Shipments done by Travellers

This was the return shipment of my bike from South Africa arranged through Motofreight in Egham near London. The bike was delivered to my door in Inverness for this price and includes all crating, uncrating and disposal of crate, customs clearance and moving the bike from the London Gateway Port to Egham and then to my house in Scotland. The bike arrived in perfect condition exactly when Motofreight said it would.

Adrian in Capetown was extremely helpful both when we picked the bike up on arrival in Capetown and dropping it off on the way back, and his warehouse is in a handy spot with a number of bike dealers and camping gear stockists very close by.

Overnight car-train, included single cabin with shower (cheaper if sharing cabin); booked through my travel agent (might be cheaper if purchased directly from the Finnish state railway). Got the bike up past the Arctic Circle in one night - riding would have taken two days, and two nights' accommodation, so might not have even been cheaper.

A box was needed; the less volume the box the cheaper! bike had to be asbolutely clean; no fuel, battery disconnected. No dangerous goods and a special importation admission is needed for USA. Admission takes at least 3 weeks (20 working days!). Form to fill out can be ordered at: impo...@epa.gov, David Hurlin is the man in charge for that.
Once back home had to prove that bike was not in USA anymore;
In Acnhorage I had to phone around to find the Cargo company as Apextrans did not know that in advance. but then it was easy. It is located at the old airport (nearby the "normal" airport (Pegasus Aviation Services, 3901 Old International Airport Rd, Anchorage, AK 99502. homeland security checked the bike for dirt!! after their ok had to go to the customs to have it registered.
Apextrans has these information now as well ;-)

The following details regard shipment of a 1975 BWM R60/6 from Vancouver to Incheon, Korea in June of 2015. Locher Evers International arranged for the shipping from Vancouver (via Air Canada) and arrangements for import were handled by Wendy Choi in Seoul. Wendy arranged for temporary import as well as for bike insurance, so that I could have about 12 days of riding in Korea prior to boarding the ferry in Donghae for Vladivostok. Wendy made all arrangements for the ferry and on-board accommodation as well.

Using LEI and Wendy Choi was a joy. Greg was great to work with and really tried to reduce the shipping costs as much as possible. Wendy never charges enough for the amount and quality of work she puts into it.

The bike needed to be put on a pallet in Vancouver prior to shipment. Greg recommended I contact Pacific Motosports (PMS) to arrange for the packing. Pacific Motosports was a HUGE disappointment. I would never use them again. Although I had confirmed arrangements in person, by email and by phone, they were unaware of any appointment when I arrived with the bike. Their excuse was that the person I had been dealing with did not work there anymore, and so they were under no obligation to honor any of his bookings. They suggested I come back in a MONTH! I contacted Greg and he got a bomb under them. They agreed to pack the bike and to have it available the next day for pick up by Greg. PMS charged me $330 US for the pallet and service. In short, the bike was not ready as promised, and Greg's crew spent several hours at PMS waiting for it. It eventually arrived at the airport dock. PMS had done nothing but strap it to an over-sized pallet, not even lowering the windshield. I did as much as I could to lessen the volume, but Greg said the large pallet would add to the shipping costs considerably. Greg originally quoted me $1260 US all-up to Incheon... the final shipping cost was 40% higher due to the PMS screwup. In retrospect, Greg said that he usually had a few motorcycle pallets I could have used, and he would have had no objection to me packing it there, on my own. In hindsight, I could have bypassed PMS altogether, done a better job and reduced the costs considerably. I recommend that anyone using LEI contact Greg directly and discuss your requirements. He may be able to save you a bundle of hurt.

Upon arrival, costs in Incheon were as follows: $US

Wendy Choi - $100
Korean Customs (temporary import) - $143
Storage (1 day) - $20
Motorcycle insurance (12 days) - $85

So for the freedom to drive around Korea (fantastic!) for 12 days, not bad. I don't know what the costs would have been if Wendy had arranged simply to have the bike trucked under bond to Donghae, but I can't think they would have been much less.

Except for the PMS experience, a great way to get your bike across the north Pacific.

You need to be specific about your requirements and arrival date, Ivan works to his own schedule, which could leave you paying for accomodation while you wait for your bike.  My bike arrived successfully, but three days later than expected.