Whether you’re looking for a day trip from Los Angeles or visiting Palm Springs for a relaxing vacation, there’s a good chance you’ll want to take advantage of the consistently beautiful fall season and hit the links for a lovely 18 holes of golf. The Coachella Valley has the highest density of golf courses of any region in California, so it can be difficult to choose which course to play. This post will highlight three of the best golf courses in Palm Springs, California.

Escena Golf Club

Designed by Jack Nicklaus in 2005, this lush 18-hole golf course is consistently ranked in the top ten public courses in California. The wide, receptive fairways are lined by strategically placed desert plantings. It’s a tough but fair test of golf. The Tournament tees stretch to nearly 7200 yards, but most golfers will have more fun playing the Championship tees at 6600 or Middle tees at 6100 yards.

The course offers much more variety at the shorter length while still challenging you to use every club in your bag. As you’ll find at most courses in the valley, the sand traps around the greens are quite firm and difficult, so do what you can to avoid them! However, with reachable par 5s and several short par 4s, there are birdies to be made.

The staff is exceedingly friendly and the Escena Lounge and Grill in the beautiful mid-century modern clubhouse offers award-winning cuisine featuring local, seasonally rotating American fusion options. It’s a destination restaurant worth visiting even if you’re not partaking in the golf, especially the mouth-watering Sunday Brunch! They even welcome your dog to have brunch with you.

Indian Canyons Golf Resort

The Indian Canyons Golf Resort sports two golf courses, the North and South. Since the South is the most scenic and perfect for fall, let’s talk about it more. The South course is a terrific layout with several long, difficult par 3s and shorter, reachable par 5s to make up strokes on.

My favorite holes are the brilliant risk/reward par 5 9th and 18th holes. Both of them are short enough that big hitters or mid-handicapper golfers will think about going for the green in two, but with water guarding the green, a birdie can turn into double bogey with a quickness!

The greens are always in excellent shape, playing firm, fast and smooth. The helpful staff is extraordinarily friendly and the golf shop is well-appointed with clubs, clothes, and souvenirs.

Indian Canyons is a frequent host to weddings with its stunning mountain backdrop and gorgeous palm trees.

The diverse restaurant menu focuses on tex-mex and southwest cuisine, with some outliers like the amazing beer-battered cod with housemade chips. It’s a perfect way to finish the day after a memorable round of golf.

With highly reasonable twilight rates for tee times of 1 pm or later, Indian Canyons is one of the best deals in the valley.

Cimarron Golf Resort

“It’s another beautiful day at Cimarron” is the refrain you’ll hear over and over again at the majestic Cimarron Golf Resort, and it’s spot-on. With 36 holes to choose from, you can easily spend several days at Cimarron and never stop gaping at the beauty of the San Jacinto mountain backdrop.

The Boulder Course is known for having the best greens in the valley, perfect for senior golfers, and it consistently delivers. They’re fairly flat, so you can make a lot of birdies if you show up with a hot putter! It’s not a particularly long course, but with well-placed bunkers and water hazards, it still demands precision and rewards good shots.

The Pebble Course is a par-55 short course that you can easily play in under 3 hours. It’s ideal for juniors, families, and anyone looking for an inexpensive, fun trip around 18 holes.

Cimarron offers an inexpensive Player’s Club that gets you on the course anytime for $20, and also has unlimited weekly membership options at remarkably reasonable prices.

Their breakfast sandwich is top-notch, so get there early and give yourself time to eat and warm up on the well-appointed range and practice areas. Or play 36 holes and relax at their On The Rocks restaurant outdoor patio, which is one of the best places you’ll ever find to watch the sunset.

To plan your fall golf getaway to Palm Beach, get in touch with a Covington vacation specialist.

Jordan Fuller is a passionate golf enthusiast dedicated to helping others improve their game. As a golf expert, his advice has been published in many newspapers, including Golf Tips Magazine, FORE Magazine, GolfMagic, and USGolfTV.

For another guest post by Jordan, visit Is The Ritz-Carlton, Naples the Most Luxurious Golf Resort?