Golf near Rome: Marco Simone, Olgiata, Acquasanta and the Best Courses (2026)

Rome is rarely seen as a golf city, yet within an hour of the Colosseum you can play the course that hosted the 2023 Ryder Cup, a parkland layout that has staged the Italian Open, a club founded in 1903 beside the Roman aqueducts and a Robert Trent Jones Sr. course laid out inside an extinct volcano. The catch is access: several of these are private members’ clubs with their own rules for visitors. Here are five courses around the capital, how guests get a tee time and where to stay, with or without a non-golfing partner.

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The best golf courses near Rome

Course data comes from the clubs’ own websites where published, otherwise from golf directories and the Italian tourism board. Where a rule or price is not published, we say so; confirm everything with the club before you travel.

Marco Simone Golf & Country Club (Guidonia)

This is the course that put Rome on the golf map. Jim Fazio designed the original layout, which opened in 1989, and the club says it was completely renovated under Tom Fazio II and European Golf Design ahead of the 2023 Ryder Cup, the first ever played in Italy. The club has also hosted four editions of the Italian Open (1994, 2021, 2022 and 2023). The course lies about 17 km northeast of central Rome, with lakes, an amphitheatre landscape, views of St Peter’s dome and an eleventh century castle within the property.

Our research turned up contradictory information on the par. The club’s own scorecard gives par 72 (36 out, 36 in) and 6,674 metres from the back tees, with the shortest set at about 4,675 metres, while Ryder Cup coverage and our own best golf resorts in Italy guide list par 71, which reflects how the course was set up for the matches. It was not clear to us which applies to visitors today, so check the card on the day.

There is also a nine-hole Resort Course, par 31 and roughly 1,800 to 2,000 metres depending on the tee. It is easy to walk and suits beginners. The club adds a golf academy, spa and pool. It currently advertises a Green & Green Experience from 99 euros, combining green fees, practice facilities and a three course lunch, subject to availability; it does not say which course is included, so ask when you book.

• Handicap and certificate: the club does not publish its visitor limit in English; check with the club and bring your handicap certificate.
• Buggies: golf directories list electric carts for hire; check with the club.
• Guest access: public tee times are sold online; weekend availability and closing day, check with the club.
• Distance: about 17 km from central Rome; allow for traffic on the ring road.

Olgiata Golf Club (north Rome)

Olgiata opened in 1961 inside the gated residential estate of the same name on Rome’s northern outskirts. The English architect Charles Kenneth Cotton designed both courses, and Jim Fazio modified the 18-hole West course in 1996 and restyled it again in 2012. Expect rolling parkland lined with mature trees. The club has staged the Italian Open, including the 2002 edition, as well as the World Cup and the Eisenhower Trophy.

There are 27 holes in total: the 18-hole West course and the nine-hole East course, par 36 and 2,947 metres. We could not confirm the West course’s par and length from an official source, so check with the club. Advance booking is expected.

• Handicap and certificate: check with the club; bring a home club handicap certificate, and a letter of introduction from your club helps.
• Buggies: buggy rental is listed by golf directories; check with the club.
• Guest access: members’ club; weekday play is the safer request, and weekend and closing day rules are best confirmed directly.
• Distance: northern outskirts of Rome, a short drive from Monte Mario along the Via Cassia corridor.

Circolo del Golf di Roma Acquasanta (Via Appia Nuova)

Founded in 1903, Acquasanta is the most historic club in Rome, and Italy’s official tourism site calls it the oldest golf course in Italy. Our research turned up contradictory information here: Florence’s Ugolino club says golf arrived in Italy there in 1889, though Ugolino itself dates from 1934. It was not clear to us which title applies, so treat “oldest” as a claim. It lies on Via Appia Nuova, a few kilometres outside Porta Maggiore (Italy’s tourism portal says about 3 km, though the clubhouse coordinates put it nearer 5 km in a straight line), among maritime pines and eucalyptus.

The course is 18 holes, par 71 from the yellow tees, at about 6,000 metres from the white tees and 5,101 metres from the red. It rewards precision over power, and non-golfers can use the restaurant and large pool.

• Handicap and certificate: a directory lists a maximum handicap of 36 with a home club certificate; check with the club.
• Buggies: electric carts and trolleys are listed by golf directories; check with the club.
• Guest access: a private members’ club; directories say visitors are welcome every day with advance booking, but bring a letter of introduction and confirm weekend access.
• Closing day: directories list the restaurant as closed on Mondays; for the course, check with the club.
• Distance: the closest course to the historic centre on this list.

Golf Club Parco de’ Medici (southwest Rome)

Parco de’ Medici sits inside the ring road on the Fiumicino side of the city, ideal for a first or last day. Italian architect Davide Mezzacane designed the 27 holes, played as three loops (white, blue and red), with technical bunkering and water hazards. Sources give different opening dates, so we leave that out. Directories list the main 18 as par 72, about 6,400 metres from the back tees and around 5,400 metres from the red tees, with a separate nine-hole loop of par 35.

• Handicap and certificate: a directory lists a maximum of 36 on the main 18 with a home club certificate; check with the club.
• Buggies: electric carts, trolleys and caddies on request are listed; check with the club.
• Guest access: directories say visitors are welcome daily with advance booking, and soft spikes are required.
• Closing day: check with the club; the restaurant is listed as closed on Tuesdays.
• Distance: next to the Sheraton Rome Parco de’ Medici, on the road towards Fiumicino.

Country Club Castelgandolfo (Castelli Romani)

Robert Trent Jones Sr. laid out this course inside the remains of an old volcanic crater below the papal town of Castel Gandolfo, in the Castelli Romani hills southeast of Rome. Fairways run through olive, pine and cypress, two lakes come into play, and the clubhouse is a historic villa. It is 18 holes, par 72, at roughly 6,200 metres from the back tees and about 5,150 metres from the red.

Our research turned up contradictory information on two points. Directories give the opening year as 1985 or 1988, and list the maximum visitor handicap as either 34 or 54. It was not clear to us which applies, so check with the club before you book.

• Buggies: electric carts are listed by one directory, though the course is usually walked; check with the club.
• Guest access: directories say visitors are welcome on weekdays and weekends with advance booking.
• Closing day: check with the club.
• Distance: in the Castelli Romani, closer to Ciampino than to Fiumicino; pair it with a Frascati wine lunch.

Golf near Rome compared

How to plan a golf trip to Rome

• Best months and weather: April to early June and September to October bring the most comfortable playing conditions. July and August are hot, so take the first tee time of the day. Mild winters make off season golf realistic.
• Transfers with clubs: none of these courses is practical by public transport with a bag. Book a car with driver through your hotel. Our Italy travel planner covers airport transfers and car hire.
• Booking tee times: Marco Simone sells tee times online; for Olgiata and Acquasanta, have your concierge call ahead with your handicap details and ask for a weekday.
• Paperwork: carry a current handicap certificate from your home club, and for the private clubs a letter of introduction signed by your club secretary.
• Dress code: collared shirts, tailored shorts or trousers and soft spikes. Pack a jacket for lunch at the members’ clubs.
• Combining with wine, sea or culture: pair Castelgandolfo with a long lunch in Frascati, or swap a golf day for Ponza with our Pontine Islands by boat guide. Non-golfers can choose from our best museums in Rome or pick from the best day trips from Rome. Tennis players will find courts in our guide to where to play tennis in Rome.

Where to stay for golf near Rome

Choose your base by which rounds matter most. Each of these four hotels is close to at least one course.

Rome Cavalieri, A Waldorf Astoria Hotel (Monte Mario)

The official team hotel of the 2023 Ryder Cup sits in its own park on Monte Mario, above the Foro Italico. Marco Simone, about 17 km from the centre on the far side of the city, sells a stay and play package with nights at the Cavalieri, rounds on the Ryder Cup course and transfers; check current inclusions directly. Olgiata is the shorter drive north. There are indoor and outdoor pools, a spa, clay tennis courts and La Pergola on the roof. Read our full Rome Cavalieri review.

Best for: golfers who want the Ryder Cup course and a resort feel in the city.

Check rates at Rome Cavalieri

Castello della Castelluccia (La Storta, north Rome)

A four-star hotel in a castle built between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries on the ruins of an imperial Roman villa, set among green hills in the La Storta area north of Rome. It is the closest base on this list for Olgiata; ask the hotel for transfer times. There is an outdoor pool, a spa and La Locanda restaurant.

Best for: couples who want countryside quiet near Olgiata.

Check rates at Castello della Castelluccia

Park Hotel Villa Grazioli (Grottaferrata)

A patrician villa from 1580 between Grottaferrata and Frascati, with seventeenth century frescoes in its reception rooms, including a gallery painted by Giovanni Paolo Pannini. It is the natural base for Castelgandolfo, a short drive away; ask the hotel for transfer times. There is a pool, a terrace restaurant and a shuttle to Frascati station.

Best for: pairing Castelgandolfo with wine country and a slower pace.

Check rates at Park Hotel Villa Grazioli

Sheraton Rome Parco de’ Medici (southwest Rome)

A large hotel on the same avenue as Golf Club Parco de’ Medici, so the first tee is a short walk or ride away. It has two pool areas, several restaurants and bars, and suites up to a Presidential Suite. It is practical rather than glamorous; ask about golf packages.

Best for: a round on the way in or out of Rome.

Check rates at Sheraton Rome Parco de’ Medici

More courses: see golf in Tuscany or the coastal Argentario Golf & Wellness Resort.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can visitors play the Ryder Cup course at Marco Simone?

Yes. Marco Simone sells public tee times and packages, including stay and play with Rome Cavalieri. Bring a handicap certificate and check the current visitor limit with the club.

Do I need a letter of introduction to play golf in Rome?

Not always, but Olgiata and Acquasanta are members’ clubs, and a letter plus a handicap certificate makes a weekday tee time easier.

What is the best time of year for golf near Rome?

April to early June and September to October. Summer is hot, so play at dawn.

Which golf course is closest to central Rome?

Acquasanta, on Via Appia Nuova a few kilometres outside Porta Maggiore. Parco de’ Medici is the most convenient for Fiumicino airport.