Somewhere between the first turn of a morning round and the last glass of wine on the Outdoor Dining Deck, it happens. You stop thinking of Burlingame as a club you joined and start thinking of it as home.
That shift is what Burlingame Country Club membership is really about. It’s not just access to a golf course or a fitness facility. It’s admission into a mountain community that’s been quietly perfecting the art of good living since 1983, tucked into the Blue Ridge Mountains of Sapphire Valley, North Carolina, at 3,000 feet of elevation.
This guide walks you through everything you need to know about Burlingame Country Club membership, from the setting and amenities to the application process and what life actually looks like once you’re in.
Why Sapphire Valley? The Location Makes the Membership
Most country clubs sell amenities. Burlingame sells a place. And the place matters enormously.
Sapphire Valley, NC, sits in the heart of the southern Blue Ridge Mountains, cradled between Cashiers and Lake Toxaway in Jackson and Transylvania counties. The elevation hovers around 3,000 feet, which means summers run 10 to 15 degrees cooler than Charlotte or Atlanta. Winters bring enough snow for atmosphere without the prolonged freeze of higher-elevation resorts.
Spring arrives with wildflowers and waterfalls running full. Fall turns the surrounding forests into something that has to be seen to be believed. For anyone who’s tired of sweating through August or watching a golf course turn brown in the summer heat, the four-season mountain climate is reason enough to explore membership.
The location is also genuinely convenient. Burlingame sits about 50 minutes from Asheville, giving members access to a major regional city for airport connections, medical care, shopping, and culture. Cashiers is minutes away. Lake Toxaway, with its stunning lakefront properties, is a short drive down Highway 64. Highlands, NC, is close enough for a day trip. The surrounding area has waterfall hikes, fishing streams, and mountain trails on every side.
For anyone researching a second home or a permanent mountain relocation, a Burlingame Country Club membership anchors you to one of the most desirable corners of Western North Carolina. The Sapphire Valley real estate market has consistently attracted buyers who want privacy, natural beauty, and genuine mountain character rather than a manufactured resort town feel.
Beyond the Fairway: The Full Membership Experience
One of the things that makes Burlingame Country Club membership genuinely different from a golf-only club is the breadth of the amenity offering. Families who join often find that the non-golf members of the household end up using the club as much as, or more than, the golfers.
Lawn Sports: Tennis, Pickleball, and Croquet
The lawn sports program at Burlingame runs three distinct disciplines, each with its own character and following.
Tennis is played on four Har-Tru clay courts with a full-time Director of Lawn Sports who holds certifications from both the Professional Tennis Registry and the Professional Pickleball Registry. Interclub championships, lessons, and organized tournaments run throughout the season. For members who’ve played tennis for decades, the Har-Tru surface is easy on joints and rewards the kind of patient, strategic game that good mountain air seems to encourage.
Pickleball arrived at Burlingame in 2021 and has built a committed following quickly. Four dedicated courts handle demand across all skill levels, from members picking up a paddle for the first time to competitive players preparing for interclub events. The same Lawn Sports Professional who runs tennis also leads the pickleball program, offering personalized instruction and organized play that has made this one of the most active activity segments at the club.
Croquet might be the sport that surprises new members most. On a regulation USCA-sized lawn with mountain views as the backdrop, the game that looks like gentle garden party entertainment turns out to be genuinely strategic, deeply social, and surprisingly competitive. Burlingame’s croquet program runs lessons, interclub play, and tournaments, and the club has been recognized by Community Finder among the top master-planned communities with regulation croquet lawns.
Dining: Six Venues, One Kitchen
Food at the Burlingame Country Club membership is taken seriously. Club life revolves around meals shared after a round, before a tennis match, or simply because the Outdoor Dining Deck is too good not to use on a clear evening.
The dining program runs across six distinct indoor and outdoor venues in the renovated Clubhouse complex. Executive Chef Gerry Fong, a Culinary Institute of America graduate, brings experience that includes a Ritz Carlton, Pinehurst, a waterfront North Carolina restaurant, and the Centennial Campus at NC State University. He has won recognition in NC Competition Dining and has appeared on Food Network’s “Cutthroat Kitchen.” His approach emphasizes local sourcing, seasonal menus, and genuine connections with regional farmers.
The six venues include the Overlook Lounge for quick bites and social time, a main dining room with panoramic mountain views serving lunch and dinner, the intimate Presidents’ Room for private gatherings of 8 to 14, the Outdoor Dining Deck for post-round relaxation, and Elevation 3042, a casual all-day restaurant with a barista station for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Each space has its own character, but all of them share those mountain views that make eating here feel like a different experience than any restaurant in town.
The fully stocked wine cellar supports everything from casual weeknight dinners to the club’s wine society events. Wednesday buffets have become a member tradition that multiple testimonials reference specifically.
Wellness and the Rejuvenate Spa Complex
The wellness facilities at Burlingame go considerably beyond what most mountain clubs offer. The Rejuvenate Spa, Wellness, and Fitness complex houses exercise equipment and free weights, a full pool complex, and a spa program that includes therapeutic massage, Bellanina Facelift Facial massages, yoga classes, strength training, aqua fitness, and private coaching.
The pool complex is a genuine gathering point in warm months, and the surrounding mountain setting means that poolside at Burlingame feels nothing like poolside anywhere else. After a round of golf or a long hike, the spa’s therapeutic massage options have built a loyal following among members managing athletic recovery as well as those who simply want to feel restored.
The spa staff works with clients across a wide range of needs, from high-performance athletes to members managing chronic conditions. The program is available year-round, which matters in a four-season mountain community where activity doesn’t stop when summer ends.
Outdoor Activities and Community Life
Burlingame membership includes access to miles of maintained hiking trails that wind through the surrounding mountain forest to hidden waterfalls and viewpoints. The waterfall hiking available within and near the community is genuinely world-class mountain scenery at the end of trails that don’t require technical skills.
The community also includes fishing ponds and access to the Horsepasture River for trout fishing, a dog park, and Miller Falls Park, maintained by the Burlingame Country Club membership Property Owners Association. The BPOA’s workin maintaining roads, trails, landscaping, and common areas ensures the community stays as beautiful as it was when members first fell in love with it.
Seasonal events anchor the social calendar: opening weekend celebrations that members describe as a family reunion, wine society dinners, holiday gatherings, and the kind of impromptu gatherings on the Outdoor Dining Deck that nobody planned but everyone remembers.
Membership Categories at Burlingame
Burlingame offers membership options designed to fit different living situations and lifestyle priorities. The main categories reflect the reality that some members live in Burlingame full-time, others spend summers here, and others want social access without making golf their primary activity.
Full Golf Membership provides unrestricted access to the golf course, all lawn sports facilities, dining, wellness amenities, and all club programs. This is the complete membership for those who want to use everything the club offers.
Social Membership provides access to dining, wellness facilities, lawn sports, and community events without golf course access. For non-golfers in a household where others play, this option allows both partners to participate fully in the community aspects of membership while the golfer holds a separate golf category.
Junior or Seasonal options accommodate members who are in residence for specific seasons rather than year-round, reflecting the reality that many Burlingame Country Club members use the community as a summer home or split their time between Sapphire Valley and another residence.
The comparison between social and full golf membership is a conversation worth having if you’re unsure which direction fits your household.
Member Privileges and the Private Club Difference
One of the most direct benefits of Burlingame Country Club membership compared to public golf and recreational access is consistency. The course, the dining venues, the spa, the courts, all of it is maintained for members. There are no tee time availability issues that come with public courses. No waiting for a court behind non-members. No wondering if the kitchen is going to be good tonight because tonight matters.
Members of Burlingame also benefit from the member-owned structure that was completed in 2010, when transfer of ownership to members was finalized. That structure aligns the club’s interests directly with member experience rather than outside investor returns.
The exclusive member events and social calendar include everything from opening weekend gatherings to wine society dinners, croquet tournaments, golf championships, and the Friday night dinner at the bar that one member testimonial specifically calls “a highlight” of their season.
The Community: Who Joins Burlingame
With 600-plus members, the Burlingame Country Club membership is large enough to offer genuine variety in who you’ll meet, but small enough that you’ll actually know people. That balance is harder to achieve than it sounds, and it’s something member testimonials come back to repeatedly.
“Warm, welcoming, unpretentious and FUN,” as one couple described it. “Friendliest and nicest people who welcomed us with open arms,” said another. “Exceeded our expectations in every area,” wrote a third. The consistency of that feedback across testimonials from different members at different stages of their tenure isn’t accidental.
Many members are second-home owners who make Burlingame their primary base during the mountain season. Others have made Sapphire Valley their permanent home, drawn by the climate, the community, and the quality of life that comes with having a place like this minutes from your front door. Living in Burlingame, Sapphire, NC, is increasingly attractive to retirees, remote workers, and families seeking a different pace.
The Application Process
Joining the Burlingame Country Club membership is not complicated, but it is deliberate. The club maintains standards for community culture alongside the physical qualifications for membership, which means the process is worth understanding before you begin.
The typical path starts with a personal tour. Jennifer Webb or a member of the membership team will walk you through the facilities, answer questions, and give you a genuine feel for the community rather than a sales presentation. Members who have gone through the process consistently describe this step as enjoyable rather than pressured.
Initiation fees and dues are discussed during this process rather than published as fixed public rates, which is consistent with most private clubs and allows the club to have honest conversations with prospective members about financial fit.
Frequently Asked Questions
How far is Burlingame from Asheville?
Burlingame Country Club membership is approximately 50 minutes from downtown Asheville via US-64. The drive takes you through some of the most scenic mountain highways in Western North Carolina. For members flying in, Asheville Regional Airport is the closest major airport, with connections to most major US hubs.
Can non-residents jointhe Burlingame Country Club membership?
Yes. Many Burlingame members are not full-time residents of the community but maintain club membership as part of their seasonal presence in the Sapphire Valley area. You do not need to own property within the Burlingame development to hold a club membership, though many members do. Contact Jennifer Webb at (828) 966-9200 for specifics on your situation.
Is Burlingame a member-owned club?
Yes. The transfer of ownership to members was completed in 2010 following a process that began in 2009. The Burlingame Property Owners Association (BPOA) represents the 600-plus members on matters related to the broader community, while the club itself operates under member governance.
What is the golf course like at Burlingame?
The Burlingame golf course is an 18-hole championship layout designed by Tom Jackson. It plays at elevations ranging from 3,000 to 3,500 feet and incorporates the Horsepasture River, mountain lakes, waterfalls, and old-growth forest into its design. It is a private course available to members and their guests only.
Does a Burlingame Country Club membership include dining minimums?
Specific financial requirements, including any food and beverage minimums that may apply, are discussed during the membership inquiry process. Contact Jennifer Webb directly at (828) 966-9200 for current details.
What is the pickleball program like?
Burlingame introduced pickleball in 2021 and now operates four courts with an active program that includes lessons, interclub play, and tournaments. The Lawn Sports Director is a certified Pickleball Professional through the Professional Pickleball Registry. The program serves players from beginners to competitive-level players.
How do I schedule a tour of Burlingame?
Contact Jennifer Webb at (828) 966-9200 or through the inquiry form on the website. Personal tours are the standard first step for prospective members and are typically available throughout the club season.
Your Next Step
The best way to understand what a Burlingame Country Club membership means is to see it. A personal tour covers the golf course, dining venues, wellness facilities, lawn sports courts, and the surrounding community in about the time it takes to play a few holes.
Jennifer Webb at (828) 966-9200 handles all membership inquiries and brings years of hospitality and club experience to every conversation. She’s not here to pressure you into a decision. She’s here to help you figure out whether Burlingame is the right fit.
If you’re curious about membership benefits at Sapphire Valley and Burlingame Country Club, exploring the broader amenities guide, or just wondering what living in Burlingame, Sapphire, NC looks like day to day, those resources are a good place to start.
Contact us today to schedule your personal tour of the Burlingame Country Club membership.Burlingame Country Club membership