Updated on November 10, 2026
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From Edinburgh, it takes less than an hour to reach the links courses in East Lothian (Muirfield, North Berwick, Gullane) and those in Fife, with the Old Course at St. Andrews just 50 km away. Gleneagles, in Perthshire, is the same distance away.
A Quick Overview of Golf Courses Around Edinburgh
10 courses shown.
| Rank | Golf | Town | Distance | Access | Green fee | Golf Digest | Top100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St Andrews Links – Old Course | St. Andrews | 50.0 km | Open | £180–380 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Muirfield (The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers) | Gullane | 25.0 km | Restricted | £150–420 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | North Berwick Golf Club – West Links | North Berwick | 29.9 km | Restricted | £220–360 | 5 | 6 |
| 4 | Kingsbarns Golf Links | Kingsbarns | 51.3 km | Restricted | £430–590 | 7 | 7 |
| 5 | Gleneagles – The King's Course | Auchterarder | 50.5 km | Restricted | £150–405 | 19 | 18 |
| 6 | Gullane Golf Club – No.1 | Gullane | 23.0 km | Open | £285–325 | 21 | 22 |
| 7 | The Golf House Club, Elie | Elie | 34.0 km | Restricted | £90–200 | 29 | 21 |
| 8 | Dumbarnie Links | Upper Largo | 33.8 km | Open | £278–380 | 23 | 28 |
| 9 | St Andrews Links – New Course | St. Andrews | 50.2 km | Open | £80–165 | 25 | 26 |
| 10 | Gleneagles – The Queen's Course | Auchterarder | 50.5 km | Restricted | £150–405 | 27 | 31 |
Distance as the crow flies from downtown Edinburgh. Green fee: public 18-hole rate published by the golf course (rates vary by season or day), as of November 10, 2026; “—” = not published. Ranking columns: the course’s ranking in each list; “—” = not listed.
Where are the golf courses around Edinburgh?
Click on a number to view the golf course, then click on its name to read its profile. Base map © OpenStreetMap.
Our Method
We have included 18-hole courses located within a maximum of 60 km as the crow flies from downtown Edinburgh: courses open to visitors (the conditions—days, handicap, season—are specified for each one). The ranking is the average of their positions in two national rankings: Golf Digest (Best Golf Courses in Scotland, May 2026) and Top100GolfCourses (Scotland ranking, March 2026); a course not included in a ranking is assigned the last place plus ten. Distances calculated using OpenStreetMap coordinates. Green fees are listed only if they are published on the golf course’s official website (as of November 10, 2026).
Golf Courses in Detail
Architects, dates, access and green fees: official golf course websites and the rankings cited, checked on November 10, 2026; nothing is shown when the source does not say. Photos under free licenses via Wikimedia Commons.
1. St Andrews Links – Old Course
Rankings: Golf Digest 1 · Top100 1
⛳ Course: designed by Nature, shaped by Allan Robertson and later Old Tom Morris, Links
📍 Distance: 50.0 km (31.1 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Public course open to everyone; tee times are assigned primarily through a daily drawing (“Old Course Ballot”). Handicap requirements: See the handicap chart published by St. Andrews Links.
💶 Green fee: £355 during the 2026 peak season (April 21–October 18); £180 during the off-season (November 1, 2026–March 31, 2027, fairway mats); £380 during the 2027 high season (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: 17 km from Dundee as the crow flies
The official website describes it as the oldest and most famous course in the world, which has remained a public course “open to all.” No other course has hosted as many Open Championships as the Old Course. In 1848, Allan Robertson widened the fairways and created the massive double greens as well as the green at the Road Hole.
2. Muirfield (The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers)
Rankings: Golf Digest 2 · Top100 2
⛳ Course: designed by Old Tom Morris (redesigned by Harry Colt), opened in 1891, Links
📍 Distance: 25.0 km (15.5 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Visitors are welcome only on Tuesdays and Thursdays (excluding holidays), by reservation via the club's form; the 2026 season is fully booked from mid-April through October (waiting list).
💶 Green fee: £395 for 18 holes (2026); £420 (2027); winter rates: £180 in November 2026, £150 from December 2026 through February 2027 (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: from Edinburgh, 36 km as the crow flies
Muirfield is the home course of the Honorable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, the world’s oldest golf club with documented records, founded in 1744. The course opened in 1891; it was the first to be laid out in two concentric nine-hole loops, with the outbound loop playing clockwise and the return loop counterclockwise. It has hosted 16 Open Championships, making it the third-most-used course in Open history.
3. North Berwick Golf Club – West Links
Rankings: Golf Digest 5 · Top100 6
⛳ Course: designed by David Strath (continued by Ben Sayers Jr. and C. K. Hutchison), Links
📍 Distance: 29.9 km (18.6 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Visitors are welcome from March through November 2026 (March through October in 2027), Monday through Thursday from 11:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. (Sundays according to the fee schedule); no visitors on Fridays or Saturdays; occasional closures for maintenance.
💶 Green fee: £320 Sunday through Thursday (April 1 – October 31, 2026); £220 in March 2026; £360 Monday through Thursday from April through October 2027 (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: from Edinburgh, 41 km as the crow flies
The club was founded in 1832; golf had already been played on the “towne links” of North Berwick since at least 1672. The 15th hole, the “Redan,” a 190-yard par 3, is one of the most famous and most imitated holes in the world. The course offers views of the Firth of Forth, Craigleith Island, and Bass Rock.
4. Kingsbarns Golf Links
Rankings: Golf Digest 7 · Top100 7
⛳ Course: Designed by Kyle Phillips, opened in 2000, Links
📍 Distance: 51.3 km (31.9 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Open to visitors during the season (March 31 – November 9, 2026; starting March 27, 2027); no disability certificate required; golf carts are reserved for golfers with a medical certificate.
💶 Green fee: £524 (May 1–July 11 and July 21–November 7, 2027); £590 from July 12 to July 20, 2027; £430 from March 27 to April 30, 2027 (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: 29 km from Dundee as the crow flies
The course opened in July 2000; a former nine-hole course had been lost during World War II, as the beach was considered vulnerable to invasion. The North Sea is visible from virtually every point on the course. Kingsbarns co-hosts the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship each year with St. Andrews and Carnoustie.
5. Gleneagles – The King's Course
Rankings: Golf Digest 19 · Top100 18
⛳ Course: Designed by James Braid (with C. K. Hutchison), opened in 1919, Lande (moorland)
📍 Distance: 50.5 km (31.4 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Open to hotel guests and outside visitors (separate “Visitor” rate); online reservations.
💶 Green fee: Visitors: £150 per round in November 2026, £405 in September 2026 (same rate for King's, Queen's, and PGA Centenary) (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: 44 km from Edinburgh as the crow flies
James Braid, a five-time Open champion, designed King's, which opened in 1919. In 1921, King's hosted the first informal match between Great Britain and the United States, the precursor to the Ryder Cup.
6. Gullane Golf Club – No. 1
Rankings: Golf Digest 21 · Top100 22
⛳ Course: Opened in 1884, Links
📍 Distance: 23.0 km (14.3 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Open to visitors on weekdays and weekends (separate rates); online reservations; driving range balls included.
💶 Green fee: £285 on weekdays / £325 on weekends (No. 1, 2026) (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: from Edinburgh, 34 km as the crow flies
Course No. 1 was laid out in 1884; historical records indicate that golf was played on these links as early as 1650. It hosted the 2015 Scottish Open (won by Rickie Fowler) and 2018.
7. The Golf House Club, Elie
Rankings: Golf Digest 29 · Top100 21
⛳ Course: Designed by Old Tom Morris (1895), Links
📍 Distance: 34.0 km (21.1 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Visitor departures daily from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.; no visitors from mid-July to mid-August (period reserved for members); juniors must be accompanied.
💶 Green fee: £200 during peak season (May–September), £165 in April and October, £90 from November through March (adult rate for 2026/2027) (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: from Dundee, 31 km as the crow flies
The right to play on the Earlsferry links was granted to the villagers by a royal charter in 1589. The course, designed by Old Tom Morris in 1895, is associated with James Braid, a five-time Open champion who was born in the village. It is a par-70 course with 16 par-4 holes.
8. Dumbarnie Links
Rankings: Golf Digest 23 · Top100 28
⛳ Course: Designed by Clive Clark, opened in 2020, Links
📍 Distance: 33.8 km (21.0 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Public course (“pay and play”); tee times can be reserved no earlier than 21 days in advance for resident rates; full payment is required at the time of reservation.
💶 Green fee: £380 (May 1 – October 26, 2027); £278 (April 2 – 30, 2027) (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: 28 km from Dundee as the crow flies
Designed by Clive Clark, the course opened to the public in the spring of 2020. It occupies 350 acres of the Balcarres estate, which has been owned by Lord Balniel’s family for more than four hundred years.
9. St. Andrews Links – New Course
Rankings: Golf Digest 25 · Top100 26
⛳ Course: Designed by Old Tom Morris (with Benjamin Hall Blyth), opened in 1895, Links
📍 Distance: 50.2 km (31.2 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Public course, generally no reservation required: starting times are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis at the starter's hut, near the first tee.
💶 Green fee: £155 during the 2026 peak season (April 20–October 18); £80 from November 1, 2026, to March 31, 2027; £165 during the 2027 peak season (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: 17 km from Dundee as the crow flies
The New Course, built in 1895 by Old Tom Morris, is considered the oldest “new” course in the world. The R&A financed its construction in exchange for reserved tee times on the Old Course, a right enshrined in an 1894 law.
10. Gleneagles – The Queen's Course
Rankings: Golf Digest 27 · Top100 31
⛳ Course: Designed by James Braid and C. K. Hutchison, opened in 1917, Lande (moorland)
📍 Distance: 50.5 km (31.4 mi) from central Edinburgh
🔑 Access: Same conditions as at the King's: hotel guests and outside visitors.
💶 Green fee: Visitors: £150 per tour in November 2026, £405 in September 2026 (same rate for all three major tours) (official website, (November 10, 2026)
✈️ Airport: 44 km from Edinburgh as the crow flies
Designed by James Braid and C. K. Hutchison, the Queen's opened in 1917; with a par of 68, it measures less than 6,000 yards from the medal tees. A renovation completed in 2017 rebuilt 89 bunkers to restore the course to Braid’s original design.
Just missed the cut
- The Renaissance Club: Private club reserved for members only (the official website offers only membership and member access); would have ranked 7th in our list
- Archerfield Links (Fidra): Private club; access for non-members limited to “Tee Time Experience Days” upon request; ranked outside the top 10
- St. Andrews Links – Jubilee Course: Open to the public but ranked 11th, just behind Queen's at Gleneagles
See also
The Best Golf Courses in Scotland
The Best Golf Courses Near Madrid
The Best Golf Courses Near Rome
The Best Golf Courses Near Dublin
The Best Golf Courses Near Amsterdam
The 20 Best Golf Hotels in EuropeFrequently Asked Questions
What is the best golf course near Edinburgh?
St Andrews Links – Old Course (St Andrews, 50.0 km from the city center) tops our ranking, based on Golf Digest (Best Golf Courses in Scotland, May 2026) and Top100GolfCourses (Scotland rankings, March 2026). Access: Public course open to all; tee times allocated primarily through a daily lottery (“Old Course Ballot”). Handicap requirements: See the handicap chart published by St Andrews Links.
Which golf courses around Edinburgh are open to visitors?
No special conditions: St Andrews Links – Old Course, Gullane Golf Club – No. 1, Dumbarnie Links, St Andrews Links – New Course. The others (Muirfield (The Honorable Company of Edinburgh Golfers), North Berwick Golf Club – West Links, Kingsbarns Golf Links, Gleneagles – The King’s Course, The Golf House Club, Elie, Gleneagles – The Queen’s Course) only accept visitors on certain days, subject to handicap requirements or by invitation: see the details for each course.
Which golf course is closest to downtown Edinburgh?
Gullane Golf Club – No. 1, 23.0 km as the crow flies from downtown (Gullane).
How much does a green fee cost in the Edinburgh area?
Among the golf courses in our selection that publish their rates, the 18-hole green fee ranges from £80 to £590 depending on the course, the season, and the day (rates as of November 10, 2026, on the official websites).
Which airport should you choose for a golf trip near Edinburgh?
Most convenient airports: Edinburgh, Dundee, Glasgow.