Te Arai Links
Ranked · 7 courses · reviewed June 2026

The Best Golf Courses in New Zealand

In barely twenty five years New Zealand has gone from golfing afterthought to one of the most coveted destinations on earth, home to clifftop courses, pure ocean links and a number one in the world rankings. Here are the seven we rate most highly, ranked, with our verdict on each and how to play it.

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By the GolfForKings editorial desk · How we rank · Last reviewed June 2026

Photograph: Te Arai Links, Te Arai Links, via Google

How we chose them

New Zealand's modern golf story is one of the most remarkable in the game. Starting with the clifftop spectacle of Kauri Cliffs and Cape Kidnappers at the turn of the century, and crowned by Tom Doak's Tara Iti and the new Te Arai Links north of Auckland, the country now holds a concentration of world top one hundred courses out of all proportion to its size. We weighed the quality of the architecture, the conditioning, the setting, which here is often jaw dropping, and how readily a visiting golfer can get on, then ranked accordingly. We have also kept a place for the classic links that pre dates the boom, because no honest list of New Zealand golf can ignore it.

Every fact here, from designers and opening years to yardages, was checked at the time of writing in June 2026 by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Several of these are exclusive private clubs where access runs through lodge stays or member introductions, and we say so. The verdicts are ours, and reasonable people will reorder the top four. If you want any of these built into a costed North and South Island itinerary, with the internal flights and lodge nights handled, that is exactly what our concierge does.

The 7 best golf courses in New Zealand

01

Tara Iti Golf Club

Tom Doak, 2015 · Mangawhai, north of Auckland · private

The number one course in New Zealand and, by most global rankings, among the very best in the world outside the United States. Tom Doak built it on raw coastal dunes north of Auckland, clearing pine to expose pure sandy links land, and the result is a minimalist masterpiece of wide fairways, wild greens and constant strategic choice. It is an intensely private members club with a small lodge, so a round is among the hardest to arrange in golf, but for those who get on it is as good as the modern game gets. The benchmark against which all other New Zealand golf is measured.

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02

Cape Kidnappers

Tom Doak, 2004 · Hawke's Bay · par 71, 7,119 yards

One of the most spectacular courses on earth, laid out by Tom Doak across a set of clifftop fingers that run out hundreds of feet above the South Pacific on a former sheep station in Hawke's Bay. The closing holes play along ridges with the ocean falling away on both sides, a sensation few courses anywhere can rival, and the golf is far more than scenery, with firm ground and clever green complexes. Attached to a Rosewood lodge, it is accessible to resort guests and visitors by arrangement, which makes it the most playable of the great clifftop courses.

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03

Te Arai Links, North and South

Coore and Crenshaw, 2022 · Tom Doak, 2023 · Te Arai

The most exciting new golf in the country, a 36 hole pair of pure ocean links on the same coast as Tara Iti and from the same ownership, but open to visiting golfers through its lodge. The South Course, by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, opened in October 2022 with eight holes hard on the ocean, and the North Course, by Tom Doak, followed in October 2023, set a little inland with bolder greens and dramatic approaches. Together they give a traveling golfer the closest thing to a Tara Iti experience that money can readily book, and a genuine multi day links destination.

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04

Kauri Cliffs

David Harman, 2000 · Bay of Islands · par 72, 7,139 yards

The course that began the New Zealand golf boom, opened in 2000 above the Bay of Islands in the far north, the first of Julian Robertson's lodge courses and the sister property to Cape Kidnappers. David Harman routed it across 6,000 acres of headland, with fifteen holes that view the Pacific and several that play right along the cliffs above the surf. The golf is grand and generous, the lodge among the finest in the country, and visitor access through the lodge makes it a reliable highlight of any far north itinerary.

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05

The Kinloch Club

Jack Nicklaus · near Taupo · inland links

Jack Nicklaus's only New Zealand design and his stated attempt to build a Scottish style links inland, on rolling volcanic country above Lake Taupo in the center of the North Island. Deep, rugged bunkering, tumbling fescue fairways and big, contoured greens give it a genuine links flavor a long way from the sea, and the lodge alongside makes it a comfortable, accessible stay and play. A fine, characterful contrast to the coastal courses and an easy stop between Auckland and Hawke's Bay.

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06

Jack's Point

John Darby · Queenstown · mountain and lake

The best round on the South Island and the most scenic inland course in the country, John Darby's naturalistic layout on the shore of Lake Wakatipu beneath the jagged Remarkables range near Queenstown. The holes thread through rocky outcrops, tussock and native scrub with the mountains and lake filling every view, and unlike most of the elite courses here it is fully open to visitors. The natural anchor for a Queenstown golf trip, paired with the adventure and dining the resort town is famous for.

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07

Paraparaumu Beach

Alex Russell, 1949 · Kapiti Coast · classic links

The spiritual home of New Zealand golf and the classic links that long pre dates the modern boom, designed in 1949 by Alex Russell, a former Australian Open champion and MacKenzie associate, on the dune land of the Kapiti Coast near Wellington. It has hosted the New Zealand Open a dozen times, and Tiger Woods played it during his 2002 visit. Firm, fast, wind blown and wonderfully old fashioned, it is true links golf in the southern hemisphere, and a humbling, history rich counterpoint to the glossy resort courses above it.

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Designers, opening years and yardages verified June 2026 by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Several of these are exclusive private or lodge courses with limited access. Course profiles are added across the site as the directory grows. Always confirm visitor access and fees directly before booking. Check tee time availability.

Where they are, and indicative costs

The marquee courses sit mostly on the North Island. Tara Iti and Te Arai cluster on the same coast about an hour and a half north of Auckland, Kauri Cliffs is further north in the Bay of Islands, Cape Kidnappers is in Hawke's Bay on the east coast, and Kinloch sits central, near Taupo. On the South Island, Jack's Point anchors Queenstown, while the classic links at Paraparaumu lies near Wellington. A typical trip flies between Auckland, Hawke's Bay and Queenstown, with lodge nights at the resort courses tying the round to the stay.

ItemIndicative 2026Notes
Green fee, lodge and resort coursesPremium, varies by courseCape Kidnappers, Kauri Cliffs and Te Arai are among the dearest in the country
Public coursesMore moderateJack's Point and Paraparaumu are accessible to visitors
A week, all inAround £4,000 to £8,000+ per personLodges, several premium rounds, internal flights, excluding international flights

Indicative third party figures for the 2026 season, shown to set expectations only. We are a guide, not an operator, and never quote our own pricing. Always confirm directly before booking.

Plan your New Zealand golf trip

Tell us which courses you want and roughly when. One concierge arranges the lodge stays, the internal flights and the access where it is needed, costs the whole trip to the head, and replies within one working day, with no obligation.

New Zealand golf questions

What is the best golf course in New Zealand?

Tara Iti, Tom Doak's 2015 links north of Auckland, is the clear number one and is ranked among the best courses in the world outside the United States. Cape Kidnappers and the new Te Arai Links courses follow closely, and Kauri Cliffs began the whole boom. Reasonable people reorder the top four, but Tara Iti sits at the summit.

When is the best time to play golf in New Zealand?

New Zealand's seasons are reversed from the northern hemisphere, so the prime golf months run from November to April, the southern spring through autumn, with the long, mild days of summer ideal on the coast. The far north plays well much of the year, while the South Island and the higher inland courses are best in the warmer months. Always confirm conditions and opening before you travel.

Can visitors play Tara Iti and the lodge courses?

Tara Iti is an intensely private members club and the hardest round in the country to arrange. Cape Kidnappers and Kauri Cliffs are accessible to lodge guests and visitors by arrangement, and Te Arai welcomes visitors through its lodge. Jack's Point and Paraparaumu are open public courses. A trip planner can secure the lodge based access where it is needed. Always confirm directly before booking.

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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Course designers, opening years and yardages verified June 2026. Last reviewed June 2026.