Hi Guys.

In April, a friend and I plan to ride from Alaska to Argentina on 2 Suzuki DRZ 400s. The plan is to ship the bikes from here in the U.K to either Alaska or as near as we possibly can for a reasonable price.

Has anybody had to do this shipment before and if so, are you able to offer me some advice on which company to use and likely costs involved? I've sent a load of requests out for quotes today however I am keen to use a company I know another rider was happy with.

I also need to know if I am required to complete any legal processes before being able to simply take my bike over there and begin riding. Does anybody have any idea about the legalities of such a trip? What paper work will i need to get my bike all the way down to to Argentina and (if it and I make it) back to the U.K again?
I'm struggling to find any decent online resources which can help.

Any help would be really greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Pete.

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Read more about our round the world DRz 400 trip on our website here:www.toughmiles.com
Tough Miles updates on Facebook

I've been doing some similar research.

This link was recommended by Maja (Mike) and is looking favourite to me so far. It's a RoRo ferry from Southampton to Halifax and other ports on the Eastern Seabord.
Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics - Ocean transportation

There's also Motorcycle Insurance - Instant Online Motorcycle Insurance Quotes if you want to fly the bikes to Toronto or Montreal. Apparently you can also book yourself on the same flight. This company can also arrange insurance for USA and Canada although I'm told its not the cheapest.

There's a transport link on the hubb with lots more options and people's experiences.

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tripplan/transport

You'll need a B2 visa for the USA if you want to stay for more than 3 months and up to 6. Not sure how it works if you're also going to Alaska and then moving onto the US via Canada.

American Tourist Visa B2: American Visa Bureau


And a waiver to bring a non US registered bike into the US. I think that's called an EPA form, You can arrange this partly on line. Details are here

Section D - Detailed Importing Requirements | Importing Vehicles and Engines | US EPA

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If you think you are too small to make a difference you have never spent the night with a mosquito.

in April

Hi from Vancouver! We plan to follow you but are leaving from here the end of june north to Inuvik. Then South. Sara

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Sara

Those who say something is impossible should not hinder those who are achieving it!





www.worldwideride.ca

HU RR Finding Freedom...World Wide Ride

Hi we used Wallenius Willhelmsen Ro Ro in April this year on our RTW trip , Left Southampton docks and delivered in Baltimore. rode the bike onto the docks , booked in at the office , left the keys in the bike and walked away , very easy no problems. You are not allowed to leave luggage on the bike, panniers and top box are ok but empty. You may need the new V5C , but i would think just the orginal V5 would do the job as all the new V5C's are not due to be rolled out untill November 2012 . I would check on that.
In the U.S we cleared the bikes ourselves , a stroke of luck found an officer named Barnes who described himself as the last of the dinosuars, a few questions on the bike ( emmisions etc )and what our intentions were and the job was done ( about an hour ) We did have a return air ticket ( new york/London) as they like to see you have an exit plan, even though we intended to leave via Seattle to Vladivostok. We had with us the V5 and U.S insurance.
To have used a shipping agent would in this case taken longer as they need power of attorney to do the work on your behalf, more time and more money .
At the port you will need an autherised agent escort, as since 9/11 you will not be allowed in. The port fee,s $160 and the escort was $40 an hour and again we got very lucky and was free in an hour and a half .
Make sure the bike is very clean and have an exit planned and all bike documents and you should be good to go

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http://2wheelskeeponrolling.wordpress.com

Have a look at "Progressive.com" for insurance, this is, I believe, the biggest moto insurance company in the US and it´s policies also cover Canada. The on line form filling in is easy and I am sure that one of our US HU cousins will allow you to use their zip code if you ask them nicely. Go for a length of policy which will cover your time in Mexico as the possession of a US policy makes a Mexican one cheaper. Any probs or questions give me a PM or use this means. Happy new Year from swinging downtown (and rainy) Ushuaia. Ride safe.

p.s. April in Alaska on a moto may not be such a good idea and you will probably miss most of the wildlife except for the moose you collide with.

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Mike
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Mike is riding the twisty road in the sky

I doubt if US customs would know the difference but I received the new V5C's for two of my three bikes last week.

Check out HC travel for shipping, insurance and other info on north America, I have not used them but have had them recommended to me by somebody who has.

Welcome to the H-C Travel Home Page - The World's Best Motorcycle Holidays

Seems like some sound advice, thanks guys.

Sara- Perhaps we will bump in to you en route! What bikes are you guys riding?
Have you done much reading around the paper work side of things? It seems like there is so much admin work to clear up before we can even begin our ride.

I'm finding it quite hard to understand what exactly what paper work i need to complete before trying to enter the central and southern american countries.

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Read more about our round the world DRz 400 trip on our website here:www.toughmiles.com
Tough Miles updates on Facebook

Hi Pete...

You mentioned you preferred to ship to NA as close to Alaska as possible. In that case I would heartily recommend contacting Gail Goodman at Motorcycle Express Motorcycle Express - Ship Your Bike . They offer direct air shipment (both for you and your bikes on the same flight) from London to Vancouver. I used them in 2010 (Vacouver - London- Vancouver) and am once again planning on using their services (Vancouver to London) in April, 2012. I'm not an expert on the paperwork, but making sure that you have the proper paperwork at least for import, is what Gail's job is all about. I believe they can set you up Canadian and US insurance as well.

My bigger concern would be the weather for much travel in April. I live in the southern interior of BC and early April even here can be pretty yucky at times, wet with snow at higher elevations. Not much farther north and you can still face some wintery conditions at times. You might luck out. Check the historical weather information at Weather Underground Weather History & Data Archive : Weather Underground for areas farther north... remembering that most of the cities lie in valleys and are not at the high spots along the roads.

Have a great trip. I was in Alaska in 2009, going up via the Cassiar Highway and down via the Alaska Highway. Had great weather but that was July.

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Samuel Longiaru
Kamloops, BC Canada
1975 BMW R60/6
http://thetwilightproject.net

Hi Sam,

Thanks for your input. That's a really interesting weather site. Looks like it could be a little interesting up there in April time. We would ideally push the start date back slightly but we really do not want to be eating into our South America time.

It's funny you should mention Gail's name from Motorcycle Express. We recently emailed a guy call Nick Sanders. In case you have not heard of him, he set the world record for going from Alaska to Argentina and back again in the shortest amount of time. He also recommended Gail to us.

Thanks again for your input.

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Read more about our round the world DRz 400 trip on our website here:www.toughmiles.com
Tough Miles updates on Facebook

Hi There,
Nice thread!

I'm tying to find out a nice option to ship a couple of bikes to Alaska (or near Alaska) for about the same trip. I'm hoping to be in Alaska in August/September 2013. Please let us know if you find a good option for shipping the bikes!

If there are more people who want to ship a bike from Europe to Alaska (or near it) about August/September 2013 please contact me. I'm trying to get some more bikes together in one shipping, possibly reducing the costs.
(I'm planning on going from Argentina to Europe in January 2014; after we've seen something from "le Dakar" 2014)

H Pete...

For me, dealing with Gail is well worth the little bit of extra cost as I am not comfortable doing all the dangerous goods paperwork and other stuff myself. But if you are, or know someone who can help you, then I understand that Air Canada is good to deal with directly for motorcycle transport. Booking directly should save you a little at the expense of a bit more headache.

It seems that Motorcycle Express uses Air Transat (Thomas Cook) for the Vancouver-London run as I was on that airline both ways. You don't need to crate the bike or mount on a pallet on that airline. It just goes into a metal baggage container. You might be able to get two skinny bikes into one... seemed there was lots of space with my R60 in there. Maybe not enough for another one though with luggage??? You can ask Gail but my sense is that it is priced out per bike, not per container.

If you get to Kamloops in April and I'm still here, email me. You guys are welcome to hang out here for a while if you catch a snowstorm. Or even if you don't!

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Samuel Longiaru
Kamloops, BC Canada
1975 BMW R60/6
http://thetwilightproject.net

Hi Pete

I ride a F650GS and my husband a F800Gs.
we have a web site under construction World Wide Ride if you want to follow us or contact us on the road.

for paper work check out


Drive the Americas
go to a location then country then borers and driving find entry and exit requirements, procedures, and costs

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Sara

Those who say something is impossible should not hinder those who are achieving it!





www.worldwideride.ca

HU RR Finding Freedom...World Wide Ride

Hi Sara.

Your site looks great and thanks very much for your info. The time is nearing now. I hope you are as excited as we are.
We are currently working on our site and hope to have something up soon. I'll update you when it's good to go.

Hopefully we will bump in to you along the way.

Good luck with your prep,

Pete.

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Read more about our round the world DRz 400 trip on our website here:www.toughmiles.com
Tough Miles updates on Facebook

Pete

YES WE ARE!! Good luck and we hope to see you on the road. Sara & Daniel

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Sara

Those who say something is impossible should not hinder those who are achieving it!





www.worldwideride.ca

HU RR Finding Freedom...World Wide Ride

He Buurman,
I saw your post,
we will be leaving from Amsterdam on august 1st 2013 to or as close as possible to Anchorage. And then spending 6 months driving via Ushuaia to B.A.