Most of the year, America offers top-notch, wallet-friendly golf and accommodation. You can play and stay a week for less than a single round at the country’s priciest courses. But everything flips during the four majors and big biennial events like the Ryder Cup. Little surprise, then, the week’s biggest attraction, the PGA Championship, triggered an immediate domino effect.

Ticket prices are up, the same goes for beverages, and the hotel stay. We’d seen this coming.

Years of watching the pattern made it predictable.

But a report from VegasInsider.com is a reminder that you’ll need deep pockets to survive a week in Pennsylvania. Using over 5,300 Airbnb and Booking.com listings, the site compared prices and found that golf fans should expect noticeably higher costs during tournament week than in the weeks immediately before and after. The study measured the average price for a five‑night stay for two adults (May 13–18).

The takeaway from the data is just how dramatically prices rise once a major championship comes to town. We’ve seen this movie before. Consider the Masters week this season. A five‑night stay averaged $6,744 during the tournament, while the same two adults would have paid 56.3% less, or $4,316, the week before, and a staggering total $1,864 the week after (261.8% less).

The VegasInsider.com highlights a similar pattern for this week for the third-oldest men’s major.

Staying is getting costly in this part of the town

Per the study, a five‑night stay booked through Booking.com during PGA Championship week averages $1,868, which works out to:

• A 72.6% increase compared to the week before the tournament.
• A 29.5% increase compared to the week after the tournament.

For traveling golf fans, the math is pretty brutal. Attending a major is getting pricier long before the actual tournament even starts. A five‑night stay during tournament week now runs hundreds more than the same booking just days earlier or later. In short, many fans aren’t just paying for a room; they’re ponying up a premium for a front‑row ticket to one of golf’s biggest weeks.

What makes the jump so eye‑popping is how fast it happens within a narrow time window. It also signals that hotel rooms near Aronimink GC can get seriously squeezed as the week looms, with corporate guests, sponsors, media, and traveling fans all elbowing for the same handful of nearby rooms. Which is where the next data comes from.

Airbnb prices also climb steeply during the championship. The average five-night Airbnb stay during the event costs $1,653, which is:

• 60.8% more expensive than the week before the tournament.
• 49.7% higher than the week after the tournament.

Our theory is that the renters will charge you as much as they can get away with. You could say that’s the whole point of staging big events in major cities. They pump the local economy and fatten pockets. Take the 2019 PGA Championship: Airbnb hosts were set to rake in $255k that week alone, since desirable accommodations are scant. Residents, in truth, pocket millions.

Here’s another prime example. At the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, a 14-acre property’s owner was eyeing $8,000 a night. Over four days, that’s a cool $32,000. The luxury villa’s owner also revealed that during Kentucky Derby week, they pull in $10,000 to $25,000 per night, totaling $40,000 to $100,000 for the haul, approximately.

It’s hardly a revelation, but it does spotlight a systemic flaw. When does it become too much?

According to the data, when Booking.com and Airbnb listings are combined, the average cost of a five-night stay during the PGA Championship reaches $1,757. That is:

• 65.9% higher than the week before the event.
• 33.1% higher than the week after the event.

In Newtown Square, the tournament promises a tourism windfall that’ll rain riches on hotels, restaurants, bars, rides, and local shops. Big golf events always deliver millions in quick-hit economic juice to host areas. That said, these figures spark bigger debates on who gets in the door. Golf’s been hustling for years to rebrand as inclusive and welcoming, especially after the post-pandemic player surge.

Still, major championship crowds are turning into a rich man’s game that leaves everyday fans out in the cold. The result of these sky-high prices might force fans to stay farther from the course for cheaper options, dealing with longer drives, worse traffic jams, and steeper ride costs.

One more side-by-side to chew on. Here are side-to-side comparison between the cheapest and most expensive options.

Booking.com listings:

• Cheapest option: A room with a private bathroom in an inn located eight miles from Aronimink Golf Club for $584.
• Most expensive option: A king room in a three-star hotel located nine miles from Aronimink Golf Club for $2,467.

Airbnb listings:

• Cheapest option: A private room with a shared bathroom located 14 miles from Aronimink Golf Club for $347.
• Most expensive option: A three-bedroom farmhouse located three miles from Aronimink Golf Club for $3,728.

Really, pick your poison.

It happens across all sports, however. Kansas is holding the FIFA World Cup next month. Near MetLife Stadium, two-night weekend stays at the SpringHill Suites by Marriott now run about $4,510 per night, and availability is vanishing fast. That’s roughly a 2,848% surge compared with a similar weekend in January.

So, there’s a clear pattern. But there’s more to the PGA Championship week than finding a perfect place to stay.

The PGA Championship is not very pocket-friendly

Price spikes at big sporting events aren’t new, but PGA Championship figures show how fast golf tourism can upend a local lodging market. The first hit lands on traveling fans. Of course, the PGA of America had the opportunity to remove this burden, if only slightly, but even that didn’t work out.

If you are someone who fancies a beer or two during a major, well, think twice. A 25-oz Michelob Ultra tops out at $17.50, 16-oz Michelob Ultra and Bud Light come in at $15, and a 16-oz premium beer runs about $16 (and up).

Fans have been rightly miffed, voicing complaints about the steep prices once more. Compare that to the beer prices at Augusta National for the Masters week ($6), and you understand the issue.

And then you have major-typical ticket prices to deal with. Tickets kick off at about $183 for Thursday’s opening round, climb to roughly $237 for Friday, tick up to $261 for Saturday’s third round, and top out near $270 for Sunday’s final.

There is some sense behind this madness, however.

Golf majors aren’t quite the same as a one-day thing. Fans usually stick around for days, not just show up for a single headline moment. Practice rounds, early-session play, hospitality packages, and corporate outings stretch demand across almost the whole week. That longer booking window gives lodging providers more chances to jack up rates. And it is happening in Philly, of all places.

So, expect a jammed-up week.