Shores-Orange

With a long list of varied lodging options, restaurants, and attractions and one of the most pristine, white sands beaches anywhere along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf Shores-Orange Beach area has a little bit of everything.

This sun-splashed region, set where the southeast edge of Alabama meets the Florida Panhandle, has been a favorite place to get away and play for decades, with its full-time population of about 35,000 regularly expanding to three times that many folks between Spring Break and Labor Day.

For our purposes, the area became a real place to circle on the map when it built a roster of dynamite golf courses, among them one of the best tracks in all of Alabama. Here are a few sample itineraries to help you plan for your stay at one of the South’s great destinations.

Day One:

Arrive: Check in to The Lodge at Gulf State Park, part of the Hilton family and set hard on the beach with 350 non-smoking rooms, four restaurants and more than 40,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space. It’s a model of environmentally friendly coastal development where connectivity to the outdoors is a central focus.

Golf: The first round of the trip was at the Cotton Creek course at the Craft Farms golf resort, the Grande dame for golf in the area. The resort offered two courses designed by Arnold Palmer – the younger is Cypress Bend – that challenge golfers with their subtle difficulties.

The routings here are among some of south Alabama’s most massive live oaks dripping with Spanish moss, towering pine forests, numerous lakes, creeks, and native wildlife. Cypress Bend’s fairways are wider that Cotton Creek’s, with large landing areas to create confidence off the tee box for all levels of players.

Dinner: We went casual with our first dinner, heading to the decidedly downbeat Lucy Buffett’s LuLu’s, a restaurant known for is known for its fun, food and music. Located on the Intracoastal Waterway in Gulf Shores, the eatery has scenic waterfront views, live music nightly, a sandy beach with its own arcade, a three-story climbing ropes course called the “Mountain ofYouth” and the smaller Munchkin Mountain for the younger children.

Stone’s design here asks golfers to move the ball in both directions, to play over or past trees and/or hazards that are often right in the line of attack and have a steady hand on the approach in order to attack the course’s undulating putting surfaces.

Day Two:

Golf: After breakfast at the Lodge, we headed for Peninsula Golf & Racquet Club, a 27-hole championship facility that’s considered to be one of the most memorable and enjoyable courses in the southeast.

Peninsula’s golf course was designed by Earl Stone to offer a constantly changing variety of golf and visual appeal and offers three distinctive nine-hole routings that offer golfers a dramatically different playing experience time after time.

Dinner: We went upscale on the second night, choosing Big Fish Restaurant for a classy atmosphere, deliciously fresh seafood, perhaps the best sushi on the Gulf Coast and an overall night guests will not soon forget. The restaurant has an exceptional menu of Asian-inspired seafood dishes as well as a full bar, and huge selection of wine. Everything is always made fresh in its open-air kitchen.

Day Three:

Breakfast:We checked out of the Lodge and ate breakfast at Hazel’s Nook, a Gulf Shores tradition for more than 40 years. The eatery serves the official biscuits of Alabama and offers its “World Famous Gulf Shores Breakfast Buffet, as well as its “Old Tyme Country Breakfast.”

Golf: For our getaway round we teed it up at Gulf Shores Golf Club, which has been rated among the top 15 courses in Alabama in the past three years by golfadvisor.com. The Golf Club’s 18 championship holes were designed by the renowned father-son team of Jay and Carter Morrish and feature several sharp doglegs, bunkers, and the occasional water hazard.

The course was built in the 1960s and was renovated in 2005, when it was lengthened by 300 yards and added numerous water features, enhanced fairways, and additional bunkers. The result is a spectacular product that no golf enthusiast will want to miss.

Whether it’s an annual trip with the guys, a weekend getaway for two, or a trip with the entire family, golfers can customize a stay-n-play golf package to Gulf Shores-Orange Beach that’s perfect for their group.

Escape to Alabama’s 32-mile island and experience a vacation like no other. Relax on sugar-white sand beaches, indulge in our coastal cuisine and challenge yourself on the greens, all in one unforgettable place.