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Golf-course communities used to reel in buyers with little more than a manicured layout by a big-name designer and the odd screening of "Caddyshack." Not anymore. Home buyers today are baby boomers who want more adventure than a porch swing. Some people don't even golf at all (gasp!). These communities responded by adding unusual perks to their properties, from airstrips to ski mountains.
Mountain Air
Burnsville, N.C.
The Extra Mile: This North Carolina community gives a new meaning to hitting a flier — it has a 2,875-feet private runway, the highest private landing strip east of Denver. No surprise then that more than 60 residents of Mountain Air are licensed pilots. Golfers can disembark from their plane and grab a shuttle to the first tee. Now that's what we call a bag drop.
• Home sites from $250,000 to $1 million+
Mirabel
North Scottsdale, Ariz.
The Extra Mile: Mirabel residents reach new heights with the Outdoor Pursuits Program, which includes hot air balloon rides, guided hikes and fly-fishing trips. Heck, the community even has someone do your grocery shopping. The perks on the Tom Fazio-designed golf course include masseuses on the driving range and a chef cooking up beef
tenderloin sandwiches on the eighth tee.
• Lots from $440,000 to $1.5 million
Ford's Colony at Williamsburg
Williamsburg, Va.
The Extra Mile: The clubhouse dining room is the only country club facility to earn the coveted AAA Five Diamond Award, which the Georgian-style eatery has won eight times. Among the fare is celery root soup with black truffles and a T-bone steak topped with prosciutto, foie gras and parmesan. Residents can wash it all down with one of the 1,600 options in Ford's Colony's impressive wine cellar.
• Home sites from $175,000 to $1.5 million
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