Aviara Golf Club is the course of the Park Hyatt Aviara resort in Carlsbad, about 30 miles up the coast from downtown San Diego. It is the only course in San Diego that Arnold Palmer designed, and it opened in July 1991. You do not need a room to play: the club sells public tee times, with a longer booking window for Hyatt guests. The setting is the draw. Fairways run through rolling hills planted with native Southern California wildflowers, with the Batiquitos Lagoon nature preserve below and the Pacific beyond it.
Aviara Golf Club green fees and tee times.
Public golfers can book up to 60 days ahead, and Hyatt guests up to 90 days, online through the club’s tee-time system or by calling the golf shop on (760) 603-6900. Green fees include a cart and range balls; without a tee time the range costs US$25 an hour. Rates fall at noon and again at 3pm, which is the cheapest way on for visitors. Children must be at least seven to play or to ride along with an adult. Groups of 12 or more go through the golf sales manager on (760) 603-6925, not the online system. The golf shop opens at 6:30am from Tuesday to Sunday and at 8am on Mondays, and the range closes at 5pm (4pm on Sundays).
INDICATIVE GREEN FEE · CHECKED NOVEMBER 2026From US$200
Public 18-hole rate from 3pm, 1 November to 31 December, cart and range balls included; mornings US$350. Hyatt guests pay US$50 less in each window.
Public, 7am to 11:51am
US$350
Public, noon to 2:51pm
US$275
Public, from 3pm
US$200
Hyatt guest, 7am to 11:51am
US$300
Hyatt guest, from 3pm
US$150
Prices change by season and booking route, so confirm the current rate with the operator. Official rates ↗
The round, in perspective.
Palmer and The Palmer Course Design Company built a par 72 that stretches to 7,007 yards from the Palmer tees, with Back and Middle sets at 6,591 and 6,054 and a Forward set at 5,007 for women. From the tips the club lists a rating of 74.7 and a slope of 141. The holes are carved into hillsides rather than laid flat, so you meet sidehill lies, plenty of bunkering and several water features. Greens are large and strongly contoured. GOLF’s 2022 visit singled out the 10th, a sharp dogleg left with a forced carry over a pond, and the 15th, a par four of nearly 480 yards that bends left and shares a double green with the 12th. The rough is ryegrass and grabs the club.
Know before you go.
Booking window
60 days public; 90 days Hyatt guests
Included
Cart and range balls with the green fee
Minimum age
7, including children riding along
Rental clubs
US$150, TaylorMade or Callaway, with 6 balls and a glove
Groups
12+ players through the golf sales manager
Make the trip work.
The published rate sheet changes by season, and the November to December table is the one live now, so check the new sheet if you are travelling in the new year. If you are flying in with a light bag, the shop rents TaylorMade and Callaway sets for US$150, with six balls and a glove. The resort has more to offer the serious player than a tee time: Kip Puterbaugh’s Aviara Golf Academy runs one-, two- and three-day schools on site, and the TaylorMade Aviara Performance Center does full club fittings on grass. TaylorMade and Callaway both have their headquarters in Carlsbad. The golf page also lists greens aerification dates, worth checking before you commit.
San Diego International (SAN) is about 30 miles south, roughly 40 minutes on Interstate 5 outside rush hour. Leave the freeway at Poinsettia Lane and the clubhouse is on Batiquitos Drive. The Coaster commuter train stops at Carlsbad Poinsettia station, a short taxi ride from the course, if you would rather not drive from downtown.
Park Hyatt Aviara sits on a plateau above the lagoon, a Spanish Colonial building completed in 1997 with 327 rooms and 43 suites, a Miraval spa and several pools. Staying there earns the 90-day booking window, the lower Hyatt rate and range access through the resort fee. Omni La Costa, a few minutes inland, is the obvious alternative if you want its two courses too. For something less formal, Carlsbad Village has small hotels and inns within walking distance of the beach and the Coaster station.
Make a trip of it.
The Omni La Costa North Course is a short drive east, though you must stay at the resort to play it. Torrey Pines, the municipal site of the 2008 and 2021 US Opens, is about 20 miles south on the same freeway. Off the course, the Batiquitos Lagoon trail runs along the north shore of the lagoon beside the course, the Flower Fields bloom in spring a few miles north, and LEGOLAND California is in Carlsbad if you are travelling with children.
Find your season.
Coastal San Diego plays year-round. Winter brings the clearest mornings and the highest demand, which is why the noon and 3pm bands matter. May and June are often grey until midday under the marine layer. Late summer and autumn are the warmest and driest months by the coast.
Can you play Aviara without staying at the Park Hyatt?
Yes. Aviara is a public-access course and anyone can book, up to 60 days ahead. Staying at the Park Hyatt extends that window to 90 days, cuts US$50 off each published rate band and folds range use into the resort fee.
How much are Aviara green fees?
From 1 November to 31 December the public rate is US$350 before noon, US$275 from noon to 2:51pm and US$200 from 3pm, all including a cart and range balls. Hyatt guests pay US$300, US$225 and US$150 in the same bands.
Did Aviara host an LPGA event?
Yes. The LPGA Tour’s Kia Classic moved to Aviara in 2013, and by 2021 the course had hosted it eight times in nine years, each March. It was being played as the JTBC Classic by 2022. Plaques for past winners hang in the clubhouse locker room.
Where can you eat at Aviara Golf Club?
Ember & Rye, a steakhouse from chef Richard Blais, overlooks the 18th green and is open daily from 11:30am. A snack bar between the 9th green and 10th tee takes advance orders for pick-up at the turn.
Last checked 10 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.
