The Drawbacks of Planning Your Own Overseas Golf Trip

One of the most visited pages on the H&B website is our guide to choosing the best golf travel companies for your trip.

These days, most of us are fairly accustomed to planning our own travel. Which may leave you wondering: Do I really need a golf travel company?

In our experience, golfers usually plan their own Ireland and Scotland golf tours for two reasons…

• They genuinely enjoy planning their own trips.
• They want to save money.

If you don’t fall into the first category, you probably shouldn't attempt this on your own for the sake of the second.

Because as we’ll explain in the following guide, taking the DIY option for an overseas golf trip comes with a few drawbacks that you should thoroughly consider before getting started.

Hours and Hours and Hours

One of the most notable downsides to planning your own golf trip across the pond is the enormous amount of time that’s required to put it all together.

The first thing any group captain should understand is that Scotland and Ireland golf tours are wildly different from, say, Pebble Beach or Pinehurst.

There isn’t a central reservations agent to call or email to set the whole trip up for you.

Instead, the average golf vacation across the pond requires the planning and execution of 40-50 individual reservations, tee times, and other plans.

At a minimum, you will have to…

• Narrow down your invite list.
• Select dates that work for everyone.
• Research golf courses, hotels, and transportation.
• Share the cost with the group.
• Make the necessary bookings.
• Alter those bookings when one piece of your plan isn’t available.
• Reserve caddies.
• Decide the dining and touring aspects of the trip.
• Research and book flights.
• Answer many, many questions from your travel companions.

Within each of these is hours upon hours of your valuable time and probably a few headaches.

What’s worse, many golfers get so bogged down with the first few tasks that the trip never makes it out of the idea phase and into the calendar.

A golf travel company, on the other hand, will take the vast majority of these tasks off your plate.

For the ones they can’t – such as your invite list or flight research – they can lend their insight to get you to your decisions more quickly.

Early in the planning phase, you’ll need to ask yourself whether you have the time to take on this job.

Because for a while, that’s exactly what it might feel like.

“Go… Enjoy life and its people and relish the experience. I enjoyed the fact that I did nothing but enjoy myself. The accommodations, golf schedule, courses, and just the good time by all made the H&B experience well worth the time and expense. There may be less expensive ways to do a trip of a lifetime, but why not enjoy the first-class experience while doing such a memorable holiday.”

Steve Wilson – Brook Valley Country Club

Your Research vs Our Expertise

In addition to the time required, another pitfall of planning your own overseas golf tour is the pressure to deliver an outstanding experience for both yourself and your travel companions.

After investing all of the time required to plan your trip, there’s a good chance that you’ll have put together a perfectly enjoyable itinerary.

But no amount of research and effort can replace the expertise of a professional who does this each and every day.

Especially if it’s your first golf trip across the pond, or your first time visiting a particular area.

Think of it like a home improvement project.

After viewing a number of “how to” videos and several trips to Home Depot or Lowes, you might feel ready to install that new flooring or replace your faulty garbage disposal.

Setting aside the obvious time and hassle involved in the project, will the end result be as good as if you hired a professional?

And what if something goes wrong?

Suddenly your small project turns into a massive headache. And that little bit of cost savings evaporates into thin air.

Put another way, it’s the difference between traveling like a local vs hopping on the double-decker tour bus.

A golf travel company is going to know everything from the best restaurants and off the beaten path golf courses, to unique sightseeing and cultural activities which will help you savor the rich heritage of your destination.

Compare this to building a trip around the various “best things to do” lists on the internet and there really is no comparison.

If you’re planning this trip for a group of friends, they’re putting their faith - and money - in your hands.

Invest it wisely.

“You may find a little better pricing, but you won’t find the attention to detail, service and access that Haversham & Baker provide. A trip like this needs all of those to come together to be successful.”

Aaron Krueger, PGA – Wakonda Club

Stuff Happens

You know what they say about the best laid plans.

Despite all of your time and research covering every detail of your trip, sometimes… Stuff Happens.

When it does, as the captain of this ship, your travel companions are likely to turn to you for the solution.

Sorting out any issues with your accommodations, tee times, or other arrangements is the last way you want to spend your time across the pond.

If you’ve gone it alone, that task will likely fall right on your shoulders.

On the other hand, when you’ve hired a golf travel company, you’re more than just a number. You have our network of resources and relationships in your corner to help get things in order should something go awry.

Usually a quick phone call or two, and we have the issue settled and everyone back in the fairway.

But the benefits of leveraging the H&B name stretch far beyond when things go wrong.

Put simply, our relationship with the hotels, golf courses, and restaurants across the pond is quite valuable to their bottom line.

As a result, H&B travelers are often treated to the best rooms, the best caddies, and the best tables in restaurants, because those providers have a strong incentive to ensure that you have the best experience possible.

And on those rare occasions when something doesn't go according to plan, our friends are there to rectify it immediately.

“When I travel with H&B, there’s a network that I’m partnering into there. You deliver the best drivers, who are there for you every time you need them. You partner with the best accommodations, who are familiar with your clientele and with what they want.

Quite frankly, if I do it on my own, I don’t have that network. When we have a trip that goes smoothly from beginning to end, so much of that is attributed to Haversham & Baker and what they deliver.”

Ian Dalzell, PGA – Huntingdon Valley Country Club

There’s no denying that you'll save some money by going the DIY route for your golf trip to Scotland or Ireland, but it’s impossible to measure the value added to your experience by trusting an expert.

For the golfers who turn to H&B again and again, the choice is obvious.

After you read through their entries on our reviews page, you’re likely to agree.