Travel

Caribbean Golf: Monkeys and Mulligans

A quest for exotic fairways took Pat Pugh to the tiny island of Nevis in the West Indies where she found a paradise for golfers and sensational beaches to reflect on the day and dream about the next challenging course and its surroundings.

Liberty National Golf Club - Women Golfers Will Like It!  - With the Statue of Liberty for inspiration, "Oh beautiful for spacious skies" rolled through my mind as I watched the ribbon-cutting ceremony on June 15th at the new Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, New Jersey. Everywhere I looked there were beautiful skies and sky-scapes. This is truly a unique golf course.

Charleston, Where History Lives
The only hard part about writing about a trip to Charleston is what to leave out. A visit to this historic southern city can be filled with golfing, hiking, biking, canoeing, sailboating, carriage tours, boat tours, museums, aquariums, gardens, eateries, historical sites...whew! Oh, and did I mention they have an ocean?

Charleston’s Star Studded Fairways
From 1786 to the present day, Charleston continues to collect gems of golf courses. From the jade green fairways to the crystal blue waters, there are dozens of courses in the Lowcountry ranked as the “best.” Here are three to put on your golf planner.

Kiawah Island Golf Resort
Beautiful Kiawah Island is home to Oak Point Golf Course, Cougar Point, Turtle Point Course, Ocean Course and Osprey Point Golf Club (ranked 10th in Golf for Women’s "Top 50 Courses for Women"), where sand traps are only one potential hazard (see alligator photo).

The Sanctuary
Sunrise to sunset there are lots of things to do. Or, do nothing at all but be pampered. Everything you’re looking for in a “getaway” is at The Sanctuary.

Wild Dunes
Golf at Wild Dunes is the game devoted players dream about. Before and after they play it. Setting them apart from other golf courses in South Carolina and Charleston, Wild Dunes ranked as "Best In The State" by Golf Digest.

Two Hurdzan/Fry Designs Win Prestigious Golf Digest Awards Named among Golf Digest’s "Best New Courses for 2006". Bully Pulpit Golf Course in Medora, North Dakota has been named the Best New Affordable Public Golf Course in the U.S., and Georgian Bay Club in Collingswood, Ontario Canada was voted runner-up for Best New Canadian Course honors.

Relax after your Summer Vacation with a Spa Experience  - As the season changes, ease your body into cooler weather by experiencing the warm colors, rich fragrances and seasonal ingredients and treatments that spas are offering this fall. After three months of vacationing and spending time in the sun, International SPA Association members are stressing the importance of post-summer skin care.

Keep Your Cool at the Spa  -

As spas are seen as places for nurturing and wellness, spa professionals are offering special treatments and products this summer that encourage safe skin care.

14 Steps to Luxury  - Travel writer Pat Pugh steps us through a unique 14-step program, guaranteed to revive even the worst case of summertime blues (or winter doldrums). The Biltmore in Miami, FL has had nearly 80 years to perfect an already impeccable experience. Golf, tennis, internationally acclaimed cuisine and more than a little pampering await you. And you deserve it.

New Zealand Golf  - Golf industry expert Nancy Berkley of Berkley Consulting, continues to amaze us with another exhaustive report from an often overlooked golf paradise. Complete with stunning panoramic photographs by Joann Dost, Nancy walks us through some of the most awe-inspiring golf courses in the world. With more golf courses per capita than any other country, New Zealand golf is exploding. Top golf course designers meet unparalleled challenges here and the results are almost beyond description. If your ball doesn't disappear into a daunting ravine at "The Gully", it may seem to fall off the face of the earth at "The Infinity".

Rocky Mountain Golf  - Nancy Berkley of Berkley Consulting, decided to see what all the buzz was about. What she discovered was a spectacular array of women-friendly golf courses, built by world reknowned golf course architects surrounded by the breath-taking scenery of the Rocky Mountains. Nancy gives us an in-depth look at Redlands Mesa, Lakota Canyon Ranch, Snowmass, Ironbridge, Red Sky Ranch, Cordillera Resort and the surrounding area as well as tips for lodging, travel and attractions.

Lost Balls in Virginia  - Award-winning travel writer Pat Pugh gives us a first-person tour of the golf courses and vacation attractions in beautiful Prince William County in Northern Virginia. Read her account of Old Town Manassas, Forest Greens Golf Club, Virginia Oaks Golf Course, Bristow Manor Golf Club, Bull Run, Cannon Ridge and Stonewall, as well as the Manassas National Battlefield and Museum.

Steamboat Springs, Colorado  - Grab your gear with lots of bullets (balls) and head west for great golf. If you're lucky, you won't have to send a scout to peer over the edge of the fairway or into a blind hole to capture your ball. Award-winning travel writer Pat Pugh tells us that wild golf in the Wild West can be tamed.

Skiing in Austria  - Make one visit to these Austrian resorts and you will quickly see why the area has been chosen as the site for so many Winter Olympics. Pat Pugh takes us on a tour of the highs and (not so) lows of this winter wonderland.

Telluride, Colorado  - Take a step back in time and a step up in fun and luxury. Whether you choose the Victorian mining town or the Mountain Village resort, you'll find that any season is the right time to visit Telluride.

Putt your way down the river on a Steamboat Golf Cruise.  Award-winning travel writer Pat Pugh tells us about golf cruises on the Mississippi River and a takes us on a tour of New Orleans.

Post-Hurricane Florida
Some courses suffered severe damage, while others were left relatively unscathed. Nancy Berkley reports on what to expect if you've included Florida in your vacation plans.

A Stockingful of Golf  - If Jack Frost nipping at your nose isn't your idea of a good time, Pat Pugh has some suggestions for you. If you can't golf where you are, just follow the sun to one of these Yuletide destinations.

Houston’s Prime Family Attraction  - Are you the type of person who has developed a hankering for golf and want to let it soak into your skin? You know the live-it-breathe-it kind of golf. But every once in awhile you want to get away to a new scene with your family, a prime place for biking with the kids and where you and your spouse can really absorb golf for a day or so.

Dave Johnson shows us there's more to the Orlando area than theme parks: Shingle Creek Golf Club - Unforgettable Orlando Golf Only Yards Away! Sleuths Mystery Dinner Theater - Hors d'oeuvres, Salad, Drinks...and Murder Mission Inn Golf & Tennis Resort - A Secluded Oasis, Blessed by Nature Orlando Holiday Homes - Affordable, Convenient and Luxurious Housing

Plan your golf getaway at the historic Connemara House, which may be the only bed and breakfast in Kentucky that’s right on the golf course. Just a pitching wedge from the first tee. They have it all to make your golf outing a ball! Tiki Bar, Members Lounge, Swimming Pool, Party Tent, Catering and much more.

The Cliff House - Manitou Springs, CO
It’s older than the state of Colorado, but has everything a normal person needs; heated toilet seats, T1 Internet lines, mineral springs and a magnificent view of Pike’s Peak

Go for it All - Breckenridge, CO
From its rough and tumble beginning in 1859 as a gold and silver mining town in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, Breckenridge today offers a full plate of year-round activities and events.

A "Bear" of a Course - Breckenridge Golf Club
This club has won the titles of Best Mountain Course, Toughest Mountain Course, and Best Value for a Mountain Course and has been named a 4-Star Award Winner by Golf Digest. But the best news is, at this altitude, you can whack the ball a mile!

The Broadmoor - Colorado Springs, CO
Born in 1891 as a gambling casino and transformed into a "grand resort" in 1918, the "Five-Star, Five-Diamond" Broadmoor continues to shine brightly as one of the world's premier resorts. A second golf course, designed by Robert Trent Jones, was opened in 1965, and a third course designed by Ed Seay and Arnold Palmer was added in 1976. In 1994, The Broadmoor opened The Broadmoor Spa, Golf and Tennis Club.

Kentucky State Parks
What did you think of when you saw the above title? I’ll bet it wasn’t fourteen 18-hole championship golf courses. Or six 9-hole courses. And, they throw in some mountains, lakes and lush, green forests as a bonus!

Dale Hollow Lake State Resort Park, KY
The longest of Kentucky's new courses (18 holes, par 72, 7,273 yards, $7.8 million investment), the Dale Hollow course plays along a hilly terrain. The No. 8 par 5 hole measures 539 yards; its green is framed by a waterfall and small cave. The No. 15 hole is a par 3 and plays over a gorge.

Alabama

• Mobile, AL