The foundation stone for an ambitious new golf complex called "Budapest Gate Golf & Country Club" was recently laid in Bicske, a town 40 kilometers west of the Hungarian capital, reports napi.hu.

According to Project Manager Bálint Erdei, a nearby "village" including houses and 10-unit apartment blocks will be built on 800 and 2,800-square-meter plots, and will eventually house up to 3,000 inhabitants. Current plans also include construction of a five-star hotel, with 160 rooms and 20 penthouse "presidential suits" available for purchase.

The hotel will feature thermal and wellness facilities, a sports center and a 1,250-seat conference hall. A sandy beach will be built on the shore of a lake located on the grounds, which totals 280 hectares. Based on planned real estate prices, the total value of the complex will be €300 million, and is expected to be completed in six to eight years, with the course finished within the next two years.

Despite the optimism of the developers, some fear the project may be overly ambitious, especially in regard to the expected asking prices for the associated real estate. Flats of approximately 60 square meters will cost Ft 24 million (€95,000) and 120-square-meter villas Ft 80 million (roughly €320,000). László Tringer, chairman of the Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) of Hungary, said he thinks these prices are "too strong" considering that the complex is located 40 kilometers from Budapest. He added that Hungary lacks affluent pensioners on whom similar investments abroad usually depend.

The developers, however, said they are targeting high-income families and foreigners, including investors from Spain, Austria and Ireland. One sign of the focus on upscale families - as opposed to retirees - are the plans for a private kindergarten with a focus on nature education.

The golf course itself is being designed by Irish Champion Christy O'Connor Jr. who has created 20 courses in Ireland, and currently has ongoing projects in seven different countries. O'Connor said that the Irish experience shows that young people often buy a small leisure apartment together and then, when their financial situation improves, later invest in their own property.

But Tringer of the Hungarian PGA warned that golf-courses and related developments still face long odds in Hungary, in part because of lack of expertise. He said that several such projects have been announced but never started, while some 18-hole courses accompanied by five-star hotels stand empty. But some, like the Birdland Golf & Country Club, located in the western town of Bükfürdő, have succeeded.

The developers hope that the first Hungarian Open Golf Championship can be held in Bicske in 2010 or 2011, adding that this would be an event comparable to the Formula 1 races held each year in Mogyoród, on the other side of Budapest.