Cabot Cape Breton

Make a little room for Cape Breton.

Cabot brings golfers to Inverness, a small former mining town on Cape Breton’s west coast. Two courses ranked first and second in Canada, Cabot Cliffs and Cabot Links, share the property with The Nest, an 11-hole par-3 course. The season runs from May to October. Build your days around the golf, then leave time for the island itself.

Cabot Cape Breton green fees and tee times.

Resort guests book tee times along with lodging, and guest rates are lower. Non-resort guests can book up to 14 days ahead through Cabot’s online portal. Replay rounds on Links or Cliffs are priced at half rate on the same day; on weekends, and on peak-season weekdays, replays can be booked no earlier than 40 days ahead. Nine-hole evening rates start one hour after twilight. All prices are in Canadian dollars plus 14% HST. Accommodation takes a 50% deposit, refundable until 60 days before arrival.

The courses at Cabot Cape Breton.

Cabot Links

Canadian architect Rod Whitman’s course opened in 2012 as Canada’s first true links. It runs between the sea and the village of Inverness, every hole has a view of the ocean, and five play directly beside the beach. The 6th is a Cape hole curving around the harbour.

Cabot Cliffs

Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw’s course opened in 2015 and routes through dunes, woodland and along clifftops high above the water. The 4th has two greens. It is the higher-ranked of the two, though both share the same green fee.

The Nest

An 11-hole par-3 course by Rod Whitman and Dave Axland on the highest point of Cabot Cliffs. Bold greens and big views make it an ideal evening round or a family outing, and it costs a fraction of the main courses.

The round, in perspective.

Both 18-hole courses are walking-only links laid on sandy ground above the Gulf of St Lawrence, and both play firm and fast in summer. They differ more than their shared coastline suggests. Cabot Links sits low beside the town and harbour, with the beach alongside; Cabot Cliffs climbs up into dunes, forest and cliffs north of town. Winds off the water shape every round, and long putts from off the green are common. Many visitors play each course twice, with a replay at the reduced same-day rate.

Make the trip work.

Book lodging and golf together in winter or early spring for summer trips, and add caddie requests at the same time. Bag-carrying caddies must be requested at least 48 hours ahead by email. Medical carts are few, need a doctor’s note and must be driven by a caddie. A free shuttle loops between the Cabot Links and Cabot Cliffs areas. TaylorMade rental sets are available if you would rather not fly clubs.

Halifax Stanfield International is the main gateway, about 3.5 hours by road. Sydney (YQY) has scheduled flights and is about two hours away. Port Hawkesbury, an hour away, handles private aircraft, and Moncton is 4.5 hours. Helicopter transfers can be arranged.

Where it is.

Somewhere to settle in.

Cabot’s rooms range from Cabot Double and King rooms and Deluxe Kings in the lodge by Cabot Links to Hillside Homes, two- and four-bedroom villas, Dunes Cottages and Cliffs Residences of up to five bedrooms. Group trips often choose a cottage or residence. Inverness itself has a handful of inns and rentals; prices rise sharply in July and August.

Make a trip of it.

Highlands Links, Stanley Thompson’s classic in Cape Breton Highlands National Park at Ingonish, is the island’s other essential round. Bell Bay in Baddeck is a good stop on the way in. Inverness is on the Ceilidh Trail, a short drive from the Cabot Trail. The Glenora Distillery near Mabou makes single malt, and Mabou’s Red Shoe Pub is known for live Celtic music.

Find your season.

The 2026 season runs from 8 May to 25 October. Early and late weeks are cheapest; peak pricing applies from 26 June to 13 September. September often brings settled weather and quieter courses, and autumn colour on the Cabot Trail peaks in early October.