Shipments done by Travellers

Stefan Knoph runs a tours company, rents bikes, ships bikes from US three times a year. He will receive the bike at both spots, take delivery and store bike until you arrive. He will take care of all paperwork that you need including insurance. He also runs a motorcycle BnB. He ships bike both ways and handles crating. He also sells bikes for customers. Great guy. I just bought a bike from another guy through Stefan. The other guy is shipping another bike over with Stefan.

Shipping two postiebikes from Bangkok to Kathmandu

We've contacted several different shipping agents, but the two that can be found on the Hubb (PT and TAC) reacted most adequately and came with a quote straight away, some other companies only do sea shipment.

We calculated it would be cheapest to go with Kittima from Trans Air Cargo, although the packing/crating of the bikes was not in the quote, and might have been cheaper with PT.

Bangkok: the procedure was really straightforward and clear.

1. We contacted Kittima via email (kitt...@transaircargo.com) and got a quote per motorbike (one motorbike per shipment allowed only) that lookes like this:

   - Airfreight charge by Thai Airways: Thb59/kg
   - Fuel charge: Thb20/kg
   - Handling charge: Thb3500/shipment
   - DGR (Dangerous Good) charge: Thb1000/shipment
   - Shippers declaration of dangerous goods fee: Thb1500/shipment
   - Transportation charge: Thb1200/truck
   - Forklift fee: Thb500/shipment

2. 10 days prior to shipment we have sent the following information by email to Kittima:

   - Copy of temporary import document from Thai customs
   - Copy of Passport main- and visa-page
   - Copy of Carnet bike data page and first free page to be stamped on entry in Nepal (only for bike info)

3. We met with Kittima at the TAC office in BKK (N13 44 560, E100 32 993). We prepared the airway bill, signed some copies of the documents we sent earlier, gave the original Thai customs temporary import document to Kittima in exchange for a copy and got the address of N&T packing.

4. Next day we went to N&T Packing on the outskirts of Bangkok (N13 55 732, E100 28 450) to build transport crates for the motorbikes. The price they quoted was a fair bit higher then prices we heard from other packaging companies. After negotiating we came to a total of 6500 thb per bike incl. Transportation to TAC warehouse. Also we spoke to another packing company that sounded like a good alternative: 0816539554/ 0816539554.

   The friendly people at N&T where really helpful, efficient and did a real good job. We had given some thought how we wanted to make the bikes as small as possible, but these guys really made it happen! The crates were so compact that we ended up paying the weight-price instead of the volumetric-weight-price. We were dropped off at the busstation to make our way back to the centre of Bangkok.

5. Kittima prepared the airway bill and planned the shipment, and two days later we came back to her office to pay for the shipment in cash. Kittima kept us informed via email with the status of the shipment, which was not really needed because everything went according schedule.
   A copy of the airway bill and the Carnets we kept to be able to claim and clear the bikes in Kathmandu.

Kathmandu:

1. We went to the Thai Air Cargo office in Kathmandu, in the building named 'operations' to get the original Airway Bill. The building is north of the passenger terminal, or left when you're looking at the passenger terminal, (N27 42 022, E85 21 403).

2. We walked about 2 km to the Cargo building south of the passenger terminal, take the airport exit, turn left on the main road, first big building on the lefthand side is the Cargo building (N27 41 358, E85 21 141)

3. You'll be attacked by agents the moment you walk through the gate, who will want to persuade you into different deals.

4. With a bit of effort we found out the following:
   - One must have an agent in order to register the shipment with customs department (maximum 500 NPR per shipment paid to the agent)
   - There is a customs declaration fee (565 NPR to be paid at the bank in the same building)
   - There is a warehouse charge to be paid at the warehouse office cantbremember exact amount)
   - finally there's a loading and handling charge, also dubbed 'keycharge' (2,50 NPR/kg) also to be paid at the warehouse office.
   We were able to go through this proces ourselves, but due to regular powercuts and a restricted timeframe because of an upcoming strike the next day we decided to let the agent do all the running around with the paperwork. We paid him 6500 NPR to do this for two motorbikes.

   Obviously this could have been done cheaper, but it would have taken a lot more time and effort finding the right offices and persons.

5. We gave the remainders of the crate to the agent as a tip, but might have been able to be taken in with negotiations as the crates produced in bkk are really good quality compared to what we have seen in ktm

I took it from Colon, Panama to Cartagena, Colombia on Monday 5th January 2015. The trip took 23 hours, five hours more than scheduled due to high winds and choppy seas.

The booking was easy. Go to Ferryxpress.net and get info about the ferry. Their phone number is +507 380 0909 in Panama and +57 5368 0000 in Colombia. You can book and pay over the phone or in person at their Panama office, but not online. I booked by telephone.

Ferry Xpress leaves Panama every Monday and Wednesday at 7pm and Cartagena every Tuesday and Thursday at 7pm. I was told to arrive in Colon at 8am due to aduana (customs) processes. It was not very clear exactly what paperwork I needed when I booked. I expected the usual import and insurance papers, registration, licence and passport. Have lots of copies of all of them. The one I missed was a police clearance issued by policia nacional who do an Interpol check on your vehicle before you leave Panama.

I arrived at Jetty 2000 (9.213641N, 79.533474W) at 8am and Aduana arrived at 10am. At 10.15 it was clear I was missing a form so I was sent to the local Policia Nacional office (9.215203N, 79.541489W) where I waited in line for 1 hour to find they didn’t do motor vehicles at that window. I was taken next door and told that the motor vehicle person was on a day off, so they would send someone up from Panama City. It would take three hours. Two hours later he arrived and my bike was inspected and VIN number checked. I waited another hour and a half for the Interpol check. At 4.30pm I had the form in hand. In the meantime I had other paperwork completed by Aduana.

You can get this form ahead of time, valid for 8 days, from Panama City…recommended.

I was then allowed to ride to the ferry terminal. I was asked to unload my soft luggage for scanning (I don’t have hard cases) and then had to reload. I was sent halfway up the long building to check in which I did. By this time there were lots of passengers lining up. I was told to go to immigration next but I explained I had the bike to load so they let me go and I subsequently forgot about immigration so my passport was not stamped out. My passport was not checked again.

I returned to the bike and was escorted around the side of the building to the berth where I waited for ten minutes. I rode the bike onto the ferry via the passenger ramp because the vehicle ramp at the back of the ferry was not functioning.

I was told the reason no cars are going on the ferry is because they load at the rear of the ship. In Panama the ship can only berth along the side. If there is any wind above 10 knots the ship is unstable in the perpendicular position from the berth and is dangerous to load cars. So they cannot position in the perpendicular position now, hence cars and RVs are not being transported until Panama builds a suitable addition to the berth. There is no such problem in Cartagena.

Costs

Insurance $30

Aduana Inspection $15

The 18 hour trip to Cartagena took 23 hours, arriving at 6.30pm on Tuesday after getting away at 7.30pm Monday. The sea was a bit rough and the wind very strong during the whole trip but the ferry was pleasant and not affected by the weather except for the time.

In Cartagena I loaded the bike and rode of the rear vehicle entrance and was told to park while I went through immigration. They stamped my passport in without a mention of the lack of exit stamp from Panama. Being the only vehicle, I had the undivided attention of aduana who were friendly, helpful, of good humour and they had the paperwork half filled out. They walked with me over to the bike where they checked the numbers then a separate check from the police and the paperwork was signed.

I was out of the port in just over an hour with one of the port officers phoning my contact in Cartagena to come and collect me. I was never asked to purchase insurance and was given 90 days for the bike and myself.

Costs:

Aduana inspection: $25

Ferry Xpress is huge and takes some 1500 passengers and 300 vehicles. I was the only vehicle on the whole ferry, so cost viability for the company has to be questioned. I booked a seat and everyone in that area lay on the floor to sleep. Plenty of room. You can also book various cabins but the seats are reclining and comfortable.

The ferry has a disco, several bars, two restaurants, duty free and various other things. Unfortunately they try to make it a ‘luxury cruise’ and charge accordingly. I noticed a lack of good service and goodwill. You are not supposed to take food aboard but the shops have limited hours and expensive, small meals. Everything is charged. Wifi is $5 per hour, water can’t be refilled, it must be bought, drinks are smaller than standard size and there is not a great choice. Some blankets are provided but only the first 30 people get one. The savings of a cheap crossing can quickly increase due to the costs onboard.

The ship itself is clean and bright and new. There is ample access to outdoors but a lack of comfortable seating available. There were about 30 deck chairs. There is a bar on the top deck which is a good place to hang out but there is little shade and with the white paint is glary and hot. The airconditioning in the disco and inside bar was set at arctic, and was too cold to stay more than a few minutes. The staff are approachable but if you ask something and they don’t know the answer or can’t help, they just say ‘no’ and put in no extra effort to help out. The vibe from them was a bit formal and unfriendly.

Although I have complaints about certain things, it was a comfortable cruise. The Panama end was quite disorganized and a lot of running around from one end of the terminal to the other with no real connection between processes. In contrast, Cartagena was friendly, helpful and efficient. There was no hint of bribes or dodgy dealings and I never felt unsafe. Given I was the only vehicle, it’s hard to say how long the ferry can stay in business without the income from vehicles. If it takes a long time to get the Panama end sorted out then we may lose this cheaper way to cross.

look at pics on 'the gallery', australia, western australia revisited

packing bikes in warehouse, tea, coffee, provided. bring your own bikkies though!!

vending machine for chipsies!! very helpful staff, leave you alone, or help you if needed.

Dropped off bikes, they wrapped and packed neatly and efficiently. transport to Heathrow, organised reception at Capetown who had uncrated for us when we turned up. Kept informed at all points, always available for questions.

2 f659gs £2988 with insurance

will use again