Byron Bay · Golf touring
Byron Bay golfing tours
Three genuinely different courses inside half an hour of each other — coastal wind on Broken Head Road, a Devlin and von Hagge routing above the Brunswick River, and flat country golf under Mt Chincogan. We drive, carry the clubs and sort the tee times.
Priced by group size, days and courses — enquire for a quote
Core courses
Three, all within 30 min
Format
Day trips or 3–4 day itineraries
Green fees
Paid direct to each club
Groups
Couples to societies
Best season
April–September
Why golf here
The Northern Rivers is one of the most under-rated golf regions in Australia
It is not marketed the way the Gold Coast is, and the courses are not household names. What it has instead is a genuinely unusual concentration: several distinct styles of golf, in beautiful country, close enough together that a three-day trip needs no long transfers at all.
Drive half an hour in this region and the golf changes completely. Byron Bay Golf Club sits on coastal land five kilometres south of town, where the wind is the defining factor and the ocean shows itself from several holes. Twenty minutes north, Ocean Shores Country Club runs through tidal lakes and native flora with the Koonyum Ranges behind it and Cape Byron in the distance. Inland from Brunswick Heads, Mullumbimby is flat, walkable country golf under a volcanic cone, bordered by sugar cane and grazing paddocks.
Three courses, three entirely different propositions, and no drive between them longer than about half an hour. For a golf trip that matters more than a marquee name does — it means you can play in the morning, be back at the coast by early afternoon, and do it again tomorrow somewhere that feels nothing like today.
What we actually do
Cooee Tours is a touring company, not a golf club and not a booking agent dressed up as one. What we provide is the part that makes a golf trip work: a vehicle and a driver, secure carriage for clubs and buggies, transfers between your accommodation and each course, coordination of tee times with the clubs, and someone who knows the roads handling the logistics while you play.
Green fees, cart hire and pro shop costs are paid directly to each club at their published rates. We do not bundle and mark them up, and we do not claim a commercial relationship with any club we do not have. What we do is make the day work — which, with a group, a set of tee times and three courses spread across a region, is most of the battle.
We have been running touring days out of Brisbane and the Northern Rivers since 1974, and the golf itineraries grew out of exactly the request you are probably about to make: a group with clubs, a few days, and no wish to drive themselves after a round.
The golf
The three core courses
These are the three that anchor almost every itinerary we run in the region. Details are current at the time of writing; always confirm specifics with the club when you book.
Byron Bay Golf Club
The closest course to town and the one most visitors play first. It sits at 62 Broken Head Road, roughly five kilometres south of the Byron Bay centre, spread across about 120 acres of coastal land opposite the Byron at Byron resort. It is an 18-hole championship layout playing to a par of 72, and it is open to the public.
How it plays
Wind. That is the short version and the honest one. The holes run in every direction across the property, which means that over eighteen holes you will meet the breeze from every angle, and on a blowy day club selection becomes the entire round. The same layout on a still morning plays considerably more kindly. Fairways are well maintained and the land is gently contoured rather than severe.
What is on site
Practice facilities include a driving range and putting greens, so it is a practical choice for the first morning of a trip when everyone wants a hit before they play. The clubhouse restaurant is well regarded and looks out over the course toward the Cape Byron lighthouse — which makes it a reasonable lunch stop even for the non-golfers in your party.
Why we start here
Proximity. If your group is staying in Byron itself, this is a five-kilometre transfer, which means an early tee time is genuinely easy and the rest of the day is still yours. It is also the course that most obviously feels like Byron Bay — coastal habitat, sea air, and the lighthouse in the background.
Ocean Shores Country Club
About twenty minutes north of Byron Bay on Orana Road, sitting just across the river from Brunswick Heads and around half an hour south of Coolangatta. An 18-hole championship course playing to par 72, designed by Bruce Devlin and Robert von Hagge.
The routing, which is the point
The layout comprises six par 3s, six par 4s and six par 5s, arranged so that the same par is never played on consecutive holes. It is a genuinely unusual piece of design and it changes how a round feels — there is no settling into a rhythm of similar holes, and you are constantly recalibrating. Golfers who have played a lot of courses tend to notice it by about the sixth hole.
The setting
The course is carved through native flora, tidal lakes and rivers, with the Koonyum Ranges as a backdrop to the west and Pacific Ocean views running south toward Cape Byron and its lighthouse. Greens are large and protected by extensive bunkering, which is where most of the defence lies. Practice facilities include a full driving range and putting greens.
The clubhouse
Modern, with dining and a front deck looking out over the ocean. During the humpback migration — roughly May to November — that deck is a legitimate whale-watching spot, which is not a sentence you get to write about many golf clubs. If your trip falls in that window, it is worth building in time after the round rather than heading straight back.
Bookings are essential here
Ocean Shores runs social golf on selected times across the week rather than open access, and has specific arrangements for larger social groups. This is precisely the sort of thing we sort out in advance — turning up hopeful is not a plan.
Mullumbimby Golf Club
Inland from Brunswick Heads on Jubilee Avenue, an 18-hole championship course playing to par 70 and measuring just under 5,700 metres from the back tees. It bills itself as Australia's friendliest golf club, and the reputation is well enough established that visitors mention it unprompted.
Country golf, properly
The course sits on generally flat terrain, bordered by sugar cane fields and grazing paddocks, with Mt Chincogan to the north and the Koonyum Range to the west. It is widely regarded as the best course to walk in the Northern Rivers — and if walking is not your preference, electric carts are available. Fairways are good and the greens are undulating. Water hazards and bunkers provide the challenge; the notable holes are the 10th and the 15th, known as the Billabong hole, where a hooked drive disappears into the cane.
Suits every standard
Multiple tee options run from back tees for players wanting a test through to social tees and forward tees for juniors and seniors. That flexibility is why mixed-ability groups tend to have their best day here — everyone plays the course that suits them and still finishes together.
Afterwards
The clubhouse bar is on the second floor with a deck overlooking the 9th and 18th greens, which is a fine place to sit and watch the rest of the group come in. There is a pro shop, a driving range and cart hire on site.
| Course | Holes / par | From Byron Bay | Character | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Byron Bay Golf Club 62 Broken Head Road | 18 · par 72 | ~5 km, under 10 min | Coastal, wind-exposed, ocean views from several holes | Day one |
| Ocean Shores Country Club Orana Road, Ocean Shores | 18 · par 72 | ~20 min north | Devlin & von Hagge; six each of par 3, 4 and 5; tidal lakes, big bunkered greens | The standout |
| Mullumbimby Golf Club Jubilee Avenue | 18 · par 70 | ~25 min inland | Flat, walkable country golf under Mt Chincogan; just under 5,700 m | Mixed abilities |
Further afield
The wider Northern Rivers
Beyond the core three
Stay longer than three days and the region opens up considerably. None of what follows is a substitute for the three courses above, but all of it is reachable, and groups wanting five or six rounds rather than three will end up here.
South toward Ballina and the Clarence
The southern run is the easiest extension, and it adds two courses inside half an hour before the drive gets long.
Ballina Golf & Sports Club
The main course south of Byron and the obvious first addition to a three-day trip, close to the Richmond River and to Ballina Byron Gateway Airport — which makes it a practical first or last round for anyone flying.
Teven Valley
A smaller layout in the country between Ballina and Alstonville, and a useful change of pace after two coastal rounds.
Push further down the coast and you reach Woodburn–Evans Head, the nine-hole course at Iluka, and the courses around Yamba and Grafton. These are day-trip distances rather than morning transfers, so they suit longer itineraries.
Inland to Lismore
Lismore Workers Golf Club is a friendly 18-hole course close to the city centre, roughly forty-five minutes from Byron through the hinterland. It pairs neatly with a hinterland day, since the drive takes you through the same country.
North into the Tweed
Murwillumbah, Kingscliff, Banora Point and Tweed Heads bring you to the edge of the Gold Coast's much larger golfing scene, with the caldera rim as a backdrop for most of the drive. For groups arriving through Gold Coast Airport this direction often makes more sense than heading south.
We can build any of these into a longer itinerary. Which ones are worth the drive depends on what you are after — a group chasing variety in layout will make different choices from one chasing the best-conditioned greens, and we will give you a straight answer about both rather than routing you toward whatever is easiest to arrange.
If your trip is going to spend real time north of the border, our Gold Coast touring and Cooee Golf pages cover that side of the region.
The shape of it
How a golf day runs
A single-course day, from the front door and back. Multi-day trips simply repeat the pattern at a different club.
EARLY
Collection and clubs loaded
We collect from your accommodation at a time set by the tee sheet, not the other way around. Clubs and buggies are loaded and secured by the driver — you carry nothing to the vehicle.
45 MIN BEFORE TEE
Arrival at the club
Dropped at the clubhouse door with time to check in at the pro shop, settle green fees and cart hire, and warm up on the range or putting green. Tee times are confirmed to you in writing before you travel, so there is nothing to negotiate on arrival.
THE ROUND
Play
Four to four and a half hours for eighteen holes at a normal pace. Your driver is not sitting in a car park watching the clock — on multi-course days we use the window to reposition, and on single-course days to run non-golfers wherever they would rather be.
AFTER
Clubhouse, and no one drives
This is the part that actually sells the service. A drink after a round is a normal part of golf, and it stops being a complication when nobody in the group is driving home. Time in the clubhouse is built into the schedule rather than squeezed.
LATE AFTERNOON
Back to base
Return transfer and clubs unloaded. On multi-day trips we confirm the next morning's collection time before we leave you.
Two rounds in a day
Keen groups sometimes want thirty-six holes, either at one club or split across two. It is achievable here because the courses are so close together, but it needs the tee sheets to cooperate and it makes for a long day in summer heat. Ask us and we will tell you honestly whether your dates make it sensible.
Longer trips
Multi-day itineraries
Three or four days is the sweet spot for this region. It is long enough to play each of the core courses properly, with a rest or exploring day in the middle if you want one, and short enough that the whole trip stays within a comfortable radius of a single base. You never need to pack and move.
⛳
Three days, three courses
Byron Bay, Ocean Shores and Mullumbimby, one per day, based in Byron or Brunswick Heads. The straightforward version and the one most groups take.
🌴
Four days, golf and hinterland
Three rounds plus a hinterland day — villages, rainforest and Minyon Falls — which gives the legs a break and keeps non-golfing partners genuinely happy.
🗺
Coast run
Extending south toward Ballina, Evans Head and Yamba, or north into the Tweed, for groups who want more courses than the core three.
✈
Fly-in golf weekend
Built around Ballina Byron Gateway or Gold Coast Airport arrivals, with hire clubs arranged in advance so you travel light.
We can work around accommodation you have already booked, or suggest where to stay for the courses you want to play. Because we are not tied to any one property, that suggestion is based on where it actually makes sense to be, not on who pays us.
Groups
Societies, corporate days and milestone trips
Golf societies, work groups, buck's weekends, club trips and significant-birthday groups are a large share of what we do in this region, and the logistics of each are slightly different.
What changes with group size
Above about a dozen players, tee sheets stop being flexible and start being the constraint that shapes the whole trip. Several clubs in the region have specific social-group arrangements with minimum numbers attached. Booking well ahead matters more than anything else you can do, and it is the first thing we will ask you about.
Vehicle configuration also changes. A group of eight with clubs is a different vehicle from a group of eight without, and a group of twenty needs a plan for both bags and bodies. We size the vehicle to the bags, not just the headcount — a mistake that is very easy to make and very unpleasant to discover on the first morning.
What stays the same
Nobody drives. That is the whole reason a group books a driven golf trip rather than hiring a van, and it holds whether there are four of you or twenty-four.
Planning a group trip?
Send us the numbers, the dates and roughly what standard of golfer you are dealing with, and we will come back with an itinerary and a quote rather than a brochure. If your dates will not work for the courses you want, we will say so.
The detail
What's included
Included
- Air-conditioned vehicle and professional driver for every touring day
- Secure carriage of clubs and buggies, loaded and unloaded for you
- Accommodation pick-up and drop-off
- All transfers between courses, clubhouses and your base
- Tee-time coordination with the clubs, confirmed in writing before you travel
- Airport transfers where arranged as part of the itinerary
- Bottled water on board
Not included
- Green fees — paid directly to each club at their published rate
- Motorised cart hire and club hire
- Pro shop purchases, competition entry and social fees
- Meals and drinks at the clubhouse
- Accommodation, unless quoted as part of a package
- Travel insurance
On pricing
Golf itineraries vary too much for a single headline figure to be useful — a couple playing one round is a different proposition from a society of twenty over four days. Tell us your numbers, dates and preferred courses and we will quote the whole thing properly. No booking fees, no card surcharge, and every inclusion and exclusion confirmed in writing before you commit.
Before you play
Kit, dress and etiquette
👕
Dress code
Collared shirt, tailored shorts or trousers, golf shoes with soft spikes. No denim, singlets or swimwear on course. Several clubs extend a neat standard into the clubhouse.
🌞
Sun
This is subtropical Australia and a round is four hours outdoors. Hat, high-SPF sunscreen and sunglasses are not optional, even on an overcast day.
🌬
Wind
At Byron Bay in particular, take a windproof layer. A sea breeze that is pleasant on the first tee is a different animal on an exposed back nine.
🏌
Hire clubs
Available through the pro shops at all three core courses. Arrange it through us in advance and the set is waiting rather than negotiated on the morning.
🕑
Pace of play
Four to four and a half hours is the expectation. Visiting groups that keep pace are welcomed back; those that do not, less so.
🦥
Local wildlife
Kangaroos, water birds and the occasional goanna share these courses. Give them room and play around them — the ball is not worth retrieving from a lake anyway.
Seasons
When to play
| Season | Conditions | Notes | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn (Mar–May) | Humidity dropping, courses recovering from the wet, mild days | Green and comfortable; excellent walking weather | Prime |
| Winter (Jun–Aug) | Clear, dry, mild days and cool mornings | Best conditions of the year; humpback migration visible from the Ocean Shores deck | Prime |
| Spring (Sep–Nov) | Warming up, afternoon storms building late in the season | Morning tee times increasingly worth the early alarm | Very good |
| Summer (Dec–Feb) | Hot, humid, wet season; afternoon storms common | Play early; courses can be soft after heavy rain | Early tee times only |
If you have a free choice of dates, come between April and September. The humidity has gone, the light is clear, and the courses are at their most pleasant to walk. Winter here does not mean cold golf — it means mild days, cool mornings and the best visibility of the year, with the added bonus that the humpbacks are moving up and down this coast between roughly May and November.
Summer golf is perfectly possible, but plan around it rather than through it: early tee times, plenty of water, and an acceptance that an afternoon storm may arrive. For a broader view of the region's seasons, see the best time to visit Byron Bay.
The rest of the party
If not everyone plays
A four-hour round is a long time to fill if you are not playing it, and a golf trip where half the party is bored is not a successful trip. So we build the days assuming some of your group would rather be elsewhere.
The geography helps enormously. Bangalow, Brunswick Heads and Mullumbimby are all a few minutes from the courses, and each is a genuinely good few hours — heritage main streets, providores, galleries, beaches and river swimming. Non-players get dropped somewhere worth being and collected when the round finishes.
On multi-day trips, the more common arrangement is to give the non-golfers a proper day of their own. Our hinterland and villages tour is the usual choice — villages, World Heritage rainforest and Minyon Falls — and it runs on the same day as a round without anyone having to compromise.
The things to do in Byron Bay page is worth handing to the non-golfers in your group; it will settle the question faster than you will.
Questions
Byron Bay golfing tour FAQs
Which golf courses do you play on a Byron Bay golfing tour?
The three courses closest to Byron Bay form the core of most itineraries: Byron Bay Golf Club, five kilometres south of town on Broken Head Road; Ocean Shores Country Club, about twenty minutes north; and Mullumbimby Golf Club, inland in the Brunswick Valley. Longer stays extend south to Ballina and Teven Valley, west to Lismore, or north toward the Tweed. Which combination suits you depends on how many days you have and whether you want coastal wind or sheltered country golf.
Do you book the tee times, or do we?
We coordinate tee times with the clubs as part of arranging your day, and confirm them back to you in writing before you travel. Green fees and cart hire are paid to each club and are not included in the touring price, which keeps things transparent — you pay the club's published rate rather than a marked-up bundle. For groups, several clubs have specific social-group arrangements and minimum numbers, and we will tell you where those apply.
Can you carry our clubs, and what if we are flying in?
Yes. Vehicles are configured for golf travel, with secure space for full bags and buggies, and we handle loading and unloading at every club. If you are flying in without clubs, all three core courses have hire sets available through their pro shops — tell us at the enquiry stage and we will arrange it so the sets are waiting rather than negotiated on the first tee.
How far apart are the courses?
Very close by golfing-holiday standards. Byron Bay Golf Club is about five kilometres from the centre of Byron. Ocean Shores is roughly twenty minutes north, sitting just across the river from Brunswick Heads and around half an hour south of Coolangatta. Mullumbimby is a short run inland from Brunswick Heads. That compactness is the whole argument for the region: you can play three genuinely different courses across three days without ever facing a long transfer.
Is Byron Bay Golf Club hard?
It is a par 72 championship layout spread over about 120 acres of coastal land, and the honest answer is that the difficulty depends almost entirely on the wind. The holes run in every direction, so on a breezy day you will face the wind from every angle across a round and club selection becomes the whole game. On a still morning it plays considerably more gently. Ocean views from several holes are the compensation either way.
What makes Ocean Shores Country Club different?
The routing. The course was designed by Bruce Devlin and Robert von Hagge, and it is laid out as six par 3s, six par 4s and six par 5s, arranged so the same par is never played on consecutive holes. The result is a round with an unusual rhythm — you are never settling into a run of similar holes. Add tidal lakes, large well-bunkered greens, the Koonyum Ranges to the west and ocean views toward Cape Byron, and it is the most distinctive layout in the region.
Is there golf that suits higher handicaps or social players?
Mullumbimby is the answer most often. It is an 18-hole par 70 measuring just under 5,700 metres from the back tees, built on generally flat ground, with multiple tee options including forward tees for juniors and seniors. It is widely reckoned the best course to walk in the Northern Rivers, and the club has built its reputation on being welcoming rather than intimidating. Social groups do well there.
Can non-golfers come along?
Yes, and a good number do. The itineraries are built so that a non-playing partner can be dropped into Bangalow, Brunswick Heads or Mullumbimby while the group plays, and collected afterwards. On multi-day trips we often run a hinterland or coastal day for the non-golfers on one of the golf days. Tell us the numbers and we will structure the vehicle and the schedule around both groups.
What is the dress code?
Standard Australian club golf attire: collared shirt, tailored shorts or trousers, and golf shoes with soft spikes. Denim, singlets and swimwear are not acceptable on course, and several clubs extend a neat-and-tidy standard into the clubhouse afterwards. Individual clubs set their own rules and we will confirm the specifics for your chosen courses before you travel.
When is the best time of year for a Northern Rivers golf trip?
Autumn and winter. From roughly April through September the humidity has dropped, the days are mild and clear, and the courses are at their most comfortable to walk. Winter also brings the humpback migration up this coast, which is a genuine bonus at Ocean Shores — the clubhouse deck looks out over the water. Summer golf is entirely possible but hot and humid, and afternoon storms are common, so early tee times matter.
Do you run multi-day golf trips?
Yes. Three and four-day itineraries are the sweet spot for this region — long enough to play the three core courses properly and add one further afield, short enough to keep the whole thing within an easy radius of one base. We can work with accommodation you have already booked or suggest options near the courses. Longer trips can push south to Yamba or north into the Tweed and the southern Gold Coast.
Can you collect us from the Gold Coast or Ballina airport?
Yes. Ballina Byron Gateway Airport is the closest, and Gold Coast Airport at Coolangatta is roughly half an hour north of Ocean Shores, which makes it a practical arrival point for a golf trip that starts at the northern end. Brisbane pick-ups are also possible for groups. Airport transfers are quoted with the rest of the itinerary.
Plan your Northern Rivers golf trip
Tell us your dates, your numbers and how much golf you actually want to play. We will come back with an itinerary, tee times and a straight quote.
Enquire nowOr call 0409 661 342 · contact@cooeetours.com.au