Next time you make a trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C. for a family vacation or to sample some of the area’s 100 golf courses, put two resorts on your must-play list.
Pawleys Plantation on the southern end of Myrtle Beach’s Grand Strand and Sea Trail on the northern end are both worth the trip, says the 2007/2008 golf guide by Zagat, one of the nation’s leading surveyors of American travelers. For its “America’s Top Golf Courses”, Zagat surveyed more than 6,000 golfers and 1,750 golf courses to find and name the best.
Pawleys Plantation scored high in the minds of the surveyed golfers who used phrases like “memorable salt marsh-and-lowlands,” saying they were “awestruck by the scenery” to describe how much they loved the Lowcountry course by jack Nicklaus. But then Pawleys Plantation is an enchanting place where golf is just the centerpiece. Only a half-mile drive from the Atlantic Ocean (closer if you take a boat across the salt marsh), the 580-acre resort is nestled among moss-draped oaks, natural wetlands and salt marshes, and bordered on the south by a 600-acre nature preserve. If you’ve ever dreamed of the staying at a place that’s like Gone With The Wind’s Tara, then Pawleys Plantation is the place for you. In addition to Charleston-style architecture and southern hospitality, it offers everything that you need for a laid-back golf vacation – including close proximity to the hustle and nightlife of Myrtle Beach just 30 minutes north. Go first for pleasure and you just might return on business because Pawleys Plantation is also one of South Carolina’s best sites for corporate retreats.
Go north of Myrtle Beach and you come to the charming fishing village of Calabash, N. C. Just outside of that town is Sea Trail Golf Resort, a much larger complex that stretches over 2,000 acres. You’ll think you’ve stumbled into a vacation paradise complete with all kinds of amenities and three outstanding golf courses. There are indoor and outdoor pools, an on-staff masseuse, jogging and biking trails, and more. There’s even a free shuttle for the 10-minute ride to the exquisite Sunset Beach, renowned as one of the most beautiful beaches on the Atlantic coast. Zagat’s reviewers raved abut the Byrd, Jones and Maples golf courses at Sea Trail, telling readers to put them “on your list if you’re going to Myrtle Beach.” But they didn’t stop there. They applauded the resort’s great restaurant (the resort’s signature restaurant, Magnolia’s, serves food to die for) and conference center (the NC governor has twice chosen Sea Trail to host his annual statewide tourism conference) and a staff that “treats everyone like family.
Either of these two resorts is tailor-made to deliver a memorable golf vacation for families or you and your buddies. Pawleys Plantation is particularly women-friendly (Golf for Women magazine listed it among its top women-friendly courses), and with the entire resort within a gated community, it’s the perfect place for a gals-only golf outing.
