How to Play the Best Golf in Bali
Bali's golf is a four course story with one famous ghost. Bali National in Nusa Dua, rebuilt by Nelson & Haworth and reopened in 2014, publishes a 2026 rate of Rp 2,300,000 with cart and caddie included. Handara plays inside a volcanic crater at 1,142 meters, New Kuta runs along the Bukit cliffs above Dreamland Beach, and Bukit Pandawa stacks 18 par 3s on the limestone next door. The fifth name, Greg Norman's Nirwana Bali at Tanah Lot, has been closed since 2017 and stays closed in 2026. Here is how to get on each one, in what order, and from which base.
Photograph: Brata Perdana, via Google
The short answer
Everything that is open in Bali books direct, with no member introductions, no ballots and no handicap certificates. The flagship is Bali National Golf Club in the Nusa Dua resort enclave, first laid out in 1991 as the Bali Golf and Country Club and then comprehensively rebuilt by Nelson & Haworth before reopening in March 2014. It plays 7,166 yards at par 72 through three distinct landscapes, from hillside holes among rice terraces to a closing stretch built around water and an island green, and its published 2026 rate is Rp 2,300,000 net per player for 18 holes, with a shared cart, one caddie per player and taxes all included. A Super Sundowner rate of Rp 1,500,000 opens up the tee sheet from 3 pm.
The supporting cast is just as distinct. Handara Golf Resort in the Bedugul highlands is the 1974 Peter Thomson, Michael Wolveridge and Ronald Fream design set inside a volcanic crater at 1,142 meters, par 72 and 7,024 yards in air ten degrees cooler than the coast, at around Rp 2,000,000 all in. New Kuta Golf at Pecatu, Ronald Fream again for Golfplan in 2007, is the clifftop links above Dreamland and Balangan beaches, 6,713 yards of limestone and lontar palms at roughly Rp 1,900,000 midweek. Bukit Pandawa, opened in October 2016 to a Bob Moore Jr design for JMP Golf Design Group, is the boldest idea on the island: 18 championship grade par 3s, par 54, on the same clifftop shelf, from about Rp 1,900,000 and done in two hours. The one closed door is Nirwana Bali at Tanah Lot, shut since 2017; the full pricing picture lives in our Bali green fees guide, and our ranking of the best golf courses in Bali orders the field. This page is about getting on.
Bali's courses: who built them and how to get on, 2026
| Course | Designer | Location | Indicative 2026 fee | Booking note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bali National Golf Club | Nelson & Haworth rebuild, reopened March 2014; original course 1991 | Nusa Dua, south Bali | Rp 2,300,000 net per player, published 2026 rate; Super Sundowner Rp 1,500,000 from 3 pm | Book direct online; 18 holes, par 72; cart, caddie and taxes included |
| Handara Golf Resort | Peter Thomson, Michael Wolveridge and Ronald Fream, 1974 | Bedugul highlands, volcanic crater at 1,142 meters | About Rp 1,600,000 to Rp 2,000,000 with cart and caddie, dry season 2026 | Book direct or via the resort; drive of about two hours from the south; on site lodge |
| New Kuta Golf | Ronald Fream, Golfplan, 2007 | Pecatu, Bukit Peninsula, above Dreamland Beach | About Rp 1,900,000 to Rp 2,500,000 by day of week, dry season 2026 | Book direct; par 72 clifftop links; weekends carry the premium |
| Bukit Pandawa Golf and Country Club | Bob Moore Jr, JMP Golf Design Group, October 2016 | Bukit Peninsula clifftop, south Bali | From about Rp 1,900,000 including shared cart and caddie, dry season 2026 | Book direct; 18 par 3s, par 54; a full round takes about two hours |
| Nirwana Bali | Greg Norman, 1997; Phil Mickelson redesign announced | Tanah Lot, west coast | Closed; no fee published | Shut since 2017 for the stalled Trump International Bali redevelopment; not bookable in 2026 |
Access rules, designers and 2026 fees verified June 2026 and subject to change without notice. Always confirm current rates and tee times directly before booking. Check Bali tee time availability.
How to book Bali, step by step
- Fix dates in the dry season, May to September, then book flights into Denpasar. Skip the rental car: every hotel arranges a car with a driver for a fraction of the stress, and the open courses sit between thirty minutes and two hours apart.
- Secure Bali National first, in the morning. It is the round the trip is built on, the tee sheet is the busiest on the island, and the club takes direct online bookings at the published Rp 2,300,000 rate. If your dates slip, the Super Sundowner from 3 pm is the smart fallback at Rp 1,500,000.
- Pair New Kuta and Bukit Pandawa as a Bukit double. They share the same limestone clifftop south of the airport, ten minutes apart, and both book direct. Play New Kuta early before the sea breeze stiffens, then treat Bukit Pandawa's two hour round of par 3s from 140 to 210 yards as the second loop of the day or a separate sunset round.
- Make Handara the day trip. The crater course at Bedugul is a drive of about two hours north from Nusa Dua past Lake Beratan, so leave early, or book a night at the resort's own lodge and play the mountain air twice.
- Treat Nirwana Bali as closed, because it is. Lock everything else in two to three weeks ahead, and stretch that to a month for July and August, when Australian school holidays fill the morning tee sheets.
Dress codes are standard resort golf across the island: a collared shirt, tailored shorts or trousers, and soft spikes. Caddies are assigned, not optional, one per player, and the caddie fee is already inside every published rate above; the customary tip of Rp 200,000 to Rp 300,000 per round is not, so carry cash. Club rental at Bali National runs Rp 600,000 for regular sets and Rp 700,000 for premium, which is reason enough to bring your own if you are playing three rounds or more.
Routing the trip, and where to stay
Bali golf works from a single southern base. Nusa Dua puts Bali National ten minutes away and the Bukit pair within forty five minutes, with a beachfront resort base in Nusa Dua the obvious bed for a golf led week; Uluwatu's clifftop hotels work just as well if the surf and sunset bars matter more than proximity to the first tee. Handara is the one outlier, and the two hour drive north is part of its charm: cool air, strawberry farms and the lake temple at Beratan on the way, then a course lined with cypress and carved crater walls that feels nothing like the coast. Build the week as four rounds in six nights and the pace stays a holiday rather than a campaign.
For the wider picture, our best golf courses in Bali ranking puts the four open courses in order, and the Bali green fees guide tracks what each one charges through the year. If you are weighing the island against Asia's other resort golf heavyweight, our Bali vs Phuket comparison settles most arguments in a few minutes. To have the whole week sequenced, held and costed as one piece, start from Bali golf holidays, or send a brief through plan my trip and let the concierge do the sequencing.
Plan a Bali golf trip
Tell us roughly when and who is travelling, and one concierge sequences the rounds, holds Bali National on the right mornings, pairs the Bukit courses sensibly, books the base and costs the week to the head. We reply within one working day, with no obligation.
Bali golf access questions
Can visitors play golf in Bali?
Yes, everywhere that is open. Bali National, Handara, New Kuta and Bukit Pandawa all take visitor bookings direct, online or by email, with no member introductions and no handicap certificate requirements. Every course assigns one caddie per player as part of the standard fee, and shared carts are included in the published rates. The one course you cannot book is Nirwana Bali at Tanah Lot, which has been closed for redevelopment since 2017. Always confirm directly before booking.
How much are green fees in Bali in 2026?
Published and indicative 2026 rates run from about Rp 1,600,000 to Rp 2,500,000 for 18 holes, roughly 100 to 160 US dollars, with cart and caddie included. Bali National publishes Rp 2,300,000 net per player, plus a Super Sundowner rate of Rp 1,500,000 after 3 pm. Handara lists around Rp 2,000,000, New Kuta runs about Rp 1,900,000 to Rp 2,500,000 depending on the day, and Bukit Pandawa starts near Rp 1,900,000. Customary caddie tips of Rp 200,000 to Rp 300,000 are extra. Fees move with season and demand, so always confirm directly before booking.
Is Nirwana Bali open in 2026?
No. Greg Norman's 1997 layout at Tanah Lot, whose par 3 seventh played across the ocean toward the Tanah Lot sea temple, closed in 2017 for redevelopment as part of the Trump International Bali project, with a Phil Mickelson design announced to replace the Norman course. The project has stalled, and the course remained closed with no published reopening date at our June 2026 review. Do not plan a trip around it; confirm its status directly if your dates are far out.
When is the best time to play golf in Bali?
The dry season, May to September, when mornings are clear, humidity eases and the courses drain fast. Book morning tee times year round: heat builds quickly after midday, and the breeze stiffens on the Bukit clifftops at New Kuta and Bukit Pandawa in the afternoon. The wet season, roughly November to March, brings short heavy storms rather than washed out days, and Handara in the highlands stays cooler and mistier whatever the month. Always confirm conditions directly before booking.
Do I tip my caddie in Bali?
Yes. Every Bali course assigns one caddie per player and the assignment is not optional. The caddie fee itself is built into the published rate at all four open courses, but the customary tip is not: budget Rp 200,000 to Rp 300,000 per round, roughly 13 to 20 US dollars, paid in cash directly to your caddie after the round. Bali's caddies are well drilled on lines, yardages and grain, and the money is well earned.
Related
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Access rules and 2026 fees verified June 2026. Last reviewed: June 2026.