A Gulf Shores Golf Week Itinerary: Seven Days, Six Rounds, One Base and an Eastern Shore Day
Gulf Shores golf week itinerary: six rounds in seven days from one base, Kiva Dunes to Lost Key and Lakewood, a rest day, drive times, fees seen Oct 2026.
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A good Gulf Shores golf week itinerary is six rounds in seven days from one central base: Gulf Shores Golf Club on arrival, Kiva Dunes, Craft Farms, Lost Key, a rest day, an Eastern Shore round at Lakewood or Rock Creek, and Perdido Bay on the way to the airport. No drive is longer than about an hour.
A Gulf Shores golf week itinerary lets you see all three sides of the beach map, plus the bay courses an hour north, without moving hotels. Each day below pairs one course with the right part of the day. Drive times are free-flow road estimates from Hampton Inn Gulf Shores on Hwy 59, with no traffic. Fees were seen in October 2026 and change.
Quick facts
- Rounds: six, plus an optional seventh on the rest day.
- Base: central Gulf Shores on Hwy 59.
- Longest drive: Rock Creek, about 53 minutes from the base.
- Book first: Kiva Dunes (120-day window).
- Book last: Lakewood (7-day online window) and Lost Key (14 days).
- Fly: into and out of Pensacola (PNS), about 69 minutes from Gulf Shores.
- Best weeks: October and early November.
The Gulf Shores golf week itinerary at a glance
| Day | Round | Side of the map | Drive from base (est.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (Sun) | Gulf Shores Golf Club, twilight | Central | 3 min |
| 2 (Mon) | Kiva Dunes | West | 20 min |
| 3 (Tue) | Craft Farms Cypress Bend | Central | 8 min |
| 4 (Wed) | Lost Key | East | 35 min |
| 5 (Thu) | Rest, or Peninsula | West | 10 min |
| 6 (Fri) | Lakewood Azalea or Rock Creek | Eastern Shore | 47 / 53 min |
| 7 (Sat) | Perdido Bay, then fly | East | 37 min |
Starting on a Sunday is deliberate: in summer, Saturday is condo changeover day and Hwy 59 jams from Foley to the beach. Leaving on a Saturday morning heads east, away from the worst of it.
Where to base a golf week in Gulf Shores
| Base | Gulf Shores GC | Kiva Dunes | Craft Farms | Lost Key | Lakewood | Perdido Bay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hampton Inn Gulf Shores | 3 | 20 | 8 | 35 | 47 | 37 |
| Holiday Inn Express Gulf Shores | 3 | 20 | 8 | 35 | 47 | 37 |
| Embassy Suites Gulf Shores | 6 | 23 | 11 | 33 | 50 | 34 |
| Courtyard Craft Farms | 6 | 24 | 5 | 37 | 44 | 38 |
| Caribe Resort, Orange Beach | 22 | 39 | 22 | 17 | 61 | 19 |
Estimated minutes, free-flow.
The two Hwy 59 hotels are the cheapest central bases, both with free breakfast and free parking; the Holiday Inn Express also allows trucks and trailers and has guest laundry, which helps on a week of golf. The Hampton Inn is under renovation through January 15, 2027. Embassy Suites puts you on the public beach with 2-queen suites that sleep six, but its daily resort charge and parking add about $70 a night.
For a week, a condo can make sense. Caribe Resort's unit listings advertise a 7th night free on 7+ night stays (code 7THNIGHTFREE) and low monthly rates from November to February, and the Courtyard advertises savings on 5+ nights. Caribe puts the east-side courses closer and the west side farther.
Day 1: Land and play twilight at Gulf Shores Golf Club
Pensacola is about 69 minutes from Gulf Shores, so a midday landing still leaves daylight. Gulf Shores Golf Club is the closest regulation course to the beach, a watery par 71 renovated by Jay and Carter Morrish in 2005-06. Twilight was $99 from about 1:30 to 2 pm in October and November 2026 and $79 from 12:30 pm in early December, cart included. The 601-yard 7th is the par 5 the club calls the toughest in Baldwin County. See the Gulf Shores Golf Club course guide.
Day 2: Kiva Dunes on Fort Morgan Road
Drive 20 minutes west to the area's top-ranked public course, Golf Digest's #13 in Alabama (2025-26). Jerry Pate's links-style layout runs east-west on a narrow peninsula, so the Gulf breeze crosses almost every fairway. Current USGA ratings are 74.9/142 from the 7,122-yard Golds and 72.0/137 from the 6,505-yard Blues. Download the free yardage book before you go; reviewers say hidden water catches first-timers.
Late-October 2026 rates were $174.77 before 2 pm and $144.86 after. Book this one first: public times open 120 days out.
Day 3: Craft Farms, Palmer day
Craft Farms has Alabama's only Arnold Palmer designs, 8 minutes from the base. Play Cypress Bend, the shorter 18 (6,848 yards) with water on nearly every hole and the higher slope (135 from the tips). If you want more, Cotton Creek, the longer tree-lined 18 (7,127 yards, 74.2/129), is off the same clubhouse. See the Cypress Bend course guide.
The daily public rate isn't published; check the tee sheet. Twilight starts after 2 pm.
Day 4: Lost Key on Perdido Key
Head 35 minutes east to Lost Key, across the Florida line but on Central time. It's the best-conditioned course in this group, with Sea Dwarf paspalum tee to green and top condition scores in its September and October 2026 reviews. It is tight and wet: 143 slope from the Black tees at 6,801 yards, 128 from the Whites. Online rates for late October 2026 were $80 before about 1 pm and $65 after, plus 7.5% Florida tax and a 3% card fee. The tee sheet opens 14 days out at midnight. See the Lost Key course guide.
Day 5: Rest day, or Peninsula
Your back will thank you for a day off by Thursday. If you can't sit still, Peninsula is 10 minutes away: 27 holes by Earl Stone among live oaks, marsh and more than 30 lakes, next to the Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge. The club picks your two nines on the day. From November 15, 2026 to March 31, 2027 it prices dynamically from $89, cheaper the earlier you book.
For a lighter day, the city-run Orange Beach Golf Center (10 minutes) has a par-3 nine at $15 walking and a lighted range open until 9 pm.
Day 6: An Eastern Shore round
Go north to the bay side for a different kind of course.
- Option A: Lakewood Azalea (47 minutes). The Grand Hotel's friendlier 18, with a par-5 14th to a peninsula green in a four-acre lake. The Lakewood rack rate with cart was $226 through November 30, 2026 and $205 from December 1 to February 28, 2027. Cart mandatory, and advance tee times are online only, 7 days out. Azalea's weekly maintenance day is Monday, which is why it sits on a Friday here. Compare it with Dogwood in Lakewood Azalea vs Dogwood.
- Option B: Rock Creek, Fairhope (53 minutes). A hilly Earl Stone course where the 2nd drops 70 feet from tee to fairway. October 2026 prices fell from $89 in the morning to $41-$47 from 2 to 3 pm. The public online window is 7 days.
Our Fairhope, Point Clear and Daphne golf guide covers the rest of the Eastern Shore.
Day 7: Perdido Bay on the way out
Perdido Bay is near Lost Key on the Pensacola side, so it's on your way to the airport. It hosted the PGA Tour's Pensacola Open from 1978 to 1987 and plays 7,052 yards from the Golds (74.3/138), with the back nine the harder half. The 2026 rate card ran $85 from 7:30 am to 1 pm (tax included). No singles or twosomes before 10 am.
What does a golf week in Gulf Shores cost?
Per player, cart included, rates seen October 2026:
| Day | Course | Late fall 2026 | Winter 2026-27 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gulf Shores Golf Club, twilight | $99 | $79 (from 12:30 pm) |
| 2 | Kiva Dunes, morning | $174.77 | $130.84 |
| 3 | Craft Farms | Not published | $70 with the winter Six-Pack |
| 4 | Lost Key, online morning | $80 | Winter rate not posted |
| 5 | Peninsula (optional) | Not captured | From $89 |
| 6 | Lakewood / Rock Creek after 2 pm | $226 / about $45 | $205 / not captured |
| 7 | Perdido Bay, morning | $85 | Winter rate not posted |
On this Gulf Shores golf week itinerary, the five priced rounds come to about $665 in late fall with Lakewood, or about $484 with Rock Creek in the afternoon. Moving Kiva Dunes to after 2 pm saves another $30. The Craft Farms Six-Pack ($420 for six rounds, orders due November 15, 2026, limit two rounds per card per day) only pays off if you'll play six Craft Farms rounds by mid-February.
Variation: finish on the RTJ Trail
If you fly home from Mobile Regional (MOB) in west Mobile, swap Day 7 for Magnolia Grove, also in west Mobile, about 96 minutes from Gulf Shores. RTJ's Swing special pairs one round at Lakewood with one at Magnolia Grove for $295 in fall (September 8 to November 15, 2026) or $216 in winter (November 16, 2026 to March 7, 2027), booked through RTJ Reservations at least 48 hours ahead. Magnolia Grove's Crossings course hosted LPGA and Korn Ferry events. Our RTJ Trail near Gulf Shores post has the details.
Adjust the week for the season
- October and November: the best weeks, with highs of about 70F to 79F. The National Shrimp Festival normally fills Gulf Shores one October weekend; the 2026 festival was canceled because of Hurricane Isaias.
- December and January: highs of 61F to 64F, the cheapest rates, and short days. Gulf Shores Golf Club's twilight starts at 12:30 pm. Bermuda that isn't overseeded is tan.
- February to May: peak season and prices; spring break fills March and April, and March is the windiest month. Book Kiva Dunes the day its 120-day window opens.
- June to September: highs of 86F to 89F, storms on 9 to 13 days a month, hurricane season. Tee off at dawn, and check aeration dates (Lakewood Azalea aerifies in early August).
The full list of booking windows is in Gulf Shores tee times booking. Shorter trips: the Gulf Shores golf weekend guide and the 5-day Gulf Shores and Eastern Shore itinerary, which moves you to the Grand Hotel for the last two nights. Staying a month or more? See snowbird golf in Gulf Shores.
Plan it on the map
Every course and hotel in this Gulf Shores golf week itinerary is on the 3D map of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach golf. Click your base to see drive times to each tee, then swap courses until the week fits your group.
Courses in this guide
Questions golfers ask
How many rounds should you play in a week of golf in Gulf Shores?
Six rounds in seven days with one rest day is a good pace. This plan covers Gulf Shores Golf Club, Kiva Dunes, Craft Farms, Lost Key, an Eastern Shore course and Perdido Bay, and every drive from a central Hwy 59 base is under an hour.
Where should you stay for a golf week in Gulf Shores?
A central base on Hwy 59 keeps the week simple. From Hampton Inn Gulf Shores the estimated drives are 3 minutes to Gulf Shores Golf Club, 8 to Craft Farms, 20 to Kiva Dunes, 35 to Lost Key and 47 to Lakewood. Some condos discount weeklong stays, such as Caribe Resort's 7th-night-free code on 7+ night stays.
How much does a golf week in Gulf Shores cost?
Using rates seen in October 2026, five of the six rounds in this plan add up to about $665 per player in late fall with Lakewood, or about $484 if you swap in Rock Creek after 2 pm. The Craft Farms daily rate isn't published, so add that round.
Should a golf week in Gulf Shores include the Eastern Shore?
One day is worth it. Lakewood at the Grand Hotel is about 51 minutes from central Gulf Shores and has two RTJ Trail 18s; Rock Creek in Fairhope is about 57 minutes and its afternoon rates roughly halve. Both make a good change from the beach courses.
What is the best week of the year for a Gulf Shores golf trip?
A week in October or early November gives highs of about 70 to 79F and some of the fewest rain days of the year. March to May has similar weather but peak green fees and spring break crowds; December and January are cheapest but cooler and shorter.
Can you combine Lakewood and Magnolia Grove in one golf week?
Yes. RTJ's Swing special pairs one round at Lakewood with one at Magnolia Grove: $295 in fall (September 8 to November 15, 2026) and $216 in winter (November 16, 2026 to March 7, 2027). Book through RTJ Reservations at least 48 hours ahead.
How far ahead should I book tee times for a golf week in Gulf Shores?
Lock Kiva Dunes first; it opens 120 days out. Gulf Shores Golf Club opens 46 days ahead, Lost Key and Perdido Bay 14 days, and Lakewood online tee times only 7 days (RTJ packages can be booked up to 12 months out).
Keep reading
ItinerariesA 5-Day Gulf Shores and Eastern Shore Golf Itinerary: Beach Courses, Then the Grand HotelA 5-day Gulf Shores and Eastern Shore golf itinerary: Kiva Dunes and Craft Farms, then Lakewood at the Grand Hotel, with drive times and fees seen Oct 2026.7 min read
TipsSnowbird Golf Gulf Shores Guide: How to Set Up a Month or More of Winter GolfSnowbird golf Gulf Shores guide: what a month of winter golf costs, 30-day memberships vs six-packs, monthly condos and where to base. Seen October 2026.8 min read
CoursesThe Best Golf Courses in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, RankedThe best golf courses in Gulf Shores ranked: Kiva Dunes, Craft Farms, Peninsula, Lost Key and more, with rankings, slopes, fees seen October 2026 and tips.8 min read