And as Scotland is just a wee country, you can base yourself in one place and play multiple top courses with short (and scenic) drives between them. That said, choosing the right base can make as much difference to your trip as securing a prime tee time — whether that’s a penthouse overlooking the Old Course at St Andrews, a townhouse in a lively seaside town, or a cliff-side retreat with its own putting green. These Airbnbs put you close to the country’s most celebrated courses while adding memorable touches once you’re off the fairway.

We hope you love the spaces and stays we recommend! Just so you know, Matador may collect a small commission from the links on this page if you decide to book a stay. Listed prices are accurate as of the time of publication.

Location: St Andrews, Fife — about 90 minutes from Edinburgh by car.

The Old Course at St Andrews, played since at least 1552, is one of the world’s oldest and most storied golf courses. This public links, managed by the St Andrews Links Trust, runs along the North Sea and has hosted The Open Championship more than 30 times. On calm days it’s considered one of the most forgiving championship layouts — short and flat, with expansive fairways and greens — yet its pot bunkers, gorse, and subtle slopes hold challenges that locals say the “Old Lady” only reveals over many rounds. Most visitors secure a tee time through the daily ballot held 48 hours in advance, while guaranteed spots come only via “Stay & Play” packages from authorized tour operators; singles can also line up at dawn for walk-up availability. First-time players are encouraged to take a caddie, whose knowledge of the course and local winds can make a huge difference to your experience.

Just a few minutes’ walk from the 18th green, this two-bedroom apartment ($705 per night) is in the top ten percent of Airbnbs worldwide for ratings, reviews, and reliability. The Victorian listed building sits on the site of a 15th-century friary and has been reimagined with a state-of-the-art kitchen beneath a large overhead skylight, a landscaped garden with a private hot tub, and its own putting green so you can practice before or after your round. Both bedrooms have super-king beds (or twins on request) and smart TVs, with a golf storage room that can handle four full sets.

Or for sea views, this fully refurbished penthouse apartment ($1,238 per night) is five minutes from the course. Its combined kitchen, dining, and living space frames sweeping vistas over West Sands beach, and the three bedrooms each come with their own bathroom. Past guests have included some of the world’s top-ranked golfers, and the main living area offers a front-row seat to the waves between rounds.

Location: Dornoch, Highlands — about 4.5 hours north of Edinburgh or Inverness Airport is just an hour away.

Set on a narrow strip of linksland in the Scottish Highlands, Royal Dornoch’s Championship Course is consistently ranked among the best in the world. Golf has been played here for more than four centuries, and its layout flows naturally along the Dornoch Firth — the outward nine runs high beneath gorse-covered dunes and the inward holes sweep closer to the beach. Plateau greens, shaved run-offs, and constant wind demand creativity on every shot. Philadelphia golf historian James Finegan captured the setting perfectly, describing “a strong sensation of heading toward land’s end… on this journey over ancient landscape where so little is owed to the hand of man.” Its remote location has kept it from hosting The Open, but the course’s pure links character has drawn praise from Tom Watson, Ben Crenshaw, and countless others.

Ten minutes on foot from the first tee, this four-bedroom stone house in the center of Dornoch ($943 per night) dates to the 1820s and has been restored with modern touches while keeping its traditional character. A quartz-topped kitchen with a breakfast bar leads to a dining area, snug with a log-burning stove, and a separate lounge for post-round evenings. Two bedrooms are en suite, and there’s a dedicated storage area for clubs and trolleys. The rear terrace overlooks a neatly kept garden, and a short stroll takes you to Dornoch Beach.

Set on a quiet street yet within walking distance of the clubhouse, this renovated cottage ($797 per night) has four double bedrooms, each with its own en suite. Two have super-king beds that can convert to singles, making it a practical choice for golf groups. Guests praise its location for quick access to Dornoch’s shops, restaurants, and pubs, and it’s less than a 10-minute walk to the course.

Location: South Ayrshire, about two hours from Glasgow.

Perched above the Firth of Clyde with views across to the uninhabited island of Ailsa Craig, the Ailsa Course at Turnberry is as well-known for its setting as it is for its history. The course first opened in 1901 and has hosted four Open Championships, including the famous 1977 “Duel in the Sun,” when Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus battled in blazing conditions to one of the sport’s most memorable finishes. A recent renovation by architect Martin Ebert reimagined key holes, most notably the par-3 9th, which now plays over the shoreline toward the Turnberry Lighthouse.

You can stay onsite at Trump’s five-star Turnberry resort, making it easy to pair morning tee times with evenings by the sea, but it’s not cheap.

Or, if you’re happy to make the 25-minute drive, this two-bedroom cottage ($345 per night) sits on six acres with panoramic views over the Firth of Clyde to the Isle of Arran. It has a wood-fired hot tub in the garden, a pool table in the living area, and ensuite bathrooms for both bedrooms. You’ll want a car on this stretch of coast — not just for the run to Turnberry, but for day trips to Culzean Castle, local beaches, and the string of other golf courses within a few miles.

Location: Gullane, East Lothian — 40 minutes from Edinburgh.

Founded in 1744, The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers is one of the oldest golf clubs in the world, and its home course at Muirfield has hosted The Open 16 times. The unusual layout features two concentric loops of nine holes, so no two consecutive holes play in the same direction, creating constant shifts in approach and club choice. Muirfield is renowned for its precision-focused design, immaculate conditioning, and long-standing traditions. Visitors are welcome on select days, but tee times are limited and often booked far in advance.

A five-minute drive from Muirfield, this Victorian apartment in Gullane ($292 per night) is in the center of the village, a minute from The Bonnie Badger — a restaurant and pub run by Michelin-starred British TV chef Tom Kitchin. Built in 1895 and newly renovated, it has a king-bed master, a second bedroom with adult-sized bunk beds, a bright rain-shower bathroom, and a living room stocked with books and board games.

Or, for a rural setting, this loft on the Archerfield Estate ($348 per night) is a 10-minute drive from the course and next to both Archerfield Links and Yellowcraig Beach. The first-floor space has high ceilings, two bedrooms, and a private garden with a gas BBQ for post-round dinners, with easy access to the stretch of coast between Gullane and North Berwick.

Location: Just seven miles from St Andrews.

Opened in 2000, Kingsbarns has the feel of a century-old links thanks to its natural routing along the North Sea. It co-hosts the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and hosted the Women’s British Open in 2017. The modern clubhouse, sea views on every hole, and approachable-yet-demanding design make it a favorite for golfers pairing it with a St Andrews trip. Tee times are available to the public, but summer slots go quickly.

Less than a 10-minute walk from Kingsbarns Golf Links, this two-bedroom cottage ($303 per night) was once a “smiddy” — the Scots word for a blacksmith’s workshop. The converted byre has a king bedroom, a twin room, and gardens at both the front and back. Kingsbarns Beach, the Inn at Kingsbarns, and Cambo House are all within walking distance, with St Andrews just 10 minutes away by car for additional championship play.

For a couple or solo traveler, this one-bedroom lodge ($362 per night) near Crail comes with a Scandinavian wood-fired hot tub and Smeg-equipped kitchen. It’s set beside walking and cycling paths that link to the Fife Coastal Path, with Kingsbarns Golf Links 10 minutes away by car and St Andrews just a bit farther.

Location: Carnoustie, Angus — about 75 minutes from Edinburgh.

Golf has been played at Carnoustie since the early 1500s, but the Championship Course — shaped by Old Tom Morris and later refined by James Braid — has become one of the most demanding tests in the game. An eight-time Open Championship host, it’s best known for the 1999 event, when Jean van de Velde’s collapse on the 18th and Paul Lawrie’s playoff win cemented its “Carnasty” nickname. The closing stretch, with the Barry Burn snaking across key holes and deep revetted bunkers guarding narrow fairways, punishes any lapse in concentration. Despite its fearsome reputation, thousands of golfers each year come to measure themselves against a course that demands precise ball-striking, sound decision-making, and patience from first tee to last putt.

A 20-minute drive from the Championship Course, this two-bedroom cliffside retreat in Auchmithie ($472 per night) offers sweeping views of the North Sea from multiple terraces, including one with a hot tub. The village pub, the But ’n’ Ben, is a five-star spot for local seafood, and the Arbroath Cliff Path begins just outside your door. Inside, there’s a super-king bedroom overlooking the water and a second double, with plenty of indoor and outdoor spaces to unwind after your round.

Ten minutes from the course, this three-bedroom countryside cottage ($301 per night) blends Scottish rural charm with airy, Hamptons-inspired interiors. Set on a quiet lane with a south-facing garden, it has an octagonal living room with wraparound windows and a spacious kitchen for home cooking. Carnoustie’s pubs and restaurants are nearby, and Dundee’s V&A museum, the Angus Glens, and miles of sandy coastline make for easy day trips between tee times.

Location: North Berwick, East Lothian — 45 minutes from Edinburgh.

Dating back to 1832, the West Links at North Berwick is one of the oldest continuously played courses in the world and a pioneer in seaside golf. Its layout runs along the Firth of Forth, weaving natural contours and centuries-old features into the round. Signature holes include “The Pit,” where an approach must carry a stone wall to reach the green, and the original “Redan,” a sloping par-3 design that has been copied on courses across the globe. The course is walkable straight from the center of town, so it’s easy to finish your round and be in a pub or on the coastal path within minutes.

A short drive from the West Links, this five-bedroom Georgian coach house ($994 per night) sits on a working estate surrounded by farmland, with footpaths leading through fields and along the coast. It sleeps up to 10, with the fifth bedroom across a courtyard from the main house, and is within easy reach of North Berwick’s harbor, high street, and beaches.

Right on the sand, this beachfront apartment ($437 per night) faces North Berwick’s central shore and the Bass Rock. Two large bedrooms — one overlooking the water, the other convertible to twins — are joined by a small children’s room. The living room and kitchen share the same sea-facing windows, and the town’s restaurants, shops, and harbor are all a short walk away.

With the launch of GPT-5, OpenAI has begun explicitly telling people to use its models for health advice. At the launch event, Altman welcomed on stage Felipe Millon, an OpenAI employee, and his wife, Carolina Millon, who had recently been diagnosed with multiple forms of cancer. Carolina spoke about asking ChatGPT for help with her diagnoses, saying that she had uploaded copies of her biopsy results to ChatGPT to translate medical jargon and asked the AI for help making decisions about things like whether or not to pursue radiation. The trio called it an empowering example of shrinking the knowledge gap between doctors and patients.

With this change in approach, OpenAI is wading into dangerous waters. 

For one, it’s using evidence that doctors can benefit from AI as a clinical tool, as in the Kenya study, to suggest that people without any medical background should ask the AI model for advice about their own health. The problem is that lots of people might ask for this advice without ever running it by a doctor (and are less likely to do so now that the chatbot rarely prompts them to).

Indeed, two days before the launch of GPT-5, the Annals of Internal Medicine published a paper about a man who stopped eating salt and began ingesting dangerous amounts of bromide following a conversation with ChatGPT. He developed bromide poisoning—which largely disappeared in the US after the Food and Drug Administration began curbing the use of bromide in over-the-counter medications in the 1970s—and then nearly died, spending weeks in the hospital. 

So what’s the point of all this? Essentially, it’s about accountability. When AI companies move from promising general intelligence to offering humanlike helpfulness in a specific field like health care, it raises a second, yet unanswered question about what will happen when mistakes are made. As things stand, there’s little indication tech companies will be made liable for the harm caused.

“When doctors give you harmful medical advice due to error or prejudicial bias, you can sue them for malpractice and get recompense,” says Damien Williams, an assistant professor of data science and philosophy at the University of North Carolina Charlotte. 

“When ChatGPT gives you harmful medical advice because it’s been trained on prejudicial data, or because ‘hallucinations’ are inherent in the operations of the system, what’s your recourse?”

This story originally appeared in The Algorithm, our weekly newsletter on AI. To get stories like this in your inbox first, sign up here.

Although heralded for its avant-garde architecture, high-end accommodations, ultra-premium red blends, and superior gastronomy, VIK Chile Hotel and Winery wants to be remembered for its sustainability. Throughout my stay, team members chipped in with nuggets about radical eco initiatives used by the winery and hotel. It all starts with the grounds: only 808 acres of the 11,000 acres owned by the Viks are reserved for those biodynamic vineyards behind Chile’s ultra-premium vintages. The rest of the compound is a natural reserve where native flora and fauna can thrive – and this tells you everything you need to know about the Viks’ philosophy.

We hope you love the VIK Chile Hotel and Winery! Just so you know, Matador may collect a small commission from the links on this page if you decide to book a stay. Listed prices are accurate as of the time of publication.

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VIK Retreat: Chile’s most luxurious wine hotel

When VIK Hotel emerged from the hillside above the vineyards, its titanium roof glistened like a droplet of morning dew against the greenery. Twenty-two suites coil around a Zen garden with a pair of bonsai trees, planted as a metaphor for VIK’s expression of sculpture, terroir, and balance. Designed by the Uruguayan architect Marcelo Daglio, much of VIK is open to the elements, with window walls immersing you in the scenery from all public areas and the private domains – the Cordillera is just about visible on the horizon. My stay, coinciding with the Southern Hemisphere’s winter solstice, was bookended by the kind of sunset and sunrise no photo can do justice to.

All units are individually designed. Allocated the Principe Hubertus Suite, I was told how the decor was inspired by a close friend of the Viks – a Mexican skier from German nobility known for his flamboyant sense of style. The space was suitably eclectic yet utterly comfortable, and I relished a long soak in the lipstick-red tub after a long drive down from Viña del Mar. It was the views that would see me hurrying back; an uninterrupted sweep over the reserve was revealed to me in the morning when I rolled up the garage-style blinds.

Beyond the rooms, the hotel’s “living room” is elegantly turned out with pieces from the owners’ art collection. On the lower level, you’ll find a games room as well as the hotel’s infinity pool which drifts above the wilderness.

Touring VIK’s state-of-the-art sustainable winery

Thorough testing indicated that the Millahue Valley’s microclimates and complex soils would support low-intervention, terroir-driven viticulture. Once confirmed, it was over to the Chilean architect Smiljan Radic to create a structure that would turn heads while having minimal impact on the natural habitat. Whereas VIK Retreat floats above the greenery, the winery hovers over a sloped water plaza which doubles as a regulating system for the wine cellars below – thus reducing energy consumption.

My guide went on to explain how VIK is the first and only winery in Chile making its own French oak barrels, consciously sourced from the estate’s native trees. Headed up by Cristián Vallejo, the winemaking team even found a use for the shavings produced during planing – smoking charcuterie in the restaurant. The winery also creates its own yeasts from flowers, thus avoiding the need for artificial additives.

Venturing to the tasting room is a thrill; hefty wooden doors slide apart to reveal a shadowy passageway cut into the cellars – it’s all very Indiana Jones. Displays illustrate the terroirs of VIK’s vineyards with Eduardo Cardozo’s eye-catching bronze mural expressing the geology of the grounds. When it was finally time to try the goods, my tasting introduced me to eight vintages across the flagship VIK, A, Milla Calla, and La Piu Belle. Dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon and Carmenère grapes, these potent red blends are high in acidity with tannins balanced by the Andes’ influence. The experience was unhurried and my Sommelier shared an endless supply of stories from behind the scenes to help me understand and differentiate between the portfolios.

My tasting culminated with a toast of Chile’s only bona fide cuvée. In order to meet appellation standards, VIK’s La Piu Belle Champagne is produced, aged, and bottled in Aÿ, France, before being shipped over to savor on the grounds of South America’s twice-crowned “Leading Wine Region Hotel.”

Farm-to-table gastronomy at VIK Chile

There are three dining destinations at VIK Chile: Milla Milla, VIK Zero, and The Pavilion. I enjoyed a five-course dinner at the hotel restaurant, Milla Milla, which started with an adorable appetizer of sweet baby carrots buried in a ground hazelnut crumble. This was followed by a garlicky ceviche and a main plate of lamb cooked three ways. Naturally, a glass of wine accompanied each serving and my server delighted me with the origins of each dish.

As I learned, the majority of the vegetables, fruits, and botanicals served at Milla Milla come from the property’s organic garden. Guests of the hotel are invited on a complimentary tour of the plot, where the emphasis is on sustainable growing methods and sampling the crop. Passing through citrus groves and ducking beneath walnut trees, my guide explained the rotation methodology and how grape pips are used for composting. I was encouraged to graze on tangy sprouts and pluck kale from winter vegetable patches before sitting down to sip the freshest mint tea.

Outdoor activities in Chile’s Millahue Valley

Many guests come to VIK purely to taste the wine, drink up the scenery from the pool, and unwind with a treatment at the Wine Spa. For those looking for adventure, there is horseback riding through the vineyards, hiking excursions in the natural reserve, and heliskiing in the Andes. I opted for a horse trek, riding “Gaucho-style” with one hand free to grasp handfuls of grapes from the vines. Mountain bikes are available for exploring the reserve or idling down to VIK Winery. Seeing as it’s an uphill journey back, guests can hail a ride in the on-demand jeeps.

Speaking of transport, VIK is a two-hour drive south of Santiago. Located in the O’Higgins Region of Chile, it’s a touch further afield than the busier Maipo and Casablanca’s wine regions – but utterly worth it for an off-the-beaten-track experience and luxurious vintages. Those looking to make an entrance can inquire about a transfer by private helicopter.

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