By train on a golf trip: golf bag, luggage shipping and Rail&Fly

The train to the flight is a popular option for ordinary holiday trips. We golfers like to organise ourselves differently here, though. That is mostly due to the extensive luggage we carry with us. Besides the holiday suitcase there is the golf bag, the hand luggage and often further extras. With a little planning you can still travel by rail in a relaxed way, either to the airport or straight to the golf course. The guide is written from the point of view of golfers who set off from Germany.

What you may take on the train

Deutsche Bahn has simple rules for luggage on long-distance trains. You do not need a reservation for your luggage. Your bags are also neither weighed nor measured.

You may take the larger piece of luggage provided you can carry it on your own. According to the railway, pieces of 70 by 50 by 30 centimetres almost always fit into the luggage racks. A golf bag in a travel cover is longer, however. It therefore does not fit into the rack above your seat. On the train you are responsible for keeping an eye on your luggage yourself.

How you can travel with golf bag and suitcase

With the suitcase, the golf bag and a rucksack you have both hands full in the station. With these four steps the journey becomes easier for you.

1. Making the luggage smallerYou can pack your shoes, the balls and the rainwear into the travel cover as well. A smaller suitcase is then enough for you.
2. Choosing a connection with few changesI would rather take a longer direct journey than a fast connection with two changes of a few minutes each.
3. Looking for a seat at the end of the carriageWhen boarding you can ask the train staff where a long piece of luggage may stand. Then you sit down within sight of your golf bag.
4. Settling the last kilometreBefore the trip I would ask the golf course or the hotel how you get from the station to the golf facility.

Sending the golf bag ahead

If you do not want to carry your golf bag yourself, you can send it ahead. In Germany, in Austria and in Switzerland that works from door to door. The rules and the prices differ, however.

The prices come from the pages of the railways as of 13 November 2026. For a golf week in Austria the offer of ÖBB is the most clearly regulated. Your golf bag is then already in the hotel when you arrive. I would order in good time, though, because on Sundays and public holidays nothing is collected or delivered there.

In Austria your golf bag travels from door to door for 34.20 euros. You board the train with only your hand luggage.

By train to the flight

For a trip by air the train is often the most comfortable way to the airport. The offer is called Rail&Fly or, in German, Zug zum Flug. With it you can travel to the airport from more than 5,600 stations of Deutsche Bahn. The ticket is booked together with the flight, which means through the airline or through the tour operator.

• CondorThe ticket costs 34.99 euros per person and leg in second class and 59.99 euros in first class. You can book it up to three hours before departure.
• TUIWith package holidays the ticket in second class is included free of charge. About four weeks before the trip you receive a voucher code by e-mail.
• DERTOURWith classic package holidays abroad second class is included in the price of the trip. First class costs a surcharge of 32 euros per person and leg.

The ticket is valid on every train of Deutsche Bahn. With Condor and TUI you can already travel on the day before departure and go home on the day after your return. That helps you above all with an early flight. You then travel to the airport in peace the evening before and do not have to make a tight connection with the golf bag.

There are three details I would watch before setting off. The journey to the airport has to be completed by 10 a.m. on the following day. With TUI and DERTOUR you also first receive a voucher code that you have to convert into a ticket online. I would do that before the day of travel and not only on the platform. And finally not every trip includes the ticket. With ltur you book it in addition. With the offers of X-TUI it is neither included nor bookable. With airtours, by contrast, you travel in first class.

A further limit applies to luggage shipping in Germany. If you hand in the luggage at a parcel shop, it may weigh no more than 25 kilograms. The shipping service only accepts special luggage at your address. That is why I would first ask whether your golf bag in the travel cover counts as normal luggage or as special luggage. Only after that would I book.

What happens to your golf bag at the airport is explained in the guide Flying to your golf trip.

Golf courses that you reach by rail

Golf courses rarely lie right at the station. Some do, however, and others you reach with a short connection. The following four examples from Austria, Germany and Switzerland show you what you can look for in your search. On Langeoog the island railway takes you from the ferry pier into the village. In Mariahof you get off the train directly opposite the golf facility.

You can proceed in the same way for your own destination. You look on the club’s page under the heading for getting there. In the club office you can also ask whether someone will pick you up at the station. I would ask your golf hotel about a transfer from the station when booking as well.

When the train is the better choice

The train does not suit every golf trip. With the following two kinds of trips, however, it plays to its strengths.

If, by contrast, you would like to play four different golf courses in one region in a week, you are more mobile by car. You learn more about that in the guide By car on a golf trip.

These four mistakes happen particularly easily on a golf trip by train.

• You plan a change of a few minutes with suitcase and golf bag.
• You rely on the luggage service of Deutsche Bahn, which no longer exists for private customers.
• You only order the door-to-door luggage in Austria on the day before departure.
• You arrive at the station and have not settled how you get to the golf course.

Checklist for the trip by train

• You can carry your luggage on your own or you have sent the golf bag ahead.
• The connection has few changes with enough time.
• The ticket to the airport is booked or included in the price of the trip.
• The way from the station to the golf course or to the hotel is settled.
• The rental clubs are reserved if your golf bag stays at home.