Beyond the golf: 5 surprising attractions at GOLF’s Top 100 Resorts

Premier golf resorts deliver exceptional courses, top‑notch cuisine, and comfortable lodging, yet they also offer a range of amenities beyond the fairway. Guests can enjoy spas, beginner and advanced lessons, family‑friendly campsites, diverse outdoor adventures such as fly‑fishing and scenic balconies, plus unique attractions—ranging from museums of Americana to historic labs, ancient trees, subterranean caves, and immersive Big Five safaris. This list presents five standout quirks among GOLF’s Top 100 Resorts.

At the finest golf resorts, great courses, first‑rate food and comfy accommodations are pretty much given.

Big Cedar Lodge | Ridgedale, Mo.

Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum

Designed by Johnny Morris in tribute to his childhood hometown of the Ozarks, Big Cedar Resort immerses guests in nature while offering indoor experiences. Highlights include the Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum—a curated showcase of arrowheads, dinosaur fossils, and Lincoln‑era artifacts—and exclusive items such as Sitting Bull’s war vest and a lock of Abraham Lincoln’s hair, creating a truly unique retreat.

Bandon Dunes Golf Resort | Bandon, Ore.

The Labyrinth

Golf is often likened to life, with its wandering paths, wrong turns and occasional moments of enlightenment. At Bandon Dunes, you can take that comparison literally. Tucked into the woods is a soapstone replica of the labyrinth at France’s Chartres Cathedral, dating to the late 12th or early 13th century. Its intricate path snakes inward and outward, a meditative contrast to the more traditional loops you’ve walked around the resort’s courses.

BROWSE GOLF’S TOP 100 RESORTS IN THE WORLD

Kauri Cliffs | Matauri Bay, New Zealand

The Ancient Kauri

The Kauri Cliffs property invites visitors onto a native‑bush trail where a towering kauri stands, predating many civilisations at roughly seven hundred to nine hundred years old—one of New Zealand’s oldest known individuals. A gentle ten‑minute walk brings guests directly to this majestic tree, opening pathways to centuries‑old stories.

Pronghorn | Bend, Ore.

Lava Tube Tours

Pronghorn blends classic tee‑time excitement with dramatic subterranean exploration. Just past the eighth green of the Fazio Course lies a fifty‑foot canyon that opens into a series of lava tubes carved roughly sixty thousand years ago. Guests can join guided excursions—including specially timed sunset tours—that venture through these otherworldly caverns.

Sun City Golf Resort | Sun City, South Africa

Big Five Safaris

Situated beside the sun‑kissed expanses of Pilanesberg National Park, Sun City Golf Resort embraces the region’s iconic Big Five wildlife. The resort’s location offers morning and evening game drives that encounter lions, leopards, elephants, rhinos and buffalo, while night excursions illuminate the park’s nocturnal fauna. More ambitious travelers can travel a brief flight eastward to a private Big Five lodge within the greater Kruger landscape, enjoying curated 4×4 cruises through the bush.

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