11 Best Golf Travel Bags — The 2024 Stitch Golf Guide
But if you ever want to travel, you're going to need to invest in one (or several) quality golf travel bags. Protect your valuables by checking out Stitch Golf's picks for the ten best golf travel bags of 2024.
Top 11 Golf Travel Bags of 2024
There are as many types of golf travel bags as there are ways of playing the game. There are long, hard-shelled golf travel bags designed to keep your clubs protected, stylish leather garment cases you could take on a spontaneous vacation as easily as a weekly trip to the course, multi-purpose constructions built to hold tees, balls, clothes — even an entire cooler…
And there is so much more. Choosing the best golf travel bag means first identifying what problems you're having that can be solved with a bag.
Is the game more of a leisure activity for you, and you're sick of lugging around a sack for clothes, a ziplock bag for accessories, AND an old cooler for refreshments? Or do you just need a decent shoe bag?
Consider the functionality of the bag before you invest in something of good quality. You don't want one that you're going to be lugging around everywhere only for apparel to be needlessly heavy. And likewise, if you want maximum protection for your valuables, you might want to avoid a cheap golf travel bag.
Here is a round-up of our ten best golf travel bags, scored for practicality, style, versatility, and price.
Best Multi-Purpose Bag - The MUT Multi-use Traveler Bag
The MUT Multi-use Traveler Bag is perfect for any avid golfer who loves to travel.
With its ability to transition from a regular roller duffle to a golf travel bag with just one zipper, this bag is incredibly practical and convenient. Plus, it includes a torsion bar for extra club protection, meaning you don't have to worry about your clubs getting damaged during your travels.
It's the perfect bag for all your golfing needs, and it's well-constructed and built to last. We highly recommend it!
Best Overall Bag — The Birdie Bag
The first pick on our list is also the most versatile. The Birdie can convert from stylish cooler to luxe carry-on to sophisticated work bag in a pinch.
Simply shift around Stitch Golf's patented removable inserts to experience the Birdie Bag’s full functionality.
The Birdie Bag’s greatest feature is its cooler insert. Located at the center of the bag, the insert accommodates a full cooler and guarantees insulation for 24-hours.
Excellent for a hot day outside or a cool afternoon at the office, the Birdie Bag is the swiss army knife of backpacks.
Best Bag for Style — Vintage Luxe Tote
The Vintage Luxe Tote is the ultimate golf travel bag for style showstoppers.
Coming in creamy sand color with a rich, deep brown trim and handle, or silver on gunmetal gray color scheme, the Luxe Tote golf travel bag is a simple, sleek, and elegant fashion statement.
Take it to class as easily as you take it to the clubhouse. With two beverage holders on opposite sides and an easily accessible front pouch for keys, wallet, and glasses, keep calm and carry on with the Vintage Luxe Tote golf travel bag.
Best Bag for Long Distance Travel — Stitch Traveler
The function-forward Stitch Traveler was designed for versatility — utilizing the signature STITCH Drop The Top zipper technology, go from work to play in one zip.
The Stitch Traveler zips up as a practical, sleek gray work case with over-the-shoulder straps, and zips down on the weekends into a single handle tote. This 2-in-1 bag can be packed with your work outfit, golf outfit, and after-dinner outfit using its multi-compartment design.
The Drop The Top Zipper Design was inspired by the drop-top cars of vintage motorsports. Easily pack and unpack the Stitch Traveler golf travel bag and arrive in style.
Best Overnight Bag — Ultimate Garment Bag (UGB)
Perhaps the most popular traveler on the list, the award winning Ultimate Garment Bag is the perfect overnight or short weekend travel bag.
Pack and transport your clothes and accessories in this golf traveler which converts from duffel to garment bag with the single pull of a zipper.
Designed using proprietary STITCH® Touring Fabric, which combines the strength of leather with the lightweight canvas, the UGB will keep all your apparel in perfect pressed condition.
Best Carry-On Bag — Roller Duffel Bag 2020
Perfect for air travel, the Roller Duffel was designed with style and efficiency in mind. This utilitarian bag features our Drop The Top zipper technology, allowing you to see everything packed inside without unpacking.
Simply unzip the circular stitch along the top and instantly find all of your necessities at the bottom of the bag.
This golf travel bag is durable, water-resistant, and includes a tri-folding garment holder that will guarantee wrinkle-free transport of the most temperamental garments, from a cocktail dress to a crisp polo.
The Roller Duffel tilts upright and can be rolled through hazardous terrain, from a sand trap to TSA security.
Best Gym Bag — Clubhouse Duffle
From the gym to the clubhouse, this beautiful golf travel bag will become your new favorite for everyday use. But its best use is for packing a change of clothes for a round, or an after-work trip to the gym.
Coming in gray, black, and navy, the Clubhouse Duffle is a tight, punchy, sturdy golf travel bag that will stuff easily into a gym locker, and is big enough to accommodate a towel, two changes of clothes, and some accessories if you want to bring your laptop and chargers.
The Clubhouse Duffel is made from our super durable Touring Fabric, which can withstand the moisture, aggression, and all the other potential hazards of your travel. Simply pack all your day's changes into the Duffel, grab your clubs, and prepare for a perfect start to the weekend.
Best Toiletry Bag — Dopp Kit
This toiletry kit is one of our most popular golf travel bags, and it's certainly something you'll want to take on all your travels.
Fashioned in a sleek and sturdy rectangle with an easy access front zipper for your most essential essentials, the Dopp Kit will become a staple of all your travels. Whether that's with the clubs to Pebble Beach, or without the clubs to the beach house for a night away.
The Dopp Kit is spacious enough to hold a nail grooming set, hair accessories, tweezers, shampoo, aftershave, mouthwash, your toothbrush, and more
Best Picnic Bag — Super Cold Cooler
Half the fun of any golf trip is happy hour. Never be left out of the cold again with the Super Cold Cooler from Stitch Golf.
The Super Cold Cooler golf travel bag is made from an innovative design that keeps drinks cold for up to 72 hours.
Store cans of beer, wine, champagne, and more fresh with ice in the drain-able, easy to clean, insulated interior. With handles at the sides, a reinforced handle on the zippered top, and an optional overarm double strap, take the Super Cold Cooler anywhere and make everywhere cocktail time.
Best Accessory Bag — Shoe Bag
Struggling to find a shoe bag that keeps your shoes separate from all your valuables?
Look no further. Coming in deep black, stylish gray, and navy, the shoe carrier from Stitch Golf is designed to be a “garage your kicks will enjoy.”
The shoe bag is a lightweight, durable, yet easy-to-carry golf travel bag essential.
Don't prioritize keeping your clubs safe over keeping your golf shoes scot-free and in good condition.
Best Extremely Specific Accessory Bag — Sleek & Slim Gray Wine Tote
You have a way to keep your clubs safe during travel, and now your shoes, and also your beer. What about your wine?
For an elegant experience on the course, try the Sleek & Slim Gray Wine Tote from Stitch Golf.
The Wine Tote fits all sizes and styles of wine and is designed for functionality without sacrificing style. The padded handle and soft exterior mask a hard shell that will keep that bottle safe as surely as a full-size golf travel bag will protect your clubs.
What To Look For When Choosing a Golf Travel Bag
When you're ready to scour the market for the best golf travel bag, what should you look for?
There are three main metrics you should be scoring each product on as you make your search. They are — functionality, comfort, and cost.
Functionality
Functionality refers to the design specifications of the bag. Is it an oblong, hard shell golf travel bag meant to protect your clubs? Is the inside outfitted with one plush end to keep your valuables safe? Or is it short, squat, square-shaped, and designed for thermal protection for food or drinks, like the Super Cold Cooler?
Every piece of apparel and every accessory is designed with a purpose — keep you warm, transport a baby, protect your clubs. When deciding on the best golf travel bag, first assess its intended functionality.
Versatility is often prized in bag design, the ability to transform a duffel into a garment bag, say, like the UGB. But versatility is only necessarily an attractive feature if it's a function that you need.
If you're looking for a bag to transport only your clothes, don't bother with one that also has a refrigerated core and ten water bottle pockets.
Comfort
If you're going to be slinging the pack over your shoulders and traveling for hours, it better have a decent weight distribution and comfortable straps. The same goes for the design of handles that may be gripped for hours on end while hiking through the airport.
Test the heft of a bag by heaving it up and down by its handle. Test the texture of its material by walking with it. Feel the fabric in your hand — Is it leather? Is it a plush synthetic? Or a hardshell case with swiveling handles?
Comfort is a purchase factor you do not want to overlook.
Cost
In the world of golf, generally, the higher the price of a bag, the better product you're going to get. There's, unfortunately, no simple way out of that deal.
Investing in the best golf travel bag for your specific needs will however only guarantee increasing returns. No more will you have to lug around three different suitcases and backpacks, spending extra money every year buying a new bag.
With one solid, stylish, durable golf travel bag, the horizons of travel will suddenly open to you.
Soft-Sided Golf Travel Bag vs. Hard-Sided Golf Travel Bag
Soft-sided travelers and hard-sided travelers each have their advantages and disadvantages. Where one will protect your valuables from the rough treatment of baggage handlers, the other makes for a lighter and easier carrying experience.
Often where there is a downside, there is an upside in its shadow. Keep that in mind as we explore the pros and cons of hard-sided and soft-sided golf travel bags.
Soft-Sided Golf Travel Bags
You might think that hardshell cases for travel absorb the blows that can be dealt by drops and baggage handlers, but soft shell cases for valuables have been shown to absorb the shock of blows and keep your necessities safe.
Soft-sided travelers are also more malleable, flexible, and lightweight, making transporting into and out of cabs, airports, and through cities that much easier.
Hard-Sided Golf Travel Bag
Hard cases have been the golf travel bag of choice for years for golfers on the go. Though that trend is turning to favor soft travelers, hard cases protect against things that soft cases just can't. One example is being run over or sandwiched against a wall — your valuables can snap in half or be crushed just like that unless they have a hard case to protect them.
The semi-rigid material hard-sided golf travel bags are made from, however, can have the exact opposite effect of protecting under extreme circumstances. There have been cases of hard shells flattening under the wheels of cars, crushing everything inside.
With positives and negatives on both sides, the best choice in a golf bag comes down to what you intend for its use.
How Much Should You Spend?
Hard case travelers tend to be more expensive than soft travelers, and there are materials on both sides that tend to run top of the line. Top line brands are going to run you a pretty penny, no matter the manufacturer.
Don't expect to spend less than $200 for a solid golf travel bag. But you don't have to spend as much as $400 to get something that's going to last you for years.
Often it's the hard-sided cases that show the wear and tear of being loaded into cars, dropped onto baggage claims, thrown around into and out of cargo holds, moved around by hotel attendants, and tumbling out of the back of carts more than side soft-sided cases.
Consider the upkeep you may have to pay for when investing in a new golf travel bag, and how many years you expect to get out of it when looking at price.
The Best Golf Travel Bag for You
You could fill an entire mall floor to ceiling with all the different golf travel bags on the market — soft shell and hard, for clubs and for clothes, versatile and function-specific.
As you dig deeper into what you need out of a golf traveler, the options will dwindle and dwindle until you have a small group of solid choices left.
Arrive In Style with Stitch.
