A visit to Santa María Polo Club is a moment to remember. After a short flight, the POLO+10 team found an idyllic place where it seemed that summer had never left, and winter never happened.
Warmly welcomed by the staff, straight from the moment we stepped foot in the premises, we were astonished: in front of the offices, the four Los Pinos fields were waiting, green and vast, surrounded by gorgeous gardens, filled with flowers, palm trees and all sorts of species. The gardeners were enthusiastically working, making sure the fields were in top condition and everything was perfect. The Pavillion, the meeting point for the polo community worldwide during high season, stood magnificent.
Sun was shining, and one could feel the refreshing sea breeze as Sotogrande is located on the coastline of the province of Cádiz, in Andalucía, Spain. The Mediterranean environment at its best, and the perfect option for playing polo all year round: the climate never fails, and if rain may fall, all the fields have a highly efficient draining system which ensure the polo player that the game will be played the day after with the best field conditions, no matter what.
Through our visit, we also had the chance to experience a polo training, to a very nice French polo enthusiast, Paul, and his son. A true family moment. Then, in the afternoon, They joined the trainer and the father and son duo, to have an amicable match as a perfect closing for their training. The match took place in the one of the two Rio fields of the club, which also hosts an Argentinian restaurant that takes you straight to the south American country with their delicious dishes.
Our final visit was a real eye-opener and a great conclusion of the trip: the Puente de Hierro fields and the stables. Puente de Hierro offers three more fields of the greenest grass one can find, and stables to rent, with astonishing features: fully equipped and comfortable houses for the grooms, houses for other personnel, and meeting rooms, with everything you may need. All completed by a training field for the horses. Gabriel, the person in charge of this top class section of the club, told us all the details about these stables, that during high season are rented to the best teams for the Gold, Silver and Bronze Cup, which we will report on in detail in the near future.
We also had the opportunity to talk to the Director of the Club, Mr. Juan Luis Gil; the Vice-President, Mr. Luis Estrada; and many more people which we interviewed and will also be featured in the next reports about the Santa María Polo Club. They all gave us a thorough insight on their club, and most importantly, they expressed their feelings about it: all of them are passionate about what they do, and are waiting for all polo fans to share the heavenly place where they are working.
In the course of our media partnership with Santa María Polo Club we will be publishing a newsletter once a month, starting next week. In this newsletter you will find the latest news of the Santa María Polo Club, reports about its major tournaments as well as fascinating interviews, touristic packages that will suit all preferences, and presentations of the facilities.
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