Bermuda is a destination that conjures up images of pink beaches and distinctive charming
pastel colored buildings. This tiny island has developed an uncommonly rich history since its
settlement four centuries ago. But for savvy travelers, Bermuda is more than just warm sun and
a quaint backdrop. Secluded and semi-tropical, the island is world renowned as a great golf
destination year round.
"Bermuda," said Mark Twain, is "the right country for a jaded man to loaf in." The game of golf
was introduced to Bermuda when British Army officers brought their golf clubs in the late
1800s. Since that point loafing has been the secondary activity of choice for thousands of
visitors. When it comes to accommodation, the possibilities are endless. The Sophisticated
Golfer offers our clients the ability to choose from luxurious to informal type accommodations
at which guests are sure to enjoy a uniquely Bermudian vacation experience.
The island has no room for additional golf courses already boasting more golf per square mile
then anywhere in the world. Sophisticated Golfer can help with leisure/vacation golf tee times for
individuals and small groups and golf outing organization for groups with up to 200 participants.
With the perfect climate for golf and nearly all courses offering beautiful ocean views, Bermuda is a great golf destination.
Port Royal Country Club pictured below, is a Robert Trent Jones, Sr. design
and features some of the most picturesque and dramatic holes in golf, highlighted by the stunning par 3 16th.
Jack Nicklaus has ranked Port Royal among the world's best public courses. At 6,561 yards
it offers breathtaking ocean views and a challenging layout. Port Royal Golf Course opened for play in 1970, and is more than adequate evidence of the genius of architect Robert Trent Jones.
The course provides an ideal test of golf reward for good shots and penalty for bad ones.
Playing from the back tees, this par 71 course challenges even the finest players from the first to the 18th hole.
In addition the recently rebuilt Belmont Hills is the former Belmont Golf Course
and has been completely remodeled and upgraded with 419 Bermuda grass fairways and Tiff Eagle greens and
re-opened in June 2003. The U.S.G.A. standard course provides a challenging layout
with excellent ocean views and tropical landscaping. Belmont Hills is a Bermuda course that offers a demanding round of golf on a pristine and intensely bunkered layout.
Many of the multi-tiered greens overlook Bermuda’s famous turquoise blue sea. Although like many of the golf courses on Bermuda it is rather short at 6,017 yards and a par of 70 it remains challenging and is
now is one of the best public courses on Bermuda.
Riddell's Bay Golf and Country Club is a private club with
selected weekday and limited weekend access for clients of Sophisticated Golfer. It is Bermuda's oldest
course and opened in 1922 designed by Devereux Emmett who shortly afterwards built Congressional Country Club near Washington DC. Tight fairways and small, narrow greens mean that accuracy is the name of the game.
Several holes are played by the water between quaint harbour inlets.
Winding along a peninsula which at its widest measures only some 600 yards, the 5800 yards of
this par 70, 18-hole course offers scenic delights and plenty of challenges, including two ponds
and three ocean holes. Riddell's Bay is pictured below.
Bermuda also presents fun to play gems which
Sophisticated Golfer recommends like the Par 3 course at Fairmont Southampton that
requires skillful iron play. This 18-hole, Par 3 course features several lakes, undulating terrain,
and panoramic ocean views. One of the finest executive par 3 courses anywhere in the world at a landmark
luxurious Bermuda resort. It's a great compliment to any stay at both of the Fairmont resorts on the island.
St. George Golf Club is a Robert Trent Jones, Sr. design offering breathtaking Pebble Beach style holes
around the point of St. George's Fort. This course offers beautiful, panoramic views of the horizon,
particularly at sunset. 4,043 yards Par 62. Ocean View, as the name suggests offers
magnificent scenery of the North Shore is a feature of this popular nine-hole golf course. Just ten minutes from Hamilton,
this fine course is quick and fun to play. 2,940 yards Par 35.
Private Golf Clubs in Bermuda:
Mid Ocean Club is a private course with limited access.
Sophisticated Golfer can help with play on Mid-Ocean only if guests are staying at one
of the clubs' preferred properties. Stand-alone golf arrangements can be made at Mid Ocean with special arrangments.
Consistently ranked among the top 50 links in the world, Mid Ocean Club has hosted
several world-class golf tournaments throughout its history it is 6,520 yards and Par is 71.
Tucker’s Point is another private club. Perched on the site of the former
Castle Harbour Course, Tucker's Point Golf Club re-opened in 2002 after a
re-design and re-planting of the greens with Tiff Eagle Bermuda Grass. Golf times at Tuckers point follow the same terms as Mid Ocean.
A new Tuckers Point hotel and resort will open in 2007 and provide play to hotel guests.
North Americans visiting Bermuda consider it to be quaintly British. The British, on the other
hand, tend to consider the island highly Americanized. It is, of course, uniquely Bermudan and
a product of nearly four centuries of British colonial history and an equally long reliance on
American trade.
Passports are the preferred document for entry into Bermuda. United States citizens need either
a valid passport or birth certificate with photo ID together to enter. The Island is 1 hour
ahead of Eastern Standard Time. Legal tender is the Bermuda dollar, which trades equivalent to
the US dollar. US Currency is widely accepted at shops, restaurants and hotels at face value.
The atmosphere in Bermuda is one of British reserve and dignified informality and as a general
rule visitors should dress conservatively.
You may be somewhat disoriented if you thought Bermuda was somewhere in the Caribbean sea.
The island is, in fact, situated in the western Atlantic Ocean, nearly 650 miles east of Cape
Hatteras, North Carolina. The Gulf Stream which flows between Bermuda and the North America
continent provides the island with two seasons, spring and summer. Flights take between 1 and a
half to two and a half hours from most gateway cities on the east coast of the United States.
Bermuda boasts a mild climate that seldom sees extremes of hot or cold temperatures.
Bermuda’s location off the coast of North Carolina and the warm waters of the gulf stream
traveling between the two areas makes the waters off Bermuda generally warm from 65F(18C)
in the winter to a high of 83F(28C) in the summer months. The high season for travel is from late April to
early August although the weather is still good all year round. The summer months are somewhat drier although rainfall is spread fairly even
throughout the year as there is no rainy season. During the winter (December through March),
temperatures average 70°F. The hottest part of the year is between May and mid-October, when
temperatures range from 75°F to 85°F.
There are no “drive yourself” car rentals for visitors to Bermuda. Sophisticated Golfer is partnered with the most professional and reliable ground transfer
services on the island. All of our golf travel packages to Bermuda include airport ground
VIP transfers with meet and greet unless noted. Most golf packages also included ground transfer to all golf courses in
the custom itinerary. We can also arrange for sightseeing, historical tours, and
restaurant reservations with transfers from any of our partner accommodations. Sophisticated Golfer can also add custom designed guided beach tours or shopping tours with ground transfers to any travel package itinerary.
Sophisticated Golfer does not recommend renting scooter transportation mainly
for safety reasons. However for more adventurous travelers renting a scooter can be an exciting
and efficient means by which to see Bermuda. If you do plan on renting a scooter please remember
that in Bermuda they drive on the left side of the road.
Some five hundred years ago, Spanish explorer, Juan de Bermudez, discovered this isolated archipelago
and gave it his name. Subsequently, Bermuda became an important navigational landmark for mariners of
all nationalities crossing from one side of the Atlantic to the other. Some of them actually landed
here for rest and provisions before continuing their voyage. One hundred years later, British Admiral,
Sir George Somers, was shipwrecked off our shores and thus began Bermuda's first permanent settlement.
Since that time, Bermuda has developed into a diversified, sophisticated and thriving community,
consisting of numerous nationalities and ethnic groups; all of whom contribute to the success and
continued well-being of Bermuda
All over the island you’ll find museums and historic forts to explore. The historic Town of St.
George in the east end of the island boasts four centuries of history. The refurbished Royal
Naval Dockyard, the Bermuda Maritime museum and the restored Commissioner’s exhibit the
grandeur of Bermuda’s naval heritage. Other places of interest included the Botanical Gardens,
the Crystal Caves, and the Bermuda Aquarium, all offering beautiful and interesting natural
history.
