Royal Durban Golf Club
We get the best tee timesPTS Protected · ATOL for flightsSince 1981 · 4.9★ on GoogleA specialist replies promptly
Where to stay while you play Royal Durban Golf Club
2 hotels package this course — cheapest first, every one tailored to your group.
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Beverly Hills
Golf at Royal Durban Golf Club
Stay & play — from
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The Benjamin Hotel
Golf at Royal Durban Golf Club
Stay & play — fromWhat golfers say about South Africa
4.997 reviewsjust returned from great golf trip to South Africa thanks Nigel highly recommend.
We have just returned from a fantastic 31/2 week holiday in South Africa organised by Golf Plant Holidays. Nigel was amazing sorting the itinerary for our group of 8 to include all the …
My husband Philip and I had a wonderful golf trip to South Africa in March with Golf Planet holidays. It was our first time to South Africa and it didn't disappoint us. …
About Royal Durban Golf Club
Royal Durban Golf Club is known for its punishing rough and prevailing winds. The good news is there are no large trees as they were not allowed in the original design back in 1892. Back then local bank manager, John Watt, approached the town council about creating a golf club in Durban. He was granted permission to lay out a links design course on the grounds within Greyville Racecourse.
One of the proudest moments in the history of the club was on April 8, 1932 when after a visit from Edward VIII, the then Prince of Wales, in 1925, Durban Golf Club was granted permission to use the prefix Royal by King George V, making it one of only four regal golf clubs in southern Africa.
- Ask us about out 2025 South Africa escorted golf tours
- Clubhouse restaurant
- Buggies
- Golf courses nearby include Durban Country Club, Zimbali and Beachwood
Our take
Golf inside Greyville Racecourse sounds like a novelty until the punishing rough and the prevailing wind start marking your card, as they have at Royal Durban since 1892.
- Serious golfersNo trees were allowed in the original 1892 design, so everything is in front of you, which makes it worse when the 5th and the 10th wreck the card anyway. The rough and the wind are the whole defence, and they are enough.
- Higher handicapsFlat walking, honest sightlines and no forest to swallow your ball, but stray into the rough and you will pay for it. Keep the ball in play and this is a links-style round you can actually score on.
- Solo golfersA club with history back to 1892 and a flat, walkable round makes an easy addition to a Durban stay, and playing a links laid out inside a racecourse is a story worth having.
Tell us who’s coming and how you like to play, and we’ll shape the right trip around you.
What you are actually facing
The walk. Flat, and an easy walk — 22 metres of climb over the round.
The wind. The wind is usually south-westerly, averaging 11 km/h, gusting to 40. It is the club selection that catches people out, not the yardage.
The water. 12 hazards in play. Bring a few more balls than you think you need.
The design. Bob Grimsdell.
The holes that will cost you. The 5th, the 10th and the 18th. The 5th is the one you will be talking about afterwards.
Hole by hole — how we would play it
Terrain and prevailing-weather data, read hole by hole. It is our own assessment of how the course plays, not an official course or slope rating.
The course at a glance
WHERE TO STAY
Places to stay while you play Royal Durban Golf Club
Base yourself near the course — every venue here includes Royal Durban Golf Club in your golf holiday.
Tap a hotel to open it, or zoom in on the satellite view to see how close each one sits to the first tee.