Grand resorts – like the Concord, Kutsher’s, Nevele and Grossinger’s, the inspiration for the fictional Kellerman’s in the movie Dirty Dancing – were the proving grounds for some of the country’s best-known entertainers, from Joan Rivers to Jerry Seinfeld.īy the 1970s however, in an era of air conditioning and cheap air fares, the mountain region had rapidly fallen out of favour. There’s a revival afoot a couple of hours north of New York City, in a region that many felt had seen its heyday.Ĭentral to the revitalisation of the Catskills is the opening of a new casino resort and the rebirth of the celebrated Monster Golf Course, brought back to life by golf course designer Rees Jones and his associate Bryce Swanson.įrom the 1920s to the early 60s – when golf architect Joe Finger, along with pros Jimmy Demaret and Jackie Burke Jr., laid out the original Monster at the Concord, once the largest resort in the US – the Catskills was thriving.įamilies from the New York metropolitan area would head to the mountains annually to escape the summer heat at one of the many thousands of bungalow colonies, summer camps and hotels in the Catskills.
