The “Wimbledon” of America’s tennis resorts opens...

The “Wimbledon” of America’s tennis resorts opens for its 34th season Friday in California’s serene Carmel Valley. Clinics for adults, a summer tennis camp for youngsters.

John Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch features cottages with private courts (allows guests to play all day without being disturbed). Twenty-two landscaped acres. Three U.S. Presidents (Nixon, Ford, Reagan) have visited Gardiner’s ranch. Former talk-show host Merv Griffin shows up regularly. Dozens of other celebrities, U.S. senators. Gen. Alexander Haig got in several sets a few summers ago.

A trip to Gardiner’s is worth the visit, even for non-players. Loads of privacy. Swimming pools, hiking trails, a friendly staff. Breakfast is served in the garden, lunch in the patio, dinner in the ranch’s new clubhouse, with its stained-glass images of tennis greats Helen Wills Moody, Bill Tilden. Of an evening guests gather in the lounge, with its wood-burning fireplace.

Adults bone up on their game March through November. The camp for kids (oldest in the world) is held June through August. The popularity of Gardiner’s ranch is attested to by the statistics: 70% of the guests are returnees.

John Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch, P.O. Box 228, Carmel Valley, Calif. 93924, (408) 659-2207. Daily rates per couple, including meals: $325. Clinic rates on request.

The Old West: A popular hangout for Carmel Valley locals is a lively bar/restaurant called the Running Iron (up the road from John Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch). Cowboy boots dangle from the ceiling along with rusty tackle from the valley’s old ranches. It’s a scene out of an old TV Western. The lunch/dinner menu lists “barn burning chile” and a “wrangler’s salad,” along with rib steaks, black bean soup, fish and chips, chile rellenos, fettuccine. Beer by the pitcher. A cowboy singer on Saturday nights. Other times the jukebox blares with such sentimental melodies as “There’s a Tear in My Beer,” “Cow Cow Boogie” and “Every Rose Has Its Thorn.”

Wear jeans and a smile.

The Running Iron, 24 E. Carmel Valley Road, (408) 659-4633.

Lodge on a Lake: On 15 occasions, Carmel’s Quail Lodge has received Mobil’s five-star rating. Rises in a gentle fold off Carmel Valley Road. Man-made lakes. Mountains on either side. Grounds manicured like a debutante’s nails. Features a 71-par golf course. Altogether, 100 guest rooms on former dairy land once owned by the family of famed aviator Charles Lindbergh. Besides golf, guests fish for trout, hike, swim in a couple of pools. Open land serves as a sanctuary for wildlife (birds, deer, boar). Other animals roam the grounds (llamas, Andalusian goats, burros, Scottish Highland cattle). If you’re looking for a quiet weekend, this could be the place.

Quail Lodge Resort & Golf Club, 8205 Valley Greens Drive, Carmel 93923, (408) 624-1581. Rates: $195/$215. Cottages/villas, $275/$345. Golf packages on request.

Inn on the Ocean: For 75 years, the Highlands Inn has been hypnotizing guests with its spectacular ocean views. Faces the ocean/coves at the northern beginning to Big Sur. In the 1980s, the inn underwent a $41-million face lift. The new count: 142 suites/rooms. Buildings are anchored to a hillside overlooking the ocean/Highway 1. Views that stir the soul. Sea lions are heard barking from Point Lobos. Gulls wheel past windows at The Pacific’s Edge Restaurant. The Highlands Inn is a living seascape, one of those rare and romantic settings, especially for couples in love.

Highlands Inn, P.O. Box 1700, Carmel 93921, (800) 682-4811. Outside California, call (800) 538-9525. A choice of guest rooms/townhouses. (Townhouses feature fully equipped kitchens, fireplaces, ocean views, spa baths.) Rates: $225/$550.

Monterey B&Bs;: Ann and Gene Swett have refined the B&B; business to an art. A dozen years ago they opened their half-timbered Tudor to guests looking for something besides an ordinary seaside shanty. Eight rooms, two suites. And none of that business of hiking down the hall to the potty. Each room/suite has its own private bath. The Swetts run their inn like a British bed and breakfast in some hidden corner of the Cotswolds. A forest of trees and one of the peninsula’s loveliest gardens. Nobody tried to get cute with the name. It’s simply called the Old Monterey Inn. Six blocks south of Fisherman’s Wharf, a mile from Monterey’s famous aquarium. King and queen beds with goose down pillows/comforters. Breakfast features fresh orange juice, orange blossom French toast, souffles with artichokes and mushrooms, Belgian waffles with a variety of toppings. Afternoon tea with cookies, brownies (the owners do their own baking). Hors d’oeuvres served afternoons with tea. Cold weather means mugs of hot mulled cider. Finally, hammocks in the garden for smelling the roses.

Old Monterey Inn, 500 Martin St., Monterey 93940, (408) 375-8284. Rates: $140/$200.

On a hillside overlooking Monterey and Cannery Row, Jim and Barbara Allen turned an ex-convent into an inn with seven guest rooms. Goose down pillows/comforters, Victorian beds, lace-trimmed sheets, fresh flowers. Breakfast in your room or by the fireside in the dining room. Hors d’oeuvres served in a glassed-in veranda each afternoon at 5 o’clock. Down the hill, a walking/biking/jogging path. To get a fix on The Jabberwock, it’s four blocks uphill from Cannery Row and the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Allen, an ex-Los Angeles fireman, made the pilgrimage to Monterey 10 years ago.

The Jabberwock, 598 Laine St., Monterey 93940, (408) 372-4777. Rates: $90/$165. Specify private or shared bath in a room beyond earshot of traffic that grinds uphill from Cannery Row.

Room Search: Pat Sheid and Coco Cunningham, longtime Carmel residents, operate a free “room finder” service for vacationers to Carmel, Carmel Valley, Monterey, Pebble Beach, Big Sur. Inns, B&Bs;, motels/hotels, cottages. A wide range of rates. Background on “the Monterey Peninsula’s secret hideaways.” Details from Sheid and Cunningham c/o The Tourist Information Center, Box 7430, Carmel 93921, (408) 624-1711. Office hours: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday.

Reader Recommendations

California--Natalie Hauser, Manhattan Beach: “Windrose Inn, 1407 Jackson Gate Road, Jackson 95642. A Victorian charmer in the heart of Mother Lode country. Rates: $85/$90.”

California--Mr. and Mrs. David Pitts, Culver City: “Spring Oaks B&B;, P.O. Box 2918, Running Springs. Country charm, good food, entertainment, friendly hosts. Rate: $95.”

Illinois--Marvin D. Patrick, Redondo Beach: “The Potter House, 1906 7th Ave., Rock Island, Ill. 61201. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Prices from $49.”

Hawaii--Harry Pace, North Hollywood: “Enjoyed Kay Barker’s B&B;, P.O. Box 740, Kapaa, Kauai 96746. Located away from the commercialism. Forty dollars for a double. A car is necessary.”

Hawaii--Frank Flores, San Rafael: “Enjoyed Ridge Rentals at Kapalua on Maui. Rate: $158.50 per night, with the seventh night free. Ridge Rentals, 21 Ward St., Suite 1, Larkspur, Calif. 94939.”

France--Aileen Fraser, Manhattan Beach: “For a private tour guide on the French Riviera, I highly recommend Barbara Reeves, Villa 6, Domaine du Colombier, Allee des Oliviers, 06480 La Colle sur Loup. Near the Nice airport.”

France--Stanley Nugit, Los Angeles: Restaurant Bol-en Bois, 35-40 Rue Pascal, Paris 75013. Complete meals, $10. Metro stop: Les Gobelins. This is a real find.”

Scotland--Mr. and Mrs. John L. Thompson, Yorba Linda: “Leslie Castle, a B&B.; Hunting, fishing, hiking, skiing, golfing available. Rooms with bath, TV, about $85 per person, including full Scottish breakfast. Dinner about $30 per person. Leslie Castle by Insch, Aberdeenshire AB5 6NX, Scotland.”

Czechoslovakia--Sarah and Paul Kasper, Whittier: “A delightful B&B; in eastern Slovakia near the mineral springs at Bardejov. Write to Veronika Babcakova, 08633 Zborov C. 270, Bardejov. Rates: $35 per night with breakfast.”

We regret that only a select few recommendations can be used. They must be brief (typewritten or printed). Only one recommendation per reader, please. Note: Recommendations will not be used unless prices and addresses are included.