A golf trip from the cabins: Malone Golf Club fifteen minutes away, eight more clubs within an hour and a half, the season, the foursome cabin and day plans.
Malone Golf Club, with 36 holes on two courses, is about eight road miles north of the cabins, fifteen minutes by the listings' count. Beyond it, eight more clubs that were in play in 2026 lie an hour to an hour and a half away: Saranac Inn, the Saranac Lake Golf Club, three clubs in Lake Placid and Tupper Lake Golf Club to the south, and Potsdam and the River Course near Massena to the west. Each cabin sleeps a foursome. This page plans a golf trip from the cabins: which courses to add, when they open and close, which cabin suits a foursome, and a two-day and a three-day plan with a lake or a hike between rounds.
How a golf trip works from the cabins
Treat Malone as the home course and the rest as day trips. Malone is close enough to play on any day of the stay with time left for a hike or the hot tub. The other courses take most of a day there and back, so they suit a full golf day or a round on the way in or out.
The Modern Pine's hot tub on its deck in the late-day sun
The cabins' own rules shape the golf days. Check-in at all three is after 4 p.m. and checkout is before 11 a.m., so arrival and departure days are travel days with room for a round on the road, covered further down. The Aviator and The Modern Tiny Home keep quiet hours from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m., so a foursome with an early tee time loads the clubs into the car the night before and leaves quietly. And a round takes the morning. Malone asks players to check in at the pro shop at least 15 minutes before their time and to finish in 4 hours and 15 minutes or less, so a group with an 8 a.m. time leaves the cabin by about 7:15 and is back for a late lunch.
A guest couple who stayed in September 2024 put the trip in one line:
We enjoyed the hot tub and fire pit as well as the nearby golf course and hiking trails.
Four Adirondack chairs around The Modern Pine's fire pit at dusk
Malone Golf Club
The home course is on Golf Course Road at the south edge of Malone, where the East and West courses make 36 holes. The club is semi-private and takes daily-fee players, and the Malone Golf Club guide has both courses hole by hole, the history, the 2026 rates and the rules on the course.
For a trip, plan around the booking window. Tee times open seven days ahead, online or through the pro shop at (518) 483-2926, so set a reminder a week before each round and book on the day the window opens, weekend mornings first. In 2026 the club ran leagues on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, so ask the shop what is open on your days. The Grille Room in the clubhouse serves lunch and dinner to the public from April to the end of the golf season; in 2026 it closes for the year after service on Sunday, October 11.
Courses within an hour and a half
Two courses are about an hour from the cabins, and six more take an hour and a quarter to an hour and a half. Each was in play in 2026. Road miles are from the cabins on OpenStreetMap's road network, and the times are conservative.
Course
Where
Holes
Road miles
Allow about
Tee times
Saranac Inn Golf Club
County Route 46, off NY 30
18, par 72
44
An hour
Online, or (518) 891-1402
Saranac Lake Golf Club
NY 86, Ray Brook
9, par 36
48
An hour
None needed
Potsdam Town & Country Club
NY 56, Potsdam
18
51
An hour and a quarter
(315) 265-2141
The River Course at Louisville Landing
Near Massena
18, par 71
52
An hour and a quarter
Online, or (315) 769-2293
Whiteface Club & Resort
Whiteface Inn Lane, Lake Placid
18
52
An hour and a quarter
Chronogolf app, or (518) 523-7888
Lake Placid Club
Morningside Drive, Lake Placid
45, on three courses
53
An hour and a quarter
Online, for each course
Craig Wood Golf Course
Off NY 73, Lake Placid
18, par 72
56
An hour and a quarter
Online, or (518) 523-9811
Tupper Lake Golf Club
Tupper Lake
18, par 71
61
An hour and a half
(518) 359-3701
Saranac Inn
Saranac Inn is the nearest 18-hole course after Malone, an hour south on NY 30 past Meacham Lake and Paul Smiths. Book a tee time online or by phone; the shop posts daily hours of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Besides 18 holes, it sells a ten-hole round of nine holes plus a bonus hole, a five-hole round, a twilight rate after 3 p.m., walking rates and a same-day replay, and juniors 16 and under walk for free. On the club's rates page in October 2026, 18 holes cost $80 with a cart or $60 walking. In late May 2026 the course hosted the Section VII high school golf championships, so it was in play by the end of May. Its history and the motel beside the first tee are in the Malone guide.
Saranac Lake Golf Club
The Saranac Lake Golf Club in Ray Brook, on NY 86 between Saranac Lake and Lake Placid, is a public nine of 2,949 yards from the longest tees and a par of 36. Alex Findlay designed it, and it opened in 1919. No tee time is needed. It rents clubs, carts and pull carts, and its driving range, across NY 86 from the ninth hole, is open to the public. The club runs Monday, Wednesday and Friday night leagues through the summer, which wrapped up in late August in 2026, so ask about league evenings before you plan a late round. It is the easy round on the way in or out for anyone driving the High Peaks route.
The Lake Placid courses
Lake Placid has three clubs about an hour and a quarter from the cabins. The Lake Placid Club has 45 holes on three courses and takes tee times online for each one; in 2026 it rented clubs for $35 and charged $40 for a same-day second round. The Malone guide covers its courses and green fees.
Craig Wood Golf Course is the town course, owned and run by the Town of North Elba: 18 holes, par 72 and 6,554 yards, laid out in 1925 by Seymour Dunn. The town renamed it in 1954 for Craig Wood, a Lake Placid native who won the 1941 Masters, a U.S. Open and 21 PGA Tour events. Its 18th hole asks for a drive over a ravine and an uphill second shot to a sloping green. Its 2026 peak season runs from May 24 to October 12, weather permitting, with 18 holes at $65 and a cart for $20 more.
The Whiteface Club & Resort course opened in 1898 as six holes on the shore of Lake Placid, and in 1933 John Van Kleek and Walter Hagen redesigned it as 18 holes. It opened its 2026 season on May 8. Tee time reservations are preferred, proper golf attire is required, and only soft spikes are allowed.
Tupper Lake, Potsdam and Massena
Tupper Lake Golf Club, a Donald Ross course from 1932, is the farthest of the ring, about an hour and a half south; call to book. Its 2026 rates were $39 for 18 holes walking and $59 riding, with twilight rates from 4 p.m., and the pro shop rents TaylorMade sets for $10 a round if you call ahead. The Wild Center is in the same town for anyone in the party who would rather not golf.
To the west, Potsdam Town & Country Club is a semi-private course on NY 56 about two miles south of the village, with a full-length practice range by the pro shop and the first tee. Book by phone with the pro shop. The club also lists a restaurant, Fairways, that is open to the public. The River Course at Louisville Landing, the former Massena Country Club, is a public 18 on the St. Lawrence River that opened in 1958. Its 2026 leagues took weekday afternoons, from noon on Mondays and with shotgun starts from 3 to 4:30 p.m. on the other weekdays, so a morning tee time is the safer bet there, and its 2026 season runs to October 31. Its restaurant, The Reserve, is open daily in season, with river views from the dining room, the deck and the patio.
Rounds on the way in and out
Check-in after 4 p.m. leaves most of an arrival day free, and a course on your route turns it into a golf day. Pick the course by the road you drive.
From New York City, New Jersey and Albany. The High Peaks route leaves the Northway at exit 30, follows NY 73 through Keene to Lake Placid and NY 86 through Ray Brook and Saranac Lake. Craig Wood is off NY 73 at the edge of Lake Placid, the Lake Placid Club and the Whiteface Club are in town, and the Saranac Lake Golf Club is on NY 86 in Ray Brook. Shop in Lake Placid or Saranac Lake after the round and reach the cabins in the evening.
From Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo and Watertown. US 11 runs northeast through Canton and Potsdam, where Potsdam Town & Country Club is two miles south of the village on NY 56.
From Toronto, Kingston and Ottawa. These routes come through the Massena area on NY 37 along the St. Lawrence, and the River Course is there.
From Montreal, Plattsburgh and Vermont. These routes reach Malone before the cabins, so play Malone first and drive the last ten miles after the round. From Montreal, remember that the Trout River crossing on NY 30 has been closed to traffic entering the United States since June 1, 2026; crossing the border has the open crossings.
The last day works the same way in reverse. Checkout is before 11 a.m. and a round runs past it, so pack the car the night before, check out on the way to the course and drive home from the 18th green. For anyone heading south, the Saranac Lake nine, with no tee time needed, is the easiest finish.
When the season opens and closes
The courses here open as the ground dries in spring and close as the frosts come in fall, and the dates move with the weather from year to year. In 2026 the River Course's leagues began on May 1, the Whiteface Club opened on May 8, Malone's peak-season rates ran from May 18 to September 20, Craig Wood's peak season runs from May 24 to October 12, and the River Course's last day is October 31. Golf listings give Malone's season as about April 15 to November 15, with lower off-peak rates at both ends, and Tupper Lake's pro shop posts hours from April 15 until the season ends with the weather. Expect frost delays on cold spring and fall mornings, when tee times are pushed back until the grass is ready, and call any course before you drive to it in April or late October.
Month
Malone average high and low
For a golf trip
April
51°F and 32°F
Listings put Malone's opening near April 15, when Tupper Lake's shop hours begin; expect frost delays
May
64°F and 44°F
The Whiteface Club opened May 8 in 2026; black flies from mid-May
June
73°F and 54°F
The longest evenings; black flies until mid-June or early July
July
77°F and 58°F
The warmest month; book each round the day its window opens
August
75°F and 55°F
The Franklin County Fair fills Malone for more than a week
September
68°F and 47°F
Malone's peak rates ended September 20 in 2026; cooler mornings
October
55°F and 36°F
Fall color and frost delays; call each course before you go
Any of the three sleeps a foursome, and each has what a golf trip uses: a washer and dryer for wet clothes, a grill for burgers after the round, a full kitchen for early breakfasts and a private hot tub for the evening. The differences are in the beds and the extras.
Each cabin has two bedrooms, three beds and one bathroom. The Aviator and The Modern Tiny Home list a king in the first bedroom and a queen and a single in the bunk room, and The Modern Pine's listing gives three beds in two bedrooms without the sizes. So a foursome in one cabin shares a bed. If all four want a bed of their own, book The Modern Pine and The Aviator, which share one property, and split two and two, with a cabin, a hot tub and a bathroom for each pair. Two foursomes take the same two cabins, four to each; group stays covers booking them together.
The Modern Pine for its hot tub, listed as open 24 hours, its large screened room on the deck for evenings in bug season, and its Jøtul gas stove on a cool May or October night.
The Aviator for its large open deck, the smokeless fire pit on its lawn with four Adirondack chairs, and the same Jøtul stove. It is the far cabin on the property it shares with the Pine.
The Modern Tiny Home for the big stone fire pit and the short trail to the pond deck. It has no dishwasher, and it shares its property with a cabin that is not one of the three.
Each listing offers free parking on the premises. None of them mentions a place for golf bags, so plan on keeping the clubs in the car or just inside the door. With one bathroom for four, shower the night before an early tee time. And at The Modern Pine and The Modern Tiny Home, the person who books has to be 25 or older and stay for the whole trip.
A two-day golf trip
This plan gives a foursome two rounds on two different courses and an afternoon outdoors, arriving the evening before and leaving after the second round. Book the Malone tee time a week ahead to the day, and Saranac Inn online.
Arrival evening. Check in after 4 p.m. with the groceries from Malone, where Price Chopper posts hours of 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day. Grill, soak and lay out the golf clothes.
Day one, morning. Malone Golf Club, the course of your choice, at about 8 a.m. Lunch in the Grille Room in season, or back at the cabin.
Day one, afternoon. Elephant's Head in the Titusville Mountain State Forest, about nine road miles from the cabins: 0.8 mile and 320 feet of climbing from the upper lot to a lookout over Lake Titus. The gravel road to the upper lot is not maintained in winter and stays gated each spring until it dries. Back for the hot tub and dinner on the deck.
Day two. Check out early with the car packed and drive an hour south on NY 30 to Saranac Inn. Drivers bound south carry on home through Saranac Lake. Drivers bound north stop on the way back up NY 30 at the beach on Meacham Lake, about 21 road miles from the cabins, while the state campground is open.
A three-day golf trip
Three rounds on three courses, one of them on the way in, with a hike and a lake fitted around them.
Day one. A round on your route in: Craig Wood, the Lake Placid Club, the Whiteface Club or the Saranac Lake nine from the south, Potsdam from the west, or Malone itself from the north and east. Check in after 4 p.m.
Day two. Malone Golf Club in the morning. In the late afternoon, climb Owls Head, about four road miles from the cabins: 1.3 miles and about 725 feet to rock ledges over Indian Lake and Mountain View Lake, two hours for most people. Or walk the nearly level trail to High Falls on the Salmon River, about 1.5 miles round trip and about five road miles away.
Day three. South for a full golf day at Saranac Inn or Tupper Lake. On the Saranac Inn day, stop on NY 30 at Paul Smith's College's Visitor Interpretive Center, whose trails are open from dawn to dusk every day, or at the Meacham Lake beach. On the Tupper Lake day, the non-golfers spend it at The Wild Center.
Day four. Check out before 11 a.m. and head home, or add a fourth round on the way: a course on your route south or west, or a last round at Malone if you are heading north or east.
Golf with a lake or a hike
Most of the courses have a walk or a swim close to them, and a short one fits after a morning round.
Malone and the state forest. Elephant's Head and High Falls, two of the three trails in the Titusville Mountain State Forest, are both short and both within about nine road miles of the cabins; the state forest guide has the trailheads and the gate.
Malone and Owls Head. The ledges over the two lakes take about two hours from the trailhead on Station Road; see Owls Head.
Saranac Inn and Meacham Lake. The state campground on Meacham Lake has a sand beach on the north shore. Swimming has been unsupervised since 2023, as at every DEC campground beach, so go in only from the designated beach area; alcohol, glass and pets are not allowed on the beach. In 2026 the campground opened on May 15, and its last night is October 11; the Meacham Lake guide has the rest.
Saranac Inn and Paul Smiths. The Visitor Interpretive Center at 8023 NY 30 has more than 25 miles of trails for walking, open from dawn to dusk, and its lodge opens from Thursday to Monday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. See Saranac Lake and Paul Smiths.
The lakes near the cabins. Indian Lake, Mountain View Lake and Lake Titus are about six to nine road miles from the cabins. The cabins have no boats, so bring your own kayak or canoe; the lakes guide has the launches.
Getting your clubs here
Most golfers drive and bring their own clubs. Flying takes more planning. Cape Air flies to Adirondack Regional Airport at Lake Clear, about 40 road miles from the cabins, and carries a golf bag as a special item in place of a checked bag, space permitting and with the bag fee. The bag has to be in a closed, covered soft or hard case of no more than 62 linear inches, length plus width plus height, so measure your travel bag before you book. Airports near the cabins covers the other airports and the rental cars, which are the weak point at Lake Clear.
Renting is the fallback. In 2026 Tupper Lake Golf Club rented full TaylorMade sets for $10 a round, reserved by phone, the Lake Placid Club rented clubs for $35, and the Saranac Lake Golf Club listed club rentals at $15. Malone Golf Club's posted rates list no rental clubs, so call its shop before you count on a set there.
Booking the cabins and the tee times
Book the cabin first. Each cabin has its own listing and calendar, and the dates bar on this site carries your dates into each cabin's booking link; see how to book. Then book the golf as each window opens: Malone a week ahead to the day; Saranac Inn, the Lake Placid Club, Craig Wood and the River Course online; the Whiteface Club through the Chronogolf app or by phone; Potsdam and Tupper Lake by phone; and the Saranac Lake nine needs no tee time at all. Two foursomes at Malone book two times back to back, eight minutes apart.
Questions
How far is Malone Golf Club from the cabins?
About eight road miles to the clubhouse, fifteen minutes by the listings' count. Its two courses make 36 holes, tee times open seven days ahead online or through the pro shop at (518) 483-2926, and groups of four go off eight minutes apart. The Malone Golf Club guide has the courses and the 2026 rates.
Which other golf courses are within about an hour?
Saranac Inn, about 44 road miles south on NY 30, and the Saranac Lake Golf Club, a public nine in Ray Brook about 48 miles away, take about an hour. Potsdam, the River Course near Massena, the Whiteface Club, the Lake Placid Club and Craig Wood take about an hour and a quarter, and Tupper Lake about an hour and a half.
When is the golf season near the cabins?
From spring into late fall, depending on the course and the frost. In 2026 the Whiteface Club opened on May 8, Malone's peak rates ran from May 18 to September 20, Craig Wood's peak season runs to October 12 and the River Course's season to October 31. Golf listings give Malone's season as about April 15 to November 15.
Which cabin is best for a foursome?
Any of the three sleeps four in two bedrooms with three beds and one bathroom, so two golfers share a bed. For a bed each, book The Modern Pine and The Aviator, which share one property, and split two and two. The Pine has the hot tub listed as open 24 hours and a screened room; The Aviator has the large open deck.
Can I rent clubs near the cabins?
At some courses. In 2026 Tupper Lake Golf Club rented TaylorMade sets for $10 a round to golfers who called ahead, the Lake Placid Club rented clubs for $35, and the Saranac Lake Golf Club listed rentals at $15. Malone Golf Club's posted rates list no rental clubs, so call its pro shop before you count on a set.
Can two foursomes stay together?
Yes. The Modern Pine and The Aviator share one property and one gravel drive, four guests in each, with a hot tub, fire pit and grill apiece. At Malone, book two tee times back to back on the day the seven-day window opens. See group stays.
Sources
Facts on this page were checked against these sources in October 2026. Hours, fees and schedules change; confirm before you go.
The après-ski cabin: a Jøtul gas stove between two picture windows, a large screened room on the deck, a hot tub open all year, and Titus Mountain minutes away.
Aviation theme
Stone fire pit & pond trail
