Top 10 Golf Courses in France
France arrived late to serious golf but has produced a remarkable set of courses in the century since the game took hold among its elite. The country now counts around 600 clubs and holds one of the most important events in the European calendar: the French Open, which has anchored the DP World Tour for decades. What makes French golf distinctive is the variety of its terrain — the links-like coastal sites of Normandy and the Atlantic, the forested parkland around Paris, the heathland of the Loire region, and the volcanic plateau of the Auvergne. The best French courses are genuinely world-class and, outside of Ryder Cup and tournament weeks, accessible to well-handicapped visitors at reasonable cost.
1. Le Golf National (Albatros Course), Guyancourt
Le Golf National is France's national championship course, designed by Hubert Chesneau and Robert Von Hagge and opened in 1990. It staged the Ryder Cup in 2018 — Europe's victorious home match — and hosts the French Open on the DP World Tour. The Albatros, par 72 over around 7,300 yards, is built on flat land near Versailles but uses water, wasteland and severe green contouring to create a course of great difficulty and visual drama. The island-green finishing hole is among the most recognisable on the European circuit. As a public course owned by the French Golf Federation, it is open to visitors; green fees are reasonable given its tournament pedigree, typically around €90–150.
2. Morfontaine Golf Club, Morfontaine
Morfontaine is the most private and arguably the most revered golf club in France. Tom Simpson designed the course in 1927 on sandy, forested terrain in the Oise valley north of Paris, and it remains essentially unchanged — a pre-war heathland masterpiece that sits comparison with the great English heathland courses of the same era. Par 70, around 6,200 yards, it is not long but its green complexes and precise bunkering demand a complete game. The club hosted the Eisenhower Trophy in 1968. Access requires an introduction through a member and is extremely limited; for those who manage it, it is consistently cited as one of the ten best courses in Europe.
3. Golf de Chantilly (Vineuil Course), Chantilly
Chantilly occupies a pine forest north of Paris in the shadow of the famous racecourse and château. Tom Simpson designed the Vineuil Course in 1909, and it has hosted the French Open multiple times. Par 71, around 6,700 yards, it is a classic forested parkland layout with generous fairways but notably fast, firm and contoured greens. The quality of the turf — maintained on sandy, free-draining soil — is consistently excellent, and the forest canopy provides shelter from wind in a way the Paris-region heathland courses do not. Chantilly is semi-private; visitor play is available on selected days through advance booking.
4. Les Bordes Golf International, Saint-Laurent-Nouan
Les Bordes is the most extraordinary private golf project in France. Robert von Hagge designed the original course in 1987 on a vast private estate in the Sologne forest, and it was long considered one of the best courses in the world — Severiano Ballesteros and other Tour players used it as a private retreat. A second 18-hole course, the New Course designed by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, opened in 2020. The Old Course, par 72, uses the estate's lakes and ancient oak forest with theatrical vision: massive water hazards, dramatic carries, enormous greens. Membership at Les Bordes is available but the club now offers limited visitor access through multi-day stay packages.
5. Terre Blanche Hotel Spa Golf Resort (Château Course), Tourrettes
Terre Blanche is the finest resort golf in Provence. Dave Thomas designed the Château Course in 2004 among the limestone hills and lavender fields of the Var, creating a parkland course of genuine beauty and challenge. Par 72, around 6,600 yards, it plays through avenues of olive and oak trees with distant views of the Esterel mountains. The green complexes are large but severely contoured, and the approach demands that you position the ball correctly on the fairway to access pin positions. A second course, the Riou, is shorter and more forgiving. Green fees at the resort are in the €150–220 range; staying guests get preferential times.
6. Golf de l'Anse, Guadeloupe (French Caribbean)
For golfers looking to combine French cuisine and Caribbean golf, the courses of the French Antilles — Guadeloupe and Martinique — offer something genuinely different. Golf de l'Anse on Grande-Terre is a 9-hole course that rewards accuracy over length, with ocean views and trade wind conditions that make approach play feel like a different sport from metropolitan French golf. The island's main 18-hole facility, La Traversée, provides a fuller challenge. Green fees are very modest, and the combination of beach holiday and golf makes Guadeloupe a strong alternative to more crowded Caribbean golf destinations.
7. Golf de Sperone, Bonifacio
Sperone sits on the southern tip of Corsica, designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr on a rocky limestone headland overlooking the Strait of Bonifacio. Par 72, around 6,400 yards, it is one of the most dramatically beautiful courses in Europe — several holes play directly over the Mediterranean on natural rock promontories, with the Italian island of Sardinia visible across the water. The terrain is more link-adjacent than any course on the French mainland: firm, fast-running, wind-exposed. Green fees are in the €100–180 range depending on season; the summer months bring heat that makes morning tee times essential.
8. Golf Bordelais, Bordeaux
Founded in 1899, Golf Bordelais is one of France's oldest clubs, occupying a pleasant parkland site on the edge of Bordeaux. Par 70, around 5,900 metres, it is not a long course by contemporary standards, but its maturity — ancient trees, established fairway turf, classically bunkered greens — gives it a character that newer courses cannot replicate. For golfers visiting Bordeaux's wine country, it provides an excellent half-day course conveniently close to the city centre. Visitor play is available most weekdays; green fees are modest.
9. Golf Blue Green Bordeaux Lac, Bordeaux
Bordeaux Lac is the region's premier public course, designed to accommodate high visitor volume while maintaining quality conditioning. Located north of the city near the Lac de Bordeaux, par 72, around 6,100 metres, it is maintained by the Blue Green network, which operates municipal-quality courses across France to professional standards. For wine-country visitors who want competitive green fees — typically around €40–60 — while exploring the Médoc and Saint-Émilion, Bordeaux Lac is the logical choice. Tee times are available online without a membership requirement.
10. Golf de Wimereux, Wimereux
Wimereux is French links golf at its most authentic: a cliff-top course above the English Channel just north of Boulogne, designed in 1901 on genuine coastal terrain. Par 72, around 6,200 yards, it is exposed to Channel winds that make club selection a continuous challenge. The views across to the English coast on clear days are remarkable, and the firm, fast-running turf plays quite differently from the forested parkland courses that dominate French golf. Visitor green fees are very reasonable and the course's proximity to Calais makes it an accessible first or last round for golfers crossing the Channel.
Planning a France Golf Trip
France plays year-round in the south and Mediterranean regions; the Paris-area and Atlantic courses are best from April through October. Most French clubs welcome visiting golfers with a handicap certificate; the FFG (French Golf Federation) card is useful at affiliated clubs. Green fees range from €35 at public courses to €200-plus at the private championship venues. Open the map to explore French courses by region, from the Atlantic coast to Provence, and plan a route that suits your itinerary.