Planning an Orlando golf trip: areas, season, guest-only courses and where to stay
Plan an Orlando golf trip: which area to base in, when to go, the courses that need a room, resort fees vs vacation homes, airports and booking windows.
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An Orlando golf trip works best when you pick the area first and the hotel second. The bookable courses sit in clusters, Disney and Lake Buena Vista, Winter Garden, Kissimmee and ChampionsGate, so a good base cuts the driving. Go in November or December for dry weather before peak prices, and know that Bay Hill, Reunion and Tranquilo need a room.
This guide explains how a Central Florida golf trip fits together: the areas, the season, the guest-only courses and the choice between a resort and a vacation home. Prices were seen in November 2026 and change by season.
Quick facts
- Courses on our map: 86 around Orlando; 57 are public or semi-private and 11 resort courses also sell public tee times.
- Guest-only: Bay Hill (Lodge guests), Reunion (resort and partner-rental guests), Tranquilo (Four Seasons guests).
- Peak season: January to April. Cheapest: June to September.
- Main airport: MCO, about 28 minutes from downtown with no traffic.
- Resort fees: $47-62 a night at the golf resorts in our files; none at Disney-owned hotels.
- Time zone: Eastern, the same as Ontario, Quebec and New York.
How an Orlando golf trip fits together
Think of the board as five golf areas strung along I-4 and the toll roads. Drive times below are free-flow estimates from downtown Orlando.
| Area | Courses worth a round | Drive from downtown | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Disney and Lake Buena Vista | Magnolia, Palm, Lake Buena Vista, Waldorf Astoria, Grand Cypress | 26-34 min | families, park days |
| I-Drive and south Orlando | Shingle Creek, Grande Lakes, Bay Hill (Lodge guests) | 22 min | convention trips, couples |
| Winter Garden and Clermont | Orange County National, Stoneybrook West, Clermont National | 25-33 min | golf-first groups |
| Kissimmee, ChampionsGate, Davenport | ChampionsGate, Reunion (guests), Providence, Southern Dunes | 31-52 min | vacation-home groups, snowbirds |
| Winter Park, Seminole, east | Dubsdread, Winter Park, Mayfair, Eagle Creek | 9-29 min | city stays, SFB arrivals |
Most visitors split time between two neighbouring areas. A Winter Garden base reaches Orange County National in a few minutes and Disney via SR-429. A ChampionsGate base reaches the Omni's two courses, Reunion and the Davenport courses. For a deeper area view, read Central Florida golf and where to stay in Orlando for golf.
When to go
| Months | Season | MCO high/low (NOAA normals) | What it means for golf |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan-Apr | Peak | 72/50F (Jan) to 84/61F (Apr) | highest fees, busy tee sheets, frost delays possible in January |
| May | Shoulder | 88/66F | shoulder rates, quieter courses |
| Jun-Sep | Summer | 90-92F highs, 72-74F lows | cheapest, afternoon storms on 14-17 days a month |
| Oct | Transition | 85/66F | overseeding begins at some courses |
| Nov-Dec | Shoulder | 78/58F (Nov), 74/53F (Dec) | driest months, overseed closures at Disney |
Events move prices. The PGA Show (trade only) fills International Drive hotels on January 26-29, 2027, with Demo Day at Orange County National on January 26. The Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill has tournament week March 15-21, 2027, on top of spring breaks and Canadian March break. The PNC Championship is at Grande Lakes on December 14-20, 2026. Hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, so insure summer and fall trips. Month by month detail is in the best time to golf in Orlando.
The courses that decide your base
Orlando's famous names are not open to everyone, so if one is on your list, it chooses your hotel:
- Bay Hill: members and guests staying at Arnold Palmer's Bay Hill Club & Lodge. See how to play Bay Hill.
- Reunion Palmer, Watson and Nicklaus: members, Reunion Resort guests and guests of partner vacation-home managers. See Reunion Resort golf.
- Tranquilo: guests of the Four Seasons Resort Orlando and members.
Everything else on this page can be booked without a room. Some resorts still help: Disney Resort hotel guests get a 90-day window, discounts and a free taxi to the Disney courses (from an undated golfwdw.com page), and Conrad and Evermore guests get preferred rates and earlier booking at Grand Cypress.
Resort or vacation home?
Golf resorts put the course at the door but add fees. From the files (third-party list, November 2026 unless noted):
| Stay | Resort fee per night | Parking | Courses on site |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes | $61.88 (April 2026) | valet $58 | Grande Lakes |
| Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate | $54.96 (May 2026) | self $38, valet $50 | International, National |
| Orlando World Center Marriott | $52.87 (May 2026) | self $40, valet $57 | Hawk's Landing |
| Reunion Resort | $47.40 | not read | Palmer, Watson, Nicklaus |
| Lodge at Orange County National | none found | not read | Panther Lake, Crooked Cat |
Rosen Shingle Creek is unusual: one source says no resort fee and another lists a $10 per person facilities fee, and self-parking runs $32-36 a night. Nightly room rates are not in our files; expect January to April to cost the most.
Vacation homes in ChampionsGate, Reunion, Davenport and Kissimmee are the value base for groups and families and the usual snowbird choice. Watch the details: Reunion rentals carry a compulsory resort fee that agencies quote at $35-40 per unit per night, and whether a ChampionsGate rental includes resort-rate golf depends on the owner. See Orlando vacation homes for golf.
Getting there and getting around
MCO is about 28 minutes from downtown and 29 from Disney Springs with no traffic. Its airline table lists Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, WestJet, Porter and Flair from Canada, and British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Aer Lingus from the UK and Ireland. Orlando Sanford (SFB) is mostly Allegiant, about 38 minutes from downtown and 60 from Disney Springs. Tampa is about 111 minutes from downtown.
You need a car. I-4 is the spine and the most congested road; SR-429, SR-417, SR-528 and Florida's Turnpike are toll roads, and rental-car toll programs add daily fees.
What an Orlando golf trip costs
Green fees run from under $40 to over $300. At the low end, Dubsdread was from $38.99 and Eagle Creek from $40 on GolfNow for November 5, 2026, and Winter Park Pines charges $55-60 with cart in winter. In the middle, Providence publishes $99-149 by season and ChampionsGate International showed $140-189 for November 5, 2026. At the top, the Ritz-Carlton course at Grande Lakes showed $299-375 for the public in a 2025 guide, plus caddie fees, and Streamsong, off the map to the south, charges day guests $445 from January 14 to April 30, 2027. Disney publishes seasonal discounts rather than dollar rates: about 20% off in fall and spring and about 40% off in summer against winter peak.
Add resort fees and parking to any resort stay, and toll-road fees to the car. Twilight rates are the easy saving: Disney's twilight is about 45% off the morning rate. Our Orlando golf rates guide has course-by-course figures.
A sample shape for four days
- Day 1: fly into MCO, nine holes at the Tooth or a twilight round, check in at Orange County National.
- Day 2: Panther Lake in the morning, Crooked Cat after lunch.
- Day 3: Disney's Magnolia early, a park or Disney Springs in the afternoon.
- Day 4: Shingle Creek or the Waldorf Astoria before the flight home.
For a group based south, swap in ChampionsGate International and Providence, which publishes $99 before 2 pm for November-December 2026. More options in our Orlando golf trip itinerary and the ChampionsGate International course guide. If you are weighing destinations, compare a Myrtle Beach golf trip.
Plan it on the map
Open the Orlando golf map to see every course, which ones need a room and which hotels sit closest. The $49 plan turns it into a day-by-day Orlando golf trip, including rounds fitted around park days, or a 2-12 week winter stay with a weekly course rotation. Our Disney course guide for Magnolia is a good place to start.
Courses in this guide
Questions golfers ask
When is the best time for an Orlando golf trip?
November and December are the sweet spot: NOAA normals at MCO give highs of about 78F in November and 74F in December, and they are the driest months. January to April is peak season with the highest fees. June to September is cheapest but has afternoon storms on 14-17 days a month.
Where should I stay for an Orlando golf trip?
It depends on the courses. Winter Garden suits Orange County National, Lake Buena Vista and Bonnet Creek suit Disney and the Waldorf, and ChampionsGate, Reunion and Davenport suit vacation-home groups. Bay Hill, Reunion and Tranquilo need a room or rental there.
How many days do I need for an Orlando golf trip?
Three to five days covers the main bookable courses. Group them by area, because free-flow drives between areas run 20-50 minutes and I-4 traffic often adds 15-45 minutes at busy hours.
Do Orlando hotels charge resort fees?
Most non-Disney golf resorts do. The files show $61.88 a night at the Ritz-Carlton Grande Lakes, $54.96 at the Omni ChampionsGate and $47.40 at Reunion, plus parking. Disney-owned resort hotels charge no resort fee, and the Lodge at Orange County National showed none.
Which airport is best for an Orlando golf trip?
Orlando International (MCO) is the main one, about 28 minutes from downtown and 29 from Disney Springs with no traffic. It has nonstops from Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary, London and Manchester among others. Orlando Sanford (SFB) is mostly Allegiant and about 60 minutes from Disney Springs.
Can a golf trip fit around Disney or Universal days?
Yes. Disney's Magnolia is roughly 10 minutes from Magic Kingdom by the course's estimate, so an early tee time leaves the afternoon for a park. In summer, golf at dawn and do parks or pools in the afternoon heat.
How far ahead should I book tee times?
As far as each course allows for January to April. Disney opens 90 days out, Grand Cypress 60 days for non-guests and Grande Lakes about four months for the public. Mayfair takes bookings 14 days ahead.
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