A First-Timer's Guide to Sotogrande: What to Do, Where to Eat & How to Make the Most of Your Stay

Here's our honest guide to getting the most out of your time in and around Sotogrande.

Watch (or play) polo at Santa Maria Polo Club

If there's one thing that defines Sotogrande in summer, it's polo. The Santa Maria Polo Club — one of the most prestigious in the world — hosts the Sotogrande International Polo Tournament every August, but matches take place throughout the season from May until November. The atmosphere is incredible: you can watch from the sidelines for free, enjoy a long lunch in the clubhouse restaurant, or simply turn up on a lazy Sunday afternoon with a glass of something cold and soak it all in.

Casa de la Risa is just a few minutes' walk from Ayala Polo fields. There are three 'canchas' (polo fields), here, plus an exercise circuit where the ponies are expertly warmed up by the grooms and riders. The setting is stunning and it's a great chance to watch without any crowds around. We love strolling there in the morning before breakfast.

The main Santa Maria polo club is just a few minutes's drive away in Sotogrande Marina. Car parking is free, and so is entry into the club where there are upmarket stalls to buy polo momentos from and numerous bars and food stalls - it's perfect for polo fans and for polo first-timers.

💡 Check the Santa Maria Polo Club website for the match schedule before you arrive — the bigger tournament games fill up quickly and are not to be missed.

Play golf at Valderrama - or one of the other outstanding courses

Sotogrande is home to Valderrama, consistently ranked as one of the greatest golf courses in continental Europe and former host of the Ryder Cup. Even if you're not a golfer, the course itself is a thing of beauty. For those who do play, booking a round at Valderrama is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

There are several other excellent courses nearby too — La Reserva, Almenara and San Roque Club among them — so golfers really are spoiled for choice. We're always happy to recommend which course suits your group best, just ask when you book. To get the best prices, try a discount scheme such as Golf in the Sun.

Eat fresh seafood at El Trasmallo

A 5-minute drive from Casa de la Risa in the coastal village of Torreguadiaro. El Trasmallo is one of our absolute favourite restaurants in the whole area — and it's a firm favourite with our guests too. It's a proper, no-nonsense Spanish fish/tapas restaurant right by the beach: the kind of place where the fish came out of the sea this morning and the wine list won't break the bank.

Go for the grilled fish, the gambas al ajillo, and whatever the daily special is. Book ahead if you want a table overlooking the beach itself — it fills up fast in summer. We spotted dolphins whilst eating our dinner there a couple of years back.

It's also a great spot for tapas at lunchtime, but again, it's popular with locals (always a good sign), so be prepared to have a drink while you wait for a table - it's worth it.

💡 Ask for a table overlooking the beach if the weather is good. Watching the sun go down over the sea with a plate of fresh fish in front of you is hard to beat.

Explore the Sotogrande marina

The Sotogrande marina is a lovely place to spend a few hours — beautiful boats (from small day boats to serious super-yachts), waterfront restaurants, boutique shops, and that distinctly relaxed Andalucian pace of life. It's an 8-minute drive from Casa de la Risa and makes for a perfect morning or evening out. Grab a coffee, browse the boats, and have lunch by the water.

💡 For a really good value bite to eat or drink, seek out Sotogrande Yacht Club, around the far side of the marina. The breakfasts are fantastic and it caters for boat owners rather than tourists. No membership or anything is needed, just rock up, grab a table and enjoy.

Head to the beach

While the many grand villas and luxury residences of Sotogrande are primarily inland, the beaches are genuinely close. Torreguadiaro and Sotogrande beach are both within 5 - 10 minutes' drive and offer calm, clear Mediterranean water without the crowds you'd find further along the coast. La Linea and Tarifa are also both within easy reach for day trips.

Our top tip and favourite beach is Playa de Cala Sardinia, on the far side of Torreguadiaro. We call it the 'secret' beach, because it's easy to miss it. There's plenty of free parking and two excellent Chiringuitos to choose from - our preference Il Sono (the one on the left as you look at the sea). Great food, welcoming staff and live Flamenco singers twice a week in the season. You can hire sunbeds with umbrellas from around €10 per day, and they'll serve drinks right to you.

Day trip to Gibraltar or Tarifa

Both Gibraltar and Tarifa are well under an hour from Sotogrande and make brilliant day trips. Gibraltar is fascinating — a genuinely unique place with its own character, great duty-free shopping, and spectacular views from the Rock. Tarifa, on the other hand, is one of Europe's premier kitesurfing destinations and has a wonderful old town, incredible seafood, and the sort of easy, bohemian atmosphere that makes it easy to stay longer than planned.

Play padel

You may already be a convert but we LOVE playing padel, especially in Spain, where it's virtually a religion. Even if you've never tried it before, if you have a basic level of fitness and hand-eye coordination you, and the whole family, can be having fun within a few minutes of getting started.

There are several good padel clubs in Sotogrande - our go-to is The Racquets Centre, right next to Trocadero Beach club (also brilliant - we'll cover Beach Clubs in a separate blog). The unforgettable Manolo is the Head padel coach and he'll introduce you to the sport, or improve your game, so that you can join in with one of the daily padel mix-ins. These are two hours long and are brilliant way of getting to meet people in Soto.

The La Reserva Resort (luxury hotel with golf) on the other side of Sotogrande also has padel courts, coaching and mix-ins on Wednesday and Saturday mornings - also brilliant.

Your base in the heart of it all

Casa de la Risa sits right on the doorstep of all of this. From our rooftop plunge pool you can see across the Andalucian countryside towards the polo fields — it's a view that never gets old. We want every guest to feel at home here and to leave having genuinely made the most of this corner of Spain.

If you'd like any personal recommendations — restaurants, activities, sport suggestions — just get in touch. We're always happy to help make your stay as memorable as possible.

We'd love to welcome you to Casa de la Risa. Book directly at casadelarisa.com and save at least 10% compared to Airbnb.

Jon & Bettina x