Vietnam Golf and CountryClub in HCM City's Thu Duc District was the first stop for thenine-member group before heading to Bo Chang Golf Resort in Dong NaiProvince and Phan Thiet City's Ocean Dunes course.

For Gibson, Ocean Dunes was particularly memorable.

According to the Vietnam Golf Association, the country has around 15international standard golf courses, but has only recently begunpromoting them as travel destinations.

Nguyen Cong Khanh, a tour guide from HCM City , said he had taken only three golf tours with foreign tourists.

"Most foreigners book their golf tour packages near beaches where theycan both play golf and relax on sunny and pristine seaside resorts,"Khanh said. "In my experience, Ocean Dunes is the best site for golfersbecause it's very close to long white sand beaches and is sunny all yearround."

The golf club is 180km northeast of HCM City. Its 6,746 yard course, designed by professional golfer Nick Faldo, isa great resort for families with its streams, sand-dunes and tropicaltrees.

"The course sits beside the beach and themountains, and is near the most beautiful Mui Ne Beach, creating optionsfor tourists aside from playing golf," said Ngo Thu Huong, a club salesrepresentative.

"The golf course also has a four-starNovotel hotel, where tourists can rest after a challenging 18 holes.Typically, visitors take a two-day trip to the course, where they playgolf on the first day and spend the second day touring Phan Thiet City,"she said.

Nguyen Hung, a tour manager for Luxury Travel,which offers two-day tours for 320 USD per person, said the company hasbeen providing golf tours since 2006.

"Golf tours are verypopular in Thailand and other countries, however, it's still a newservice in Vietnam . Many foreign golfers really want to test theirskills while exploring the country, so most travel agencies have addedthe service in the past 10 years to lure visitors," Hung said.

Dong Thao, a member of Ocean Dunes Golf Club, said the ninth hole, apar-3, was selected as one of the 500 best holes in the world by Golfmagazine ( USA ) in 2009.

"The course hosts around 80visitors each day in the summer. Visitors can pay 20 USD to tour thecourse in golf carts, but golfers have to pay 70 USD for one round ofplay," Thao said.

She also said families can book toursthat offer other activities, such as rock climbing, mountain biking,trekking, canoeing and windsurfing in Mui Ne and rural areas. Visitorscan also fish at the Ke Ga Lighthouse, which was constructed by theFrench in 1899, or visit the ancient Cham Towers .

Nguyen Dang Khanh and his family spent four days at Ocean Dunes lastyear and said he loved going to the beach each afternoon after a roundof golf in the morning.

"I was fascinated by the✅ ninthhole and the beautiful view of the♔ course, as well as theaccommodations," Khanh said. "The fairway is lined with big pine trees,while the green sits near the beach. You can hear the waves all the timeand the wind blows smoothly.” ./.