Heli-Golf

Helicopters and golf are a match made in heaven. The very best courses in Scotland and Ireland are not always adjacent, which means that you often have to select a certain geographical area to base your trip around. 'Heli-Golf', as it is now commonly known, removes this logistical barrier and allows the freedom to play anywhere across the two countries.

Basically it allows you to stay at your favourite hotel or residence and play where you want - when you want. Another advantage is the ability to fit an itinerary into a much more compact time-frame. Some executive travellers may not have the ability to secure seven or ten days off work, but a series of helicopter charters allow even the most separated itinerary to be completed within a four or five day period. For the corporate trip, it's the perfect solution. It maintains the level of luxury that you wish to convey to your clients and allows golfing schedules to be completed in a matter of days.

Scotland in particular has a very rugged coastline, and driving in a direct line from A-B is not always possible. Below, I have listed a few examples of how the length of transfers can be reduced:

Turnberry - Machrihanish

Road: 4 Hours 40 mins / Helicopter: 15mins

St Andrews - Royal Dornoch

Road: 4 Hours / Helicopter: 1 Hour

St Andrews - North Berwick

Road: 2 Hours / Helicopter: 15mins

But Heli-Golf doesn't only allow you to save time within the same country, it's greatest plus point is the ability to play golf in both Ireland and Scotland on the same day. Let's say you were based at Turnberry and wanted to take a trip over to play Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland. By road and sea, this journey would normally take in excess of five hours. But a return journey of ten hours and four hours on a golf course isn't really feasible in the one day - so you would also require an overnight stay in Portrush or Belfast. Aside from being extremely tired, you would have used up two valuable days of your trip. With the aid of a helicopter, you can walk out the front door, jump on board, play Royal Portrush and be back at Turnberry in time for lunch. The possibilities towards building an itinerary become endless.

Turnberry - Royal Portrush

Road+Ferry: 5+ Hours / Helicopter: 45mins

Chartering helicopter transfers is also a fantastic way of seeing the beautiful countryside and coastlines that both Ireland and Scotland have to offer. On the way to Dornoch it is possible to take in The Highlands and Cairngorms, and flying to Portrush gives you an incredible overhead view of The Giants Causeway.

The most favoured model for Heli-Golf is the AS355 Twin Squirrel. It can carry up to five passengers and has specially fitted side-pods which allow four golf bags to be kept separate from the main cabin. It's twin engine allows it to operate long distances over water and low over urban areas.

There is no doubting that Heli-Golf is the ultimate form of luxury golf travel, but many people dismiss it as being too expensive before even enquiring as to the costs. The truth is that chartering a helicopter can actually prove cost-effective to your itinerary, especially if you plan on playing golf in both Scotland and Ireland. If you think such a trip may be of interest to you or your company, visit http://www.connoisseurgolf.com/packages.php for examples of our Heli-Golf trips, or feel free to e-mail me for a personalised itinerary and quotation.