Fresh from a $140 million renovation necessitated by a visit from Charley, of hurricane fame, South Seas Island Resort, on Florida's Captiva Island, reopened early this year after an 18-month closure. All guest rooms are fully renovated, with “Euro-top” bedding, granite countertops, and flat-screen TVs. Meeting space now tops 24,000 square feet, all with high-speed Internet access, video and data projection, and state-of the-art sound and lighting technology. The pool area is greatly expanded, and even the white-sand beach is renewed, having undergone a $14 million “renourishment” project. Captiva Island Golf Club is a challenging nine-hole course directly on the Gulf of Mexico.

In Panama City Beach, Fla., Marriott Bay Point Golf & Spa Resort recently opened its new 11,000-square-foot Serenity Spa at Bay Point. The resort has 316 guest rooms, including 78 one- and two-bedroom golf villas, 40,000 square feet of meeting space, and 36 holes of championship golf.

The world's largest Marriott, the 2,000-room, Orlando World Center Marriott Resort and Convention Center, will unveil what it says will be the largest pillar-free resort ballroom in the country in October. Following a $200 million transformation, the resort will provide more than 400,000 square feet of flexible space. The 105,000-square-foot Cypress Ballroom, when connected to the Palms Ballroom, can provide 160,000 square feet of contiguous, pillar-free carpeted meeting space and more than 50,000 square feet of pre-function space. Outdoor functions can be held on the open spaces and terraces that surround or overlook the resort's million-gallon pool complex. The resort offers 2,000 guest rooms and 110 suites, as well as the 18-hole championship Hawk's Landing Golf Club and a full-service spa and fitness center.

The Hyatt Regency Bon-aventure Conference Center & Spa in Weston, Fla., (just west of Fort Lauderdale) opened in February after a $100 million renovation. There are 501 British Colonial-style guest rooms, extensive meeting space, and a new Red Door Lifestyle Spa, Elizabeth Arden, the only destination lifestyle spa in the Red Door portfolio. The conference center now has 50,000 square feet of pre-function and outdoor event space and 50,000 square feet of meeting space, which includes three ballrooms that can accommodate 2,000 attendees, an amphitheater, three executive boardrooms, nine additional conference rooms, and 21 breakout rooms. Guests can enjoy the hotel's four swimming pools, two neighboring 18-hole PGA championship courses, and 15 clay tennis courts.

Redquartz Boundary Ltd. — the ownership group of the new Sawgrass Marriott Resort & Spa, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. — together with the Sawgrass Marriott and TPC Sawgrass teams, has invested more than $56 million in The Players Stadium Course, a new TPC Sawgrass Clubhouse, and renovation of the Marriott guest rooms. Sawgrass Marriott has already undergone $16 million in renovations to guest rooms in the main tower. The resort, with 508 guest rooms, suites, and villas, includes the new 20,000-square-foot Spa at Sawgrass. The adjacent Dye's Valley Course completed more than $1 million in enhancements in 2006. Both courses are complemented by a new 77,000-square-foot clubhouse, which has an 11,000-square-foot event lawn and 11,000 square feet of banquet and meeting space.

Ballyowen Golf Club at Crystal Springs Resort, Vernon, N.J., is one of six courses available to guests. Opening this year adjacent to the clubhouse is Grand Cascades Lodge, a 212-suite condominium hotel with a 6,000-square-foot spa. Also on property: Minerals Hotel & Spa, with 200 guest rooms, the 4,500-square-foot Elements Spa, and more than 10,000 square feet of meeting space.

The 500-room Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort and Spa, San Antonio, Texas, has renovated its guest rooms. The resort has 33,000 square feet of function space, a full-service spa, and a 27-hole Arthur Hills golf course.

The 18-hole Sandia Golf Club opened two years ago at the Sandia Resort & Casino in Albuquerque, N.M. Designed by Scott Miller, the course stretches from 4,900 to 7,700 yards, offering several levels of play. Sandia also features the 12,000-square-foot Green Reed Spa.

The Park Hyatt Beaver Creek, which has ski-in, ski-out access, has recently finished a $20 million renovation. Allegria Spa has been redesigned and expanded, doubling in size to 30,000 square feet. It now occupies two floors and has 23 new treatment rooms. Park Hyatt has 190 rooms and suites and more than 20,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space, including an 8,631-square-foot ballroom.

The second phase of The Westin Bear Mountain Victoria Resort & Spa opened adjacent to Victoria, British Columbia's new Bear Mountain Golf and Country Club, which boasts the first Jack Nicklaus-designed course on Vancouver Island. Phase II includes a 6,000-square-foot conference facility, spa and wellness center, and 91 guest rooms, bringing the total to 156. A second Nicklaus-designed course, along with a Nicklaus Academy, will open next year.

Wyndham Nassau Resort & Crystal Palace Casino, Bahamas, has 850 guest rooms and suites, all with private balconies. A recent renovation added flat-screen TVs to all guest rooms and an Asian restaurant, Moso. The Crystal Ballroom, which is divisible by four and holds up to 1,750 guests reception-style, and the resort's 11 meeting rooms, which all offer wireless Internet access, were upgraded as well. The resort offers more than 30,000 square feet of flexible meeting space. Guests can enjoy golf at a nearby 18-hole championship course, or work out at the on-site fitness center.

The Ritz-Carlton, Rancho Mirage will open this coming winter on a 650-foot bluff overlooking Palm Springs, Calif. It will have 244 rooms and suites, a 25,000-square-foot spa, and 20,000 square feet of meeting space.

The Westin and Sheraton Grand Bahama Island Our Lucaya Resort, in the heart of Grand Bahama Island, now offers an additional 5,000 square feet of event space. The resort consists of the 740-room Westin and the 478-room Sheraton, and has more than 45,000 square feet of indoor function space. There are three pools, two golf courses, the 25,000-square-foot Senses Spa and Fitness Center, and a casino.

Wyndham Aruba in Palm Beach, Aruba, was reflagged as The Westin Aruba Resort after a $16 million renovation. The 481-room resort offers more than 20,000 square feet of meeting space, eight dining options, a 12,000-square-foot casino, Aruba's largest swimming pool, and a spa.

Associated Luxury Hotels International has added The Old Course Hotel, Golf Resort & Spa, its first hotel in Scotland. It overlooks the 17th fairway of the legendary Old Course, and is a short stroll from the heart of St. Andrews. The hotel offers 142 rooms and suites, 10 meeting rooms, a Kohler Waters Spa, wireless Internet technology throughout, and five restaurants and bars. Groups have access to 10 golf courses in the immediate area, including the recently restored Duke's St. Andrews, and 20 additional golf courses within a half-hour drive.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. has added Le Méridien Suvarnabhumi Golf Resort & Spa, Thailand, to its roster. Starwood and Summit Windmill Golf Club Co. Ltd. have agreed to manage the new resort in Samut Prakan, southeast of Bangkok and about three miles from the new Suvarnabhumi International Airport of Bangkok. The resort will open in July 2008. The 214-room golf resort and spa will be within the 160-acre, mixed-used enclave comprising Summit Windmill Golf Club, an 18-hole Nick Faldo-designed golf course, and serviced apartments. A 40-minute drive from Bangkok, the resort includes a spa with eight treatment rooms, a health club, about 9,700 square feet of meeting space, four restaurants, and a pool.