Avoid Egypt going up - Saudi Arabia or shipping?

[DR650Bandit]

Can anyone confirm on not if motorbikes are allowed in saudi? What evidence is there of this either way?

[roamingyak]

Originally Posted by DR650Bandit

Can anyone confirm on not if motorbikes are allowed in saudi? What evidence is there of this either way?

NO MOTORBIKES. I hope that is clear enough. Some snuck through in 2012, but they have made sure it will not happen again. I spent 24 hours in the port trying to get permission to drive a RHD, no luck, and talked with the staff there about all of it. Very firm rule.

With a RHD you have to get stuck on the back of a truck and in my case the Syrian driver tried to rob me at the other end. You are at their mercy, expect to pay about $800 for a 4x4, twice that for a truck.

You won't be able to 'wing it' as the border is very professional and highly organised. You won't have access to your vehicle when it is off loaded until it clears customs.

[CapeTownNorth]

Based on the information here it is clear that we are unable to drive our motorcycles through Saudi Arabia into Jordan via Transit Visa. We also do not want to go through Egypt because it would be expensive. Does anyone have any information on whether or not there is a ferry or something we can take from Sudan to Jordan? Also will it be possible to drive from Jordan to Syria and then into Turkey? We do not plan on going to Israel and therefor we would not have an Israeli stamp so I'm hoping this is possible. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

CapeTownNorth.com.au

[sakke]

I would strongly not advise to go trough syria.
As there is still a half civil war going on.

SAm

[schenkel]

Originally Posted by CapeTownNorth

Based on the information here it is clear that we are unable to drive our motorcycles through Saudi Arabia into Jordan via Transit Visa. We also do not want to go through Egypt because it would be expensive. Does anyone have any information on whether or not there is a ferry or something we can take from Sudan to Jordan? Also will it be possible to drive from Jordan to Syria and then into Turkey? We do not plan on going to Israel and therefor we would not have an Israeli stamp so I'm hoping this is possible. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

CapeTownNorth.com.au

Hi,
Why not fly from Sudan to Turkey?
I'm in the same situation.
I'm in Sudan now and wanted to go through Saudi Arabia and Iran but was told no bikes were allowed in Saudi and really didn't want to go through Egypt (bloody expensive), so now trying to ship the bike on Turkish Airlines to Turkey and ride it from there to the UK. Or maybe fly it direct to the UK.
Going through Syria is a definite NO and through Iraq is absolutely NOT. Those are war zones.
The bike is already boxed and cleared at airport customs waiting for airline bookings.
The costs so far seem reasonable.

Regards

[Überflieger]

Originally Posted by schenkel

.....and really didn't want to go through Egypt (bloody expensive).....

The costs so far seem reasonable.

But will be higher than driving through the wonderful landscape of egypt!

Stefan



Gesendet von meinem GT-I9300 mit Tapatalk

[schenkel]

Originally Posted by Überflieger

But will be higher than driving through the wonderful landscape of egypt!

Stefan



Gesendet von meinem GT-I9300 mit Tapatalk

With no carnet it will be a very expensive drive through those wonderful landscapes of Egypt!

[schenkel]

managed to ship my bike today on Turkish Airlines all the way back to the UK.
Cost was roughly £342 Sterling, which is a good deal.
Very straight forward procedure and got a lot of help from the staff at the packing yard inside the airport.
So this is definitely cheaper than going through Egypt.

[lAbArYnth]

Originally Posted by schenkel

With no carnet it will be a very expensive drive through those wonderful landscapes of Egypt!

Can one get a carnet for Egypt at the land border(Aswan) or is it advisable to purchase the carnet from AA in SA.
I have heard that to purchase a carnet from local AA can be really expensive.

BTW: the cost of transporting your vehicle on the barge and yourself on the ferry from Wadi Halfa to Aswan seems to average around the $750 mark, is this cost just for transporting or does it include carnet/licence plates etc?

Also, what about Egypt visa. It seems like everyone travelling North is having a problem obtaining an Ethiopia visa at land border. Does this apply to Egypt as well?

Thx
Reg
PS: A friend and I are leaving around end Dec to travel up North. Any info regards carnet, visas etc would be gratefully accepted.

[limitablesnake]

Thanks for your comments, Schenkel. I'm heading from Nairobi up to Khartoum, setting off in the next 48hrs and will almost certainly a) avoid Egypt and b) use Turkish Airlines to get around the Saudi problem.

If you have any advice on the shipping process out of Khartoum that'd be gratefully received!

Hope all's well back in the UK and the culture shock wasn't too great!!

Charlie

Originally Posted by schenkel

managed to ship my bike today on Turkish Airlines all the way back to the UK.
Cost was roughly £342 Sterling, which is a good deal.
Very straight forward procedure and got a lot of help from the staff at the packing yard inside the airport.
So this is definitely cheaper than going through Egypt.

[schenkel]

Originally Posted by limitablesnake

Thanks for your comments, Schenkel. I'm heading from Nairobi up to Khartoum, setting off in the next 48hrs and will almost certainly a) avoid Egypt and b) use Turkish Airlines to get around the Saudi problem.

If you have any advice on the shipping process out of Khartoum that'd be gratefully received!

Hope all's well back in the UK and the culture shock wasn't too great!!

Charlie

Hi Charlie

What are you riding Charlie? and are you alone?

OK first make the bike as small as you can (remove front tire, wind screen, etc) and put it on the smallest crate you can fit the bike on.
Get in touch with Turkish airways representative in Khartoum his name is Adel Waheb based in Khartoum airport at Maks Air Services his mobile number (0912349073). He is very helpful he will get you in touch with a clearance agent. Turkish airlines will charge you by weight based on volume. I had to reduce the size of the crate to reduce the cost of shipping. The final size was (L200 x H112 x W80) divided by 6000 gives around 300 kg. Now 300 kg at $3 US per kg is $900 US. 900 $ x (5.7 official US $ rate)= 5130 Sudanese pounds. That is what I paid ...5130 Sudanese pounds.

I built my own crate by myself using wooden pallets but had to buy extra wood, so cost of the crate was minimal for me.

The crate materials would costs you around 1000 Sudanese pounds.
The carpenter will cost around 250-300 Sudanese pounds.
Transport from centre of Khartoum to Airport on small light truck costs around 100-150 Sudanese pounds.
Loading and unloading (4 or 5 guys) costs around 120-150 Sudanese pounds.
Clearance at the airport shouldn't cost more than 600 pounds.

Some clearance agents will charge you 5000-6000 Sudanese pounds for the crate, transport to airport and clearance and you still have to pay for airfreight!.

I you need more info or any help in Sudan don't hesitate to get in touch. I know Sudan very well because originally I come from there.

I loaded some pics but they seem to be up side down.....don't know why!!!!

[limitablesnake]

That is the most useful advice... THANK YOU! I'm on a KTM 990 and I'm travelling alone. I came down the west coast and am going back up the middle. I travelled with two Italians and a South African from Senegal to the Congo... and did the rest on my own.

I'm leaving Nairobi this afternoon towards Moyle and will contact the agent you provided as soon as my Khartoum ETA is clearer.

Once again... you are a bloody star for providing all that info. Really appreciated!!

Charlie