When Golf & Skiing Tied the Knot

As we push into late December, I'm constantly reminded (via radio, TV and billboard advertisements) that besides being the holiday season, it's also skiing season. Here in New England, the prime ski location is Vermont - and one such ski mecca in the Green Mountain State is a place called Okemo.

Okemo's advertisements are everywhere - images of snowboarders getting major air on a halfpipe or a family of four gliding cheerfully down a picturesque slope. But this excitement conjures up nada in me. Nope, when I hear the name "Okemo" I immediately think summertime and envision one of the top golf courses in Vermont.

In case you haven't guessed, I'm not a skier. I've never been skiing and have never really had any desire to attempt it. But the irony is, I've been to some awesome ski resorts. Let's take Okemo as an example - what was once a name only recognizable by skiers, now boasts several accolades...for golf:

Best Public Course in Vermont, 2006 Golfweek

Top 50 Courses in America, 2003 Golf For Women

Top Modern Club in Vermont, Golfweek

Best New Course in America nominee, Golf Digest

When you think about it, it makes sense to put a golf course at a ski resort. But what's interesting is golfing at ski resorts is a relatively new phenomenon. According to the April/May 2011 edition of Cigar Aficionado, turning a ski resort into a year-round attraction is big business - for both the resort and the surrounding towns:

All of the big ski resort operators such as Intrawest, Aspen Skiing Co., Vail Resorts and Boyne Resorts, along with many smaller peers, have turned their focus from selling lift tickets to selling real estate. To do this, they have had to offer more than just skiing. The new mountain town mantra is "lifestyle," and for more than a decade, once sleepy or even chichi ski towns have been busy repositioning themselves as year-round centers of sport and culture, building performing arts centers, sushi bars, bike trails, village centers, parks, ziplines and, most of all, golf courses.

To me this is extremely smart. Not just because of the obvious (that you can stay open year-round), but because I feel golfers and skiers are cut from a different cloth. Sure there may be some overlap, but for the most part, skiers are adventurers, while golfers are more pragmatic. Economically, this is a brilliant marriage, because the ski resort is not only reaching more people, but also reaching different types of people.

But the golfers have it slightly better (as the Cigar Aficionado article acknowledges):

[Ski towns] are famous around the globe and synonymous with luxury vacation hospitality, but even in ski season, most of their appeal and most of the time spent by visitors is off the slopes. All of these ancillary benefits, from fine dining to five-star lodging, can still be enjoyed in golf season, though without the crowds�and usually at much more reasonable prices.

And this is true - my experience playing at ski resort courses has always been great golf, at a great price, in a relaxed and quite atmosphere. Of course, as more people begin realizing these ski resort golf courses are out there, the more busy they will become.

But for now, the fact that these places have two very distinct atmospheres (depending on when you visit) will remain intact. For example, when you click on Okemo's website during the winter, you don't even realize they have a golf course! It's as if they're marketing department has recognized the two clientele are complete opposites.

Click on that same URL in the summer, and the golf course takes center stage. I've actually had conversations with skiers who mention Okemo and I'll say something like "Oh, I love Okemo!" And they'll look at me rather puzzled - they'll ask: "I thought you didn't ski?"

I guess the marketing is working.

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Inside Cond� Nast Traveler's Golf Resort Ratings

Cond� Nast Traveler has released its Top 125 Golf Resorts issue and I'm wondering how many of us should actually take this list seriously? The list was compiled from the publication's 2010 Readers' Choice survey, which was conducted online and had nearly 26,000 respondents.

That's allot of respondents, but can these results really be that accurate? Firstly, how many resorts have these respondents vacationed at? My guess is not many (and certainly not all 125). So if they've stayed at only one or two, there really isn't much basis for comparison. When people choose a resort, they typically select one they've heard of (perhaps through lists such as in Cond� Nast Traveler).

After visiting a resort, some people will then take the online survey (which could be years removed from when they were actually there), thus providing more (possibly outdated) feedback on a resort that is already on the list. With data being collected on the same resorts over and over, I surmise it would be an uphill battle for new resorts (or those who have undergone vast renovations) to make the cut, despite offering a similar experience to those listed (especially considering resorts had to receive a certain number of responses to make the list to begin with). All this leads to a somewhat flawed rating system in my opinion.

But what's even more interesting is Cond� Nast Traveler hasn't actually produced a top 125 list at all. Instead, it has taken golf resorts that received the most responses and ranked them by region. First they hone in on the typical U.S. golf vacation states like Arizona, California, Florida and Hawaii. Then the publication provides top lists for the Northern, Western and Southern U.S. (aforementioned states excluded). Finally, it compiles a measly top 25 list for golf resorts from the rest of the world. The lists combined total 125 resorts.

Cond� Nast Traveler buckets resorts in this manner because they have no data to legitimately rank 125 golf resorts in order from best to worst. After all, they are only going off a volunteer survey, which typically draws from the same old pool of resorts, rated by people who really have no basis for comparing such establishments in the first place.

But what about the fact that this info exists at all? Sure, these lists can be fun to look at, but are they realistic? Seriously, how many of you plan on actually vacationing at one of these golf resorts this year? For starters, these places aren't cheap. According to the publication, rates are listed in three categories and represented by dollar signs: "$"; "$$"; and "$$$" - where prices encompass "the least expensive double during peak golf season." Well, the "least expensive" turns out to be $350 or less ($); $350-$499 ($$); and $500+ ($$$) - it doesn't specify, but I assume this is per night; golf not included - ready to pack the old clubs yet?

All this makes me wonder who's really benefitting from this list being published?

So with that said, I'd like to see how many of our readers are planning an excursion this year to one of these top golf resorts. Take the poll* below and let us know.

Will you play a Top Golf Resort in 2011?

*It should be noted that respondents to this poll are on a volunteer basis and are drawn from the same old pool of this blog's readership.

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