Shipping golf clubs to Mexico and the Caribbean: fly or ship?
Golf bag rules on Mexico and Caribbean flights, Luggage Forward prices and lead times, customs at each end, and resort rental sets from US$30 to US$100.
The short answer: fly with them, unless the trip has moving parts.
For a direct flight to Los Cabos, Cancún, Punta Cana, Montego Bay, Nassau or Barbados on a fare that includes a checked bag, flying with your clubs is usually the cheapest and quickest option. Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic goes further and recommends that golfers travel with their own clubs, because international customs can hold up shipped bags. Shipping earns its price in two cases. Your fare has no bag, so you would pay for the golf bag both ways. Or you are splitting the week between two bases, such as Los Cabos and Punta Mita, and would rather not move a golf bag between them. Puerto Rico sits apart: it is a US territory, and the check that matters for golfers comes on the flight home, covered below.
What the airlines allow for a golf bag.
Delta treats a golf bag as a standard checked item, so it uses up your bag allowance rather than adding a separate sports charge. Each passenger may check one, and Delta’s usual fees for your cabin and route apply. Inside it you can pack a single set of clubs with your balls and tees, plus one pair of shoes. Above 50 lb (about 23 kg) Delta adds its excess weight fee, and it will not accept a bag over 115 linear inches (292 cm) once you add length, width and height. Clubs must travel in a hard-shell case, or in a soft travel bag after you sign a limited release, and Delta is not responsible for damage noted at check-in or caused by over-packing. Other airlines set their own golf-bag rules, so read your carrier’s sports-equipment page, then weigh the bag at home with shoes and balls inside. If it comes in under the limit and your ticket includes a bag, flying it costs nothing beyond the fare you have already bought. On a fare without a checked bag, price the golf bag in both directions before you set it against a shipping quote.
Shipping with Luggage Forward: prices, timing and paperwork.
Luggage Forward sorts golf bags into two categories. Small covers bags to 18 kg and 127 × 30 × 25 cm, from US$129; large covers bags to 22 kg and 132 × 38 × 30 cm, from US$149. A bag that exceeds its booked category is charged at the next one up. Mexico and Caribbean routes are priced above those domestic starting rates, as is quicker delivery, and the quote shows the figure for your addresses before you pay. The company says it delivers to Mexico and the Caribbean. Its published international transit times, 7 to 11 business days for standard service, are quoted for cities outside this region, so ask for the time on your exact route; a faster tier saves two to three days for an extra fee. For the lowest rates, book international shipping at least seven days before pickup; bookings open 180 days ahead. Luggage Forward completes the country-specific customs documents, but any duties or taxes the destination charges are billed to you. Bags going abroad must be left unlocked because customs may open them, and locking one voids the on-time guarantee. Pickup can be from your home, office, hotel or golf course, and every bag carries value protection up to US$500. A late delivery refunds double the shipping cost, but the guarantee excludes customs holds, weather and self-clearance destinations.
What stays out of a shipped bag.
A shipped bag follows stricter rules than one you check in. Luggage Forward does not carry medication, food (coffee beans and spices included), alcohol, perfume, hand sanitiser, tobacco, pressurised containers including sunscreen, lithium batteries, most electronics, currency, jewellery or other valuables. Cables and converters are allowed. In practice that means four things for a golf bag bound for the sun. Take the rangefinder, GPS watch and any battery-powered club trackers in your hand luggage. Leave the aerosol and spray sunscreen at home and buy it in the resort shop. Pack spare gloves and balls in the shipped bag, since they are not restricted. And put nothing in the side pockets that you would need on the first morning, in case customs holds the bag for a day.
Customs at each end, island by island.
Mexico counts sports gear as normal passenger luggage. Mexico’s official consular page for the UK lists two items of personal sports equipment among the goods a traveller may bring in luggage, so one set of clubs per golfer fits inside that allowance. The page calls itself informative only and points to Mexico’s customs agency for the current rules. Shipped bags clear as personal effects, which Luggage Forward says are typically duty-free under traveller exemptions, though rules vary by country and value. The Dominican Republic is where Casa de Campo warns that customs can delay a shipment, so leave extra days if you ship to La Romana or Punta Cana. Puerto Rico works the other way round: the US Department of Agriculture inspects every passenger bag at the airport before you fly back to the mainland. Soil is on its prohibited list, so knock the dirt out of your spikes and clean the clubs before you pack. Failing to declare fruit, plants or other agricultural items can bring civil penalties of US$100 to US$1,000 per violation.
Getting clubs from the airport to the first tee.
None of the three resorts below includes transport to the course in the green fee, so plan the bag’s last few miles. In Los Cabos, Questro Golf, which runs Puerto Los Cabos and Club Campestre San José, does not include transport, though its reservation team will arrange it. At Rose Hall, outside Montego Bay, the FAQ says it does not currently offer transportation, so book a taxi or hotel car with room for the bags. White Witch has a caddie-required policy at US$20 per player, and it is now a seasonal course that closes on 30 April and reopens on 1 November. Casa de Campo’s courses are for resort guests only, and Teeth of the Dog costs US$450 per round for hotel guests and US$550 for registered non-hotel guests, plus 18% tax. If you ship there, have the bag delivered to your hotel or villa rather than the pro shop, and confirm the address the resort uses for guest deliveries.
Renting clubs instead: what the resorts charge.
Rental sets at these resorts are branded and priced per round or per day, so for a two-round trip they can beat both bag fees and shipping. Questro Golf in Los Cabos rents Callaway sets for US$65 per player per round, and sets cannot be shared between golfers. Rose Hall in Jamaica charges per set per player, from US$30 for Nike and US$40 for Callaway Epic to US$60 for Mavrik and US$80 for Paradym. Casa de Campo rents Titleist sets, with T-Series irons, a Scotty Cameron putter and Vokey wedges, at US$100 a day or US$595 a week plus tax; FootJoy shoes cost US$40 a day. The arithmetic is simple. At US$65 a round, four rounds in Cabo cost US$260 in rentals, about the same as Luggage Forward’s US$129 starting price for a small bag paid out and back, before international surcharges. If you play twice, rent. If you play five or more rounds, or you are fussy about lofts and shafts, bring your own. If you book an all-inclusive or golf package, ask whether rental clubs are included or charged on top.
A checklist before you book.
Weigh the packed bag: Delta charges excess weight above 50 lb, and Luggage Forward’s small category stops at 18 kg. Check that your fare includes a checked bag on every flight, including any regional connection. Count your rounds, then compare two bag fees with the rental price at your resort. If you ship, book at least seven days before pickup, ask for the transit time on your route, and add spare days for the Dominican Republic. Leave the bag unlocked, take batteries and rangefinders in your hand luggage, and buy sunscreen on arrival. Note your resort’s delivery address and the name the booking is under, since Casa de Campo asks golfers to show their resort ID. For Puerto Rico, clean soil from shoes and clubs before the return flight and declare any fruit at the USDA check.
Get a quote for your route.
Type in your home address and the Los Cabos, Riviera Maya or Caribbean resort you are heading to. The quote lists the price and pickup date for that route before you commit.
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