WaterColor Inn & Resort Golf Collection Sparkles on Florida's Gulf Coast

Paramount among the region's boutique offerings is the WaterColor Inn & Resort recommended by Condé Nast Traveler Gold List, Travel+Leisure and luxury travel guru, Andrew Harper. The coastal chic destination includes the award-winning, 60-room inn directly on the Gulf of Mexico, and a collection of luxury vacation rental homes ranging from three to six bedrooms.

WaterColor has long been a favorite of discerning travelers in search of serenity along the Gulf Coast. Recent years have born out a new segment of tourist to the resort: golfers. Have-clubs-will-travel types are making their way to the Emerald Coast's ample fairways. Once they arrive, golfers are treated to a trinity of courses by some of the game's biggest names.

Camp Creek Golf Club was designed by Tom Fazio. Over the years the course has collected innumerable accolades, including being named one of "America's 100 Greatest Public Golf Courses" for 2011-2012 by Golf Digest.



Framed by sand dunes and native grasses, Camp Creek's anatural edges contrast its hyper-green fairways to create a surreal color spectrum. Purists will dig that Camp Creek is a "core course," meaning there are zero homes along its tees, fairways and greens.

While Camp Creek is the player's course, Shark's Tooth Golf Club is perfect for golfers who put a premium on exclusivity. Shark's Tooth is a private club where resort guests receive access. The Greg Norman layout bobs and weaves through wetlands and thick strands of coastal trees along the shores of Lake Powell just a stone's throw from the Gulf.

The garnish on WaterColor's golf cocktail is one of the most unique offerings in the U.S. Origins Golf Club was designed by Davis Love III. It's a "concept course" that plays as a nine-hole executive, 10-hole par-3 or six-hole regulation layout. Love designed the course with families in mind.

It's not just golf that's beckoning vacationers to WaterColor. The resort is home to luxurious waterfront accommodations, a full-service spa, Camp WaterColor for kids, and a multitude of recreational activities including tennis, biking, kayaking and fishing.



WaterColor also houses one of the Gulf Coast's elite restaurants. Fish Out of Water is a chef-driven bastion for foodies. It touts creative spins on local seafood, organic and free range meats and a wine cellar that is perennially recognized by Wine Spectator. "Fish" (as the locals refer to it) is accessible from the second floor of the Inn. The sunset deck is a popular spot to sip a cocktail and sample the restaurants haute appetizer list.

WaterColor is more accessible now thanks to Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport (ECP). Opened in 2010, the airport offers direct flights from Houston, Baltimore/Washington DC, Atlanta, Orlando, Nashville, and Memphis.

Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) also offers direct flights from Dallas, Houston, Charlotte, Louisville, Atlanta and Washington, DC.

For more information: www.watercolorresort.com; 34 Golden Rod Circle, Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459. Tel: (850) 534-5000.