Kiel Christianson - Latest Comments on Scotland vs. Ireland: Which is the better golf trip?

graham Rowley [Visitor] in response to: Scotland vs. Ireland: Which is the better golf trip?

graham Rowley [Visitor] — Tue, 06 Sep 2005 19:26:39 +0000

I own a UK online Golf Memorabilia auction site, "oldgolfauctions.com" it is based in the UK and aimed at the US market, This year we will have 30000 visitors and 4 million page hits. I have never had advertisers on the site before. My thoughts are to ask reputable companies like yourselves if you are interested in having advertisements for your company with us, your link with be seen 365 days a year. Our registered members are always asking us abaout what are the best courses to play, where to stay etc. This could be ideal for your company
If you are interested please contact me.
Regards Graham Rowley

Stan [Visitor] in response to: Scotland vs. Ireland: Which is the better golf trip?

Stan [Visitor] — Wed, 31 Aug 2005 01:55:46 +0000

Response to Rob and his pals. You could go to Scotland for the price you would pay for a trip to Pebble Beach. Go to Scotland and play The Old Course, Muirfield with lunch and foursomes in the afternoon, and Carnoustie. Also, if flying into Edinburgh, play Braid Hills. While near Gullane play the Old Musselburg Links with hickory clubs and gutta percha balls. What a blast! Our regular foursome went last year ('04) and are planning a return trip in '06.

Neil Thompson [Visitor] in response to: Scotland vs. Ireland: Which is the better golf trip?

Neil Thompson [Visitor] — Thu, 25 Aug 2005 17:20:38 +0000

Hi all, Just to pick up on a couple of points mentioned so far!We organise Golf Tours to Scotland and Ireland and i find it a little strange how Scotland comes out more expensive than Ireland. The only exception is The Guaranteed Old Course Tee - Time package !! However,7 nights B&B staying in a Castle in The Highlands and a Recommended Guest House in St Andrews with 5 Rounds on top Links Courses including Carnoustie and Royal Dornoch, St Andrews Old Course thru self-application ( 7th Sept 05 )and or Lottery entry and Rental Vehicle is under $2,000 U.S. Dollars! We could not match that to Ireland!I had a group of 16 American kids over last month to play some friendly games against Scottish kids and do some sightseeing. They were a credit to the U.S. Polite, Friendly and made friends quickly with their hosts! They all swapped. Hats, Towels, T - Shirts and Golfing Stories, its great to see golf is in good hands for the future!! Regards Neil

John [Visitor] in response to: Scotland vs. Ireland: Which is the better golf trip?

John [Visitor] — Tue, 16 Aug 2005 12:41:55 +0000

I agree with earlier comments that you can easily make a combined trip to Ireland and Scotland. There are cheap flights with Ryanair from Dublin and Shannon into Prestwick airport - right at the heart of where The Open was born in the south west of Scotland. 3 Open Championship courses and 5 final Open Championship qualifying courses, plus lots of other hidden gems.

You can even see Ireland from the Ayrshire coast - it's not far at all, so take advantage and experience the best of both worlds

Barry Jones [Visitor] in response to: Scotland vs. Ireland: Which is the better golf trip?

Barry Jones [Visitor] — Wed, 03 Aug 2005 06:32:06 +0000

Shanks, thanks for your comments. If you get a minute drop me a line at my website, would be interesting to pick your brains on your trip, courses you liked / didn't like etc.

Shanks [Visitor] in response to: Scotland vs. Ireland: Which is the better golf trip?

Shanks [Visitor] — Tue, 02 Aug 2005 19:57:51 +0000

One of the strengths of Scotland is that there are so many terrific links courses clustered together. From a well-located "base hotel" you can play several of these gems no more than 10 minutes away. The criticism I've heard about Ireland is that there is much more driving involved and the roads (ahem) leave something to be desired.

Note to Barry: I arranged the trip to Scotland for a party of 8 without an agent, mainly by doing a lot of homework - reading books & magazine articles, scouring the internet, etc. Your website is absolutely the most informative I have seen and extremely user-friendly. I especially like that the course reviews are written from the perspective of the good (not great) player.

Barry Jones [Visitor] in response to: Scotland vs. Ireland: Which is the better golf trip?

Barry Jones [Visitor] — Tue, 02 Aug 2005 13:53:18 +0000

I run a specialist golf travel company that focuses on links golf. A few comments on the Ireland v Scotland debate:

1. If you put say the top 10 in Ireland up against the top 10 in Scotland, Ireland will probably just shade it.
2. However, Scotland has much better strength in depth than Ireland.
3. The nightlife in Ireland is probably a little better than Scotland.
4. Getting around Ireland cna be a pain due to poor roads.
5. Prices are now pretty comparable between the two.

Also, check out England and Wales which has plenty of great links courses at much better prices.

Shanks [Visitor] in response to: Scotland vs. Ireland: Which is the better golf trip?

Shanks [Visitor] — Mon, 01 Aug 2005 21:37:19 +0000

Went to Scotland last year and played 11 different seaside links courses. Only played 2 Open courses - St. Andrews & Prestwick. There are so many excellent courses over there, you can't believe it. And excluding the "name" courses, the greens fees are reasonable, about $80-90 on average. Many of the courses play hard on the sea where a hook/slice will literally end up on the beach. And unless you read up on it you probably have never heard of tracks like Gullane, North Berwick, Glen & Dunbar, to name a few. About the people: they are WONDERFUL. We stayed in smaller towns in B&Bs and were welcomed by the locals with open arms. It was the best time I have ever had in my life. We're going back in '07, this time to the Highlands & Northeast. Can't comment on Ireland - haven't been there yet (but hope to).