Cruden Bay Golf Club

Cruden Bay, on the Aberdeenshire coast about 23 miles north of Aberdeen, is the cult course of Scottish golf — the one travelling Americans bring up in conversation when they want to prove they've been past the obvious tour stops. The course was originally laid out in 1899 by Old Tom Morris, with revisions over the following decades. The setting is among the most dramatic in British golf: enormous dunes, blind shots, pulleys for marker bells, and a green at the base of a hill so steep it has its own staircase.

Par is 70 across 6,395 yards. The course plays through the dune system rather than around it, with several blind tee shots that visitors find disorienting on a first round and exhilarating on a second. The 4th, a long par 4 with a marker post and a blind drive over a ridge, is the standout. The 14th — Whaupshank — is the most photographed, played from a clifftop tee back along the bay.

Visitor green fee is £165 in 2026, which is exceptional value for a course of this character and pedigree. Booking via crudenbaygolfclub.co.uk; weekend visitor access is limited but weekday tee times open up regularly. Pair Cruden Bay with Royal Aberdeen and Murcar (35 min south) for a north-east three-course tour. The drive from Aberdeen is along a quiet coast road and worth doing in daylight either way.