Asia has quietly built some of the most ambitious resort golf on earth, from the largest golf complex ever assembled in southern China to rainforest and clifftop courses on the coasts of Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia. Here are the ten resorts we would plan a golf trip to Asia around.
A great golf resort is more than a great course: it is the round, the rooms, the food and how easily the whole week comes together. We rank the strength of the golf first, then the quality of the lodging and service, the setting and how complete the resort feels for a multi day stay. The verdicts are ours; the design credits and tournament histories we cite are a matter of record.
Asia rewards golfers who travel. Land costs and a building boom over the past three decades have produced resort courses by Nicklaus, Norman, Faldo, Els and Robert Trent Jones Jr at a fraction of the green fees you would pay for comparable golf in the United States or Europe, paired with the kind of five star hospitality the region does better than anywhere. November to April is the dry season window for most of the list.
Reviewed June 2026 by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Resort facts and fees verified at publication. How we research and review.
From the sheer scale of Mission Hills to the rainforest at Teluk Datai and the C.H. Alison classic at Kawana, ranked with our verdicts and the reasons to stay at each one.
The largest golf resort on earth, with championship courses across its Shenzhen and Haikou sites designed by a who's who that includes Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman, Nick Faldo, Jose Maria Olazabal and Vijay Singh. Add five star hotels, vast spas and a volcanic rock course on Hainan, and no resort in Asia matches it for scale and ambition. The headline name in the region.
Sir Nick Faldo's design runs from rice paddies to the sea and up into rocky low hills along Lang Co Bay, fronted by a three kilometre beach and the Banyan Tree and Angsana hotels. The most complete luxury golf resort in Vietnam and the centrepiece of the country's fast rising central coast. A genuine destination in its own right.
Ernie Els reworked this rainforest course, reopened in 2014, between ancient jungle where monkeys roam the fringes and the shores of the Andaman Sea. In 2016 it became the first Ernie Els design to make Golf Digest's Top 100 Courses in the World. Paired with the five star Datai resort, it is the most beautiful golf stay in Malaysia.
Hoiana Shores, a Robert Trent Jones Jr links style par 71 opened in 2019, runs along the Eastern Sea with views to the Cham Islands, anchoring an integrated resort near the old town of Hoi An. Firm coastal turf, strong sea breezes and a polished beachfront base make it Vietnam's most exciting modern golf resort.
High above Lake Yang Zong Hai near Kunming, Spring City pairs a Jack Nicklaus Mountain Course with a Robert Trent Jones Jr Lake Course widely rated among China's very best. The mild highland climate keeps it playable most of the year, and the lakeside resort makes it one of the most scenic stays in the country.
The Serapong, originally a 1982 Ronald Fream design and since rebuilt under Andrew Johnston, is the host of the Singapore Open and one of Asia's most photographed courses, with the city skyline across the water. Ringed by the resort island's Capella and Sofitel hotels, it is the standout city golf experience in the region.
The Fuji Course, a 1936 Charles Hugh Alison design on the Izu Peninsula, is often called the Pebble Beach of Japan, tumbling along clifftops above Sagami Bay toward Mount Fuji. A pre war classic attached to the grand Kawana Hotel, it is the most historic and atmospheric resort round in the country.
Built by Yoshikazu Kato on a former tin mine, the Canyon Course rose to fame hosting the Johnnie Walker Classic three times, including Tiger Woods era fields. Carved through old rubber plantations with water and deep canyons in play, it remains Phuket's championship test and the anchor of a beach and golf island week.
Opened in 2007 in the foothills inland from Hua Hin and expanded to 27 holes in 2016, Black Mountain has hosted Asian Tour and European Tour co sanctioned events and is widely rated among Thailand's best. With on site villas and a relaxed resort town nearby, it is the pick of the Hua Hin golf scene.
A mid 1970s Peter Thomson, Mike Wolveridge and Ron Fream design set inside an extinct volcano crater in Bali's cool Bedugul highlands. Cool air, mist and mountain scenery make it utterly unlike the island's beach resorts, a characterful highland stay that rounds out our Asian ten.
The dry season, broadly November to April, is the prime window for the Southeast Asian resorts in Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bali; China and Japan play best in spring and autumn. Almost every resort here sells golf packages that bundle rooms, transfers and several rounds, which is usually cheaper than paying rack rate green fees and the easiest way to organise a trip.
Value is Asia's great advantage: world class resort golf at a fraction of western prices, even at the flagship names. The figures below are indicative high season visitor green fees; package golf is usually a good deal lower.
| Resort | Country | Indicative green fee |
|---|---|---|
| The Els Club Teluk Datai | Malaysia | $250 to $350 |
| Sentosa, Serapong | Singapore | $300 and up |
| Spring City | China | $150 to $250 |
| Laguna Lang Co | Vietnam | $110 to $180 |
| Black Mountain | Thailand | $90 to $150 |
Compare live tee times through our partner: [TEE_TIME_AFFILIATE_LINK]. Resort hotels near the courses: [HOTEL_AFFILIATE_LINK].
A great Asian golf trip usually anchors on one region: central Vietnam around Danang and Hoi An, the Thai coast at Hua Hin or Phuket, or southern China for Mission Hills and Spring City. From a single luxury base you can play several championship courses on short transfers and pair the golf with beaches, spas and some of the best food in the world.
Plan for the dry season, November to April for Southeast Asia and spring or autumn for China and Japan, and let us build the itinerary around the resorts and courses you most want to play. We secure the tee times, arrange the rooms and transfers, and handle the detail so the week simply works.
Mission Hills in China is the largest golf resort on earth, with championship courses by Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman, Nick Faldo and others spread across its Shenzhen and Haikou sites. For sheer quality of round and setting, Laguna Lang Co in Vietnam and the Els Club Teluk Datai in Langkawi run it close.
Central Vietnam, Thailand and southern China lead Asia for resort golf. Vietnam's coast around Danang and Hoi An has Laguna Lang Co and Hoiana, Thailand pairs Hua Hin and Phuket, and China offers Mission Hills and Spring City. Japan's Kawana and Singapore's Sentosa add classic and city options.
Indicative 2026 visitor green fees run from around 80 to 150 US dollars at the Thai and Vietnamese resorts, 150 to 250 dollars at Spring City and Mission Hills, and 250 dollars and up at Sentosa, Kawana and the Els Club Teluk Datai. Package golf is usually cheaper. Always confirm directly before booking.
November to April is the dry season across most of Southeast Asia and the prime window for Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia. China and Japan play best in spring and autumn, while Bali's highland courses stay pleasant most of the year.
Vietnam has become one of Asia's best golf destinations, with a cluster of modern resort courses along the central coast near Danang and Hoi An, including Laguna Lang Co and Hoiana Shores, short transfers, strong value and excellent beach resorts. It suits buddies trips and couples alike.
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