes. Both artistic and sporty, this city of just over 20 inhabitants proudly exhibits two five-star courses and numerous sculptures, from the “Remarkable Garden” (listed as a historic monument) of the old fortress to the Barbossi golf course. .

Barbossi, an open-air museum

© Domaine de Barbossi

Upon arrival, the tone is set. A colorful couple of golfers with well rounded buttocks welcome you in front of the entrance to the club house (in the shape of a Roman temple). The sculpture, which one would believe straight out of the imagination of the famous Colombian artist Fernando Botero, is signed Roselyne Conil. No less than 22 works designed by some great names in contemporary art * adorn the fairways of the course and come from the private collection of the Franco-Lebanese businessman Iskandar Safa, owner of the Barbossi estate. In short, we take full view on this 18 holes designed thirty years ago by the American architect Robert Trent Jones Sr, another artist of his kind.

Clubs in hand, special mention for hole n ° 8, with its relief tee cut into the rock and its fairway along the Riou. The sequence of 10 to 13, wild and majestic, gives relief - in every sense of the word - to the course, which the short par 4 drivables of 7 and 15 spice up a little more. The 19^e This hole is also worth a detour: the terrace of the restaurant, Le Riviera, offers a panorama as shimmering as it is unforgettable over the green greens, the red rocks of the Estérel massif and the azure blue of the sky illuminated by the sun. With a little imagination, one would imagine oneself in front of a painting by Jean-Baptiste Corot or Albert Bierstadt, these painters of the XIX^e century known to magnify idyllic landscapes bathed in radiant light.

Old Course, 130 years old and all its teeth

Barely five minutes from Barbossi, the Old Course de Cannes-Mandelieu is one of the oldest courses in France, created in 1891 at the initiative of Tsar Nicholas II's brother, Grand Duke Michael of Russia, who came from just developed a passion for “this elegant sport”. A true oasis in the heart of the city, this golfing Central Park whose original design (the first six holes) is signed by the legendary Harry Colt, was the privileged playground of the Duke of Windsor and Sean Connery. Our best players - Victor Dubuisson, Romain Langasque, Alexander Levy, Antoine Rozner in the lead - regularly come to play their scales there today.

Bordered by huge, often hundred-year-old umbrella pines, cork oaks and mimosas, this flat and relatively short par 71 (5745 meters), like most “Old Courses”, is suitable for all levels of play. “Our course is accessible, our concern is that golfers take pleasure on our fairways, as at our table ”, underlines the vice-president of golf, Fabien Pigalle, in the shade of the magnificent“ Norman ”style clubhouse. In addition to a pleasant mix of long and short par 3s, hole n ° 13 which ends facing the sea and the Estérel is "perhaps the most beautiful par 5 on the Côte d'Azur", says Victor Dubuisson. himself. The other specificity of the course is that it crosses the Siagne, this river which winds through the city and also partially materializes the border between the Var and the Alpes-Maritimes. To access hole n ° 3 and then return to 13, it is therefore necessary to borrow a ferry.

Finally, for those who want to prolong the pleasure, Mandelieu-La Napoule is located less than half an hour from some of the most golfing gems of the Alpes-Maritimes: Saint-Donat, the Royal Mougins, Cannes Mougins, La Vanade, Opio-Valbonne or even Claux Amic.

Frank Crudo

La Napoule Castle - © Camille Moirenc

WHAT TO VISIT?

Destroyed and rebuilt several times during the Middle Ages, the castle of Lin Napoule was acquired in 1918 by a couple of wealthy American patrons and artists, Henri and Marie Clews. They will restore this ancient fortress and make it a place dedicated to arts and culture. Contemporary sculptures are exhibited in the heart of the “remarkable” labeled garden. Mandelieu-La Napoule also benefits from an incredible geography which allows beautiful walks on foot, by bike or by boat on the Mediterranean (with the Lérins Islands offshore), the shores of la siagne or towards the massif of Esterel, Mount San Peyre et the Tanneron, which is home to the largest mimosa forest in Europe.

http://www.chateau-lanapoule.com/

https://www.ot-mandelieu.fr/

WHERE TO DINNER?

A tasty dinner on the beach in the shade of the castle in front of a beautiful sunset? It's possible thanks to the lounge restaurant The Buccaneer and its exceptional setting. There is also something for all tastes with tapas accompanied by "homemade" cocktails and a varied menu that gives pride of place to local cuisine and fish. A must.

https://boucanier.fr/

WHERE TO STAY?

New born of the La Tour Collection group, golf island has just opened its doors on the banks of the Siagne in a peaceful setting, featuring a pretty palm garden and a heated outdoor swimming pool with whirlpools. Italian cuisine prepared by Chef Raffaele is served on a bright terrace bordered by olive trees. This uncluttered 4 * hotel is ideally located a stone's throw from the city's two golf courses. Possibility of joining the Old Course by boat from the hotel's pontoon!

http://ilotdugolf.fr/

*Among the works exhibited at the Barbossi golf course :

• « The Ftheir Photovoltaic »By Diana Tournay is a sculpture of steel and
  from 6,60 meters including silicon cells, located on the lake facing the
  restaurant.
  
• « Swing Sculpture »By Bernard Feldain, made of cut, perforated and patinated steel sheets, decomposede kinetically the movement of the swing in the center of a bunker.
• « The Planyard »By Fabienne Fwander, en multicolored painted resin, animates with its imposing shapes full of humor and good humor the basin of the hole n° 13.
• « Katrina »By Gregory Binherit, a deconstructed assembly of wooden rectangles painted in primary colors linked together by stainless steel axes, is a stele evoking Hurricane Katrina which devastated Louisiana The 29 August 2005.
  
  https://www.artcotedazur.fr/
  
  More information: https://www.ot-mandelieu.fr/ - https://cotedazurfrance.fr/