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Riviera Maya, Mexico
Just back from Riviera Maya, the resort coastline south of Cancun, I know that the Fairmont Mayakoba's Green Adventure Package is a great deal. This 5-star resort is tucked into a vast mangrove forest on a labyrinth of waterways that lead to a beautiful beach. And, the fabulous Greg Norman-designed El Camaleón Golf Course here is home of the PGA TOUR Mayakoba Golf Classic.
The package includes spacious, luxury accommodations, daily breakfast buffet for two adults (children 0-12 years of age eat free when dining with parents), unlimited golf for the day when purchasing one round of golf, picnic boxes for two adults and two children to enjoy on-site or at The Sian Ka'am Biosphere Reserve; a cooking lesson with the resort's chef, a tour in a "Lancha" (covered boat) through the canals with the resort's ecology expert, and a turtle themed amenity. Hard to beat this generous package at a 5-star resort with golf on (my opinion) the best course on Riviera Maya; rates from $459 per night to April 26, 2009.
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Sonoma, California
In my home town of Sonoma in the California Wine Country, The Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa is offering the His and Hers Spa Tees Package, which includes 5-star accommodations, a round of golf for one at the private Sonoma Golf Club (home of the PGA Champions Tour Charles Schwab Cup Championship), a 1-hour spa treatment for one (value $155), and two drinks by the massive fireplace in the Lobby Bar. Rates start at $454 per night, throughout the year.
The expansive Sonoma Mission Inn Spa is world-famous. Not sure? Go to the Web site for the free podcast driving tour of the Sonoma Wine Country, with comments from local chefs, winemakers, and historians.
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Amelia Island, Florida
For $139 per person per night, this package at Amelia Island Plantation is a fab deal. The Ocean Links, Oak Marsh (Pete Dye) and Amelia River (formerly Royal Amelia) courses are gorgeous, tropical gems on this most beautiful of Florida islands between the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic. You get an ocean-view room at the Amelia Inn and Beach Club, daily breakfast, golf with cart ($25 same day replay) and more.
Golfers make their way through wetlands and sand dunes on fairways bordered by a dense forest of moss-draped live oaks, sabal palms, pines and wax myrtles. Non-golfers head to 23 fast-dry clay tennis courts at Amelia Island Plantation's nationally renowned tennis center, and to the beach, the spa or to fish, kayak, bike and hike.
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Scottsdale, Arizona
Guests can take advantage of 5-star accommodations without breaking the bank at the Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North. Summer specials run June 1-Sept. 13 and include the Bed & Breakfast package with luxurious casita accommodations and breakfast at $225 per night. Or, extend your getaway with the resort's Stay Longer deal and enjoy a complimentary third night. Seasonal rates start at $195 per night. The Four Seasons is within a long drive of the world famous Monument and Pinnacle courses at Troon North Golf Club, where you can play 36 holes (in one day or on separate days) for $350, a savings of $230 to $350 over regular daily green fees.
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Princeville, Kauai, Hawaii
The Prince Golf Course at Princeville at Hanalei on Kauai's north shore is offering "Tease for Two" including golf for one and amenities; a 50-minute massage at the spa for one, ($275 through December, with some blackout dates). You can also get a two-day, two-round pass, through December, for $265, and a pass for 3 rounds in 5 days for $340-each of the passes constitutes substantial savings over the standard green fee of $200 at the Prince Course.
After 4 p.m., the course offers free play for junior golfers age 17 and under (without cart). Golfers under age 11 must be accompanied by an adult, who plays for $10. For tee times prior to 4 p.m., green fees are 50% off-such a deal! Princeville Resort will reopen this spring rebranded as The St. Regis Princeville Resort.
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Monterey, California
Fresh from a multi-year, multi-million dollar renovation, 36-hole Bayonet Black Horse is offering new "stay and play" packages with several premier area resorts and hotels on the Monterey Peninsula. If you can't hack the green fee at Pebble, this is a top-notch alternative.
The hostelries participating are Sanctuary Beach Resort, Casa Munras Hotel and Embassy Suites Seaside, with golf packages from $189-$305, quite a steal at this upscale golf mecca.
7,104-yard Bayonet (formerly the military-only club at Ford Ord) comprises a daunting challenge, with narrow fairways and deep, craggy bunkers, and glorious Pacific Ocean views. The course is receiving rave reviews for improvements that included replacing invasive grasses on the tees, fairways and greens.
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Worley, Idaho
Golf Magazine says that Circling Raven Golf Club is one of the "Top 100 Courses You Can Play 2008-09." An easy, beautiful, 40-mile drive from Spokane, the casino resort and golf club are in an idyllic spot on the western edge of the Rockies, surrounded by lakes, old-growth forest and farmland.
Stay-and-Play rates for 2009 are astounding at the Coeur d'Alene Casino Resort Hotel: golf for two, double occupancy, $169 weeknights, $75 weekends through May 15; $199 weeknights, $249 weekends through September.
The 7,189 yard course was lightly laid on 620 acres of wetlands, grasslands and woodlands of old-growth pines, aspens, cottonwoods and birch, with only 100 acres of cultivated ground--stunning in the Fall. With a sizzling 74.5 rating and 140 slope (with five tees), it's links-style, with water affecting play on 13 holes. You will share the habitat with elk, deer, moose and an occasional black bear, and on the back nine, the holes are so private that you and the 4-footed creatures will have a chance to bond.
Into C&W? The Coeur d'Alene Casino's theater gets such stars as Willie Nelson, LeeAnn Womack, Randy Travis and Bill Engvall. If you haven't been here lately, you'll be glad to know that U.S. Highway 95 has been rerouted and no longer borders the 18th fairway.
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Whistler, B.C. Canada
Big Sky Resort and Golf Club, Chateau Whistler, Whistler Golf Club, and Nicklaus North—four of the top golf courses in Canada (some say the best) are a reason to spend a week at the Whistler in British Columbia's spectacular Canadian Rockies. Whistler's famous "River of Golden Dreams" meanders through the fairways and feisty Fitzsimmons Creek creates havoc for golfers on Nicklaus North, while 9 lakes, 2 winding creeks and gorgeous mountain views are distracting on the Arnie Palmer-designed Whistler Golf Club. A Robert Cupp original at the foot of Mount Currie, Big Sky Golf Resort is a stunner, relatively flat with plenty of reed-bordered lakes and ponds. On rugged terraces at the base of the glacier-capped Coast Mountains, The Fairmont Chateau Whistler Golf Club lies on tilting, high-altitude terrain studded with monumental granite outcroppings with glacier-fed streams cascading across the fairways.
Check out the Golf Whistler Passport, a great deal at $229 (May 8-31 and Sept 31 to close of season) or $349 (June 1 through June 30).
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Napa, California
Head to the Napa Valley for the "Golfer's Dream" package at Silverado Resort ($199 per night Sunday-Thursday, $289 per night weekends). Accommodations are in a spacious fireplace suite on 1,200-acres of grounds and gardens, with 10 swimming pools, 17 tennis courts and one of largest and most luxurious spa complexes in Northern California. The package includes golf for two on one or the other of the oak-studded, recently renovated Robert Trent Jones, Jr. tracks. The courses recently completed $4 million in enhancements and received a 4-star rating from Golf Digest.
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