Golf travel
Golf in Scotland
Scotland is the Home of Golf — the birthplace of the game and the greatest concentration of true links on earth, from St Andrews to the wild coasts of Ayrshire, East Lothian and the Highlands.
Best May–Sep for long daylight; Apr & Oct quieter; wind and rain possible any month
Scotland is where golf was born, and no country rewards a golf pilgrimage like it. This is links golf in its purest form — firm, running turf on sandy coastal land, revetted bunkers, sea wind, and courses played for centuries. St Andrews is the spiritual home, but the riches run the length of the country: the Ayrshire coast, East Lothian's 'Golf Coast', and remote gems in the Highlands.
Our guides span the great Scottish clusters: St Andrews and its Old Course in Fife, the Ayrshire Open links at Turnberry and Royal Troon, Prestwick — the very birthplace of The Open — brutal Carnoustie on the Angus coast, the East Lothian 'Golf Coast' at North Berwick, the remote Highland gem of Royal Dornoch, Cruden Bay — the cult Aberdeenshire links north of Aberdeen — remote Machrihanish out on the Kintyre peninsula, and Gleneagles, the Perthshire resort that hosted the 2014 Ryder Cup.
Destinations
Fife
St Andrews & the Old Course: the complete golf guide
The Home of Golf. How the Old Course ballot really works, why there's no Sunday play, the other six courses, when to go, and how to plan the pilgrimage.
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Ayrshire
Turnberry golf guide: the Ailsa, the lighthouse & the Open
One of the world's great links, home of the 1977 'Duel in the Sun'. How to play the Ailsa, when to go, and how to reach Scotland's Ayrshire coast.
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Highlands
Royal Dornoch: the complete guide to golf's greatest remote links
A top-15-in-the-world links in the far-north Highlands and the birthplace of Donald Ross. How to play the Championship Course and the Struie, when to go, and what the Firth demands.
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Ayrshire
Royal Troon golf guide: the Postage Stamp & the Open
The 10-time Open venue on the Ayrshire coast, home of the tiny 'Postage Stamp' 8th. How visitors play the Old Course, the handicap rules, when to go, and the Ayrshire links cluster around it.
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Angus
Carnoustie golf guide: playing the Open rota's toughest links
'Car-nasty' — the public Angus links widely rated the hardest course on the Open rota, with the fearsome Barry Burn finish. How visitors play it, when to go, and pairing it with St Andrews.
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Fife
Kingsbarns golf guide: the modern links you can actually book
The Kyle Phillips links near St Andrews that plays like it's been there for centuries — a Dunhill Links course, world top-100, and open to visitors. The course, booking, season, and getting there.
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East Lothian
North Berwick golf guide: the West Links, the Redan & the wall
One of the world's oldest courses still played over its original ground — a quirky, walkable seaside links on the Firth of Forth, home of the original Redan and the wall at the 13th, and open to visitors. The course, booking, season and getting there.
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Perthshire
Gleneagles golf guide: the King's, Queen's & PGA Centenary
Scotland's grand five-star golf resort in the Perthshire hills — James Braid's classic King's and Queen's plus Jack Nicklaus's Ryder Cup PGA Centenary. The three courses, how to play, when to go and getting there.
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Ayrshire
Prestwick golf guide: where The Open was born
The birthplace of The Open Championship — Old Tom Morris's quirky, blind-shot Ayrshire links that hosted the first Open in 1860, and welcomes visitors today. The course, its history, how to play it, and the Ayrshire golf coast.
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East Lothian
Muirfield golf guide: playing the Honourable Company's links
The home of the world's oldest golf club and a 16-time Open venue on the East Lothian coast. How visitors play Muirfield, its famous two-loop routing, the handicap rules, when to go, and the golf-rich coast around it.
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