A hillside resort course beside Wakura Onsen

Cherry Golf Wakura Course sits on the hills above Nanao on Ishikawa's Noto Peninsula. It opened in November 1991 and was laid out under the supervision of Tsuneo Tanaka with Tetsunosuke Koga. The 18-hole, par-72 course stretches to 7,132 yards from the back tees and has a highland-resort feel. Fairways are generous, there is little out-of-bounds, and ponds frame several greens and holes. The greens are single bentgrass greens. The front nine is known for its long par 4s.

Wide fairways and pond-side greens, with one of Japan's great onsen towns minutes away.

Its location is the main draw. Wakura Onsen, one of Hokuriku's best-known hot-spring resorts on Nanao Bay, is just down the road, so a round here leads naturally to a soak and a seafood dinner at a ryokan. Wakura Onsen Station is about 7 minutes away by taxi. Limited express trains reach it from Kanazawa in about an hour, and Tokyo is about four and a half hours away via the Hokuriku Shinkansen. By car, Kanazawa is about 70 minutes away on the toll-free Noto Satoyama Expressway. Combine the round with Kanazawa's gardens and teahouse districts, or with the rugged coastline of the Noto Peninsula.