5 Reasons for Golf Travel to Scotland

Ah, Scotland! The land of heather and hardship, the only land in the world where someone could be bored enough to invent a game where you hit a ball into a hole in the ground. One wonders if the Scottish kings, when they were busy devising the rules for such Scottish games as golf and caber toss, ever imagined that their humble sport would someday become one of the most popular and lucrative sports in the entire world, and that someday, tens of thousands of people annually would visit Scotland for golf vacations that are part pilgrimage and part pleasure. If you’re one of those who’d love to visit famous Scots courses but need to justify your choice of golf vacations to a spouse or traveling group, here are five reasons why you should make Scotland the site of your next golf trip.

Playing Golf in Scotland is Like Coming Home.

Yes, the game was invented here, and its governing body resides right here in Scotland. If for no other reason than that, you need to play a round or two of golf in the place where golf was born.

Scots Welcome Visitors With Open Arms

Nearly all Scottish golf courses welcome visitors, even the private clubs who generally accept members only. Hang about at the pub in town and there’s a good chance you’ll get an invite from a member. If that fails, ring up the club and ask. Most times you can get a tee time as a guest on even a private course.

If Variety is the Spice of Life, Scotland Is the Queen of Spicy Golf.

Scotland easily has enough golf courses for a dozen golf vacations, let alone one. Whether you prefer a quite nine-hole or a world class championship course, you’re bound to find all the variety you can imagine on a visit to a Scotland golf club.

St. Andrews, the Old Course, Gleneagle

The country is home to some of the oldest and most historic golf courses in the world. You’ve watched the golf pros play on the big money courses, and so can you, as long as you book your tee time in advance and pay your money for your booking.

Links Courses

There are few courses as stunningly beautiful or as wickedly challenging as the links style courses along the Scottish coasts. If you love links courses, you have to play Scotland. If you’ve never played a links course, you have to come to Scotland for a proper introduction.

There are dozens of other reasons to visit Scotland on golf trips, each of them played by hundreds if not thousands of other golfers. If you need still more reasons, contact a travel agency that specializes in golf holiday travels to book a very special golf tour for yourself.

Tips for Ireland Golf Vacations

Golf vacations allow you to combine your time off with a chance to play some of the best and most famous courses in the world. Next to Scotland, no country has a deeper history or connection to the game of golf than Ireland. Golf travel in Ireland combines magical landscapes, the best championship and local courses and a feeling that you’re golfing in one of the most historic regions of the world.

It’s been said that golf is a good excuse for a walk, and if that’s all you’re looking for on your vacation, Ireland provides it in full measure. The Irish links are situated on some of the most beautiful land in the world. From courses located on the rugged Northern Coast to links style greens that inhabit the misty inner reaches of the Emerald Isle, every Irish golf course provides stunning views and vistas. You may find yourself teeing off with your back to the prevailing sea winds one day and trying to concentrate on a putt surrounded by eerie mists and ancient trees the next.

If, on the other hand, the game of golf is all about the skills, Ireland golf won’t disappoint. The greens and links of the Emerald Isle are some of the trickiest in the world—they had to be to fit into the rights of way on which the original public golf courses were built. Many of the courses feature narrow, bent greens that require you bring your top skills to the game to play anywhere close to par on each hole.

If neither the skills nor the scenery are enough to bring you to Ireland for the golf, then the hospitality surely will. The golf clubs in the Emerald Isle are reputed to be among the most hospitable in the world. From the smallest village to the grand cities, Irish golfers are always ready to raise a pint with you while they regale you with tales of the country’s golfing past. If you think that fishermen’s tales of the one that got away were entertaining, it’s only because you’ve never heard an Irish golfer tell the tale of the hole-in-one that almost wasn’t.

If you’re convinced that you’ll find the luck of the Irish on an Irish golf course, these tips may help you enjoy your vacation all the more.

If you play the links courses, be prepared to walk. Most links courses do not allow buggies. Some may allow you to pull a golf cart, and the more luxurious will provide a caddy to carry your clubs.

Prepare yourself for the wind if you play seaside links. No matter which direction you’re playing in, the wind always seems to be in your face. It may not be a manly thing, but be sure to pack along moisturizer to diminish the chapping and windburn. No one can have fun when their face is smarting and burning.

If you’re considering Irish golf vacations, contact a tour operator who specializes in organizing tours of the Irish links. They’re in the know about the best deals and best courses to play on the greenest little island on earth.

Where to Play on Golf Vacations at Myrtle Beach

 Golf vacations offer you the chance to play courses you’d normally not see.  But choosing the courses you’d most enjoy can be tricky, especially if you’re visiting an area such as Myrtle Beach, which is famed for its golfing venues. With well over 100 golf courses within a few hours driving range from nearly any hotel, the avid golfer is confronted with an embarrassment of riches. The worst of it is that no matter which Myrtle Beach golf courses you choose, you’ll always find yourself wondering if other greens would have been more of a challenge or offered a better experience. If you’re not sure where to tee off when you head for Myrtle Beach, some guidance from local experts can help.

The Avocet Course at Wild Wing Plantation

Voted South Carolina’s 2002-2003 Golf Course of the Year by the South Carolina Golf Course Owners Association, The Avocet Course brings golfers back to play year after year. Designed by Jeff Brauer and Larry Nelson, the course features a uniquely designed ninth—a double fairway bisected by grass and sand pot bunkers. It’s only one of the unique features of the course, which also includes a three-tiered green shared between the 6^th and the 17^th holes. For family golf trips, The Avocet Course at Wild Wing lets kids play free with a paid adult every day.

Thistle Golf Club

Opened in 1991, Thistle Golf Club is regularly regarded as one of the best places to play on the Grand Strand. It features generous fairways, large greens and stellar service from a staff that truly seems to enjoy their work. The special services and amenities include bag tags, yardage book and complementary range balls. The par 72 27-hole golf course has been included in “Golf For Women” magazine’s Top 100 Fairways in America, and was granted 4 stars from Golf Digest.

Dunes Golf and Beach Club

Find out why the Dunes Club is one of the top-rated courses in the country. The Dunes is the only golf course to be rated #1 Myrtle Beach golf course by both Golf Digest and Golf Magazine, as well as garnering honors from Golfweek and U.S. Golf. The Dunes at Myrtle Beach frequently hosts pro tours, and access is limited, but if you can book a tee time, it’s worth it to play the course that includes America’s 4^th Best Par 5 Hole, as rated by Golf Digest.

Where to Find the Best Golf Trips

 If your clubs go with you everywhere, why not couple your vacation time with a chance to tee off on some of the best golf courses in the world? Golfing vacations and golf trips have grown in popularity until they’re among the most popular types of combination vacation packages available through travel agents. If you’ve never considered taking a golf tour before, take a look at vacation packages on offer in one or more of these areas in the U.S. and the British Isles.

Myrtle Beach Golf Trips

Myrtle Beach boasts more golf courses in a small area than almost any other region in the country. Located on the southeastern coast of the U.S., Myrtle Beach golf courses include public greens, private golf courses and luxury resorts with attached golf courses. Depending on your tastes, you could book a week at a resort and spend every day on their championship course, choose a hotel as home base and travel to any one of a dozen courses within easy driving range, or travel up and down the coast, spending each night in a different hotel and each day on a different course. The choice is yours, and the golfing is superb.

Arizona Golf Vacations

Arizona has two main golfing areas—one in the Phoenix metro region and one around Tucson. The weather is indescribable.  Arizona boasts more sunny, golfing days than almost any other state in the union, and the scenery is unforgettable. You’ll find a range of luxury resorts in and around Phoenix, many of them catering to other interests along with golfing and quite a few of them offering family golfing packages so that the kids and spouse can join in the fun on their level. Tucson offers a less reverent take on the sport of kings. It abounds with quirky courses and unusual fairways that will give your jaded golfing tastes a bit of a jolt. Tucson is also the best place for a family golf vacation if the golfers in your family are on the younger side as it boasts some of the youngest golf champions in the world, and most courses are very welcoming to younger golfers.

Ireland Golf Vacations

Ireland is second only to Scotland in the number of venerable, traditional golf courses. A golf trip to Ireland gives you the opportunity to play on some of the oldest and most famous golf courses in the world. You can settle into one region of the Emerald Isle and play it in depth, or travel throughout Eire to play on a wide range of links from the classic to the ultra modern.

When you’re planning your vacation this year, do a bit of research on golf vacations and book a delightful week or two on the golf course as part of your getaway time.

Top Greens to Play on Your Golf Vacations to Ireland

While Scotland may hold the claim to fame of being the birthplace of golf, Ireland runs a close second. For most golfers, a trip to Ireland is akin to a holy pilgrimage. You could spend months traveling through the Emerald Isle and hitting some of the most famous links in history. If you’re booking golf trips to Ireland this summer, make sure that you manage to book tee times for at least one of these Ireland golf greens.

Kilkenny Golf Club

Founded in 1896, the Kilkenny Golf Club is a mature parkland course set in the middle of Ireland. It’s a challenging course with narrow, tree-lined fairways that require a delicate touch and a high degree of accuracy. Other nearby greens include Mount Juliet (11 miles), Carlow (24 miles), Mount Wolseley (34 miles), Tramore (38 miles) and Wexford (48 miles).

Donfagahy Golf Club

Donfagahy isn’t the most difficult green on the Emerald Isle, but it may be one of the most beautiful. Located on the northern coast, the 105-year-old course was laid out by 5 time British Open winner Harry Vardon. The scenery is breathtaking and the course offers enough challenge for all but the most expert golfers.

Portsalon Golf Club

In County Donegal, not far from Donfagahy, you’ll find one of Ireland’s best kept golfing secret—a true find that should be included on any Ireland golf vacation. Originally designed in 1891 and redesigned in 2001, the challenging 7,120 yard course offers some of the most stunning scenery of any golf course in the land of Eire. The gorgeous vistas include three views of Ballymastocker Bay, with many of the holes played through the dunes alongside the Atlantic Ocean.

Old Head Golf Links

At the other end of the Isle, and the other end of time, Old Head may be one of the most challenging links in the world. Set on a diamond-shaped peninsula that juts out into the ocean, you’ll be playing most of the course into the brisk Atlantic wind. Established in 1997, the Old Head Links at Kinsale present stunning vistas along ocean cliffs that make the trip worthwhile.

Mullingar Golf Club

No Ireland golf trip would be complete without playing the 18 holes at the Mullingar Golf Club. Designed in 1894 by Scottish golf legend James Braid, the mature parkland course is generally acknowledged to be one of Ireland’s best parkland courses.

Family-Friendly Golf Trips

Golf trips have always been popular among adults who enjoy golfing, but parents who want to bring kids along to high-profile golf vacation destinations have often found the choices rather slim. Many golf resorts frown on packing the kids along – it interferes with the serious golfer’s game. Luckily, not all golf destinations are that short-sighted – after all, kids who learn to love golf young become lifelong golfing aficionados. If you’re vacationing with your kids – or, for that matter, bringing your grandkids along – take a look at some of the family-friendly accommodations in some of the hottest golf destinations in the country.

Arizona Golf Family Destination

Scottsdale, Arizona is famous for its casual but highly competitive golf courses. With more than 174 public and private courses concentrated in the greater Scottsdale/Phoenix area, there are plenty of choices, and the 329 plus sunny days each year don’t hurt the golf dynamic. But the icing on the cake when it comes to family is that Scottsdale is well-known for its high number of junior golfers. When golf is that much a part of the fabric of everyday life, it’s only natural that the kids get to play, too.

Because Scottsdale is such a hot golfing destination—as well as a popular family vacation destination—many of the best hotels and lodges offer amenities that cater to both parts of the equation. Pointe Hilton Squaw Peak, for example, has its own golf staff dedicated to making life easier and more fun for golfers. If that means scheduling tee times around your kids’ naps, they can manage it. If it requires getting a babysitter for your younger ones, that can be arranged, too. If your kids want to tee up, there are places to book a tee time with them, and if they’re bored with golfing, they can chill out in the resorts water park, complete with rafts and slides, or go drop a few tokens into the pinball machines in the arcade.

Pointe Hilton isn’t alone in making golf trips friendlier to parents who want to take their kids along with them. Similar family-oriented packages exist for Myrtle Beach golf packages, as well as for international destinations. Imagine your kids’ “My Summer Vacation” after a Scotland golf vacation or an Ireland golfing trip.

No matter where you’re planning to spend your vacation, you’ll find family-friendly golf trips and packages designed to make sure that you and your family have the best time possible.

The Top Golf Travel Destinations

For the golf enthusiast, nothing is quite as satisfying as hitting the links on some of the top-rated courses in the world. The world’s top golf travel destinations include greens located in diverse destinations from Ireland to Arizona, and the best destinations feature multiple courses where you can tee off.

It’s no surprise that Scotland golf vacations are popular – playing a round at St. Andrews Old Course is the Holy Grail for nearly anyone who’s ever picked up a club. A trip to Scotland offers a once-in-a-lifetime chance to play the oldest course in the world, but the Old Course can only accommodate so many golfers. For those who don’t make the tee list at the Old Course, St. Andrews offers a number of other greens, including a second Open Championship course, the Carnoustie, within an hour’s drive of the Old Course.

Ireland is another popular golf destination, with former President Bill Clinton naming the Irish Ballybunion as his favorite golf course in the world. If you’re considering an Ireland golf vacation, be sure to make room in your schedule for a round at Lahinch Golf Club, with a well-deserved reputation for its quirky design. If you prefer a modern course and the luxury of a full-scale resort, you can’t go wrong with Killeen Castle, the country’s newest luxury resort golf club.

Of course, you don’t have to leave the country to enjoy fabulous golf on a stellar location. A Myrtle Beach golf vacation offers the opportunity to play on some of the best-known greens in the world. Located at the northern end of the Grand Strand, Myrtle Beach has earned the nickname “supermarket of golf” for its enormous variety of courses. With over 100 golf courses – 10 of them named in Golf Digest’s top 100 courses – in a 70-mile stretch, Myrtle Beach is one of the top golf destinations in the world.

In the southwest, Scottsdale and Tucson, Arizona take top marks with international golfers. The Scottsdale/Phoenix area boasts more than 150 premier golf courses, including the Grayhawk Golf Club and SunRidge Canyon, along with luxury resorts and amenities to please the entire family.

Whether your golfing dreams take you to the oldest courses in the world or the most luxurious of modern greens, there are travel agents who specialize in planning golf travel packages for their clients. Take advantage of the expertise of a golf travel agent to ensure that your golfing vacation is everything you’ve always imagined.