A thousand feet up, with the Atlantic on one side and the Caribbean on the other.
Apes Hill sits on high ground in St James, about 1,000 feet above sea level, where you can see both coasts of Barbados from the same fairway. It is the newest course on the island in its current form, rebuilt by the late Ron Kirby after the original club closed. There is no walk-up green fee. The club reserves the course for homeowners and people staying in its own villas, so the way to play is to book a short stay, which brings rounds of golf with it.
Apes Hill Barbados green fees and tee times.
Apes Hill says plainly that the championship course is reserved for homeowners and staying guests, and membership comes only through owning property. For a traveller, that means booking a villa through the resort’s holiday team via the enquiry form on its villa rental page. Every short stay includes golf: three rounds per stay in a three-bedroom villa and four in a four-bedroom villa, plus a private golf cart for getting around the estate. Before arrival, guests fill in a pre-arrival form so the guest experience team can set tee times. Members may also bring guests, who pay a guest golf fee. Villa prices and extra-round fees are given on request rather than published.
The round, in perspective.
The first course here opened in 2008 as part of a Landmark Land Company development, and closed in 2017. Glenn Chamandy, founder of Gildan Activewear, bought the property in 2019, and Ron Kirby rebuilt the course, with all eighteen holes reopening around 2022. Kirby redesigned the par threes at the fifth, eighth, twelfth and sixteenth, cut the bunker count from more than 100 to fewer than 50 and grassed the course with zoysia that needs much less water. The course now plays to a par of 71 over 7,041 yards, with deep, winding gullies full of monkeys running through it. The twelfth looks out over both the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic, and the sixteenth green sits on the edge of a lake.
Know before you go.
Who can play
Homeowners, members’ guests and villa guests
Rounds
3 per stay (3-bed villa) or 4 (4-bed villa)
Extras
Little Apes par-3 course, island-green 19th, floodlit range
Carts
Compulsory; private cart included with villa stays
Make the trip work.
Because rounds are counted per stay, not per person per day, work out how much golf your group actually wants before choosing between the Hilltop Villas, which look over the third fairway, and the Courtyard Villas, three-bedroom houses looking onto the eighteenth with sea views to the west. The estate also has a nine-hole par-three course called Little Apes, an island-green 19th hole, a floodlit range and a golf performance and teaching centre. A complimentary shuttle runs 11 minutes down to the resort’s beach club.
From Grantley Adams International (BGI) the drive runs up through St James to the ridge; allow a little longer than the 30 to 45 minutes Premier Golf gives for Sandy Lane on the coast below. Pre-book a private transfer or use the fixed-rate taxi rank. If you hire a car, you need your home licence and a Barbados visitor’s permit, which rental firms issue on the spot. Apes Hill puts Holetown just over ten minutes away and the east coast beaches about fifteen.
Staying on site is the point here. The Hilltop Villas and Courtyard Villas are the two rental collections, each with housekeeping, Wi-Fi and use of the gym, tennis and padel courts and hiking trails. If you want to be on the coast for part of the trip, split the week with a hotel in Holetown or Speightstown and come up to Apes Hill for the golf days, booking the villa for those nights.
Make a trip of it.
Sandy Lane’s Country Club and Royal Westmoreland are both on the west coast below Apes Hill and both take some outside play, so a villa week here can include them. Barbados Golf Club near the airport is the cheapest eighteen on the island. Off the course, Apes Hill points guests to Harrison’s Cave and St Nicholas Abbey with its heritage railway, and the Scotland District’s wild east coast at Bathsheba is a scenic drive away.
Find your season.
Height and the Atlantic trade winds keep Apes Hill cooler and breezier than the coast. The revived Barbados Open on the Legends Tour has been played here each year from 2024 to 2026, and Ian Woosnam is the club’s ambassador, so check the event dates if you want a quiet course. The driest months are roughly December to May.
Not as a paying day visitor. Apes Hill reserves its course for homeowners and staying guests, and membership is available only through property ownership. A member can bring a guest, who pays a guest fee. For most travellers, renting one of the resort’s villas is the realistic route.
How many rounds are included in an Apes Hill villa stay?
Apes Hill’s short stays include three rounds per stay in a three-bedroom villa and four in a four-bedroom villa. Each stay also includes a private golf cart, daily housekeeping, access to the guests-only beach club and use of the tennis, padel and gym facilities.
Who redesigned Apes Hill golf course?
The late Ron Kirby, after the original 2008 course closed in 2017 and was bought by Glenn Chamandy in 2019. Kirby rebuilt the par threes, halved the bunkers and switched to zoysia grass. The course is now par 71 and 7,041 yards.
How high is Apes Hill golf course?
The resort is set about 1,000 feet above sea level, close to the island’s highest point, which is why several holes look over both the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic. Holetown on the west coast is just over ten minutes’ drive down the hill.
Last checked 11 November 2026. This is an independent planning guide, not a first-hand review or a booking service. Check live availability, access, fees and travel details with the operator before booking. Airport suggestions are starting points for route planning.
