the North Course finish below the La Costa clubhouse
▦ hero—the North Course finish below the La Costa clubhouse
Destinations / California · Carlsbad

Omni La Costa

Two Gil Hanse courses in North County San Diego—the NCAA championship North, long the Tournament of Champions venue, and its gentler South companion.
Courses
The North & South Courses—both rebuilt by Gil Hanse
2 championship courses
Best season
Year-round; spring and fall are ideal
Getting there
San Diego Intl. (SAN)—about 35 min south
McClellan-Palomar (CRQ), Carlsbad—about 10 min
From the airport
San Diego International (SAN)
Price
$$$

La Costa has been a golf-and-spa institution in Carlsbad since the mid-1960s, and its recent Gil Hanse rebuild put it back at the center of the sport. The North Course—for three decades the PGA Tour's Tournament of Champions venue, and host of seven World Golf Championships—reopened in 2024 as the permanent home of the NCAA Division I championships. The South Course, its longtime member-and-resort companion, was renovated alongside it. Together they make the strongest 36 holes in North County San Diego.

The setting is pure Southern California: a sprawling Spanish-Colonial resort of low white buildings and red-tile roofs, a destination spa, and mild coastal weather that makes golf a year-round proposition. Carlsbad's beaches, the seaside village, Legoland and the flower fields are all a short drive, and San Diego proper is half an hour south. It's an easy place to build a trip around two serious courses and never feel like you're roughing it.

The courses
The North Course
The North Course
Gil Hanse & Jim Wagner (2024 rebuild; original 1965 Dick Wilson & Joe Lee) · par 72 · Gil Hanse's rebuild of the old Champions Course—the Tournament of Champions ground, now the NCAA championship venue.
Reserve →
image
The South Course
The South Course
Gil Hanse & Jim Wagner (2024 renovation; original 1960s Dick Wilson & Joe Lee) · par 72 · The gentler companion—tree-lined and accuracy-first, rebuilt by the same Hanse team without the tournament teeth.
Reserve →
Where to stay
Omni La Costa Resort & Spa
Omni La Costa Resort & Spa
AAA Four-Diamond golf & spa resort in Carlsbad · from $289/nt
Check rates →
Where to eat
Bob's Steak & Chop House
$90 pp
Steakhouse · dinner
VUE
$55 pp
Contemporary American · dinner
Bar Traza
$45 pp
Spanish shared plates · drinks
Choza
$30 pp
Mexican · breakfast
Splash Café
$25 pp
Poolside American · lunch
Marketplace
$18 pp
Grab-and-go café · lunch
Off the course
Carlsbad State Beach and the seaside village
The La Costa spa
Legoland and the Carlsbad flower fields
Batiquitos Lagoon trails
Best time to go
JanAprJulOctDec
Coastal North County San Diego is mild and playable year-round; spring and fall bring the best conditions, and even winter stays comfortable—one of California's better cold-weather golf escapes.
Sample itineraries
The La Costa 36
The North and South in a day, spa and beach to recover
Carlsbad long weekend
Two rounds, the village, and a day at the coast
Open in the builder →
Or let our concierge handle it

Complex trip, big group, or a portal-only resort? We'll secure every tee time, stay and detail for you.

Search stays & flights
Bookings through this search support the site at no extra cost to you.