What Is Platinum Clubs of the World? The Private Club Ranking and PlatinumClubNet Explained

Platinum Clubs of the World is not a club you can join. It is a ranking of about 300 private clubs, re-voted every two years by an international panel of club-industry insiders. Being on the list is roughly the private-club equivalent of a Michelin star. The part most travelers actually care about is PlatinumClubNet, an app that lets members of participating Platinum Clubs request access to other Platinum Clubs around the world.

This guide explains who runs the program, how clubs are elected, which clubs in Latin America, the Caribbean and Latin Europe made the current list, how PlatinumClubNet works, and whether any of it matters if you are relocating or spending long stretches abroad.

What Is Platinum Clubs of the World?

Platinum Clubs is a recognition program run by Club Leaders Forum, a US-based private-club industry organization. It began as Platinum Clubs of America and later expanded worldwide. There are now four separate lists: Platinum Clubs of America, Platinum Clubs of the World, Platinum Clubs of Asia-Pacific, and Platinum Clubs of Europe & Middle East.

The organization describes Platinum status as the top 1% of private clubs in the world. A club cannot buy its way onto the list. Once elected, it can pay for an optional two-year Platinum License, which lets it use the Platinum name and logo in its marketing and gives its members access to PlatinumClubNet. Election and license are two different things. A club can be elected without licensing the brand, and only licensed clubs take part in the reciprocal network.

How Clubs Are Elected

The process, as published on the official Platinum Clubs of the World site, has three steps.

1. Preliminary ballot. Clubs can apply, and panelists can recommend clubs. The ballot goes to the panel, which can recommend additions or removals.
2. Final ballot. The Advisory Board approves the final list of candidates.
3. The vote. Panelists rank the clubs during a 30-day window. The vote is electronic, confidential and run through a third party. Panelists can change their votes until the window closes.

Scoring is where it gets interesting. Clubs earn points based on where each panelist ranks them, from 100 points for a top-three placement down to zero for anything below 300th. The total is then divided by the number of panelists who have actually visited that club. A club only a few panelists have visited can still score well, but it has fewer votes behind it. Clubs that land within five points of the cutoff receive an Honorable Mention and are candidates for the next election.

The Seven Selection Criteria

Panelists are asked to weigh the club as a whole, not only the golf course or the dining room. The seven criteria are:

1. Universal recognition: heritage, tradition and international standing.
2. A respected membership: the character of the members and the admission process.
3. Excellence in amenities and facilities: including keeping up with maintenance and upgrades.
4. Exceptional service standards: staff training and how the staff treat members and guests.
5. Adapting to changing times: a strategic plan that evolves without losing the club’s culture.
6. Management and operations: clear leadership and governance.
7. The overall experience: everything from arrival to departure, and whether guests want to return.

The Three Categories

Golf & country clubs are the best-known category. The top of the ranking is dominated by old institutions such as The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews and Augusta National. City clubs are the traditional downtown social and business clubs with dining rooms, libraries, bedrooms for members and often a long list of reciprocal clubs. Yacht clubs cover sailing and marina clubs, ranging from historic European clubs to US and Caribbean ones.

Platinum Clubs in Latin America, the Caribbean and Latin Europe

This is the current list as published on platinumclubsoftheworld.com. Golf & country clubs show their rank. City and yacht clubs are listed alphabetically by the organization, so they have no rank. The list changes every election, so check the official site before relying on any entry.

Latin America and the Caribbean

Spain, Portugal and Italy

Why South America Barely Appears

No South American club made the main Platinum list this cycle. Only two, in Santiago and Punta del Este, received Honorable Mentions. That does not mean the continent has no great clubs. Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Bogotá, Lima and Mexico City all have century-old jockey, country and city clubs with serious prestige locally.

The more likely explanation is the method itself. Clubs have to apply or be recommended, the panel leans toward the US and Europe, and scores depend on how many panelists have personally visited. A club that never applies, or that few panelists visit, will not appear no matter how exclusive it is at home. Treat the list as a signal of international reputation, not a full map of where the best clubs in Latin America are.

What Is PlatinumClubNet?

PlatinumClubNet is the reciprocal-access platform that comes with a club’s Platinum License. It runs as a website and a mobile app. Members of participating Platinum Clubs use it to request privileges at other participating Platinum Clubs when they travel. The network covers clubs in roughly 50 countries.

How a Request Works

1. Your home club must be a Platinum Club that licenses the program and offers PlatinumClubNet to its members.
2. You activate access through your club, typically via an invitation from the club’s member services. Some clubs describe it as a subscription for members.
3. Before you travel, you pick a participating club and send a request. The platform generates a customized letter of introduction for each request, the same document clubs traditionally mail to each other.
4. The host club decides. Access is a request, not a right, and it is only confirmed once the host club accepts.
5. You pay the host club’s charges for what you use, under its own guest rules.

Some participating clubs also mention two extras inside the app: access to a wider directory of private clubs outside the Platinum network, and a discounted golf membership that opens tee times at more than 1,000 private courses. Availability depends on your home club, so ask them what their version includes.

PlatinumClubNet does not publish consumer pricing, and there is no way to sign up as an individual. If your club is not a licensed Platinum Club, you cannot use it.

Platinum Clubs vs. Priority Pass and Other Travel Perks

People often lump Platinum Clubs in with airport lounge programs and travel-card perks. They work very differently:

For most digital nomads and frequent travelers, lounge access and travel-card points deliver more everyday value than private-club reciprocity. If you are building that side of your setup from outside the US, start with how to get US credit cards as an ITIN holder and US banking as a non-resident.

How Expats and Relocators Can Use It

Three situations where the Platinum list is genuinely useful for people moving to or spending long stretches in Latin America or southern Europe:

1. Shortlisting a club when you relocate

If you are moving somewhere and want a club for golf, family life or business networking, the list is a credible outside opinion. Los Cabos stands out, with one Platinum club and two Honorable Mentions. That fits the retirees and second-home buyers who settle there on Mexican residency (see our Cabo San Lucas guide). In Santiago, Club de la Unión is the traditional business club; see Chile residency. On the Uruguayan coast, the Punta del Este yacht club matters for the summer crowd; see living in Uruguay and Uruguay residency.

In Europe, Lisbon and Cascais have three listed clubs between them, which suits people on the Portugal Golden Visa route (see our Lisbon guide). Spain and Italy have deeper benches; see Spain residency and the Italy Elective Residence Visa.

2. Keeping your home club membership while you travel

If you already belong to a licensed Platinum Club in the US or Europe, it can be worth keeping a non-resident or out-of-town membership when you move abroad instead of resigning. The home membership becomes your passport to the network while you travel. Check whether your club offers a reduced non-resident category and whether that category still includes PlatinumClubNet.

3. Joining a club abroad

Private clubs in Latin America usually admit by sponsorship. You typically need existing members to propose you, and some clubs prefer members with a long-term local address. Holding legal residency, a local bank account and a home in the city makes that conversation easier than arriving as a tourist. Admission rules and fees are specific to each club and are rarely published, so ask the club directly.

Private-club networks are one piece of a larger international lifestyle, alongside explorer societies like The Explorers Club, residency in more than one country, and a banking setup that works across borders.

Does It Matter?

As a ranking, Platinum Clubs of the World is one of the more serious ones in the private-club world. Voters are industry insiders, the vote is run by a third party, and clubs are judged on the whole operation rather than a single golf hole. It is still an industry award with a licensing business attached, so read it as a strong signal, not the final word.

As a travel perk, PlatinumClubNet is valuable but narrow. It only helps if you already belong to a participating club, and every visit is a request rather than a guarantee. If you do belong to one, it is one of the best ways to have a proper club base in Madrid, Lisbon, Cabo or the Bahamas on a long trip. If you do not, lounge access and a strong US card setup will do more for you day to day.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I buy a Platinum Clubs of the World membership?

No. Platinum Clubs of the World recognizes clubs, not individuals. You get access to the network by joining a club that is a licensed Platinum Club and offers PlatinumClubNet to its members.

Who decides which clubs are Platinum Clubs?

An international panel of private-club industry experts, historians and connoisseurs appointed by the Club Leaders Forum Advisory Board. They rank the clubs on the final ballot in a confidential electronic vote held every two years.

What is the difference between Platinum Clubs of America and Platinum Clubs of the World?

They are separate lists with different electorates. Platinum Clubs of America is voted on by club managers, presidents and owners and covers only US clubs. Platinum Clubs of the World is voted on by an international expert panel and covers clubs everywhere. The two elections alternate years.

Is PlatinumClubNet free?

Pricing is not published. It is a benefit a club receives with its Platinum License, and some clubs offer it to members as a subscription. Ask your home club’s member services what it costs and what it includes.

Are there Platinum Clubs in Mexico?

Yes. Diamante Golf Club in Los Cabos and Club de Yates de Acapulco are on the current Platinum list. Chileno Bay Golf & Beach Club and El Dorado Golf & Beach Club, also in Los Cabos, received Honorable Mentions.

Does being a Platinum Club mean the club accepts foreign members?

No. The recognition says nothing about a club’s admission policy. Each club sets its own membership rules, sponsorship requirements and fees, so contact the club directly.

Related: The Explorers Club in Latin America · Digital Nomads in Latin America · Credit Cards for ITIN Holders · Mexico Residency