Caribbean sand, jungle fairways and a coastline of all inclusive resorts an hour either side of Cancun airport. From a PGA Tour host at Mayakoba to Jack Nicklaus and Greg Norman designs threading through mangrove and cenote, this is the Yucatan at its most playable.
The strip of coast from Cancun down through Playa del Carmen to Tulum has quietly become one of the great winter golf destinations. El Camaleon at Mayakoba was the first course in Mexico to host the PGA Tour and remains the headliner, but the depth is real: Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman, Tom Weiskopf and P.B. Dye have all built here, weaving holes through tropical forest, mangrove channels and the occasional cenote sinkhole.
What sets the region apart is the all inclusive resort model. Many of the best courses sit inside or beside large beach resorts, so a week of golf, sun, food and family rolls into one booking. Add reliable winter sunshine, warm Caribbean water and an hour's reach from a major international airport, and the Riviera Maya makes an unusually easy long haul golf trip.
Reviewed June 2026 by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Course facts and fees verified at publication. How we research and review.
The leading rounds run from the Cancun hotel zone south through Playa del Carmen, almost all within an hour of the airport and many tied to all inclusive resorts. These are the courses to plan a week around.
The course that put Mexico on the professional map, a Greg Norman design opened in 2004 that hosted the PGA Tour for more than a decade. It runs through jungle, mangrove and oceanfront across around 7,000 yards, and famously plays a shot across a vast limestone cenote. The essential round of any Riviera Maya trip.
Twenty seven holes of Jack Nicklaus golf set in thick Mayan jungle at one of the region's largest resorts, played as the Dunes, Jungle and Lakes nines in any combination. Manicured paspalum fairways, big bunkering and plentiful water make it a resort showpiece, and a stay and play package puts unlimited golf within reach.
A second Greg Norman design north of Cancun, around 7,000 yards stretched along virgin beach, mangrove and a Mayan ruin inside a gated resort. More open and coastal than the jungle courses to the south, it offers some of the best sea views in the region and a polished resort experience.
A bold P.B. Dye layout of around 7,000 yards that opened in 2005, full of the family's trademark drama: railroad ties, sharp angles and exposed limestone. Cut through dense jungle near Playa del Carmen, it is the most characterful and demanding test on this coast.
A Greg Norman eco signature design laid through mangrove and lagoon on the Cancun hotel strip, with several holes flirting with water and the Caribbean never far away. Accessible from the Cancun resorts and often bundled into stay and play packages, it makes an easy and scenic round.
Tom Weiskopf's course in an upscale marina development on the edge of Cancun city, with holes running beside the Caribbean Sea and the Nichupte Lagoon. Convenient to the airport and the hotel zone, it is a strong, walkable resort course that rounds out the Cancun side of a trip.
The Riviera Maya plays year round, but the prime golf season runs from November to April, when humidity drops and the rain eases. Green fees are quoted in US dollars and sit high by resort standards, though many include cart, range and food and drink, and resort guests often play at a discount. The summer and early autumn are hotter, wetter and cheaper.
| Course | Type | Indicative green fee |
|---|---|---|
| El Camaleon, Mayakoba | Jungle and coast | $300 and up |
| Playa Mujeres | Coastal resort | $220 to $300 |
| Iberostar Playa Paraiso | Jungle | $180 to $260 |
| Moon Palace, Cancun | Resort | $170 to $260 |
| Riviera Cancun | Mangrove | $160 to $230 |
| Puerto Cancun | Marina resort | $160 to $230 |
Package guide. A five to seven night Riviera Maya golf trip built around an all inclusive resort with three to five rounds commonly runs from around $2,500 to $4,500 per golfer for 2026, before flights, with the resort tier driving most of the cost. These are third party ranges, not our prices, and you should always confirm directly before booking.
Booking individual rounds? Compare live tee times through our partner: [TEE_TIME_AFFILIATE_LINK]. Hotels near the courses: [HOTEL_AFFILIATE_LINK].
A relaxed week split between the Cancun resorts and the jungle courses of the Riviera Maya to the south, with beach days between rounds.
Fly into Cancun, transfer to your resort and ease into the first evening on the beach before the golf begins.
Open on the coastal Greg Norman course north of Cancun, with sea views and a gentle introduction to the warm Caribbean wind.
Twenty seven holes of Nicklaus golf through the jungle at one of the region's grand resorts, with a stay and play package keeping it simple.
Transfer down the coast to Playa del Carmen, with an afternoon to settle in and explore Fifth Avenue.
The PGA Tour host and the round of the trip, across jungle, mangrove and ocean, by way of the cenote carry.
A final, dramatic P.B. Dye round through the jungle before the transfer back to Cancun for the flight home.
Cancun's international airport is one of the busiest in the Americas, with direct flights from across North America and Europe, and almost all of the region's golf sits within an hour of it. The Cancun hotel zone lies to the north and the Riviera Maya resorts run south through Playa del Carmen toward Tulum, so a hire car or resort transfers connect the two easily.
Plan for the dry season from November to April for the most comfortable golf, with the Christmas and Easter weeks the busiest and priciest. Hurricane season runs through late summer and early autumn, when rates fall but heat, humidity and storm risk all rise.
El Camaleon at Mayakoba, a Greg Norman design and former PGA Tour host, leads the way. The Jack Nicklaus courses at Moon Palace, Greg Norman's Playa Mujeres, P.B. Dye's Iberostar Playa Paraiso and Tom Weiskopf's Puerto Cancun complete a deep and varied group.
The dry season from November to April offers the most comfortable golf, with lower humidity and little rain. Summer and early autumn are hotter, wetter and within hurricane season, though green fees fall in those months.
Indicative 2026 winter green fees run from around 160 US dollars at the Cancun resort courses to 300 US dollars and up at El Camaleon, often including cart and amenities. Resort guests and summer visitors pay less. Always confirm directly before booking.
Yes. Many of the leading courses, including Moon Palace and Iberostar Playa Paraiso, sit inside large all inclusive resorts, and stay and play packages bundle unlimited or discounted golf with food, drink and beach time in a single booking.
Fly into Cancun and use resort transfers or a hire car. The Cancun courses lie north of the airport and the Riviera Maya courses run south through Playa del Carmen, with almost everything within an hour, so combining both coasts in one trip is straightforward.
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