Grand Haven vs. Plantation Bay: which gated golf community fits you?

Choose Grand Haven for an Intracoastal setting about ten minutes from the beach, with pools, fitness and tennis included for every owner through the CDD and one Jack Nicklaus course. Choose Plantation Bay for more golf (45 holes), your own golf cart on the course, new homes still being built by ICI Homes and a lower entry price, in exchange for an inland location west of I-95 where the pools, spa and tennis come with an optional club membership.

Grand Haven vs. Plantation Bay: Gated Golf Compared

Grand Haven and Plantation Bay side by side

Topic	Grand Haven	Plantation Bay
Homes for sale now	26	43
Median sold price, last 12 months	$570,000	$520,900
Homes sold, last 12 months	80	121
Median days on market	67	67
Setting	On the Intracoastal Waterway, east of I-95	Inland on 3,600 acres west of I-95, more than half still undeveloped
County	Flagler	Straddles the Flagler-Volusia line (unincorporated; Ormond Beach address)
Golf	18 holes: Jack Nicklaus Signature (1998)	45 holes: the 27-hole Founders Course and the 18-hole Prestwick
Club	Private and optional, open to non-residents	Private and "completely optional", with golf, clubhouse, sports and fitness levels
Pools, fitness, tennis	Included for every owner (CDD-owned Village Center and Creekside)	Through club membership: new 40,500 sq ft Founders Club, 7,000 sq ft spa and fitness center, 10 tennis and 10 pickleball courts
Own golf cart	Ask the club	Allowed, with a trail fee
New construction	Mostly resale	ICI Homes is still building
Beach	About 10 minutes over the Hammock Dunes Bridge	About 15 minutes to Flagler Beach, per the community's guide

Market numbers: Stellar MLS, as of November 3, 2026; they refresh live when you open this page. Single-family homes, condos and townhomes.

Location

Grand Haven sits on the mainland side of the Intracoastal in Palm Coast, a few miles east of I-95 and close to Palm Coast Parkway shopping. Plantation Bay is off I-95 exit 278 at Old Dixie Highway, on 3,600 acres of pine and oak that cross the Flagler-Volusia county line. That matters for taxes and schools: homes on the Flagler side are in Flagler County and Flagler Schools, and homes on the Volusia side are in Volusia County and Volusia County Schools. I check the county for every address.

Golf and the club

Grand Haven Golf Club is one private Nicklaus Signature course, par 72 with three holes on the Intracoastal, and membership is optional. Plantation Bay has 45 holes: the 27-hole Founders Course (its nines were once Club de Bonmont and Westlake) and the 18-hole Prestwick, which winds through about 150 acres of forest. Plantation Bay is one of the few clubs around that lets owners use their own golf carts, for a trail fee. Its membership is optional too, with Full and Young Executive golf, Clubhouse, Sports and Fitness levels.

Amenities and fees

In Grand Haven, the CDD owns the two amenity centers and pays for gate guards, so every owner gets the pools, fitness center, tennis and pickleball. The 2026-27 CDD assessment is $3,249.96 a year per lot on the tax bill, plus a master association fee and village dues. In Plantation Bay, the pools, the spa and fitness center and the courts belong to the club, so you'd pick a membership level to use them. Plantation Bay's master community association and neighborhood associations set their own dues, which aren't published. I get the exact numbers for any home before you make an offer.

New or resale

Grand Haven is built out, so you're buying resale. Plantation Bay is still growing, with ICI Homes building townhomes, single-family, executive and estate homes, which gives you the option of a brand-new home with a builder warranty. If you go new, bring your own agent to the first visit. It costs you nothing and I can negotiate on your side. Read what to know about buying new construction.

Utilities

Plantation Bay's water and sewer system has been owned by Flagler County since 2013. Grand Haven is served by Palm Coast's utility. Neither is a reason to avoid either community, but it's one more line I check on the seller's disclosure.

My take

For a lot of my buyers this comes down to water versus golf. If being near the Intracoastal and the beach matters most, Grand Haven wins. If you'll play three or four times a week and like the idea of a new home, Plantation Bay gives you more course for the money. Neither is age-restricted, and both are quiet, well-kept communities where homes hold their value.

David Stanley, Broker Associate, CENTURY 21 Fine Homes & Estates Realty Exchange. 23 years in North Florida, over $60 million in closed sales.

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