Ayla Golf Academy and Clubhouse

That Field of Dreams line – ‘If you build it, they will come’ – might as well have been coined with Jordan’s Ayla Oasis in mind. Sprawling over 4.3 million sq m on the Red Sea’s Aqaba coastline, the first phase of the ambitious mixed-use development (which includes 17 km of new waterfront) is already complete. And for now, at least, its centrepiece is unquestionably Oppenheim Architects’ Ayla Golf Academy and Clubhouse.
Curving across the horizon like a granular sine wave, the dun-hued complex – created out of local stone, clay, glass and metal – was inspired by the backdrop of dune-scape and desert mountains, whilst Corten steel panels perforated to echo a mashrabiya screen keep desert heat and sun at bay.
The academy, itself, is a sequence of swooping concrete shells and sits in front of the driving range and the 18-hole Greg Norman-designed golf-course, looking for all the world like a slinky offspring of Zaha Hadid and Jørn Utzon.
Of course, if the heat gets too much, there are indoor swing and putting studios, though you’ll probably find us at the all-day bar and restaurant tucking into head chef Raed Abu Zeineh’s salmon steak, and risotto of tiger prawns.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
Al Farouq Street
Al Nakheel Area
Aqaba
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.
-
Serious cyclists now have serious options, courtesy of two new models from Canyon
With two new bikes, the Endurace: ONfly e-bike and Endurance: AllRoad, Canyon is innovating with both price and performance
-
New members’ club Beihouse revives Beirut’s architectural heritage
Following the devastating 2020 explosion, three 19th-century homes in Gemmayzeh become a social hub balancing cultural memory with contemporary luxury
-
Aman New York unveils exclusive US Open-themed experience
Aman’s ‘Season of Champions’ pairs Grand Slam action with personalised recovery and performance treatments designed by Novak Djokovic and Maria Sharapova