Travelling with Golf Clubs

Hi All,

I am planning to take my golf clubs on my next trip to South Africa in November and bring back my better set that I bought over there last year

Does anyone have any advice (apart from give up golf...!!)...
Have you had any damage?
What make of travel bag do you use or recommend?

Any difficulties in checking in?

..I know VS will allow me to take my kit at no charge if it's within certain weight/dimensions etc..mind you I am in UC with only 1 bag to check in, so weight shouldn't be an issue

Any help or comments apreciated.
Thanks
Paul

[mitchja]

My parents often travel with golf clubs without any issues. Make sure you have a lockable travel case for your clubs (there's plenty available, ones with built in wheels do tend to be easier to handle).

Each golf bag still needs to weight no more than 23Kg though (even in J). Sporting equipment is treated the same regardless of the cabin you travel in.

My parents have also bought a couple of small light-weight golf bags so they don't need to take their big everyday golf bags with them when they travel. They don't take all their clubs with them either when they travel.

Sporting equipment is usually handled as over-sized luggage at most airports meaning you often have to drop them off at a special bag drop desk once they have been tagged. Not sure how this works at LHR though sorry as my parents usually fly from MAN.

Sporting equipment is also usually loaded into it's own bin on the aircraft so it wont get any priority and often gets unloaded last, but again it will likely come off via the over-sized baggage carousel which is usually separate.

From The VS website page for

Sports Equipment

[honey lamb]

I have travelled extensively with Aer John and his golf clubs with VS. He used a Wilson travel bag, one that had wheels and he was able to pull along. As James said, it must weigh no more than 23KG but we found that it always came in below that and indeed the bag was useful for stuffing in his golf shoes and one or two other sundries that did not make the case for whatever reason.

At LHR the bag was weighed and tagged and he was instructed to take it to a separate area where oversize bags, children's strollers and a few other things were taken. To be honest I was always a bit leery about this as I had visions of them not being taken to the aircraft and still languishing in that area. However this was when all the changes were being made to the VS check-in area in T3 and I have a vague recollection that someone in a recent TR mentioned that they were placed on a separate belt behind check-in. In many airports (including T1 in LHR and LGW) you take them to a separate screening channel where they are X-rayed and sent through to the baggage loaders.

Arriving airports differ. In some airports the clubs come through on the main belt, in others they have a separate belt for oversize items and you have to go looking for it, others again have the clubs brought out separately by staff and are lain on the floor near the relevant carousel. It really is hit and miss.

I can however assure you that in all our travels he has never had any trouble or damage with his clubs