Tennis anyone? Playing in England and stateside

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You can also celebrate the victory by dusting off the racquet and hitting the courts yourself. After all, the US Open is right around the corner. Every year, Tennis magazine ranks the top 50, mostly stateside, but there are some excellent choices on the continent should you want to combine culture with workout. If you want to stay in Great Britain, there’s the Stoke Park Country Club and Resort in Buckinghamshire, England.

Set on 350 acres of historic parkland and gardens, it was originally the home of John Penn and dates back to 1795. It has morphed from a private residence to resort with tennis and golf. Most recently added is a Pavilion comprised of a 4,500-square foot gym, two studios, salon, spa, children’s playroom, conference facilities and three indoor carpet tennis courts. These supplement the four all weather and six outdoor grass courts, with resident pros providing programming and lessons.

For the summer, Switzerland’s Gstaad Palace is transformed from skiing to tennis. Tennis legend Roy Emerson is in residence to conduct six-day tennis camps running several weeks beginning now through August. The hotel’s four courts, and other courts in town if necessary, are used for five- hour a day clinics. It’s a pretty serious but fun six days. Camp ranges in size from 15-40. All levels are welcome as the instruction is tailored accordingly. The routine is broken up a bit, as all are welcome to join Emmo — as he’s fondly known — on a midweek picnic in the Alps. In addition, at least one night during the session, he does round up guests for a typical Swiss place for dinner.

There is time for some R&R in between as the hotel offers some terrific amenities as an indoor and outdoor pool, spa and fitness center. Other activities such as golf, horseback riding, clay pigeon shooting and river rafting are all nearby.

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