10 Best Golf Courses in Turkey: A Practical 2026 Ranking
Compare Turkey's 10 best golf courses by design, difficulty, condition, access and facilities, with practical advice for choosing the right course.
Compare Turkey's 10 best golf courses by design, difficulty, condition, access and facilities, with practical advice for choosing the right course.
Turkey’s strongest golf courses are concentrated around Belek, but the best national shortlist should not stop at Antalya. Carya takes first place for its distinctive heathland-style design and night-golf capability, while Montgomerie Maxx Royal offers the strongest championship test. Lykia Links and Kuşadası International earn places because they provide coastal and hill-country golf that feels genuinely different from Belek’s pine-lined resort layouts.
This ranking is for visitors choosing where to spend limited rounds. It is not based on advertising relationships, and TurkicPost has not claimed first-hand play where none was conducted.
Last checked: 14 October 2026. Course specifications were verified using club websites, the Turkish Golf Federation and official tourism sources. Maintenance, visitor access and green fees can change; confirm them directly before booking.
How we ranked the courses
Each course was assessed using the same seven factors:
| Criterion | What we considered |
|---|---|
| Design | Variety, strategic choices and how naturally holes use the land |
| Condition | Published maintenance information and recent player reporting |
| Challenge | Length, hazards, shot demands and handicap suitability |
| Visitor access | Whether visiting golfers can realistically obtain a tee time |
| Facilities | Practice areas, clubhouse, coaching and equipment support |
| Distinctiveness | Whether the round adds something unavailable elsewhere in Turkey |
| Trip value | Location, nearby courses and usefulness within a multi-round holiday |
Condition is deliberately not treated as permanent. Belek courses overseed at different times, and temporary greens, buggy restrictions or recently reopened turf can materially change a round.
The best golf courses in Turkey at a glance
| Rank | Course | Area | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carya Golf Club | Belek | Distinctive design and night golf |
| 2 | Montgomerie Maxx Royal | Belek | Championship challenge |
| 3 | Cornelia Faldo Course | Belek | Strategic variety over several rounds |
| 4 | Antalya PGA Sultan | Belek | Strong players who enjoy demanding approaches |
| 5 | Gloria Old Course | Belek | Mature, tight, tree-lined golf |
| 6 | Gloria New Course | Belek | Resort golf with extensive practice facilities |
| 7 | National Golf Club | Belek | Traditional forest layout and history |
| 8 | Lykia Links | Antalya coast | Coastal wind and links-style play |
| 9 | Cullinan Links | Belek | Water views and modern resort facilities |
| 10 | Kuşadası International | Aydın | Elevation changes and Aegean scenery |
Places 1-7 are all in Belek, Turkey’s resort-golf hub — which is why they also anchor our separate, more detailed Belek course-by-course ranking with full booking and logistics advice for each. Here, the focus is narrower: why each one earns a place in the national top 10, not how to book it.
1. Carya Golf Club, Belek
Carya tops the national list because nothing else in Turkey offers the same combination: a heathland-style design that doesn’t feel like a standard resort parkland course, plus full-course floodlighting that no other course on this list has. That second point alone makes it a genuinely different proposition nationally, not just a strong Belek course.
2. Montgomerie Maxx Royal, Belek
The strongest pure championship test in the country. Designed by Colin Montgomerie across 104 hectares of pine forest and sandy ridges, it’s the national benchmark for players who want tournament-calibre difficulty rather than a relaxed holiday round.
3. Cornelia Faldo Course, Belek
Nationally, Cornelia’s case rests on its 27-hole flexibility — few other courses in Turkey let you play a different 18-hole combination on a repeat visit without leaving the complex.
4. Antalya PGA Sultan, Belek
The second serious championship-level test on this list after Montgomerie, with a different character: heavier bunkering and water play rather than length. Confident players comparing Turkey’s hardest courses should put these two head to head.
5. Gloria Old Course, Belek
Represents mature woodland golf on the national list — tighter, tree-lined and more old-fashioned in character than most of the newer resort courses it’s ranked alongside.
6. Gloria New Course, Belek
Earns its national spot less for individual distinction and more for what it enables: part of a 45-hole complex, it’s one of the most practical single bases in the country for a multi-round, course-focused stay.
7. National Golf Club, Belek
Included for its historical role in Belek’s development as a golf destination, offering a more traditional pine-forest character than the newer resort courses around it.
Full course-by-course logistics, practice facilities, tee recommendations and what to check before booking any of these seven are in our dedicated Belek golf course guide, which also covers five further Belek courses not in this national top 10.
8. Lykia Links, Antalya coast
Lykia Links earns its position by being different. Its exposed seaside setting brings wind, firm-looking contours and a broader horizon into play, creating a contrast with the protected forest courses around central Belek.
It is less convenient for a tightly packed Belek itinerary, so transport time must be considered. That inconvenience is also why it can add more value than playing another similar pine-lined layout.
Choose Lykia Links for: coastal scenery, wind management and variety within a longer Antalya golf trip.
9. Cullinan Links Golf Club, Belek
Cullinan combines modern resort infrastructure with holes shaped around water and coastal views. It is a sensible choice for visitors who prioritise presentation, convenient hotel access and a contemporary clubhouse experience.
The amount of water can make the course visually impressive but costly for inconsistent hitters. Check the operating routing, tee options and any maintenance work rather than relying on older reviews under previous course branding.
Choose Cullinan for: a modern resort experience and visually dramatic water-side holes.
10. Kuşadası International Golf Club, Aydın
Kuşadası International gives this ranking geographic balance and a different type of golf. Its elevated Aegean setting creates changes in level and broad views, so stance, club selection and wind can matter more than on flatter resort land.
It makes most sense for travellers already visiting Kuşadası, Ephesus or the wider Aegean coast. It is not a practical add-on to a short Belek holiday.
Choose Kuşadası for: elevation changes, Aegean scenery and a golf round within a broader cultural trip.
Which course should you choose?
- One round only: Carya for distinctiveness or Montgomerie for difficulty.
- First golf trip to Turkey: combine Carya, Gloria New and Cornelia for three different tests.
- Low-handicap group: Montgomerie, PGA Sultan and Gloria Old.
- Mixed-ability group: Gloria New, Cornelia and a carefully selected tee at Carya.
- Something unlike central Belek: Lykia Links or Kuşadası International.
- Night golf: start with Carya, but confirm the current floodlit operation before paying.
Our detailed guide to Belek’s best golf courses compares the resort-area options in more depth. Travellers choosing accommodation can also compare the best golf resorts in Belek by course access, transfer time and non-golf facilities.
Booking checks that prevent a disappointing round
Before paying, ask the club or booking provider to confirm:
- whether the course is on full greens;
- recent aeration or overseeding dates;
- buggy availability and any path-only rule;
- handicap-certificate requirements;
- club, trolley and shoe rental;
- transfer arrangements from your hotel;
- what the quoted fee actually includes.
A cheap tee time immediately after major maintenance may offer worse value than a higher price on a fully recovered course.
