Fredericton – The Maritimes Newest Golf Destination
Canada’s Maritime provinces have, in recent years, risen to the top of the list of must visit golf destinations in Canada. First it was Prince Edward Island, which promoted itself as Canada’s top golf vacation spot with courses like The Links at Crowbush Cove, the two great courses at Brudenell and a number in the Cavendish area. Then along came Nova Scotia with three courses in the top 12 on the SCORE Golf Top 100 including #1 Cabot Cliffs. Now, I’m glad to announce that New Brunswick has stepped up to the plate and I can say without fear of contradiction, that Fredericton has now become a go to golf destination in its own right. Here’s why.
In 2024 Tourism New Brunswick became the sponsor of the ExploreNB Open, to be played over the next five years at the provincially owned Mactaquac Golf Course some 30 minutes north of Fredericton. The tournament was one of 16 on the newly created PGA Americas Tour which combined the former Latin American and Canadian PGA tours into one. Nine of those events took place in Canada with New Brunswick hosting the only Atlantic Canadian tournament. All of the players on this circuit are professionals who hope one day to play on the big stage of the PGA and the Americas Tour is definitely a stepping stone to do that. Canadian PGA players who graduated from this tour include Adam Hadwin, Mackenzie Hughes, Nick Taylor and Corey Connors, all of whom have won on at the highest level of golf. Other graduates include Steve Stricker, Stephen Ames, US Open winner Michael Campbell, British Open winner Todd Hamilton, Stuart Appleby, Tim Herron and many more. In other words, this tour and this tournament are a big deal.
Suddenly, golfers of all stripes were asking, can I play Mactaquac? And of course the answer is yes and it will cost you a fraction of what it costs to play most of the other top courses in the Maritimes. Contrast Mactaquac’s $67.82 plus tax with Cabot’s $435 or Crowbush Cove at $165 and you know it’s a deal.
However, playing where the pros play at Mactaquac is not the only reason I think Fredericton is now a golf destination in its own right. There are three other courses in the area that make for a perfect golf getaway plus a hidden gem just an hour away.
When the Kingswood Golf Course opened in 2003 it was named Canada’s best new golf course for that year. It is always a joy to play and in this post I give a hole-by-hole description of the course. With green fees topping out at $84 this course is also a bargain. If 18 holes isn’t enough for you, you can finish off by playing the 9 hole executive course.
What really pushed Fredericton over the top as a golf destination for me was the opening of West Hills on the north side of the Saint John River in the past decade. Here is my hole-by-hole assessment of this really great course that is at its best when the fall foliage is peaking in late September.
Once again with green fees of $85 West Hills is a real steal.
Long before any of the three courses referred to above were even an inkling in anybody’s mind, golfers were enjoying a round at the Fredericton Golf Club which first opened way back in 1916. It’s a quite different experience with narrow fairways and tiny greens that harken back to a different era when woods were made of wood and courses were closer to 6,000 yards than 7,000. With green fees of $65 it’s the best deal in Fredericton.
There is one more course that I think warrants playing once you are in the Fredericton area, but it does require about a one hour drive north to the village of Hartland where you will find the amazing Covered Bridge Golf Course. I say amazing because you just don’t expect a course of this quality and conditioning in a small town of less than 2,000 people. Judge for yourself by reading this hole-by-hole post from my website.
In the 2025 summer edition of SCORE Golf magazine, Covered Bridge was cited as one of the country’s best ‘value added’ courses with green fees of only $60.
Fredericton is probably my favourite city in the Maritimes and I seem to spend a lot of time there. Not only is is a great location for golf, but is has a world class art gallery, The Beaverbrook, great restaurants and the always cathartic Odell Park with its old growth forest and botanical garden. If that’s not enough, every time I’m there in summer and fall I walk at least some of the more than 150 kms. of non-motorized trails that are as good as any you’ll find in any city in North America.
It’s mid-September and still plenty of time to pack your clubs and head for Fredericton.