St Andrews Bay: Flee the City for a weekend of Golf and Spa
Even if you’ve never held a golf club in your hand the chances are you know that the epicentre and absolute nirvana of the golf world is St Andrews in Scotland. A place where grown men, and women, come to worship the very ground on which they’re about to tee off. There’s always been more – a University for example – but now there’s a lot more…
OK. WE’RE HERE.
People generally come to St Andrews for one of two reasons. Did I mention golf? And going to University? Members of the Royal Family like it here too, they’ve got castles and stuff not that far away.
In the mind of the average Joe, St Andrews is more akin to Augusta, Georgia, or Pebble Beach, California. It’s where Tiger Woods wins cups and sports TV spends day after day following play.
In reality, St Andrews is a pretty coastal town in Fife near little holiday resorts like Crail and Anstruther, small and unassuming. Off the beaten track.
But St Andrews has grown significantly, with the addition of a major hotel resort (and golf course, natch) which has married the modern world with Fife’s ancient coast. St Andrew’s Bay really is more akin to Augusta and Pebble Beach.
How to get here
St Andrews is north of Edinburgh (via the Forth Bridge) or south of Dundee (via the Tay Bridge). A short, picturesque drive from each, particularly from the airports, which are on the right side.
Of all airlines, Air France have the best service from London City Airport which means that flying up is simple. London City isn’t exactly the capital’s best kept secret – it’s celebrating 25 years in business so they must be doing something right – but compared to it’s bigger brothers, London City is a pleasant experience: small (but growing), no queues, charming staff, and it’s own DLR station for fast travel from Central London. (By the way, Air France has a cool desktop widget with travel reviews from, ahem, other websites. Anyway, it's nice to see an airline dip its toe into the 21st century).
Car Hire at Edinburgh and Dundee is best arranged through Arnold Clark, the Scottish company, although at Edinburgh all the companies are represented.
STAY WHERE?
St Andrews, unlike its coastal neighbours, bustles all year round. Residents are well used to the battalions of golfers and students making merry all the time – it means there’s an oversupply of quality hostelries for a start. But just outside of town the new resort is a destination in itself.
The St Andrews Hotel has a commanding position overlooking the sea, but is almost hidden from view to passing motorists by acres of surrounding dunes and its own golf courses (natch). This is a Fairmont Hotel, who recently brought London’s Savoy into their global chain, replicating the original Canadian luxe, where their grandest properties have royal suites should the Queen drop by (again).
It’s large, state of the art, and accommodates golfers, diners, spa-enthusiasts, with a rich blend of Scottish hospitality and North American service. The property itself is vast, over 200 rooms and suites, but it barely scratches the surrounding space - grassy sand dunes, crashing waves, deep blue skies (even when it’s cold). There are resorts not unlike this up and down the Atlantic and Pacific seaboards of the US. There aren’t any others in Fife.
REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL, 1,2,3…
(1) Golf
There are two courses at St Andrews Bay which stretch out along the shoreline, the recently renamed Kittocks Course, which reflects the abundant wildlife of the surrounding landscape, specifically the family of protected deer, and the Torrance, currently undergoing radical surgery in preparation for use as a qualifying course for the 2010 Open.
Costs for play are discounted for hotel guests and vary according to season
Summer is £95 for 18 holes (£75 for Hotels guests) and falls by stages to £45 in winter (£40 guests).
Junior golfers (under 16) can play free with an adult and there are Junior Golf Clinics available for 8 to 16 year olds during school breaks.
(2) Spa
Covering a large expanse of the hotel’s lower ground area, the Spa’s suites and rooms are warm and decorated in natural tones, using driftwood and colour from the surrounding seascape to bring as much of the outside environment inside. A 16 metre pool and extensively equipped gym adjoin and plans are afoot to have the latter look out over the dunes.
The Spa has all the facilities you need for detox, refreshing, rejuvenation, which draw on the surrounding sea and fresh air, as well as the proximity of golf!
There are 8 full body experiences and five facials available, plus nine different kinds of massage. The names are suitably highland and filled with mystique – Celtic Harmony, Whisper of the Wind, and Crest of the Cliff involve scrubs, massages, exfoliation treatments using a variety of oils, minerals and hot stones, the details of which can be found here.
Men have their own specialist treatments including Sam Torrance’s “Ultimate Golfer’s Treatment” where a eucalyptus foot bath is followed by exfoliation and stretch massage focusing on ‘key need areas’ associated with golf. It’s concluded with a wrap and facial to protect the skin from the constant weather beating a golfer’s skin gets, an overall treatment “as important as practicing your swing” according to the famed Ryder Cup Captain.
The rather exotically named “Highland Fling Couples Massage” takes place in a private couple’s suite.
Most sessions are 60 minutes and prices can start around £95 for a North Sea Salt and Seaweed Exfoliation to £290 for the full Highland Fling Couples Massage.
(3) Fresh Air
St Andrews Bay is a few miles south of the main town and benefits from extensive grounds, 520 acres in all, hugging the coastline to offer breathtaking views of the seascape. The Fife Coastal Path can be followed north to St Andrews or south along the coast as far as Crail.
The hotel has contact with two local riding stables for horseplay and the specialist Newtonhill country sports club, which offers everything from off-road and blindfold driving, to clay shoots, fishing and falconry.
Simple walks are the order of the day for most people not out golfing and there’s plenty of open space in which to do just that.
LET’S DO LUNCH
The Clubhouse
For starters, the view is stunning. Sitting between the two golf courses, the windows have a 360 degree panoramic view of all the activity, plus uninterrupted sight over the cliffs and seascape. It’s quite breathtaking and if you’ve chosen to walk down from the hotel, it offers decent breakfasting and lunch too.
The signature dish is a local’s favourite, haddock, fresh from the Pittenweem fish market down the coast, deep fried in a beer batter. With chips, of course.
The Squire
Gene Sarazen was one of only four golfers to win all four major championships but his impeccable manners, combined with a decision to become a gentleman farmer, earned him the name “The Squire”. The hotel’s main restaurant is named in his honour.
Breakfast is served here with omelettes to order supplementing cooked British specialities including haggis and porridge. Healthier options of fruit and cereals are in abundance.
Lunch has salads such as Caesar with crispy bacon, a “parmesan fried organic poached egg” and white anchovies, or rocket and hazelnut with preserved lemon dressing. Mains range from braised lamb shanks to Rib Eye and Fillet Steaks via Seafood Paella with asparagus and lemon sauce.
AN APERITIF
What appears to be a big old bar inside the hotel, Kittocks Den, is in fact brand new, the dark leather chairs and deep comfy sofas, driftwood décor and oversized tables for sipping cocktails before dinner the result of a recent refurb. It’s a luxurious environment which like most of the property can accommodate large numbers but is peppered with intimate little spaces for tete a tetes, snuggling up and choosing not to be with the hubbub. Cocktails, beers and whiskies aplenty.
Alternatively, The Clubhouse overlooking the sand dunes and the sea is a refreshing place to sip a beer as the sun sets, particularly if you’ve just done 18 holes under par.
DINNER IS SERVED
The destination restaurant is Esperante, (“Hope, Spirit and Love”) which sits at the luxurious end of the spectrum. The room is darkly handsome, warm reds and rustic browns to keep out any wintry weather and remind the diner that the deep, pungent flavours of Tuscany are being offered for your delight.
It’s a big space, kept quiet by thick carpets and large well upholstered chairs. Pools of light over each table create small, intimate spaces where two can talk quietly even when there’s a party of eight nearby. The whole atmosphere remains calm and peaceful, an ideal place for couples to wind down after the stimulation of sport or the relaxations of the spa.
The food shines, combining local sourced produce (this part of Scotland is rich in agriculture and fishing) brought together by skilled hands in the kitchen. The dishes come artfully presented to please the eye, flavour being more than just taste.
Scottish Salmon is chopped to a raw, spicy tartar and picked up by a microsalad and horseradish chips, perfectly undercut by a glass of chilled Chablis.
Garden Pea and Mint soup – an intense, emerald green swansong for summer – sits well in Scotland when Ayrshire Ham is added – here it’s in the form of a tortellini as we take tentative steps towards Italy.
A risotto of morels, truffles and artichoke is packed with flavour, particularly the leaving-the-kitchen addition of freshly chopped herbs, an ideal precursor to a Scotch Beef Fillet, as tender as it is round and perfectly cooked.
With dessert and coffee, the tasting menu is £60, adding wines selected by the knowledgeable sommelier £90.
Another of St Andrews', and indeed Scotland's, fine eating establishments is The Fife Seafood Restaurant, winner of 'Restaurant of the Year' in 2007, and just a stone's throw from the Royal & Ancient's clubhouse. Not to be missed.
DRIVE BY
For an hour or so…
The most unique attraction in all of Scotland is just a short hop away, a “secret” underground nuclear bunker (nothing to do with golf!) commissioned and built under the Official Secrets Act for the cold war more than 60 years ago. It was overtaken by technology within a couple of years and decommissioned to become a regional centre of government in time of national emergency. It’s protected by 100 feet of tungsten reinforced concrete, underneath a “normal looking farmhouse” and is fascinating. With barely any modern adornment, the equipment is spread over two levels and a large number of rooms. I’m not allowed to tell you how many (To be honest, I never counted, not being the spy type). This is a perfect picture of Cold War planning – a BBC broadcast centre, stores, air conditioning to remove radioactive particles, gun emplacements, a church and cinema.
For many years, all that was visible above ground was a “normal looking farmhouse” now made rather suspicious looking with the addition of various military vehicles, including what appears to be a mobile Russian rocket launcher.
Great fun.
For the day…
St Andrews itself shouldn’t be overlooked – it’s got a charming theatre and cinema, shops ranging from old fashioned haberdashers to Italian specialists, and a general buzz absent from the rest of the coast. The Old Course Hotel, a veritable golf mecca, is more open, less stuffy than you might expect and is surrounded by more golf shops than anywhere else in the world. There's also the UK's National Museum of Golf. Where else did you think it would be?
Overnight…
Not far from St Andrews Bay, almost a cab ride away, is the Old Station, a B&B made out of… a disused railway station. There are no through trains anymore which is just as well because two of the guest bedrooms are housed in a well appointed railway carriage which sits on tracks in the garden. A warm welcome too from one of the area’s better households.
Further reading
“Scotland the Best” by Peter Irvine. Nobody should ever visit Scotland without a copy. A more extensive guide to the delights of surrounding Fife can be found here. And VisitScotland’s guide based on locals' tips can be found here.
Useful links
Air France website
Fairmont St Andrews Bay Hotel website
Added 2008/10/17 @ 11:43:14
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