THE ALGARVE
Nick Faldo, Christy O'Connor jr & Diarmuid Gavin

THE Amendoeira Golf Resort, 35 minutes from Faro airport, is located in the historic town of Silves, which when it was occupied by the Romans rivalled Lisbon as Portugal's centre of culture. Today Silves is a thriving town and is the site for Oceanico Developments' latest five-star resort, which has been linked with a trio of well-known names.

For golf lovers, the two main courses have been designed by legendary players Nick Faldo and Christy O'Connor jr. The Faldo Course, designed with strategic play in mind, demands careful positioning to score well and incorporates challenges such as rocky outcrops and meandering watercourses.

Complementing the Faldo Course, the O'Connor Course also has large areas of water, which demand accurate play.

O'Connor has also been appointed honourary members' president of the Amendoeira Golf Resort. Golfers can also avail of the clubhouse, the Amendoeira PGAapproved golf academy and the Amendoeira sport club.

Oceanico Group has unveiled a new property brand known as Oceanico Prestige, which gives buyers access to a personal concierge, an executive car and luxury cruiser services for members. Landscape architect and RTE presenter Diarmuid Gavin will create garden designs for Oceanico Prestige owners.

Oceanico Prestige villas at the Amendoeira Golf Resort will be priced at 2m and include both four- and fivebed houses, with private pools, full membership to all seven Oceanico Golf courses in the Algarve, and complete access to all other facilities in the resort.

Oceanico, 01-617 7967; www. oceanicogroup. com

AUSTRALIA

Ivana Trump 'The Donald' is carving out his property network around the world with projects from New York to Panama to the Caribbean, but his former wife is also entering the property market and launching her own brand.

Originally she had unveiled the $150m La Residence by Ivana Trump, which was to be built in downtown Beirut.

The tower was planned to include spacious one-, two-, three- and four-bed apartments, as well as duplex penthouses. The project has been postponed due to the current problems in the area, but she promises it will go ahead and similar towers will be launched in Turkey, Egypt, Morocco and Paris.

She's also linked to a project in the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, Australia. "This project will push the boundaries of luxury and opulence in a condominium development, " says Ivana. "Co-created by myself, the design reflects an attitude striving for a timeless and elegant creation, carefully taking the uniqueness of the Whitsunday area and incorporating the feel of the tropics into every aspect of this wonderful living space."

The project will comprise 42 penthouse-style apartments and will have views of the Abel Point Marina and the lagoon.

www. ivana-great-barrierreef. com; www. ivanatrump. com.

BAHRAIN
Colin Montgomerie & Boris Becker

The Riffa Views resort will be the first golf residential development in Bahrain and as well as 972 villas it will also include a Colin Montgomeriedesigned championship 18hole golf course and a Boris Becker-supported tennis academy. This will be one of the first developments in Bahrain where foreign owners can buy on a freehold basis and is located close to the Grand Prix track in Bahrain.

Other facilities on the 32 million sq ft resort include a retail shopping centre, a school and a health club.

Three-bed semi-detached townhouses start from 191,253 and a six-bed villa, located near the golf course start from approximately 1.5m.

Cluttons, 0044-20 7408 1010; www. cluttons. com

CAPE VERDE
Eddie Hobbs & Ernie Els Eddie Hobbs . . . financial advisor, RTE presenter and magazine editor . . . is a fan of the African island nation of Cape Verde. "The pure, warm water one hour south of the Canaries is home to Cape Verde, a very different group of largely undiscovered tropical islands. With a year round warm climate, hospitable people and a stable environment, this sleepy hide away offers an opportunity to cut off from the real world. Paradise Beach will help change the development landscape in Cape Verde, bringing new standards in design, quality and content to the market . . . creating a home away from home for those looking for a second home in the sun, " says Hobbs on his website.

Although not directly involved in the development Hobbs helped launch the Paradise Beach project when it was brought to market by Cape Verde Development, which is based in his home county of Cork. The company has also announced that for its latest project it has linked up with golfer Ernie Els and the Nikki Beach brand.

The 2bn 10-year master plan for the Calheta Bay development, on a 425hectare coastal site on Sal's west coast, will have an ecofriendly design. The resort will include two Ernie Els 18hole championship-standard golf courses and the luxurious 'Els Residences' which are being developed as a joint venture with the golfer.

Tom Sheehy, director and founder of Cape Verde Development, aims to make the development one of the top 10 resorts in the world and is scheduled to be launched this year. Calheta Bay will also included a 'Nikki Beach Resort', a favourite with many celebrities and already established in Miami Beach, SaintTropez, Mexico; Marrakech and New York City as organisers of The Sexiest Party on Earth. We're sure Eddie would approve!
Cape Verde Development, 021-432 0955; www. capeverdedevelopment. com

SPAIN
Ian Botham & Daley Thompson Former England cricketer Ian Botham has found what he describes as "the perfect retreat" in Europe's only desert. Botham has bought a four-bed country villa alongside the 17th fairway at The Indiana at Desert Springs, a family resort in Almeria, south-east Spain.

"I love the peaceful atmosphere and the desert microclimate we enjoy in this corner of Spain. This is our perfect family retreat and a real home from home for us because the resort offers everything I enjoy in life, " says Botham, who is married with three children.

The Spanish Colonial style home, an air-conditioned 'Arizona' villa, is built in the old farmhouse style in keeping with the Almanzora region and the villa's internal finishes include hardwood joinery, stone fireplaces and marble and Porcelanosa tiled floors.

Also on site are coaching activities, and programmes available for adults and children include personal fitness training by double Olympic Gold medallist Daley Thompson, who also has a home at Desert Springs. Prices of fourbed country villas at Desert Springs start at around 785,000, but prices at the resort start from 367,857.

The Almanzora Group, 0044-1242 680116; www. almanzora. com

TURKEY
Ronan O'Gara Earlier this month Irish rugby star Ronan O'Gara, face of the overseas property company Iberian International, attended an exhibition to launch Iberian International's latest developments in the Turkish resorts of Bodrum and Izmir. O'Gara joined forces with Iberian International last year to become the official ambassador for the company and appears in their TV adverts. O'Gara is buying a property abroad himself, and with the properties in Turkey starting from 47,000 I'm sure he can afford it.

Iberian International, 021-489 3570; www. iberianinternational. com

BRAZIL
Antonio Banderas & Ronaldo

Celebrity superstars such as Antonio Banderas and Ronaldo have lined up to buy homes at Grand Natal Golf, in Natal in Brazil. The 5,500-acre resort development is geographically the closest point of Brazil to Europe.

The first phase at Grand Natal Golf is part of a 2,000-home development of four phases. The first phase, Elegance Natal Miltonia, comprises one-, twoand three-bed apartments plus two- and three-bed penthouses starting from 85,000.

Facilities for owners, such as Banderas and Ronaldo, will include five golf courses, eight hotels, an equestrian centre, the Ronaldo Football Academy, a spa and health centre, seven kilometres of beach, tennis courts, shopping and beach clubs. Being built by Grupo Sanchez, the resort will have a strong environmental emphasis and less than a quarter of 1% of the available land is being developed.

The area is also very clean and according to NASA, Natal, along with Antarctica, has the cleanest atmosphere in the world.

Resort Group International, 0044-208 3348007; www. rgintl. co. uk