BACK ISSUES » SUMMER 2002

Owenoak Introduces: Golf tours to France...

The first golf course in France was built in 1856 in the southwestern village of Pau, which at the time was a popular winter retreat for wealthy British residents. Since then, more than 500 courses have been added to the country’s inventory, and France has steadily grown in popularity as a golf vacation destination.

If your idea of a perfect golf vacation is to spend a week testing your game on the world’s most famous courses, then we’d recommend one of our trips to Ireland or Scotland. But if you want a multi-faceted vacation experience, mixing good golf with equal amounts of sight-seeing, gallery-gazing, wine-tasting, and fine dining, then we think you’ll be interested in Owenoak’s newly developed tours to France. They cover four distinct areas of the country:

The Loire Valley
Known as the Valley of Kings, the gently rolling land along France’s longest river – the Loire – is dotted with castles and hunting lodges built for French royalty in the 15th and 16th centuries.

The Sologne, an ancient forest in the heart of the Loire Valley, is home to Les Bordes, a golf resort developed by Baron Marcel Bich, who made a fortune with his invention of the Bic ball-point pen. Les Bordes has 40 guest rooms, an excellent restaurant, and it makes a convenient base from which to explore the chateaux, the vineyards, and the quaint towns and markets of the Loire valley.

In addition to Les Bordes, Owenoak travelers will be housed at: Chateau d’Artigny, which was built by cosmetics king Rene Coty in the early 20th century, but which bears all the trappings of 18th century chateau life; and Domaine de Belesbat, a fine boutique hotel which has its own 18-hole golf course.

Among the sightseeing stops is Chateau de Chambord, the most extravagant chateau in the Loire Valley. This 440-room masterpiece, with its 365 fireplaces and 70 staircases, was built in the 16th century by King Francois I. It is believed the design was influenced by Leonardo da Vinci, who lived out the last years of his life in the nearby village of Amboise.

Other chateaux visits include: Chateau de Cheverny, the most beautifully furnished and appointed of all the Loire chateaux. Viscount Arnaud de Sigalis, whose family has owned Cheverny since it was built in the 17th century, still resides in the chateau, and can be seen on the grounds each day tending to his 80 hunting dogs.

Chateau de Chenonceau is built out over the Cher River, and is known for the graceful arches that support it above the water, making it appear to float on air. With its moat and drawbridge, towers and turrets, the 16th century “fairy-tale castle” is one of the most beautiful, most popular, and most-photographed tourist attractions in the valley. Another interesting stop is Chateau de Villandry and its wonderful 16th century gardens.

Where the Loire River reaches its northern-most point at Orleans, you might consider a detour toward Paris to visit two other notable residences: Chateau de Versailles, the grandest and most famous chateau in all of France, built in the mid-1600s during the reign of Louis XIV; and the enormous Chateau de Fontainebleu, the first royal residence, erected in the 12th century, whose roster of former occupants reads like the “Who’s Who” of French royalty.

Normandy
Every year more than 2 million people visit Normandy to pay their respects at the landing beaches where on June 6, 1944 some 150,000 troops came ashore in the legendary allied invasion that would eventually lead to the liberation of France and the defeat of Nazi Germany. The beaches where they landed are still known by their wartime code names Gold, Juno, Sword, Utah and Omaha. Above the beach at Omaha is the American Military Cemetery, which contains the graves of more than 9,300 American soldiers, and a memorial to more than 1,500 others whose remains were never recovered. This is where the Owenoak tour of Normandy begins.

Guests spend two nights at Chateau de Sully, a lovingly-restored, three-story chateau. From here there are trips to: the D-Day beaches; to Caen, heavily damaged during the invasion, and today the home of the D-Day Museum of Peace; and to Pointe du Hoc, where U.S. Rangers bravely scaled 100-foot cliffs to reach German artillery guns. To lighten the mood there’s lunch and golf at Omaha Beach Golf Course, overlooking the landing beaches.

Three nights will be spent at Deauville and the Hotel du Golf Barriere, known for its recreational facilities, including 27 holes of golf. The hotel will serve as the base for day-trips to: the picturesque town of Honfleur at the mouth of the Seine, and which in the 19th century, was a gathering place for artists, including many of the French Impressionists; and Etretat, a seaside village which is famous for its soaring limestone cliffs. There will be golf at: New Golf de Deauville, a course that passes close by the remains of an 18th century castle; and at Etretat Golf Course, a challenging layout set atop wind-swept cliffs overlooking the sea.

The trip concludes with a two-night stay at Chateau de Brecourt, with one round of golf at the Chateau du Champ de Bataille, and another at the Ivry la Bataille golf course. The final afternoon includes a visit to the village of Giverny and the home and garden of Claude Monet (1883-1926), one of France’s leading Impressionist painters.

Provence
It is said that Vincent Van Gogh’s discovery of Provence and its characteristic light and color changed his life and the history of painting forever. It is an area with an enormously diverse landscape, and scenery immortalized by Van Gogh and Paul Cezanne, as well as others.

The Owenoak tour begins at the Domaine de Chateauneuf, a beautiful four-star resort in the coastal town of Nan Les Pins. The recently renovated 18th century hotel was once a stopover for pilgrims bound for the Holy Land. The schedule here includes a visit to the nearby Triennes Winery, sightseeing in the chic resort town of Cassis, and a boat ride along the rocky coast. There will be one round of golf at La Fregate, an outstanding course with scenic vistas over the Mediterranean Sea; and another at the Barbaroux Golf Course, a Pete Dye layout that winds through a woodland and around six lakes.

Then it’s on to Domaine de Saint-Andreol, a luxury golf resort located on a 350-acre estate, just a half-hour from the coast and the seaside towns of Cannes and Saint-Tropez. You’ll play one round of golf on Saint-Andreol’s course, situated in the middle of the Roquebrune Hills, and another at the Taulane Golf Club, a mountain course designed by Gary Player and laid out around the Chateau de Taulane.

This part of the tour includes a visit to Grasse, the perfume capital of the world. There’s another stop in the village of Saint-Paul-de-Vence, which because of its quality of light, has always attracted artists. It is also one of the most picturesque villages in France, with narrow cobblestone streets lined with interesting stores, including many antique shops and art galleries.

A restaurant of note is LaColombe d’Or, which was once a haunt for struggling local artists, who traded their paintings for the restaurant’s fine food and wine. The walls are adorned with original works by Picasso, Matisse, Miro, Chagall, Dufy and others.

Then it’s on to the spectacular Chateau du Domaine Saint-Martin, one of the finest and most romantic hideaways along the Riviera. The hotel’s opulent furnishings rival those of any hotel in Europe, and include magnificent tapestries, chandeliers and museum-quality antiques and paintings. After a morning round of golf on the Cannes Mougins Golf Course, there is an afternoon for sightseeing in Cannes and shopping on the Boulevard de la Croisette, one of the world’s most fashionable seaside promenades.

And no trip to the Provence coast would be complete without a visit to the tiny principality of Monaco, a sovereign state which is completely surrounded by France. Monaco has been under the rule of one familiy – the Grimaldis – almost exclusively since 1297. The current ruler, Prince Rainier III, has been in power since 1949. In addition to its fine hotels, restaurants and extravagant lifestyle, Monaco is known for its good beaches, and of course, the famous casino at Monte Carlo.

Bordeaux
Some of the world’s greatest wines are produced in Bordeaux, a region in southwest France which stretches south from the port city of Bordeaux to the fringes of Les Landes, the largest forest in France.

The city of Bordeaux is an elegant place, which has long been dedicated to the very civilized business of exporting fine wine. The city is known for its neoclassical architecture, wide boulevards, and well-manicured public squares and gardens.

The Owenoak tour of the Bordeaux region begins with a two-night stay at Relais de Margaux, one of the best hotels in the Medoc. The hotel is known for its restaurant, which is located in one of the ancient cellars of the renowned Chateau Margaux winery. The food is superb and the wine list is simply astounding. This will be the base for sightseeing excursions, including a wine-tasting visit to the Chateau Pichon Longueville, a drive along the scenic “Route des Chateaux du Medoc,” and two rounds of golf, one at the Lacanau Golf Club, set close to the ocean, and another at Medoc Les Chateaux, site of the 1999 French Open.

From there the tour heads to Saint-Emilion, which for the wine connoisseur, is a name that is identified with rich, full-bodied, silky red wines. But the town of Saint-Emilion is a sightseer’s dream, a medieval village of cobblestone streets, fascinating buildings and romantic vistas. Saint-Emilion is known for its religious architecture, including an underground church, which was carved into a hillside
in the 11th century.

There is a wine-tasting visit at Chateau Smith-Haut-Lafite, a famous old estate which produces a Grand Cru Classe de Graves (red). Then the group settles in for the next two nights at Les Sources de Caudalie, a charming four-star luxury hotel and spa, with two excellent restaurants. There will be a round of golf at Moliets Golf Club, with several scenic holes that play along the sea, and another at Medoc Les Vignes, which sits in the shadows of a beautiful pine forest.

The Owenoak tour concludes with a three-night stay at Chateau des Vigiers, a magnificent castle dating back to 1597, and known locally as Little Versailles. The completely restored edifice has its own golf course, and its own vineyard.

All of the Owenoak packaged tours can be tailored to your specific interests, or expanded to include more than one of the primary regions. And we highly encourage you to spend a few days in Paris, either at the beginning or end of your tour.

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