For those who prefer their golf a la carte, options
abound, thanks
to the Golf Pass Provence (www.golfpass-provence.com), a Myrtle
Beach-type program whereby travelers choose a package of courses for
one reduced
price. If your trip is based near Avignon, an
ancient walled city on the Rhone and home to popes during their
Medieval exile
from Rome, Pont
Royal is the must-play,
followed closely by Grand Avignon and Golf de Servanes
near St. Remy,
where Van Gogh painted his irises.
Should you concentrate on the Var, don’t miss Golf
de Barbaroux, a
sterling Pete and P.B. Dye creation carved from wild terrain.
Neither
should you miss a round at Dolce Frégate Golf Club, a sumptuous Ron
Fream 18 in St. Cyr-sur-Mer.
Between rounds, it’s nearly impossible to travel
between points of
interest in Provence without passing an award-winning
vineyard. Stop in
and sample their wares for yourself. Dégustations, or tasting
sessions,
are great fun, quite enlightening and most often free. Since your
friends back home won’t sit still for a slide show, you’ll have to
impress them
instead with personally vetted wine selections from your
vineyard visits. Or
perhaps a bottle of the world’s finest virgin olive
oil, or maybe an olive
tapenade—two more world-class gourmet products
for which the vineyards of
Provence are
justifiably famous.
Like the experience itself, even the souvenirs are
a reminder of the
good life.
