Travel Insider: Pebble Beach, The Homestead

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May. 24, 2011
By LINKS Magazine staff

Each week, LINKS Magazine will provide travel news and notes. For more information from LINKS Magazine, please visit the official website.

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KAUAI MARRIOTT: Hawaii is known for its dazzling oceanfront holes, though most courses are limited to one or two. The newly renovated Kiele course at Kauai Lagoons Golf Club now has four in a row, a half-mile stretch on the front nine that is the longest in the state.

To celebrate the reopening on May 23rd, the adjacent Kauai Marriott Resort and Beach Club, which also underwent a major overhaul, is offering special stay-and-play package starting at $377 a night for two with two rounds on the Jack Nicklaus-designed layout.
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PARK HYATT: To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Aviara Golf Club's Arnold Palmer-designed course, the Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad, Calif., is offering a 2-for-1 deal: buy a round this June and receive an equal-value round for free that is good any time (even the next day) before the end of the year.

The AAA Five Diamond resort has also partnered with nearby Callaway for an anniversary package that includes a 90-minute driver fitting session, Diablo Octane driver and unlimited golf. First night starts at $800 and $395 a night thereafter.
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PEBBLE BEACH: Farther on up the coast a bucket-list opportunity awaits. Pebble Beach Resorts is offering a June "Dads & Grads Getaway Package." Starting at $2,725 for two players, the special includes two nights at the Inn at Spanish Bay, one round at the Links at Spanish Bay or Spyglass Hill Golf Course, and one round at famed Pebble Beach Golf Links, site of last year's U.S. Open. The great thing about this deal: you don't need to be a dad or a grad to take advantage of it and is actually available through August.
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MONTANA: Here's an opportunity to experience the rustically ritzy Club at Spanish Peaks in Big Sky, Mont., which is opening up to non-members this summer. For $2,000 per person, a group of four can book four nights in a luxury four-bedroom cabin that includes three rounds of golf for all four on one of Tom Weiskopf's best designs and a group lesson, as well as a half-day fly-fishing trip with two guides and daily buffet breakfast at the clubhouse.
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HILTON HEAD: A similar group of four golf experience is available at another premier golf community, the 8,000-acre Palmetto Bluff near Hilton Head, S.C., at a 50 percent savings. The "Home-in-One" package includes a stay in a spacious and elegant four-bedroom village home, use of a four-person golf cart, breakfast and unlimited golf at one of the finest courses in the southeast, the Jack Nicklaus-designed layout at May River Golf Club. Incredibly, the cost is only $400 per person based on a two-night minimum with four people.
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Long Weekend: The Homestead, Hot Springs, Virginia

The Homestead: Cradled by the Allegheny Mountains, this historic hotel, with giant redbrick wings separated by an iconic clock tower, has been welcoming guests since before the Revolution to "take the waters." Today, the resort is a sportsman's paradise with three of the best courses in Virginia, a gun club, tennis academy, swimming, fishing and bowling, as well as a world-class spa and the famous hot springs, of course.
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WHERE TO PLAY

Cascades: Sam Snead helped build this Golden Age William Flynn course and honed his Hall-of-Fame game on it as its first head pro. The front nine is built into the hillsides, while the back features one of the most unusual and fun finishes in golf with two par 3s bookending two par 5s.

Lower Cascades: Though it lacks the history and hoopla of its namesake, this Robert Trent Jones Sr. design, which opened in 1963, is both beautiful and challenging with elevation changes and a stream that flows through the valley holes. The fairways are wide so golfers can keep the driver headcover off, but the greens are quite undulating and quick, especially downhill.

Old: History abounds at the Homestead and nowhere is that more so than at this course, which has the oldest tee (the 1st) in continuous use in the U.S., dating to 1892. Donald Ross expanded the layout from six to 18 holes in 1913. William Flynn, and later Rees Jones, also had a hand in the design, which features six par 3s, six par 4s and six par 5s.

WHERE TO EAT

Main Dining Room: America has become such a casual society it's nice to know some formality still exists, like at this grand restaurant distinguished by stately white columns and where jackets are required for men. The white-linen service concludes with silver finger bowls. The breakfast buffet each morning is also quite good.

1776 Grille: Waiters prepare the French and American cuisine tableside, adding a real theatrical flair to the dining experience, which features dishes like lobster thermidor. The large windows provide mountain and garden views that are as good as the food.

Sam Snead's Tavern: This cozy pub owned by the resort is located just off property on the backside of the hotel in the charming little downtown and is full of memorabilia from Slammin' Sammy's career. The menu features hearty steaks, fish and soups.

WHAT TO DO

Fly Fishing: The Allegheny Mountains are full of picturesque streams loaded with wily fish, so stop by the Allegheny Activities store located right in the shop corridor near the lobby and sign up for a two-hour to full-day session with an Orvis-trained guide. Advanced reservations are recommended.

Gun Club: Just a short ride from the hotel, the club features a world-famous sporting clay course that extends for almost a mile through the woods with a scenic journey simulating game birds and rabbits. There are also four skeet fields, a trap and five stand, a .22 rifle range and excellent certified instructors like David Judah for newbies.

Jefferson Pools: Named after the author of the Declaration of Independence and Virginia's most famous son who spent three weeks here in 1818, these soothing hot springs are just five minutes from the resort. The constant temperature of 98 degress and unique mineral content provide a natural elixir to whatever ails your body.