Who knew the Swiss Family Primat would turn their backs on the Alps and create Primland (www.primland.com), a 12,000-acre sporting retreat in western Virginia? Think a Scottish Highlands estate 3,000 feet above sea level, close to little besides nature, and you get the Primland picture. It’s an unusual meld of rugged and ritzy—not really what one would expect at an address on Busted Rock Road, Meadows of Dan.
Primland’s story began in the 1970s when European billionaire Didier Primat, whose fortune flowed from the international petro giant Schlumberger his family built, began buying Virginia land to operate his assorted timber businesses. By the mid-’80s, he had added a hunting and fishing operation, horseback riding and sporting clays.
The resort’s first foray into ritzy came was the debut of The Highlands Course by British golf architect Donald Steel. It’s an exhilarating run that Golf Digest has ranked 13 in the U.S. among thousands of other public courses. Steel had to rely on topographical maps to find his way in the thickly forested land. So the result is a mountaintop network of ravines, deep bunkers and neatly mowed and undulating green surfaces that offer plenty of challenge.
For small meetings, Primland is unique and memorable. Facility options that demonstrate a commitment to sustainable design and operations range from the high-tech space in The Lodge for up to 150 guests to The Stables Saloon for 60 and the Busted Rock cabin for some real concentration by up to 30. There’s contemporary audiovisual, wireless technology and comfortable furnishings throughout. Accommodations include 26 bedrooms and suites (including the 1,800-square-foot Pinnacles Suite) in The Lodge, with its upscale design, to Fairways Cottages on the golf course and 11 Mountain Homes scattered about the resort’s high plateau.
Attendees can take team-building breaks with Primland’s geocaching, an outdoor treasure hunt activity that utilizes Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers to find data ranging from historical information about the area to names of surrounding mountains and identifications of plants and animals.
Other diversions include ATV riding, fly-fishing, spa treatments reflecting Native Americans techniques and mountain biking. Come nighttime, guests enjoy gazing at stars and planets through the Observatory Dome’s powerful telescopes.
The resort’s newest feature may be a nod to that other Swiss family named Robinson, who built themselves a tree house to escape marauding pirates. Primland’s new Golden Eagle Tree House at the golf course’s fourth scenic hole is the ultimate escape. Accessible by golf cart, it features one bedroom, a living room, kitchen, bathroom and 340-foot deck to view the mountain gorge below. Guests who sleep in the tree experience the pristine nature that brought the Swiss Family Primat to the Blue Ridge Mountains in the first place.
