Pinehurst Travel Guide

Introduction

71 miles SW of Raleigh

Pinehurst, built by Frederick Law Olmsted (the architect-landscaper who planned New York's Central Park), has retained its New England village air, with green and shaded residential streets. Year-round greenery is provided by pines (some with needles 15 in. long), stately magnolias, and hollies. Moderate temperatures mean color through all seasons with camellias, azaleas, wisteria, dogwoods, and summer-blooming flowers. Shops, restaurants, hotels, and other business enterprises make this community self-sufficient. Pinehurst offers plenty of recreational facilities for those who aren't interested in chasing after that little white ball: a tennis club with excellent courts; more than 200 miles of riding trails, as well as stables with good mounts for hire; boating on a 200-acre lake; trap and skeet ranges; archery; 9,000 acres of woods to explore via meandering pathways; and, of course, shopping in the boutiques.

But golf is definitely king. If there's...