1 Hope Blvd, Galveston, Texas 77554, US
(409) 683-4200
Location Map

About Moody Gardens

Moody Gardens is a large resort and attraction area with a hotel, conference center and 18 holes of golf in the coastal town of Galveston, Texas. It is well known for its three pyramids home to an aquarium and rain forest attractions. It has not only an onsite waterpark but is next to Schlitterbahn as well. There are six dining concepts, as well as a spa and fitness center. It's within easy access to historic downtown Galveston, Pleasure Pier and the beaches. The golf course originally opened in 1989 but was totally redesigned by Peter Jacobsen and Jim Hardy in 2008. This watery layout features scenic views of the gulf, bridges and bayous, and the back nine plays alongside the small Galveston airport. The course is links-inspired with gulf breezes and wall-to-wall paspalum turf. Historic Galveston is less than an hour's drive from downtown Houston, making Moody Gardens a popular day trip destination as well as for weekend vacation getaways.

Facts

Price Range$$, $$$
Property Class★★★★
Acres233
Year Opened1986
Number of Units300-500

Amenities

RestaurantsFine, Casual, Bar
Room TypesRoom, Suite
Fitness CenterYes
Practice FacilityYes
Banquet SpaceYes
SpaYes

Services

Kids ProgramYes
Room ServiceYes
ConciergeYes

Rules

Is the resort pet friendly?No
Is resort stay required for a tee time?No

Golf courses at Moody Gardens

Reviews

4.6
1022 Reviews (1022)

Reviewer Photos

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Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 3
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Used cart
Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 10
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Great price for a great course

And Dawn was extremely hospitable! Great service and I will be back!

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 15
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Friendliest staff in Texas!

The course was in great shape. The greens had recently been sanded, but they were soft and putted true. The fairways were wide but in anmazing shape. The rough was thick but playable. Dawn who ran the pro shop was super friendly. The starter was full on info and pleasure to talk with.

I couldn’t ask for a better experience. I love a coarse with 5 par 5’s and 5 par 3’s

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 54
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Lost some of its luster

The first time I played this course, about 4 years ago, I was amazed at the condition from tee to green. Easily a 5 star course. It's still a very good track, but it is a notch or two below what it used to be. Fairways were thin in spots, greens were recently punched and sanded, and some of the bunkers were sub-par.

On the bright side, with a slight helping breeze, I drove the 3rd green from the black tees.

Conditions Good
Value Average
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

skeeters

Mosquitos were horrible. Not bad....HORRIBLE. That being said, the fariways and greens are in good condition. However the greens need a little more time to recover from being punched. Bunkers are unplayable. If you play fairways and greens, spray down and go enjoy and great course.

Conditions Average
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 6
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Average
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Fair
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Beginner
Plays Twice a year
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

This course has great yet challenging features

Overall this is a great course to play and the staff are friendly and knowledgeable. The only problem I had was with the bunkers being hard and packed down. When I discussed it with the staff they informed me that they were working on the bunker problem and planned to add new sand. I will definitely be planning on going back to play next time I’m in the area.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
1.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Great but one caveat

Bad news first, I’ve played here with a ride along before and been charged $10 which is reasonable. However, the last time I brought a ride along there was an odd number of people in the group which required an extra cart. As a result, the pro-shop clerk charged me $40 for my ride along which is absurd considering the tee time was $63. He cited the fact that he had to pull an extra cart as the reasoning, but there were plenty of carts available and I’ve seen many times when 2 singles are playing together in separate carts. He also was not sympathetic or accommodating about it.

Good news is the course is very well kept and very fun to play. The most I would pay here is $63, it is not worth it for the more expensive tee times.

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Average
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Great course.

Played for the first time. Staff was excellent! Course was in tremendous shape. Greens were perfect. Only knock on the place is the cart person didn’t show up for work that day. I

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Excellent tracy

It’s been a long time since I played a course that was in this great of shape. The fairways were lush and the greens were like expensive carpet and rolled true.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 3
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Previously Played

Mosquito haven! You have been warned!

Love this course. It’s in great shape- also love the layout and the staff. But with the recent hurricane coming through, the mosquito infestation is seriously out of control. The round today was absolutely unplayable given this - mosquito spray stood no chance at keeping these little monsters off of any of the foursome I played with. Quit after 9 as a result, which took quite a bit of resolve to even do that.

I’ve been here several times in the past and have noticed the bugs, but not quite as bad as this. No ideas on fixing - but the current infestation is untenable. Tee time was 6:50am, so perhaps an afternoon time with more heat and wind could help. This course is a must play, but something has to be done about the bugs.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 2
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
First Time Playing

The reviews were correct

I played that recently while on vacation in Galveston. I saw other reports saying that the course was in perfect condition, and I found that a bit hard to believe. However, in being there, the course was in fact in perfect condition. The greens are a bit slower than, some players may prefer, but there was not a single instant, where you could point to lack of maintenance or upkeep on the course. The one complaint I do have, is that myself and another decent player were paired with a couple who was averaging roughly 7 strokes per hole. Backed up all of the groups behind us, and we had to endure this all day long. I’m not sure what other option the course has, but when someone books a twosome, and then gets paired with two seniors, who both are playing from separate tees… it makes for a very long round, but otherwise could’ve been ben very quick. Given our early morning tee time. Otherwise, everyone was very friendly, it’s me to watch all of the helicopters coming and going to the oil rigs, and all of the other unique air traffic to the nearby airport. The course does have roughly 8 to 10 shots where where you should aim is unclear. But other than that, it’s mostly straight… And straightforward.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 10
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Moody Gardens 6/14/24

Course is in great shape, greens are very smooth and consistent and the marshal’s make sure a good pace of play is maintained

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
2.0
First Time Playing

Pace of Play

This Might have been the worst pace of play I’ve ever encountered during a weekday. The course was in good shape, but I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone.

Conditions Good
Value Average
Layout Average
Friendliness Average
Pace Poor
Amenities Fair
Played On
Reviews 1
Plays Once a week
2.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Beautiful course, terrible staff

The fairways and greens were wonderful. The mosquitoes are horrible and so was the staff. Even though we didn't have anyone waiting behind us, we were constantly being pushed to play faster. We were only given 5 minutes to get drinks and snacks at the turn, but no one was there to wait on us. For $105 a round, I expect to be treated better. I will NEVER play this course again!!!

Conditions Excellent
Value Poor
Layout Average
Friendliness Poor
Pace Poor
Amenities Poor
Played On
Reviews 1
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Amenities Excellent
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