Desert green fees peak from January to April, and a rental home is the plan. Lodging taxes near 14%, golf bag fees, a van for four sets of clubs and desert-hungry golf balls push the total up.
Plan my golf trip for me: budget, dates and courses →Starts with a sample trip. Change any number to match yours. Set up your travel profile to fill these in for you.
Compare hotels in Scottsdale → Compare Scottsdale golf packages (stay and play) on Golfbreaks →Pick each course you'll play (one round per golfer) and we'll price it for your group. Prices are per golfer for 18 holes, with the season and time of day you choose. Your picks set “Green fees per golfer (whole trip)” and “Same-day replay rounds” in your budget.
4The sample is 4 travelers for 4 nights. Your plan ($10,036) covers the main costs most people budget for, the ones you enter on the left. Costs people forget ($3,271, about 33% more for this trip) are the fees, taxes, tips and extras listed in the calculator. Prices were last checked on October 17, 2026.
Share of the $13,307 real cost. Nights and travelers multiply most of these costs, so changing either one moves the total the most.
15 of this trip's numbers link to a published price or rate. The rest are our estimates, and each one says what it is based on. You can also read how we calculate every trip.
| Cost | Default | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Green fees per golfer (whole trip) | $1,000 per traveler | Four peak rounds at about $250: We-Ko-Pa $329 (official peak), Talking Stick $329, Papago $210, McDowell Mountain $100–150. Judgment call. Source |
| Rental home or villa per night (whole group) | $650 a night | Four-bedroom homes average $529 a night; February–March rates run about 24% above average. Judgment call. Source |
| Airfare per person | $429 per traveler | The US DOT average domestic fare from Phoenix (PHX) was $429 in Q2 2026. Source |
| Food per person, per day | $86 per traveler, per day | The FY2027 federal meals rate for Phoenix and Scottsdale is $86 a day. Source |
| Cost | Default | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Checked bag fees | $90 per traveler | Major US airlines charge about $35 to $50 for a first checked bag each way, so about $90 round trip. Source |
| Golf bag fees | $110 per traveler | American, Delta, United and Southwest treat a golf bag as a standard checked bag; a second bag is $55 each way. Source |
| Shipping your clubs Off by default | $108 per traveler | Ground shipping for a golf bag starts around $54 each way. Source |
| Lodging taxes | 14% of the rental home or villa (whole group) | State 5.5%, Maricopa County 1.77%, city 1.7% and a 5% bed tax: 13.97%. Source |
| Rental car | $125 a day | KAYAK shows Phoenix vans at about $125 a day in March, the priciest month. Source |
| Rental clubs Off by default | $400 per traveler | Talking Stick $85, We-Ko-Pa $99 and Kierland $119 a round. Source |
| Forecaddie tip Off by default | $25 per traveler | TPC Scottsdale's Stadium green fee includes a forecaddie mid-November to mid-April; tip at least $25. Source |
| Drinks on the course | $80 per traveler | Our estimate of about $20 a round for beverage-cart drinks and snacks. Judgment call. Our estimate |
| Golf balls | $55 per traveler | A dozen Titleist Pro V1 balls lists at $55. Source |
| Tips for bag drop and cart staff | $20 per traveler | A few dollars at bag drop and the turn; we use $5 a round. Judgment call. Source |
| Same-day replay rounds Off by default | $90 per traveler | Troon North replays run about $49–129. Source |
| Resort fees Off by default | $35 a night | Scottsdale resort fees run from about $20 to $68 a night; the Phoenix-area median is $35. Source |
| Sunscreen and water Off by default | $15 per traveler | Our estimate for sunscreen and bottled water. Our estimate |
| Side bets and prizes | $50 per traveler | Our estimate for skins, team bets and a small trophy. Our estimate |
| Lessons and extras you picked Off by default | $0 for the trip | Set by the extras you pick in the tee-time planner. Our estimate |
| Travel insurance | 6% of your plan | Squaremouth says a comprehensive plan averages about 6% of the trip cost, usually 4% to 10%. Source |
| Pre-trip shopping | $60 for the trip | Our estimate for travel-size toiletries, sunscreen and small things bought before a trip. Our estimate |
| Pet boarding or sitter | $50 a day, if you check Pets | Dogster puts regular kennel boarding at about $35 to $85 a night. Overnight sitters at home cost more. Source |
For 4 golfers spending 4 nights in peak season, with four rounds each, a rental home, flights and food, plan on about $10,040. Once you add lodging taxes, golf bag fees, a rental van, drinks on the course, balls, tips and side bets, it's closer to $13,310, or about $3,330 each. Use the tee-time planner above to price the courses you want.
Summer, when peak rates drop by about two-thirds: We-Ko-Pa goes from $329 in winter and spring to $109 from mid-June to late August. Late April and May are a good middle ground. Courses overseed in September and October and close for two to three weeks. Source
More than 50 within Scottsdale's city limits and over 200 across the Phoenix area, so a group can play somewhere different every day. Source
In peak season it runs about $436 to $550 per golfer, with the lowest rates after 2 pm. A forecaddie is included from mid-November to mid-April, and a tip of at least $25 is expected. Source
About 14% in total: 5.5% state, 1.77% county and 1.7% city sales tax plus a 5% bed tax. Many resorts also add a resort fee of about $20 to $68 a night. Source