21 NOV 2018: Mark Twain, the ever articulate, globetrotting American humourist, once remarked, “You take heaven, I’d rather go to Bermuda.” Indeed, tiny, pristine Bermuda, a fishhook-shaped island 750 miles east of New York City, is blessed with an abundance of charms. It has the turquoise waters, blissful beaches and tropical flavours you’d find in the Caribbean, but with a refined British accent.

Although Bermuda doesn’t compete with cheap all-inclusive sunspots such as Cuba or the Dominican Republic, you get much better rates during the low season (November to March) when the temperature may not be suited to sun bathing, but is ideal for golf and sightseeing.

Bermuda is also just a convenient two-and-a-half-hour non-stop flight from Toronto via Air Canada and West Jet.

Bermuda began with a shipwreck in 1609 off the coast of the east end of the island where St. George’s, the original quaint capital, is located. Admiral Sir George Somers and the crew of the Sea Venture, en route to start a British colony in Virginia, foundered on one of the many reefs, came ashore and settled. Some speculate that William Shakespeare based his play The Tempest on this happenstance.

Once declared a British colony, settlers began arriving in 1612. And as the British are wont to do, they introduced golf to the island.

Bermuda boasts more courses per square mile than any other place on the planet—which is why I agree with Mark Twain’s quip about heaven but disagree with his remark: “Golf is a good walk spoiled.” Of the island’s seven courses, the top three are Mid Ocean, Tucker’s Point and Port Royal—but not necessarily in that order.

Just ten minutes from the airport, Rosewood Bermuda makes the ideal base for avid golfers. Guests can use the hotel shuttle to play both Tucker’s Point Golf Club and neighbouring Mid Ocean, both of which are exclusive, private clubs. Rosewood guests have playing privileges at Tucker’s Point most days and Mid Ocean welcomes non-members on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Advanced bookings are advisable and caddies are available.

Framed by crystal blue water at almost every turn, Tucker’s Point was originally mapped out back in 1932 and then revamped in 2002 by architect Roger Rulewich. Huge elevation changes are a feature on all three of Bermuda’s top courses. On the number 12 par-four at Tucker’s, take advantage of gravity as you hit your blind tee shot from elevated tees far down to a green that sits over a pretty cove.

The formidable Mid Ocean Club was originally laid out by Charles Blair Macdonald in 1921. Robert Trent Jones tweaked it in the 1950s. The opening and finishing holes perch on cliffs overlooking the Atlantic Ocean while the rest of the routing meanders along rolling terrain highlighted by exceptional bunkering and impeccable greens. Flat lies are few and far between.

Tread Mid Ocean’s fairways and you’ll be following in the footsteps of the likes of Sir Winston Churchill, The Duke of Windsor and Babe Ruth, to name a few. I wonder if they had as much trouble as I did on the signature number five that plays over and around Mangrove Lake, a veritable ball magnet!

Surprisingly, Bermuda’s Port Royal Golf Course, a public facility, is the crown jewel of the island’s golf offerings and the island’s best value. The original 1970 Robert Trent Jones Sr.-design re-opened in 2009 after a 14.5 million dollar renovation and hosted The PGA Grand Slam of Golf in 2009 and 2010.

Port Royal ranks among the best public courses in the world. Several holes provide marvellous sea vistas but number 16 is a true drama queen—a par-three set across the ocean cliffs on its own snug peninsula. Be prepared to make an ocean offering to Neptune.  The entire 6,842 yards (the longest course on the island) will both challenge and seduce. Inquire about twilight rates for savings on greens fees.

Don’t leave without trying Bermuda’s national libation, the Dark ‘n Stormy. The cocktail began in the ginger beer factory that was run as a subsidiary of the Royal Naval Officer’s Club. Sailors soon discovered that a splash of Gosling’s Black Seal rum and a slice of lime greatly enhanced the ginger beer.

The name is said to have originated when one old salt observed that the drink was “the colour of a cloud only a fool or dead man would sail under.” Anyway, it’s a fitting drink for an island that got its start due to a shipwreck.