Stone walls, the original Redan and the Bass Rock, a train ride from Edinburgh.
North Berwick’s West Links starts beside the town’s harbour and beach and runs west along the Firth of Forth, with the Bass Rock and its gannet colony out to sea. The club was founded in 1832, making it one of the oldest in the world. The West Links is full of features that modern courses rarely attempt: stone walls in play, blind approaches and a green tucked behind a wall. It is also the easiest great links to reach from Edinburgh by train.
Visitors can play from 1 March to 31 October in 2027, booking online, through the enquiry form or by calling the bookings office on +44 (0)1620 895040. Visitor tee times run Monday to Thursday from 11am to 2.50pm and on Sundays from noon to 3.50pm. There is no visitor play on Fridays or Saturdays. A four-ball should finish within three hours 40 minutes, and the club asks everyone to play ready golf. Juniors aged 17 and under pay half price with proof of handicap. The undulating ground is unsuitable for buggies; push trolleys cost £5 and electric trolleys £20, booked in advance.
Visitor green fee, Monday–Thursday, March 2027 (fairway mats may be in use). £360 Monday–Thursday and £380 on Sundays from April to October 2027. Prices change by season and booking route, so confirm the current rate with the operator. Official rates ↗
Much of the course’s fame rests on holes that architects have copied around the world. The 15th, Redan, is a par three to a green that slopes away from the front left, and countless “Redan” holes in America take their name from it. The 13th, Pit, asks you to pitch over an old stone wall to a green sunk in a hollow. The 16th, Gate, has a green split into two plateaus by a deep gully. The 1st plays out along the beach, and the course is short by modern standards at around 6,500 yards and par 71, but it does not play short.
The narrow visitor window means you should fix your North Berwick date before the rest of an East Lothian itinerary. A Sunday or midweek late-morning start leaves time for lunch in town. Clubhouse dress rules are relaxed but exclude tracksuits and ripped jeans, and on the course jeans, cargo shorts and T-shirts are not allowed. North Berwick also has the Glen Golf Club’s East Links on the other side of town for a second round.
Edinburgh Airport is about 35 miles away, roughly 50 minutes by road. Trains from Edinburgh Waverley reach North Berwick in about 35 minutes, and the station is a ten-minute walk from the first tee, so you can leave the car behind.
Nearby: 1. The Glen Golf Club (2 km) · 2. Muirfield (6 km) · 3. Gullane Golf Club (No. 1 Course) (7 km) · 4. Craigielaw Golf Club (11 km) · 5. Kilspindie Golf Club (11 km) · 6. Longniddry Golf Club (14 km) · Compare all East Lothian tee times
The Marine North Berwick hotel overlooks the West Links from the west end of the course. In town, guest houses and small hotels line the streets back from the harbour. Gullane, ten minutes west, has Greywalls, an Edwardian house hotel beside Muirfield. Many golfers stay in Edinburgh and take the train out for the day.
East Lothian has a dense cluster of links: Gullane No. 1, Muirfield (which takes visitors on set days), Dunbar and the Glen are all within 20 minutes. Kilspindie in Aberlady is a short, charming round. Off the course, boat trips from the Scottish Seabird Centre at the harbour go out to the Bass Rock, home to one of the largest northern gannet colonies in the world. Tantallon Castle, a red sandstone ruin on the cliffs, is three miles east.
These packages have a confirmed round at North Berwick Golf Club (West Links) in the itinerary, with the other courses, nights and hotels listed so you can compare like with like.
7 nights B&B, 4 rounds plus an Old Course ballot attempt
Rounds: Kingsbarns · Carnoustie Championship · Gullane No. 1 · North Berwick West Links
Stay: 4 nights in St Andrews, 3 in North Berwick
Four nights in St Andrews gives you four chances in the Old Course ballot, with Kingsbarns and Carnoustie confirmed either way.
10 nights B&B, 8 rounds
Rounds: Western Gailes · Prestwick · Royal Troon · Dunbar · Crail Balcomie · Carnoustie · Kingsbarns · North Berwick
Stay: Ayrshire, East Lothian and Fife, including Rusacks St Andrews
Eight links in ten nights, mixing Open venues with Prestwick and Western Gailes, which many first trips miss.
Prices are Golfbreaks’ published per-person guide prices in US dollars, checked November 2026; your quote depends on dates and group size. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. How we work
Visitor season runs from March to October in 2027, with lower March rates when fairway mats may be used. East Lothian is among the driest and sunniest parts of Scotland. The gannets on the Bass Rock are present roughly from February to October.
Explore golf by monthVisitors can book Monday to Thursday between 11am and 2.50pm and on Sundays between noon and 3.50pm in the 2027 season, which runs from 1 March to 31 October. There is no visitor play on Fridays or Saturdays.
From April to October 2027, a visitor round costs £360 Monday to Thursday and £380 on Sundays. In March it costs £260 Monday to Thursday and £280 on Sundays, when mats may be in use.
Yes. Direct trains run from Edinburgh Waverley in about 35 minutes, and the station is around ten minutes’ walk from the clubhouse. It is one of the simplest car-free golf days in Scotland.
The 15th, a par three to a green angled away from the player and sloping from front left to back right. It gave its name to “Redan” holes copied by architects worldwide, especially in the United States.
Last checked 4 October 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.
How we research our guidesPhoto credits and licencesShared greens, the Swilcan Bridge, and the town where golf feels at home.
A modern links shaped by hand above the Fife shore, six miles from St Andrews.
Eight Opens, the Barry Burn and a finish that has humbled the best in the game.
