7 Clubhouse Road, Ocean View, Delaware 19970, US
(302) 537-5600
Location Map

About Bear Trap Dunes

Located only 3 miles west of the beach town of Bethany Beach, Delaware, Bear Trap Dunes is a 700-home community that boasts serene open spaces, 27 holes of championship golf, and a variety of home types to fit any lifestyle, including single family homes, townhomes and golf villa condominiums. With amenities such as indoor/outdoor pools, a fitness facility, tennis courts, outdoor amphitheater, a clubhouse with restaurant and banquet facilities and a complimentary beach shuttle service, Bear Trap Dunes, owned by Carl M. Freeman Golf, a division of Carl M. Freeman Companies, not only offers vacation homes but a complete resort lifestyle. The course, designed by Rick Jacobson, features the Grizzly, Kodiak and Black Bear nines, all lined with native wetland grasses and natural sand dunes.

Facts

Price Range$$$
Property Class★★★★
Year Opened2001
Number of UnitsLess than 100

Amenities & Services

RestaurantsCasual
PoolIndoor
TennisYes
Fitness CenterYes
Practice FacilityYes
Banquet SpaceYes

Rules

Is the resort pet friendly?Yes
Is resort stay required for a tee time?No

Golf courses at Bear Trap Dunes

Reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
681 Reviews (681)
Reviews 5
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
Recommended
Played
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Windy weather
Used cart
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 4.0
Layout 4.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 4.0
Amenities 5.0
Difficulty 3.0
Reviews 67
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
Recommended
Played

Cool

Very windy but the course was very good and staff was great.

Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Windy weather
Used cart
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 4.0
Layout 5.0
Friendliness 5.0
Pace 4.0
Amenities 4.0
Difficulty 4.0
Reviews 3
Handicap Don't know
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
Recommended
Played

Great day out

I played Grizzly and Black Bear as a single. I played with some members of the club all were friendly and made me feel right at home sharing tips and tricks. It was a bit windy right after hurricane Maria but still excellent round I had a great time.

Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Windy weather
Used cart
5.0
5.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 5.0
Value 5.0
Layout 5.0
Friendliness 5.0
Pace 4.0
Amenities 5.0
Difficulty 4.0
Reviews 3
Handicap Don't know
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
Recommended
Played
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Windy weather
Used cart
5.0
5.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 5.0
Layout 5.0
Friendliness 5.0
Pace 4.0
Amenities 5.0
Difficulty 3.0
Reviews 3
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
Recommended
Played
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 4.0
Layout 4.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 4.0
Reviews 2
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
Recommended
Played
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
3.0
3.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 3.0
Value 4.0
Layout 3.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 4.0
Amenities 4.0
Reviews 4
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
Recommended
Played
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 3.0
Layout 5.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 4.0
Amenities 4.0
Reviews 3
Recommended
Played
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
3.0
3.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 3.0
Value 3.0
Layout 5.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 3.0
Amenities 5.0
Reviews 6
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
Recommended
Played

Very pleasant day

Greeted enthusiastically by the outdoor guys. Treated quickly and professionally by the inside team. Practice area was nice, except for the chipping area - it was pretty chopped up. Not a dal breaker for me, though.

Course was in very good shape. Holes were fair with enough challenging features. Greens are HUGE, as evidenced by my 4-jack of number 18. (Something like an 80 footer. )

I was able to play with a member and if he was representative of the rest of them then this would be a great place to join if I lived here.

First Time Playing
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 4.0
Layout 5.0
Friendliness 5.0
Pace 5.0
Amenities 3.0
Reviews 28
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
Recommended
Played

Not bad at all

Nice track; greens rolled pretty well despite having been aerated within the last two weeks. Bunkers were full of soft beach sand. Fairways in generally good shape. Did not see a cart girl after the first hole on a busy Saturday - strange. No marshals to keep pace of play up. All that said, a pretty good track for $70 on a weekend. We'll go back.

Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 4.0
Layout 4.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 3.0
Amenities 4.0
Difficulty 3.0
Reviews 11
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
Recommended
Played

Slow play

The greens were recently aerated which made them very bumpy and inconsistent. The pace of play was very slow with no ranger in sight! Over 5 hours to finish in the dark!

Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 2.0
Layout 5.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 1.0
Amenities 4.0
Reviews 3
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
Recommended
Played
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 4.0
Layout 4.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 4.0
Amenities 5.0
Reviews 4
Skill Beginner
Plays Once a week
Recommended
Played

Easy to navigate

Course in great condition. It was cart path only on front nine due to rain recently but changed to 90 drug rule for back nine which was helpful. Well stocked snack shack. Overall, a very enjoyable course to play. A bit pricey but there deals to be had if you are flexible about tee-times.

Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 4.0
Layout 5.0
Friendliness 5.0
Pace 5.0
Amenities 4.0
Reviews 2
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
Recommended
Played

A fun golf course

Though one of the hottest days for golf, our there's one had a very nice time. We played the 'blended' tees. The fairways were generous and the trouble was not too onerous. I will definitely play this layout again.

Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 4.0
Value 4.0
Layout 4.0
Friendliness 5.0
Pace 5.0
Amenities 4.0
Reviews 5
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
Recommended
Played

Over all course review

Very well maintained! Nice place to golf. Very skill challenged course! Fun

Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 5.0
Value 4.0
Layout 5.0
Friendliness 5.0
Pace 5.0
Amenities 5.0
Reviews 19
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
Played

Excellent Amenities for an Average Course

First off, my overall 3/5 rating and my lack of recommendation of this course is relative to what it is (or purports to be). If this course were being compared to your local muni, it would certainly score higher. But given the competition within a 45-minute drive, it's difficult to recommend Bear Trap Dunes.

The amenities are outstanding, though. Everything from the clubhouse to the restaurant to the snack shack is top-of-the-line. The atmosphere surrounding the course gives one the feeling that it will be worth the $125 prime time rate.

The course, however, did not live up to that feeling. The greens and tee boxes were average at best, and at times, below average (compared to almost any course). The layout was not terribly interesting, and there were no memorable, picturesque holes as one may hope to find on a resort/vacation/destination course. Luckily, I received a $30 discount on my tee time, but even with the savings, it'd be tough to recommend this course to anyone visiting the OCMD area. I have only played three other courses in the area, but I would certainly recommend two of them before BTD (Lighthouse Sound and Baywood Greens), and given the choice, I'd play the other one (Man O' War) before returning to BTD as well.

If you can get on this course of $40 or less, it's probably worth it. If you are looking to drop $100+ on a round though, go play Lighthouse Sound (or any of the other course options in the area). I may have caught the course at a bad time, but when it comes to vacation courses, they usually only get one shot to impress the out-of-town visitors.

First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart
3.0
3.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 3.0
Value 2.0
Layout 3.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 5.0
Amenities 5.0
Difficulty 4.0
Reviews 4
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
Recommended
Played

Grizzly, and kodiac

Excellent conditions, if you like speedy greens, this is the place. Test all aspects of one's game

Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
5.0
5.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 5.0
Value 4.0
Layout 4.0
Friendliness 5.0
Pace 5.0
Amenities 4.0
Reviews 2
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
Recommended
Played

Course is always well maintained

Played Bear Trap Dunes many times. Course is always in great shape and well maintained. The setup offers an enjoyable challenge. Staff was very accommodating in allowing us to move up our tee time significantly so that we could get in round before rain moved in.

Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Wet weather
Used cart
5.0
5.0 out of 5 stars
Difficulty 4.0
Review 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
Recommended
Played

Good place for Mother's Day!

Pace of play was great! Staff was nice. Course had been aerated and we were not made aware but it was still ok for the money and we were there to enjoy the nice day!

Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 3.0
Value 4.0
Layout 4.0
Friendliness 5.0
Pace 5.0
Amenities 4.0
Reviews 4
Handicap Don't know
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
Recommended
Played

Beautiful course and great people

The only problem with the course itself was that the greens had just been aerated and sanded and were ridiculously difficult to putt on from any angle.

The score card lacked a course layout on it and I found that inconvenient since the golf cart "card" was not very handy to use. Also, for a course like this, there should be a GPS in each cart.

Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart
4.0
4.0 out of 5 stars
Conditions 3.0
Value 3.0
Layout 4.0
Friendliness 4.0
Pace 4.0
Amenities 4.0
Difficulty 5.0
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