I know it's only Summer and most people aren't thinking about their winter golf trip. I'm originally from the Northeast and I know the weather can start changing as early as November.
I've lived in Florida for over 8 years now and absolutely love it. I'm in Orlando and have played golf all over the state. Of the areas I handle, I would rank them in this order from top golf destination to bottom: Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, W. Palm, Stuart/Port St. Lucie, Fort Lauderdale, Miami.
The ranking is based on quality of golf, travel time to courses, variety of course types and price. If you want a good mix of golf and nightlife then Tampa is your place. Only issue with Tampa is the travel to the different courses and some of the quality. South Florida is the night life capitol - but some of the golf can be suspect, or too expensive for what you get. Orlando and Jacksonville pose some of the best golf in the state, along with an expansive number of courses to choose from. If you need many places to eat and drink - Orlando is best.
The weather in Florida for November and December is some of the best in the country. The courses are in great shape, the normal winter golf crowd hasn't arrived yet (Jan. - Mar.), and the prices are attractive. If you'd like to talk more about a Florida golf trip at the end of this year, please call 888.333.6103 to discuss - or go to our website and put together a trip quote (www.golfzoo.com) and see what you get.
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Gold Canyon - What a great Stay and Play!
My father came into town last weekend for Father's Day, and we decided to get "outta town" for a guys only golf weekend.
Gold Canyon Golf Resort (about 35 minutes east of Scottsdale) was the perfect choice - I chose it for the golf, though I had never actually stayed at the Resort before.
Gold Canyon has 36 holes right on site, (the first tee of Dinosaur Mountain was literally about 40 yards away from the front door of our casita) and although I play alot of golf in Scottsdale and have played em all, it is still my absolute favorite since I first played it almost 6 years ago. What I was pleasantly surprised at was how good the Sidewinder course was! (I must admit that I had never played it before last weekend.) An extremely enjoyable layout, and a really good warmup for Dinosaur. It makes more a really nice 36 hole day - Sidewinder in the morning, then Dino in the afternoon. (We have a really good special price for that as well.)
I was extremely impressed with the accommodations. Our unit, a "Spa Casita" is basically a hotel room, but a LARGE hotel room. 2 double beds + a sitting area to watch the NBA playoffs made it very comfortable for 2 guys to hang out, and sip a little Makers Mark. The clencher here was the private patio with the PRIVATE JACUZZI right outside your back door. It's the perfect setup.
Also, the restaurant (Kokopelli's) was excellent for both breakfast and dinner. We had all you can eat catfish Friday night, and prime rib was the special on Saturday. The prices were great - much less than what you would expect at a resort - great food, great prices, and exceptional service. The breakfast buffet with an omelette station was a great value as well.
If you're coming to Scottsdale, but want a resort that's a little more out of the way and secluded, give Gold Canyon Golf Resort a try.
You won't be disappointed.
Monday, June 19, 2006
Premium Course without the Premium Price Tag
The Thistle Golf Club located in Calabash, NC is a must play on your next golf vacation to Myrtle Beach. There are 3 beautiful nines designed by architect Tim Cate and the owner has spared no expense in adding gorgeous landscaping throughout the facility.From the moment you drive through the gates you know the club is managed to give you a top-notch golf experience. The staff is wonderful and their attention to detail is impressive to say the least. A common complaint from many golfers at some golf courses is that they feel as though they are being rushed around and can’t enjoy their round of golf. Well at the Thistle they send out groups every 12 minutes to give you a full hole open in-front and behind you. Most courses send groups out every 8 minutes, which makes for a crowed golf course. You will be glad you have some extra time to look around as every hole is lined with beautiful wildflowers and perfectly manicured flower beds.
If you are looking for a memorable round on one of the top courses in the area, give one of the Golf Vacation Specialists at Golf Zoo a call. We can give you more information on the Thistle Golf Club as well as hundreds of other golf courses.
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Mapping out that Perfect Golf Vacation...
Planning your golf vacation just got easier with Golf Zoo's All-New Interactive Area Maps! If you haven't already seen them, have a look at this post for an example, what you can do with the maps and images.
In this example, I will use the destination 'Arizona' as the example. There are two (2) ways you can get to each destination's interactive area map:
The First, is simply from our main destination map page that lists all of our destinations. In the image below - the interactive map graphic/button is highlighted.
The Second option is avialable when you land on the Overview page of a destination - click on the Interactive Area Map button near the top of the section - as noted in the image below.
Once on the Map page - you have options on how you can view the map (see the below graphics). I suggest you select the "Satellite" or "Hybrid" views for a real bird's eye view of some of the golf courses and lodging properties. You can also get directions from from one point to another (the directions will open up on a new page). With name, address, pictures and address information available on every "bubble" it makes it easy to find out where you want to stay relative to the golf courses you want to play - or what golf courses you may want play given the proximity to your lodging property. Simply select a property on the right side listing of options and the map will point out where it is on the map.
Just want to see what's around a particular property? Thats fine too- you can also just click the points on the map to get the same information. All of the green number points on the map are Golf Courses and all of the blue lettered points on the map are Lodging properties.
Clicking on the picture or name of the property in the 'bubble' will take you to that page in our site for more pictures and description as well. You can zoom in, click and drag the map to view anything on the map that you wish (see the below two examples). Have fun!
In this example, I will use the destination 'Arizona' as the example. There are two (2) ways you can get to each destination's interactive area map:
The First, is simply from our main destination map page that lists all of our destinations. In the image below - the interactive map graphic/button is highlighted.
The Second option is avialable when you land on the Overview page of a destination - click on the Interactive Area Map button near the top of the section - as noted in the image below.
Once on the Map page - you have options on how you can view the map (see the below graphics). I suggest you select the "Satellite" or "Hybrid" views for a real bird's eye view of some of the golf courses and lodging properties. You can also get directions from from one point to another (the directions will open up on a new page). With name, address, pictures and address information available on every "bubble" it makes it easy to find out where you want to stay relative to the golf courses you want to play - or what golf courses you may want play given the proximity to your lodging property. Simply select a property on the right side listing of options and the map will point out where it is on the map.
Just want to see what's around a particular property? Thats fine too- you can also just click the points on the map to get the same information. All of the green number points on the map are Golf Courses and all of the blue lettered points on the map are Lodging properties.
Clicking on the picture or name of the property in the 'bubble' will take you to that page in our site for more pictures and description as well. You can zoom in, click and drag the map to view anything on the map that you wish (see the below two examples). Have fun!
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