Golf in Bordeaux
The wine capital of the world finally has the golf to match the cellar. Cabot took over the 36 hole Golf du Medoc resort in 2023, Tom Doak's only French course hides near Saint-Emilion, and the city itself has honest, affordable golf from about €40. Played between tastings and great tables, Bordeaux is one of the most complete long weekends in European golf.
Photo: Cabot Bordeaux via Google.
Why golf here
For years Bordeaux was the city golfers visited for everything but the golf. That changed when the Cabot group, the team behind Cabot Cape Breton and Cabot Highlands, bought the Golf du Medoc resort in 2023 and set about sharpening its two genuinely good courses. The Chateaux, the 1989 design by Bill Coore completed with Rod Whitman, was firm, sandy, links inspired golf in the Medoc pines long before that was fashionable, and it remains the best course within easy reach of the city.
East of Bordeaux, Grand Saint-Emilionnais gives France its only Tom Doak course, opened in 2016 in rolling woodland about ten kilometers from Saint-Emilion. It is quiet, walkable, strategic golf with the village's grand cru vineyards over the hill, and the green fee includes a cart and range balls, a rarity at this level. Closer in, the city has its own honest golf: the municipal 36 holes at Bordeaux-Lac, the old club at Pessac, and the handsome seaside courses out at Arcachon, none of them expensive.
The smart way to play it is a split: two or three rounds of resort and wine country golf around the city, then a day on the Atlantic coast or a deeper push south into the pine forest. For that wider loop, including the Landes courses at Moliets, Seignosse and Hossegor, see our Bordeaux and the Southwest hub, which maps the whole region.
The courses that matter
| Rank | Course | Why it makes the trip |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cabot Bordeaux, Chateaux | Bill Coore, 1989, par 71. The best course near the city: sandy, strategic golf through Medoc pines, now lifted by Cabot's investment and conditioning. About €135 in high season, 2026, indicative. |
| 2 | Grand Saint-Emilionnais | Tom Doak, opened 2016, his only course in France. Wide corridors, wild greens and almost nobody on it midweek. €70 to €120 by season with cart included, 2026, indicative. |
| 3 | Cabot Bordeaux, Vignes | Rod Whitman, 1991, par 71. The looser, more playful sibling and the better warm up round, sharing the resort's fee structure and hotel. |
| 4 | Golf de Bordeaux-Lac | The city's municipal 36 holes, ten minutes from the center, flat, friendly and excellent value for an extra round. From about €40, 2026, indicative. |
| 5 | Golf d'Arcachon | One of the oldest clubs in France, a characterful course in the pines near the Bassin d'Arcachon, 50 minutes west and easy to pair with a day at the dunes and oyster shacks. |
| 6 | Golf de Pessac | A mature 27 hole club on the southwest edge of the city, handy, well kept and inexpensive, the local choice for a relaxed second course. |
Green fees are indicative 2026 rates gathered from the clubs and their booking partners in June 2026. Rates move by season, day and demand; always confirm directly before booking.
When to go
| Months | What to expect |
|---|---|
| April to June | The best window. Warm days in the high teens to mid 20s, long evenings, courses in full growth and green fees still shy of peak. June is ideal. |
| July and August | Hot and busy, especially out on the Arcachon coast as French holidaymakers arrive. Wine country courses stay calmer. Book tee times and tables ahead. |
| September and October | The connoisseur's choice. Warm, settled and quiet, with the harvest filling Saint-Emilion and the Medoc with energy. Late October brings more Atlantic rain. |
| November to March | Mild, wet, quiet. Courses stay open year round and winter rates drop sharply, with Cabot Bordeaux stay and play packages at their cheapest. Pack waterproofs. |
What it costs
This is strong value by great golf standards. Indicative 2026 fees: about €135 for the Chateaux course at Cabot Bordeaux in high season, €70 to €120 at Grand Saint-Emilionnais depending on season with a cart included, and from roughly €40 to €70 at the city's own courses such as Bordeaux-Lac, Pessac and Arcachon. Multi round and resort packages bring the headline numbers down further.
Cabot Bordeaux's own 2026 packages give a useful benchmark for the whole trip: three nights with unlimited golf on both courses from about €1,122 per person in winter and about €1,824 in peak season, with a golf plus chateau wine tasting package available too. Build in roughly €150 to €250 a night for good independent hotels in the city or the wine villages. All figures are indicative and you should always confirm directly before booking.
For the wider picture across the country, see our guide to green fees in France.
Getting there and around
Bordeaux-Merignac airport has direct flights from most major European cities, and the TGV runs from Paris to Bordeaux in a little over two hours, which makes a no fly trip realistic from London via Paris. From the city, Cabot Bordeaux at Le Pian-Medoc is about 30 minutes north, Grand Saint-Emilionnais about 50 minutes east, Arcachon about 50 minutes west, and Bordeaux-Lac and Pessac within the ring road itself.
Rent a car. The drives here are part of the appeal, through the Medoc's chateau gates, over the Garonne and out to the pine and oyster country of the Bassin. If the group plans serious tasting days, a driver for an afternoon pays for itself.
Where to stay
For a golf focused trip the simplest move is the MGallery resort hotel at Cabot Bordeaux itself, which puts both courses outside your door and a spa and good restaurant on site. For a city base, the center of Bordeaux is hard to beat, with the Medoc and Saint-Emilion both inside an hour and the best food and wine in walking distance after the round.
Saint-Emilion village is the romantic alternative, all limestone lanes and grand cru tables, and it sets up the Doak course perfectly. Out west, Arcachon and the Cap Ferret peninsula trade golf intensity for beaches, dunes and seafood, a good final night before flying home.
Looking for a base? See our recommended hotels and resorts in and around Bordeaux.
Build a Bordeaux golf trip
Resort rounds, a Doak day near Saint-Emilion, a city course or two and the right tables and tastings in between. Tell us roughly when and who is travelling and one concierge costs the whole thing to the head, with no obligation.
Bordeaux golf questions
Is Bordeaux a good base for a golf trip?
Yes. Cabot Bordeaux, the 36 hole resort the Cabot group took over in 2023, sits 30 minutes north of the city, Tom Doak's Grand Saint-Emilionnais is under an hour east near the wine village, and the city itself has good municipal and members golf from about €40. Add the food, the wine and a major airport and it is one of the most complete short golf trips in France.
What does golf cost around Bordeaux?
Indicative 2026 green fees run from about €135 at Cabot Bordeaux in high season, €70 to €120 at Grand Saint-Emilionnais with a cart included, and from roughly €40 to €70 at the city's own courses such as Bordeaux-Lac and Pessac. Always confirm directly before booking.
When is the best time to play golf in Bordeaux?
May, June, September and October are the sweet spot: warm, mostly dry and outside the August crowds, with the late September harvest adding wine country atmosphere. Winters are mild enough that the courses stay open year round.
How do I get to Bordeaux?
Bordeaux-Merignac airport has direct flights from across Europe and the TGV reaches the city from Paris in just over two hours. Cabot Bordeaux is about 30 minutes north, Grand Saint-Emilionnais about 50 minutes east, and the Arcachon coast about 50 minutes west. A rental car is the practical way to link them.
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Course designers, opening years and indicative green fees verified June 2026 against the clubs and their booking partners. Last reviewed June 2026.