Washington Golf Trip Guide: Lake Chelan

Northern Washington has no shortage of stunning places to play, but few pack as much variety and sheer scenery into one region as the Lake Chelan Valley. You've got a world-ranked links course carved from high desert above the Columbia River. A mountain layout that drops 700 feet from the first tee to the valley floor. A challenging canyon course with Columbia River views in every direction. Throw in 50-plus miles of glacier-fed lake, one of Washington's fastest-growing wine regions, and a downtown that actually knows how to eat and drink, and Chelan earns a long weekend every summer. Here's everything you need to know to do it right.

Where to Play

Gamble Sands — Brewster, WA

The headliner. Plan your whole trip around it.

Gamble Sands Clubhouse from Course

Gamble Sands is the reason serious golfers make the drive to North Central Washington. Designed by David McLay Kidd (the same architect behind Bandon Dunes), it sits atop a treeless, sandy plateau overlooking the Columbia River Valley and the Cascade Mountains, and it plays nothing like anything else in the Pacific Northwest.

Named Golf Digest's Best New Course in America when it opened in 2014, Gamble Sands has since been ranked the No. 1 public course in Washington State, above Chambers Bay. The entire course is built on sandy, fescue-covered soil, which means firm and fast conditions, wide fairways that invite bump-and-run creativity, and enormous greens with undulations that reward every type of shot. There's no rough to speak of. Waste bunkers define the edges. The whole layout flows with the terrain rather than fighting it. Bring a caddie if it's your first time, the lines off the tee are often counterintuitive, and having someone who knows the greens is a genuine advantage. Walking is encouraged and the experience is better for it.

Gamble Sands has continued to expand: Scarecrow, a second 18-hole DMK design, opened in recent years and earned its own Golf Digest Best New Course award. Quicksands, a 14-hole short course, and the Cascades putting course (inspired by the Himalayas at St. Andrews) round out one of the best golf campuses in the Western U.S.

The Barn offers casual chef-inspired pizza post-round; Danny Boy is the more elevated farm-to-table option. Both are on property.

The Barn at Gamble Sands

About 45 minutes north of downtown Chelan. Budget 5+ hours including practice time.

Bear Mountain Ranch — Chelan, WA

Drama, elevation, and views of Lake Chelan from nearly every hole.

Bear Mountain Ranch

Where Gamble Sands is wide open and linkslike, Bear Mountain Ranch is mountainous and theatrical. Set in the foothills above Lake Chelan on a 350-acre layout with 700 feet of elevation change, this is a course that punishes timid plays and rewards trajectory control. Named one of the top six new courses in the U.S. by PGA Professionals when it opened in 2005, it remains one of the most visually striking tracks in the state.

The opening seven holes play downhill off elevated tees with serious hang time and wide targets, it's confidence-building until it's suddenly not. The closing holes of the front nine hit you with steep uphill approaches, and the back nine alternates between canyon views and peninsula greens with water guarding key angles. The signature par-3 7th is one of the best holes in the region: 233 yards, pond fronting the green, Lake Chelan stretching out behind it. The par-4 4th drops nearly 200 feet from tee to fairway and is the kind of hole you'll be talking about at the 19th hole.

Bear Mountain Ranch Hole 7

Five tee sets accommodate all skill levels, and the course plays differently enough at each distance to feel like two separate experiences. Carts come with GPS. The pro shop and cafe are well-stocked.

Located directly in Chelan, easy to walk in between Gamble Sands rounds.

Desert Canyon Golf Resort — Orondo, WA

Long, exposed, and built for low scores if you can handle the wind.

Desert Canyon Aerial of Hole 15

Desert Canyon sits about 30 minutes south of Chelan in Orondo, perched above the Columbia River with views that stretch for miles in every direction. Designed by Jack Frei and Rick Fehr and opened in 1993, it's a par-72 layout stretching to 7,216 yards from the tips, one of the longer public courses in Washington.

The course is built into the canyon walls above the river, and the high desert terrain gives it a distinctly different feel from the mountain golf at Bear Mountain. Fairways are wide on some holes and tight on others. Elevation changes are pronounced but less dramatic than Bear Mountain. The wind is the real variable, a calm morning can become a completely different test by afternoon.

Ranked among the top public courses in Washington by Golfweek, Desert Canyon is the sleeper pick of the Chelan-area trio: less talked about than Gamble Sands but deeply satisfying for anyone who enjoys long, exposed, scenically dramatic golf.

The on-site resort (see "Where to Stay") makes it an easy one-stop option for a midweek round.

About 30 minutes south of downtown Chelan toward Wenatchee.

Where to Stay

The Inn at Gamble Sands: The obvious first choice if your trip is centered on the golf. Rated the best golf resort in Washington, the Inn has 77 rooms overlooking either the Columbia River Valley or the Scarecrow course holes, and the walk to the first tee is measured in seconds. Rooms are spacious and built for multiple-night golf stays. Book early, summer weekends fill fast.

Campbell's Resort on Lake Chelan: The most iconic lodging in Chelan, family-owned since 1901, with 170 lake-view rooms, 1,800 feet of private beach, an outdoor pool, and a pub that serves breakfast through dinner. Walking distance to downtown restaurants and wine tasting. The right choice if you want the full Chelan town experience alongside your golf.

Desert Canyon Golf Resort: Condo-style apartments with full kitchens, private balconies with mountain views, a pool, and a chipping green right behind the property. If you're playing Desert Canyon anyway, staying on-site saves a drive and the units offer exceptional value (no resort or cleaning fees).

Lakeside Lodge and Suites: A well-reviewed, centrally located option with indoor and outdoor pools and easy access to downtown. A solid mid-range pick for groups who want flexibility on dining and activities.

Wapato Point Resort (Manson): For those who want waterfront access with a resort feel. Manson is a quieter alternative to downtown Chelan with its own restaurants, wineries, and beach access.

Where to Eat

Sorrento's Ristorante at Tsillan Cellars: The best dinner in the valley, full stop. A glass pavilion on the south shore with panoramic lake views, Italian-inspired cooking, and wines from one of the region's largest estate vineyards. Named one of OpenTable's Top 100 Scenic View Restaurants in America. Make a reservation.

Danny Boy at Gamble Sands: Farm-to-table dining on the resort grounds with views of the Columbia. The right move if you're staying at the Inn and want to keep things in orbit.

The Barn at Gamble Sands: More casual, wood-fired pizza and lighter fare. Great post-round option before driving back to Chelan.

Vin du Lac Winery and Bistro: North shore winery with a seasonal menu and outdoor patio that catches the sunset over the lake perfectly. One of the older wineries in the area and a perennial local favorite.

Local Myth Pizza: The best pizza in downtown Chelan. Casual, always busy, and consistently good.

Marcela's Cocina Mexicana: Chelan's top Mexican spot, with 30-plus margarita flavors and wet burritos that people drive from Seattle for. If you're eating in town on a warm evening, this is the move.

Apple Cup Cafe: Open since 1957 and still the best breakfast in Chelan. Pancakes, omelettes, skillets, arrive early on weekends.

Lakeview Drive-In: A Chelan institution. Burgers, milkshakes, outdoor seating with direct lake views. The seasoning on the fries alone is worth the stop.

While You're There

Lake Chelan is one of Washington's great summer playgrounds, and building a round or two of non-golf activity into a golf trip makes it that much better.

Wine tasting: The Lake Chelan AVA has over 30 wineries, with Tsillan Cellars and Karma Vineyards (home of 18 Brix restaurant) among the most acclaimed. Most offer tasting rooms with lake views.

On the water: Rent a boat or paddleboard from several operators in downtown Chelan. The lake is 55 miles long and 1,486 feet deep, the third deepest lake in the country.

Slidewaters Waterpark: If you're traveling with family or just want to act like it, Chelan's waterpark sits above the lake with views you wouldn't expect from a water slide.

Hiking: Chelan Butte and the trails above town offer easy access to dramatic high-desert views. The Lady of the Lake ferry to Stehekin at the north end of the lake is a full-day adventure worth building in if you have extra time.

The Trip

For a first-time Chelan golf trip, the play is simple: two nights at Campbell's or the Inn at Gamble Sands, with rounds at Gamble Sands and Bear Mountain as the anchors, and Desert Canyon as the optional third day for anyone who can't leave. Add one dinner at Sorrento's, one morning at Apple Cup, and at least one afternoon on the water. That's a trip you'll repeat.

Chelan is about 3.5 hours from Seattle on a clear day. Summer weekends fill fast — book tee times and lodging at least two months out.