I was active in posting here a few years ago and golf travel became a lower priority. Since 2007, I've done many international trips. The trip I am on now is my 59th and about 75 percent have have had golf as a good part of the trip.
I'd read of Lofoten Links and never seriously considered traveling here. I've been to most major European and Scandinavian cities but hadn't been to Helsinki. I found a good frequent flyer redemption to and from Helsinki about 9 months ago with the return flight three weeks later. Not wanting to spend three weeks in Helsinki, I looked at options for spending time on the trip. Finnair flies from Helsinki to Tromso in Norway and there were also redemption flights available.
So the availability of minimal cost for airfare and an abundance of miles to liquidate created good tail winds. The fact that my paternal grandparents migrated from the north of Norway made the flights and ten day road trip a perfect storm.
I stayed in the Helsinki area about five nights and did a one night stay and play with two rounds at Linna Golf Club about an hour north of Helsinki. I have another stay and play at Kytaja next week.
On May 30th, I flew from Helsinki to Tromso on an early flight and arrived at 8:00 a.m.. I had a pleasant four hour drive to Narvik and spent the night, encountering 24 hours of daylight for the first time. The following morning I drove from Narvik to Lofoten Links, another pleasant drive of about four hours.
I played 18 holes on the afternoon of my arrival and checked in to my room at Lofoten Lodges. The next day I waited until 10:00 p.m. and tried midnight golf. The darker light conditions made for better photography with my phone camera.
The following link shows a photo album of the course and surroundings:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/LgWJTveDzTo9V3tr9Here are a few comments:
1. The development of the course reflects an ambitious project accomplished to date in steps to provide golf in this area, which has adverse climate conditions.
2. It's a rocky, coastal site with mountains rising next to the sea and a lot of noxious vegetation and troublesome slopes and terrain.
3. The massive boulders add aesthetic value to the playing experience.
4. The areas for hole construction seem well selected although there are many long green to tee walks.
5. There are a range of tee alternatives, with back tees offering no clarity of what the landing area involves. Regardless of tees, there is substantial run out and severe slopes which move balls far away from intended line of play.
6. The green locations, greenside bunkering, and mounding seemed well suited to how the course played for me from the tees I played from.
7. There was work in progress such as sanded fairways and aerfied and sanded greens which will improve appearance and playability as the seasons transition to summer.
8. Planet Golf type photos create an unrealistic notion of the actual beauty found here.
9. The cleanup in progress to soften the arbitrary and penal quality of the course will make it fun and more playable.
10. Clubhouse infrastructure is minimalistic. Staff are friendly, welcoming, and charming.
11. Onsite lodging is quite nice. My room had private ensuite bathroom with shower, wifi, TV, and two twin beds. Common area had moddrn kitchen and nice living room. Each room had individual lock and key. I shared lodge with couple from Oslo and couple from Michugan.
12. Breakfast was included at Laven, the restaurant associated with facility. Dinner was excellent. Halibut and other fish are integral to Norwegian cuisine.
The countryside around here is a bit reminiscent of County Donegal in Ireland and the Inishowen Peninsula in particular. It's probably not fair to offer a comparison beyond the look of the lowland area here.
I have another prepaid round and will buy a few used Top Flite/Pinnacle type balls for about $1 USD each. There is some good hiking in the area and I will take advantage of it.
My five night, three round package was affordable and booking conditions had a realistic prepayment arrangement with deferral of final payment until 30 days prior to booking.
From here it is a two plus hour drive to Moskenes and a four hour ferry to Bodo. My grandmother was from the Bodo area and worked as a cook at a mine near Fauske and met my grandfather there. They migrated to North America around 1910. From therr I drive back to Narvik for a night and two nights in Tromso, then a flight to Helsinki for a few days, then home.
I'm glad I made the trip, subject to the considerations that made it more feasible.
Charles Lund