Five nights across Alabama playing the Trail's four strongest courses, with two resort bases and 500 miles of road between them.
5 Days
Bucket List Trip
$2000–$3500/person
2
Moderate
This itinerary covers the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail's four strongest courses across five nights, moving from Birmingham north to Muscle Shoals, south to Montgomery, and east to Opelika. It is a road trip by design. The Trail was built to be experienced in motion, and the driving between sites is part of the architecture of the visit.
Fly into Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM) and pick up a rental car. The drive to the Renaissance Birmingham Ross Bridge Golf Resort and Spa takes approximately 20 minutes.
Depart the Ross Bridge resort and drive approximately two hours north to The Shoals complex in Muscle Shoals. The drive follows Interstate 65 north and then Route 72 west, passing through Cullman and the northern Alabama countryside.
Morning visit to the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, adjacent to the 16th Street Baptist Church. The institute is a National Historic Landmark that covers the Civil Rights Movement with thoroughness and gravity.
Drive approximately 90 minutes east from Montgomery to the Auburn Marriott Opelika Resort and Spa at Grand National. Check in to the 211-room AAA Four Diamond property, which sits on the Grand National complex with on-site access to 54 holes.
Morning exploration of Auburn and Opelika. Walk the Auburn University campus: Toomer's Corner, Samford Hall, and a lap around Jordan-Hare Stadium provide two hours of college-town atmosphere.
A rental car is essential for the entire trip. Average rates at BHM run $50 to $70 per day for a standard vehicle. The total driving distance across the five-day itinerary is approximately 500 miles, with the longest single segment being the two-hour drive between Birmingham and Muscle Shoals.
Purchase the 2026 Trail Card ($49.95) before the trip through rtjgolf.com. It provides discounts at all Trail sites and pays for itself within two rounds.
The best months for this itinerary are March through May and September through November. Summer offers lower green fees and accommodation rates but sustained heat above 90 degrees. Winter is playable with January highs averaging 53 degrees in Birmingham.
Total green fees for four rounds: $300 to $485. Total lodging for five nights across the Renaissance Ross Bridge and Auburn Marriott: approximately $750 to $1,250. The math of this trip, four championship courses at two resort properties for $2,000 to $3,500 per person, has no equivalent in American golf travel.
$2000–$3500
per person
5 Days
4 nights
2
courses included