Tennessee Golf Packages and Breaks: Where to Stay and Play
Tennessee is the cult golf trip of the American South: nine holes in a valley that people fly across the country to loop all day, a Jack Nicklaus course inside a state park, and two easy city bases in Chattanooga and Nashville. Here is how to package it, what the golf costs in 2026, and why the smart version of this trip uses both cities.
Photograph: Sweetens Cove Golf Club, South Pittsburg, via Google
Who a Tennessee package suits
Golfers who care more about architecture and atmosphere than about resort polish. Nobody comes to Tennessee for cart girls and cabanas; they come because Sweetens Cove, a nine hole course in the Sequatchie Valley, has become one of the most talked about designs in America, and because the supporting cast is cheap, friendly and genuinely good. It is also one of the best value golf trips in the country: the most expensive thing you will play costs 175 dollars for an entire day, and the hotel bill in Chattanooga is a fraction of what coastal golf towns charge.
This page covers how to structure the package around the two city bases. For the broader trip case see our Tennessee golf holidays page, and for the statewide rundown start with the Tennessee destination hub.
The courses to build a package around
Sweetens Cove, South Pittsburg
The reason the trip exists. Rob Collins and Tad King rebuilt a sleepy valley nine into Sweetens Cove, opened in 2014, and golfers now make pilgrimages to play its enormous contoured greens over and over until the light goes. An ownership group that includes Peyton Manning bought in, but the course has stayed defiantly simple: no clubhouse to speak of, just nine holes and a tee sheet that sells all day passes from Thursday to Sunday. The 2026 peak all day rate is 175 dollars plus tax with cart, with nine and 18 hole options on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and a 15 dollar reservation fee per booking. It sits about 40 minutes west of Chattanooga.
Bear Trace at Harrison Bay, Chattanooga
The best public value in the state. Jack Nicklaus designed Bear Trace at Harrison Bay in 1999 inside a Tennessee state park northeast of Chattanooga, a par 72 of 7,140 yards that plays along the wooded shoreline of Chickamauga Lake. Because it belongs to the Tennessee State Parks golf trail, fees stay modest: commonly between about 55 and 110 dollars with cart in 2026 depending on day and season. Pair it with Sweetens Cove and you have two completely different arguments for golf in the valley inside one weekend.
Gaylord Springs Golf Links, Nashville
Nashville's headline daily fee round. Larry Nelson designed Gaylord Springs along a bend of the Cumberland River next to the Gaylord Opryland Resort, with limestone bluffs and wetlands framing the closing stretch. It is the natural anchor for the Nashville half of a package: stay at Opryland or downtown, play here in the morning, and the city looks after the evening. Rates are dynamic resort pricing, so check the date you want; always confirm directly before booking.
Hermitage, Old Hickory
The 36 hole supporting act north of Nashville. Hermitage Golf Course runs two parkland courses along the Cumberland, General's Retreat and the President's Reserve, and the Reserve in particular is a spacious, well conditioned daily fee round that fills the second Nashville morning without straining the budget. Greens fees sit comfortably below the marquee venues; confirm current rates when booking.
The Course at Sewanee, Monteagle
The bonus nine. Up on the Cumberland Plateau between Chattanooga and Nashville, the University of the South's nine hole course at Sewanee was reworked by Gil Hanse's team and plays across the mountaintop with long views off the bluff. It is an easy add on the drive between the two cities and keeps the architectural theme of the trip running.
Package structures that work
| Package | Structure | Indicative golf cost, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| The pilgrimage weekend | 3 nights Chattanooga; Sweetens Cove all day, Bear Trace at Harrison Bay, second Sweetens Cove day | Sweetens Cove 175 dollars per all day pass; Bear Trace roughly 55 to 110 dollars |
| The Nashville break | 3 nights Opryland or downtown; Gaylord Springs plus both Hermitage courses | Dynamic resort and daily fee pricing, moderate |
| The full state week | 5 to 6 nights split between Nashville and Chattanooga, Sewanee on the drive between | All of the above; the I-24 drive between cities is about 2 hours 15 minutes |
Fees verified June 2026 from course rate cards and booking sources. We do not quote our own pricing; package totals depend on season, hotel tier and group size, so always confirm directly before booking. Check tee time availability or browse Tennessee golf hotels.
When to book and when to go
April to early June and September through October are the windows. Spring greens up the Sequatchie Valley and fall turns the plateau gold; both bring the state's best golf weather. July and August are hot and humid, manageable at dawn but punishing after noon. Winter rounds happen in mild spells at reduced rates. The booking discipline all concerns Sweetens Cove: nine holes and an all day pass model mean a small tee sheet, passes for the following year are typically released each fall, and prime weekends go quickly, so lock that day first and build the rest of the package around it. Bear Trace books simply through the Tennessee State Parks tee sheet, and the Nashville courses rarely need more than a couple of weeks of notice outside event weekends.
Plan your Tennessee golf trip
Tell us whether the trip is a Sweetens Cove pilgrimage, a Nashville break or the full state week, plus group size and dates. One concierge times the Sweetens Cove day, sequences the rounds and costs the trip to the head. No obligation.
Tennessee golf package questions
How much does a Tennessee golf package cost?
Less than almost any comparable American golf trip. The marquee round, an all day pass at Sweetens Cove, runs 175 dollars plus tax at peak 2026 rates, and Bear Trace at Harrison Bay, the Jack Nicklaus state park course, is commonly between about 55 and 110 dollars with cart depending on day and season. Add modest Chattanooga or Nashville hotel costs and a long weekend lands far below a Scottsdale or coastal equivalent. Package prices are third party and seasonal; always confirm directly before booking.
How does the Sweetens Cove all day rate work?
From Thursday to Sunday, plus Monday holidays, Sweetens Cove sells all day passes only: in 2026 the peak rate is 175 dollars plus tax with a cart, and you loop the nine holes as many times as daylight allows. On Tuesday and Wednesday the club also offers nine hole and 18 hole rates. A 15 dollar reservation fee applies per booking, rates change seasonally, and tee times are released and sold online, with the following year's passes typically released each fall. Always confirm directly before booking.
Is Nashville or Chattanooga the better base?
Chattanooga for the golf, Nashville for everything else. Chattanooga sits within about 40 minutes of Sweetens Cove and Bear Trace at Harrison Bay, the two rounds that justify the trip. Nashville has the airport with the most direct flights, the entertainment, and solid daily fee golf at Gaylord Springs and Hermitage, but its courses are the supporting act. The two cities are roughly two hours apart on I-24, so a five or six night package can comfortably use both.
When is the best time for a Tennessee golf trip?
April to early June and September through October. Spring brings the valley and the lakes to life, and fall color on the Cumberland Plateau is spectacular. July and August are hot and humid, though mornings are playable, and winter golf happens in mild spells at lower fees. Book Sweetens Cove weekends well ahead in any season; the small tee sheet sells out first.
Related
The Tee Sheet
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Designers, access and indicative fees verified June 2026. Last reviewed June 2026.