Travel

Five star luxury at the home of golf

When it comes to golfing holidays, Scotland may not offer the guaranteed weather of some destinations. But as the home of golf, it boasts a sense of heritage and an abundance of world-class courses impossible to find anywhere else.

The Old Course in St Andrews is the world's oldest golf course; it's where the traditional 18-hole round was established. It's still a challenging course and a place of pilgrimage for golf fans. But regardless of how you feel about golf, if you're visiting St Andrews, you should check into the Old Course Hotel. Book a room with golf course views and you will be able to see out over the world-famous course and the West Sands Beach, where the opening scenes of Chariots of Fire were filmed.

The hotel itself is a shrine to luxury. The rooms are spacious and comfortable and, as the hotel is owned by the American bathroom firm Kohlers, all of the fittings are state-of-the-art. The bath in my suite offered a vast range of whirlpool features – including an underwater lightshow to help me relax.

The facilities for golfers are – as you'd expect – second to none, with a pro-golf shop, a team of golf stewards to help you plan your golfing, and storage for clubs. Lessons are also available. Non-golfers can enjoy the hotel's spa which was refurbished in 2006. It now offers guests a rooftop hot tub and a thermal suite complete with a steam room, sauna and hydrotherapy pool. All these facilities, plus the 20-metre pool, mean you can easily while away a couple of hours in the spa without even having a treatment.

If you do want a treatment, there's an extensive list to choose from, including the usual range of massages, facials and body wraps. The spa's signature treatment is the Highland Fling. This 50-minute experience involves having buckets of warm water flung at you before you are given a full-body exfoliation. It's certainly an invigorating experience – those looking for relaxation should probably stick to more traditional treatments.

After a hard day on the golf course – or in the spa – you should have dinner in the hotel's Road Hole Grill (named after the Old Course's infamous 17th hole). Situated at the top of the hotel, the restaurant offers amazing views across the course and the bay. And as Derek Lambie puts it in the Sunday Express, the food is "to die for". The menu brings together the best Scottish produce in mouthwatering courses – I can heartily recommend the wood pigeon, and the dark chocolate fondant dessert, which comes with popcorn ice cream.

And when you've finished, don't miss the whisky bar. It's the only hotel bar in the world to stock a malt from every single distillery in Scotland – that's almost 200 different whiskies. If you plan to holiday in Scotland this year, you'll struggle to find a better place to stay.

• Rooms from £250 a night with breakfast. See www.oldcoursehotel.kohler.com or call 01334-474371.

Two alternative golfing destinations

Slieve Donard, Newcastle, Northern Ireland

Next to the Royal County Down golf course, regularly voted among the best in the world, this hotel is a "peaceful retreat in a dramatic beachside setting", says The Times. Doubles from £190 per night (incl. breakfast). Contact: 028-4372 1066; www.hastingshotels.com.

The Lodge, Cape Kidnappers, New Zealand

The Lodge is next to the Cape Kidnappers golf course, voted best in the world last year by The Daily Telegraph due to its "dramatic location" by the Pacific. Hilltop suites from £240 per person, per night. Contact: 00 64 6 875 1900; Capekidnappers.com.