How to Play the Best Golf in Hanoi and the North
Northern Vietnam hides one of Asia's most underrated golf clusters: 54 holes reached by speedboat across a reservoir at Kings Island, Nicklaus Design's first Vietnamese course with its twin green experiment at Legend Hill, and a floodlit 27 just ten minutes from the Old Quarter. Nearly everything is open to visitors, caddies are mandatory everywhere, and weekend prices jump hard. Here is how to book it all.
Photograph: Teck Hooi Gan, via Google
The short answer
The anchor is BRG Kings Island Golf Resort at Dong Mo, about 45 minutes west of Hanoi near Son Tay, where a three minute speedboat ride across the reservoir delivers you to 54 holes: the Lakeside course by Robert McFarland, opened in 1993 as the first modern course in northern Vietnam, the Mountain View course by Pacific Coast Design from 2004, and the Kings Course by Nicklaus Design from 2018. Published June 2026 rates for international visitors run about 4,100,000 VND on weekdays and 5,200,000 on weekends, roughly 160 to 200 US dollars, with caddie and shared cart included. Closer to the airport at Soc Son, BRG Legend Hill opened in 2015 as Nicklaus Design's first course in Vietnam and the first anywhere in Asia with its twin green concept, two greens on every hole for 36 in total, at about 3,690,000 VND weekdays and 5,290,000 weekends.
The supporting cast covers every taste. Sky Lake Resort and Golf Club at Chuong My, 45 minutes southwest, has two 18s; visitors play the Sky course any day, while the Lake course is reserved for members and their guests on weekends. Long Bien Golf Course, a 27 hole Nelson & Haworth layout roughly ten kilometers from the city center, is the convenience play, fully floodlit for night golf. An hour or so out sit Tam Dao Golf Resort, an IMG designed par 72 under the Tam Dao mountains, Heron Lake on the Dam Vac waterway at Vinh Yen by Pacific Coast Design, and Stone Valley in Ha Nam, 27 holes by Brian Curley of Schmidt-Curley Design threading the limestone karst near Tam Chuc pagoda. The one door that stays shut is Van Tri Golf Club, the Peter Rousseau design that operates as Vietnam's first true private members club; visitors get on by invitation or as a member's guest only. For where the north fits in the national picture, start with our ranking of the best golf courses in Vietnam and the Vietnam destination hub.
Hanoi's courses: who built them and what they cost
| Course | Pedigree | Weekday, VND | Weekend, VND | Booking note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRG Kings Island, Dong Mo | Lakeside by Robert McFarland, 1993; Mountain View by Pacific Coast Design, 2004; Kings Course by Nicklaus Design, 2018; 54 holes by boat | 3,500,000 to 3,700,000 (about $135 to $140); international visitor rate about 4,100,000 | 4,600,000 to 4,800,000 (about $175 to $185); international visitor rate about 5,200,000 | Book direct or via platforms; allow time for the boat transfer |
| BRG Legend Hill, Soc Son | Nicklaus Design, 2015; twin greens on every hole | 3,690,000 (about $140) | 5,290,000 (about $205) | 20 minutes from Noi Bai airport; ideal first or last round |
| Sky Lake, Sky course, Chuong My | Two 18s, Sky and Lake; championship venue | About 3,590,000 visitor rate (about $140) | About 4,500,000 (about $175) | Lake course is members and guests only on weekends |
| Long Bien, Hanoi city | Nelson & Haworth, 27 holes, floodlit | 2,800,000 to 3,200,000 (about $110 to $125) | 3,200,000 to 4,050,000 (about $125 to $155) | Ten kilometers from the center; night golf available |
| Heron Lake, Vinh Yen | Pacific Coast Design, 18 holes on the Dam Vac waterway | 2,450,000 (about $95) | 3,350,000 (about $130) | About 30 minutes from Noi Bai airport |
| Tam Dao Golf Resort, Vinh Phuc | IMG design, par 72 under the Tam Dao range | About 2,150,000 (about $85) | 3,050,000 to 3,300,000 (about $115 to $125) | Cooler air at the mountain foot; book mornings |
| Stone Valley, Ha Nam | Brian Curley, Schmidt-Curley Design; 27 holes in limestone karst | 1,800,000 to 1,950,000 (about $70 to $75) | 2,800,000 to 3,000,000 (about $110 to $115) | Pairs with the Tam Chuc pagoda; the value play of the north |
| Van Tri Golf Club, Hanoi | Peter Rousseau; Vietnam's first private members club | Invitation or member's guest only | No public tee sheet; ask a member or a concierge | |
Rates verified June 2026, vary by season and nationality tier at some clubs, and change without notice. Always confirm directly before booking. Check Hanoi tee time availability.
How to book the north, step by step
- Travel between October and April. October to mid December and February to April are the sweet spots, dry and pleasantly cool; May to September is hot, humid and wet, with afternoon storms, while December and January can turn surprisingly cool and misty, so pack a layer.
- Book Kings Island first and give it a full day. The boat transfer, 54 holes and the distance from town make it the round that needs the most planning; weekday mornings are far easier to get than weekends, and the Kings Course by Nicklaus Design is the one to request.
- Use the booking platforms, not just the club sites. Vietnamese platforms publish live rates and often undercut the rack rate; note that several clubs, including Kings Island and Sky Lake, price domestic players and international visitors differently, so check the rate that actually applies to you.
- Budget for the caddie culture. A caddie is mandatory at every course in this guide and is usually bundled into the published rate along with a shared cart; the tip is not, and 300,000 to 500,000 VND, roughly 12 to 20 US dollars, is the accepted range for a good 18 holes.
- Stack weekdays. Weekend rates run 30 to 50 percent higher across the board and tee sheets fill with Hanoi's own golfers; a Monday to Friday itinerary saves enough to fund an extra round at Stone Valley or Heron Lake.
Logistics are simple by Asian megacity standards. Noi Bai airport sits north of the city with Legend Hill 20 minutes away and Heron Lake about 30, which makes either a natural arrival or departure round. Nothing else in this guide is more than about 90 minutes from a downtown hotel, but no course is sensibly reached without a driver; hotel cars and ride apps are cheap, and any operator on our Vietnam golf holidays page will bundle transfers. Stay in the Old Quarter or by Hoan Kiem Lake and treat the golf as day trips, with Hanoi hotels near the Old Quarter putting the food streets on your doorstep. Dress codes are standard, collared shirts and no denim, and most clubs will ask for a tee time guarantee in busy months rather than a handicap certificate.
Building it into a bigger trip
The north pairs naturally with Halong Bay, Ninh Binh and Sapa for the non golf days, and Stone Valley already sits on the road south toward Ninh Binh's karst country. Most visitors then fly 80 minutes to the coast, where the best courses of Danang and central Vietnam wait, led by the dunes of BRG Danang Golf Resort; our 7 day Vietnam golf itinerary sequences the whole run. Price the country end to end with the Vietnam green fees guide, or weigh it against the region's other giant via our Thailand green fees guide. The full course by course picture for this region lives on the Hanoi and the north destination hub.
Plan a Hanoi golf trip
Tell us roughly when and who is traveling, and one concierge sequences Kings Island, Legend Hill and the mountain courses around your dates, books the drivers and the hotels, and costs the trip to the head. We reply within one working day, with no obligation.
Hanoi golf access questions
Can visitors play golf in Hanoi?
Yes, almost everywhere. The big names around Hanoi, including BRG Kings Island, BRG Legend Hill, Sky Lake, Long Bien, Tam Dao, Heron Lake and Stone Valley, all sell tee times to visitors direct or through Vietnamese booking platforms, and a caddie is mandatory at every one of them. The one closed door is Van Tri Golf Club, Vietnam's first private members club, where visitors play by invitation or as a member's guest only. Always confirm directly before booking.
How much does golf cost in Hanoi in 2026?
Published June 2026 rack rates, which at most clubs bundle the green fee, a mandatory caddie and a shared cart, run from about 1,950,000 VND, roughly 75 US dollars, for a weekday round at Stone Valley to about 5,290,000 VND, roughly 205 US dollars, for a weekend at BRG Legend Hill. BRG Kings Island charges international visitors about 4,100,000 VND on weekdays and 5,200,000 on weekends. Weekend rounds typically cost 30 to 50 percent more than weekdays, and rates move by season, so always confirm directly before booking.
What is the best golf course near Hanoi?
BRG Kings Island Golf Resort is the trip maker. Its 54 holes sit across the Dong Mo reservoir near Son Tay, reached by a three minute speedboat ride, with the Lakeside course of 1993 by Robert McFarland, the first modern course in northern Vietnam, the Mountain View course by Pacific Coast Design from 2004, and the Kings Course by Nicklaus Design from 2018. BRG Legend Hill near the airport, Nicklaus Design's first Vietnamese course with its twin green concept, and Sky Lake's Sky course are the strongest alternatives. Always confirm directly before booking.
When is the best time to play golf in Hanoi?
October to April is the playing season, with October to mid December and February to April the sweet spots: dry, cooler weather in a climate that is otherwise hot and very wet from May to September. December and January can turn cool and misty, so pack a layer, while summer golf means early tee times, afternoon storms and the cheapest rates of the year. Always confirm conditions directly before booking.
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Access rules, designers and fees verified June 2026. Last reviewed: June 2026.