Tag Archives: golf resorts

Top Resorts in Palm Beach County

If your perfect Palm Beach Florida vacation features a range of surf and turf activities, we have the ideal resorts for you. These properties offer everything from snorkeling amidst sunken ships to historical tours on beach cruisers to waterside golf.

You’ll find ample opportunities for paddleboard and surfing lessons, state-of-the-art indoor/outdoor fitness facilities and even a 15-mile jogging trail along the Intracoastal Waterway.

The Breakers
The Breakers photo credit: John Cameron

Inspired by the Italian villas of the 1400s, The Breakers Palm Beach is run by descendants of founder Henry Flagler. Guests can do a free, two-hour cycling tour of local historical sites.

Golfers will love the challenging Rees-Jones course, the oldest 18-hole course in Florida. Dating from 1896, the Ocean Course sits on 140 acres overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, adjacent to the 540-room Breakers Hotel.

The Breakers Clubhouse
The Breakers Clubhouse photo credit: John Cameron

After the round, guests head to the Flagler Steakhouse upstairs in the golf clubhouse for excellent steak and seafood dishes.

The Breakers Pool
The Breakers Pool photo credit: John Cameron

Gym enthusiasts appreciate the contemporary 6,000-square-foot indoor/outdoor oceanfront fitness center, while all can enjoy the 20,000-square-foot spa, Mediterranean-style beach club overlooking one-half mile of private beach, four swimming pools, five whirlpool spas, 10 lighted tennis courts and an extensive program of family activities including water sports.

Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa
Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa photo credit:John Cameron

The Eau Resort offers free beach cruisers so guests can cycle three miles north to golf along the ocean and the Intracoastal at the Palm Beach Par 3 Golf Course.

Palm Beach Par 3 Golf Course
Palm Beach Par 3 Golf Course photo credit:John Cameron

The helpful water sports staff can arrange fishing trips or set you up with paddle boards, kayaks and catamarans to explore the marine life or improve your sailing skills.

Divers can see the old A1A highway, 30 feet below the surface, while snorkeling kids can discover schools of fish closer to shore. There’s an Aquanuts program for children ages five to 12 and a COAST Teens Program for ages 13 to 17.

An onsite tennis pro offers lessons on three Har-Tru clay courts, while a state-of-the-art fitness center, complete with personal trainers, offers spinning, yoga and Pilates classes.

The Seagate Hotel & Spa
The Seagate Hotel & Spa photo credit: John Cameron

The Seagate Hotel and Spa in Delray Beach is a gold-certified Leed property boasting five beautiful aquariums, including a shark tank. At their ocean club, guests can take a guided snorkeling tour to sunken ships or explore the area in single or double kayaks, paddleboards or rent masks and fins.

Hole 17 Seagate Golf & Country Club Delray Beach, Florida
Hole 17 Seagate Golf & Country Club

Golfers will enjoy a beautifully manicured 18 hole championship course, designed by Joe Lee, playing 6,552 yards from the tips. If you are staying at The Seagate, don’t miss the chance to play this fun course.  Guests also have access to eight Har-Tru tennis courts, a fitness center and a pool.

Marriott Singer Island Beach Resort & Spa
Marriott Singer Island Palm Beach photo credit: John Cameron

A key feature of the Marriott Palm Beach Singer Island is the grotto-style, heated outdoor Lagoon Pool with a two-story waterfall and water slide. Guests congregate here on Friday evenings for the popular dive-in movies on the resort’s big-screen. Beach volleyball and morning meditation classes round out the group activities.

3800 Ocean is the signature restaurant at Palm Beach Marriott Singer Island.  It’s always a treat when the chef takes away your menu and says, leave it to me. Chef Sergio Rivera presented us with a delicious starter of plump Wellfleet oysters, dredged in a breaded coating, fried and presented in their shell, followed by a duck breast au jus on black olive risotto and a sea bass wrapped in prosciutto, perfectly paired with a California chardonnay.

At the water sport rentals desk, you can book a pedal boat tour to nearby Burnt Ridge or sign out a motorboat to explore the waters on your own.

Waterstone Resort & Marina
Waterstone Resort & Marina photo credit: John Cameron

In Boca Raton, the Waterstone Resort and Marina, popular with boaters, has 139 guest rooms with private balconies overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, Intracoastal Waterway or Lake Boca.

The polished chrome against whitewashed teak wood millwork both indoors and out creates a seamless transition between the main floor and waterfront promenade. Easy access to water activities on all three include reef snorkeling trips, fishing charters, boat rentals, surfing lessons, jet skis, ocean kayaks and paddleboards.

The Boca Raton Resort & Club’s award-winning amenities include two 18-hole championship golf courses, 30 tennis courts, seven pools, a 32-slip marina with full fishing and boating facilities and a half-mile of private beach with water sports and family activities.

Previously published on USA Today 10 Best

PGA Golf Club at PGA Village Verano

With the perfect address for a golf club, PGA Golf Club, at 1916 Perfect Drive in Port St Lucie, is a golfer’s dream destination. Play three championship 18-hole golf courses, The Wanamaker, The Ryder and the Pete Dye, all owned and operated by The PGA of America.  And stay like a resident in a beautiful home on property at PGA Village Verano, minutes from the three golf courses in a resort-style golf community with a Stay & Play package.

Kolter Homes PGA Village Verano
Kolter Homes PGA Village Verano photo credit: Kolter Homes

The Wanamaker Course is one of two Tom Fazio designs on the property and does its namesake – PGA founder Rodman Wanamaker proud. Fazio designed both the Wanamaker and Ryder in 1999, but the twins are definitely fraternal and reveal different personalities.

Hole 18 on the Wanamaker Course PGA Village
Hole 18 on the Wanamaker Course PGA Village photo credit: John Cameron

Department store magnate Rodman Wanamaker helped establish the PGA of America, funded the first PGA Championship in 1916 and has his name attached to the champion’s prized trophy, The Wanamaker. Fazio’s Ryder Course honors Samuel Ryder, the namesake and founder of the Ryder Cup matches, which began in 1927. All 36 tees have plaques that unveil the storied lore of both the PGA Championship and the Ryder Cup.

On the Ryder Course, Fazio transports you to North Carolina, with his holes winding among majestic pines, rolling hills and elevation changes, and recurrent red-staked hazards.

Pete Dye Course PGA Village
Pete Dye Course PGA Village photo credit: Sherel Purcell

Pete Dye’s eponymous course at PGA Village opened for play in 2007. Highlighting the native environment, especially the wetlands, Dye fashioned a links-style course reminiscent of the British Isles, like playing in Scotland or Ireland without the airfare.

The three courses have their own driving range and putting and chipping areas as well as the “Short Course,” six holes between 35-60 yards where you can work on your finesse shots. However, the nearby 35-acre PGA Center for Golf Learning and Performance is a golf instruction, practice, technology and fitness park all in one. Named a “2013 Golf Range Association of America Top 50 Range,” the center includes more than 100 hitting stations (many weather-protected), short-game practice areas, putting greens, three practice holes and nine separate bunkers that simulate play worldwide.

Grab lunch at the Taplow Pub in the clubhouse – the street tacos are delicious.  After your round, enjoy a drink and dinner with PGA members at the 19th hole and watch golfers approach the 18th green on the Wanamaker course.

Museum at PGA Village Golf Club
Museum at PGA Village Golf Club photo credit: John Cameron

While not a comprehensive museum on the history of golf ( for that check out the excellent World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine) PGA Village does have  the on-site PGA Museum of Golf. There’s plenty here to impress the golf fan if you love the game. Open to the public, it traces the history of the PGA of America through its major championship and the Ryder Cup. Check out the Wanamaker trophy. Golf fans can see more great golf memorabilia at Sam Snead’s Grill & Tavern at the nearby Holiday Garden Inn.

Kolter Homes PGA Village Verano
Kolter Homes PGA Village Verano photo credit: Kolter Homes

During a Kolter Homes Stay & Play, visitors have access to award-winning golf on the Ryder and Pete Dye courses in addition to the Wanamaker course. 

Pool at Club Talavera
Pool at Club Talavera photo credit: Sherel Purcell

A-three day, two-night stay includes access to the new 27,000 square ft. Club Talavera Social Center with full use of all amenities including the13,000 square ft. Fitness Center, with yoga, tennis, indoor/outdoor pools, bocce ball, basketball, Har-Tru tennis courts and one round of golf for two at the adjacent PGA Golf Club.

PGA Golf Club is just off I-95 at Exit 121, 45 minutes north of Palm Beach and a two-hour drive from both Orlando and Miami.