Trip Itineraries
Perthshire Golf Trip: From a Gleneagles Base (2026)
Gleneagles has three championship courses on one estate — and a ring of Perthshire golf around it, from James Braid heathland to riverside nine-holers, at a fraction of the resort price. Here is the trip from a Gleneagles base, with real 2026 green fees.
Gleneagles is the rare resort that earns its reputation: three championship courses on one Perthshire estate, the 2014 Ryder Cup pedigree, and James Braid's King's Course laid across the heathland with the Ochil Hills behind. But most visitors fly in, play the King's, and leave — missing the point that Gleneagles sits in the middle of a county full of good, cheap golf. Base here for a few days and you can bookend the marquee rounds with £40 heathland and riverside nine-holers most people never hear about.
This is also the base for the Senior Open at Gleneagles — if you're up for the championship in July, the same itinerary works around spectator days.
The base — Gleneagles and Auchterarder
Two ways to base it. Stay at Gleneagles or in Auchterarder next door if you want to be on the golf — the three courses are on your doorstep, and the resort's practice facilities and clubhouse are part of the experience. Or base in Perth, twenty minutes east: a proper town with a wider spread of hotels and restaurants, and better value if your group doesn't need to sleep at the resort. Perthshire is compact enough that either works — nothing on this trip is more than 45 minutes away.
Stays Nearby
Where to stay near Auchterarder
Hotels, B&Bs and self-catering within easy reach of Auchterarder. Tap any property to check rates.
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The headliners — the Gleneagles three
The King's Course (£260–£405) is the one to build the trip around: Braid's 1919 heathland design, moorland turf, mountain views, and the course that made Gleneagles a golf destination before the hotel existed. The PGA Centenary (£260–£405) is the modern championship course — the 2014 Ryder Cup venue, longer and more American in feel. And the Queen's Course (£100–£325) is the shorter, prettier, markedly cheaper third — the smart play if you want to walk the estate without the King's price tag.
Play one or two of these, not all three at full rate, unless the budget is bottomless. The King's is the essential one.
The value ring — Crieff, Dunblane, Blairgowrie
This is where a Gleneagles base pays off. Twenty minutes north, Crieff's Ferntower course (£35–£50) is a genuinely good hillside round with Strathearn views for the price of a Gleneagles sleeve of balls. Dunblane New (£35–£45) is a tidy James Braid parkland twenty minutes south. And thirty minutes east, Blairgowrie's Rosemount course (£95–£140) is an Alister MacKenzie heathland that belongs in the same conversation as the King's for a third of the money — the standout value round in the county, with the Lansdowne (£85–£155) alongside it if you want 36 holes on the day.
The scenic add-ons
If you have a spare afternoon and a car, Perthshire rewards the drive. Pitlochry (£70–£85) climbs into the Highland edge with views worth the uphill walk; Alyth (£55–£75) is a quiet heathland near Blairgowrie; and for a cheap, memorable nine, Comrie (£18–£30) and Callander (£30–£40) sit right on the Highland boundary where Perthshire starts to look like the Trossachs.
What it costs
The Gleneagles rounds are the swing factor — a King's round is a different order of money from a £40 afternoon at Crieff. Mix one marquee round with two or three of the surrounding courses and you're roughly £450–£650 per person for three days' golf.
Build your exact number in the Trip Cost Estimator, and compare current seasonal rates — Gleneagles moves a lot between resident, off-peak and peak — in the Green Fee Tracker.
Getting there
Gleneagles has its own railway station on the Edinburgh–Perth–Inverness line, a short walk from the hotel — Edinburgh is around 55 minutes, Glasgow about 75. By road it's the A9, 45 minutes from Edinburgh and 20 from Perth. A car makes the value ring (Crieff, Blairgowrie, Pitlochry) far easier, so hire at the airport or station if you want more than the resort courses. For the non-golfing half of the party, the Gleneagles town guide covers the estate and the surrounding countryside.
Three days, the King's plus a ring of £40 heathland, one base in the middle of Perthshire. Book the Gleneagles rounds first and long — they're the constraint; the county around them always has room.
About the author
Gary
Editor and founder of Birdie Brae. Based in Glasgow, 14.5 handicap, playing since 2022. Has played 40+ Scottish courses and started this site because most Scottish golf content is written by people trying to sell you a package holiday.
More about Gary →Also in the Almanac
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