Fuego Maya

Guatemala's First Golf Resort

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Sports, Real Estate Developments

The first golf resort in Guatemala, a country more accustomed to attracting tourists to its ancient Mayan ruins, opened this spring outside the colonial city of Antigua. The resort, called La Reunión, occupies a former coffee plantation at the base of the active volcano Fuego.

Its centerpiece is Fuego Maya, a Pete Dye–designed golf course that offers striking views of Fuego and three other volcanoes as well as the Pacific Ocean in the distance. The layout is the architect's first course in Central America (and his second to open this year). According to Dye's son Perry, who oversaw the project, it's also the region's first course to have bent grass, which is prized by golfers because it produces lush, full fairways and smooth-rolling greens.

When completed, the 1,400-acre enclave is to include 950 units of housing in the form of villas and private homes plus a luxury hotel, a boutique eco-hotel, a spa, an observatory and a cultural center. There are 26 golf course casitas available for overnight guests, each including an outdoor terrace, small pool, Jacuzzi and shower.

Gallery: La Reunion Golf Resort in Guatemala