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WHEN the subject is travel and holidays we golfers have the best of all worlds.
Not for us the frantic annual crush most families associate with summer package holidays, with bulging airports and interminable flight delays, dubious hotels and questionable food.
We golfers may select our exclusive destination and choose our time to escape, eschewing the hot spots for the more sedate ambience of an exclusive golf resort far away from the madding crowds. It's all very civilised.
The only fly in the sun cream is the bewildering choice of venues. As the world continues to shrink there's simply no end to the possibilities as new resorts compete for our custom with the venerable venues, some almost a century old, where tradition and quality are paramount. There is one aspect of golf-travel that shouldn't be overlooked because it holds the key to successful holidays. It is this: the golf travel year is unending.
No matter the season you'll find an agreeable spot for a golfing holiday with weather that's sure to please.
Whether you're an all-male foursome or a couple seeking a romantic get-away you'll find total flexibility in timing and choice.
So you can avoid excessive summer heat, for instance, by going in the shoulder seasons at a time convenient for that wedding anniversary or the annual thrash with the club bandits. Flights are cheaper then, too, as are resort rates and green fees.
Even better, golfing parents plotting to indulge themselves on a guilt-free family holiday have discovered how to have the best of both worlds. They take the tribe to a golf resort!
This may seem incongruous and some fast talking may be needed to convince the kids, but golf resorts are not just for golfers.
No matter their age or interests everyone will have a ball; every day will be full of activities.
The fact is that resort operators know that to fill their villas, hotels, clubhouse bars and restaurants they also have to cater for the needs of non-golfers and the off-spring.
So they lay on oodles of alternative attractions in the form of every sport and pastime from deep sea fishing to diving and disco dancing. Non-golfers can do as much or as little as energy dictates, switching to another activity as the mood takes them.
For the Significant Other requiring a little pampering there's sure to be a spa, plus a health and beauty clinic and a hairdresser. She’ll return feeling like a million dollars and Senor Smoothie will have a stack of Brownie Points in credit.
In the US, where it all began at the famed resort of Pinehurst, North Carolina, such choice has been par for the course since 1895. Set in 5,000 acres of pine-covered sand hills, Pinehurst has been the model for every resort built in the past century. And the additions and improvements are unending.
These days it has eight golf courses -- the 1999 and 2005 US Open Championships were staged there -- plus a first class tennis facility with a 10,000 seat tournament stadium, a new, multi-million dollar health spa, a croquet club and a man-made beach alongside a 200 acre lake for fishing and all forms of water sports that don't involve an engine. There are horses, bicycles, nature trails, you name it.
Now there are perhaps 1,000 such resorts scattered around America, and as many again around the world. All are open year-round, all are eager for your family's patronage. Go once and you'll be hooked.
Pinehurst is one of the larger resorts, although most are in excess of 1,000 acres. So there's always space aplenty for the sporting facilities and room to move for the guests. A shuttle service, by limousine or mini bus, is a standard service.
Most resorts have a central hotel, although there's often a choice of accommodations. Depending upon the size of your group and, certainly if there are youngsters, you may prefer a fairway villa, a woodland cottage or a spacious apartment, often in clusters of four, villa-style.
Eating out? You'll be spoiled for choice there, too, with a different restaurant each evening.
Pinehurst is in Central North Carolina but many US resorts are close to the ocean and so the beach plays a major role in daily life.
Frequently, too, there'll be a town nearby, perhaps even a city of some charm, often historic and with countless attractions.
Deep in South Carolina, for instance, there are three major resorts close the city of Charleston where the Civil War began -- one may take a harbour cruise out to Fort Sumpter where the first shots were fired. The city oozes Southern charm, history and culture. The days here are never long enough, no matter what your age.
Less than 30 minutes from the city are the resorts of Wild Dunes, Kiawah Island and Seabrook Island, all with every facility and luxury. Each has miles of near-deserted beaches and multiple facilities to die for, all uncrowded and in pristine condition. Family holidays simply don't come any better.
Such resorts are now common around the world and they're spread over both hemispheres, which means summer is never-ending.
Because of competition the value is exceptional, the standards high. And declining costs of long haul flights put such a holiday within reach of any family with a sense of adventure.
They needn't cost the earth but whatever the bottom line figure it will be worth it for the peace of mind that's a consequence of a happy family holiday they’ll all remember over those long cold winters to come.
And for golfing youngsters it will be a preview of Heaven!
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