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As published in the April 2024 edition of Planet Golf Review Magazine
Imagine feeling awake, alert and fully alive after spending hours in planes, trains, and automobiles. Are you having trouble doing that? So did I until I touched down at Franz Joseph Strauß airport and immediately found my way to one of Munich’s best-kept secrets.
While many of you may not agree, I find overnight flights magical. Primarily because it never ceases to amaze me that I go to sleep in one country and wake up in another. What I do not relish is leaving my bags with the concierge, then aimlessly wandering the streets until my room is ready and I can grab a nap. But thanks to a tip from a friend and savvy traveller, I have found an alternative that is bound to influence future itineraries.
By John Dean
For most North American golfers, a trip over the ‘pond’ that is the Atlantic normally leads to Scotland, and rounds at St Andrews, Kingsbarns, and maybe a slice of Carnoustie.
But there is another way which I would like to champion, and that’s a golfing trip around Europe by train. OK, slip in a bit of Scotland if you must, and why wouldn’t you, but there is a great big golfing world to be savoured in what we Brits call Continental Europe.
As a Brit, and sometimes golf writer, I can be accused of being a bit UK centric, as between England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, we are spoiled for choice – if not weather. But what with our recent political upheavals, and the environmental crisis, I have decided to step out and take the train to play golf around Europe.
So, what are my golf credentials for this trip? Well, back in the day, I helped launch a magazine called GolfPunk, which I believe did play some part in bringing golf kicking and screaming into the modern world. Sixteen long years on, and the brand is still going, but I am taking a break from it so I can focus on what I love doing most, which is travelling, playing golf, and writing about it.
I’ve therefore decided to travel through 9 different countries in Europe to play golf over the course of a whole month. And it will all be done by train, as I will use InterRail for my journey.
by Edward Kiersh
Forget all the hocus pocus remedies about overcoming this malady. There is a cure—and it’s not found in pills, sleeping strategies, or the “Jet Lag Rooster” app.
Villa Kennedy – you can envision John F. playing here.
If flying to dynamic Frankfurt, Germany, the gateway to Reislingland, charming Heidelberg and the Black Forest, wonder-working renewal comes in a curious mixture. Part John F. Kennedy at his boyish, flamboyant best; a sun-soaked, hotel atrium where relaxation means watching blond-haired frauleins; and a golf course where it’s easy to unwind.
Only 15 minutes from the clamorous airport, the Frankfurter Golf Club offers the perfect parkland course to get back into the swing of your natural rhythms.
Founded in 1913, and a genteel bastion in a city known for its energetic financial scene, the course has challenged the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros and Bernhard Langer.