shipping container to oz.

[prelude]

I just got a quote to ship us over to OZ by the end of the year, well us, the car.

Apart from the fact that fumigation is now a must it seems and I am not sure if I would want that, I do need to sleep in there... the worlds problems have increased both the time and prices of shipping it seems.

I was now quoted 10k euro's with a transit time of 62 days to freemantle excluding the time local authorities would take (could be 3-30 days).

Now I have beef with the missus since I did once say that if shipping was going to be 10k I was not going to do it, I'd rather drive to indonesia and ship from there and figure out how to clean the car once we got there... I did have my mind set for australia though -g-

having said that (complained about it to be fair) you guys must have a helluva time getting stuff in with those prices and transit times?!

-P

[loanrangie]

Freight was cheap until recently, I work in freight forwarding and it's been a rollercoaster ride in the last few years, 10k does sound excessive though.
When was that for

[prelude]

Mid October was what I asked for (we are still dialing in the exact dates) but I can't see that in the quote.

This is what was quoted (translated)

Quotation / Date Goods
From/To Shipment details
Quotation valid until Transport Insurance
Comments
Our rate Including
General non-dangerous commercial goods, not subject to any form of inspection
Terminal RTM – Loading place RTM – Terminal RTM – Fremantle AUD 1x 20ft DV container
1x self-driving pickup/camper car
Container size for loading is a maximum of 580x220x230 = 3000 kg assuming a telex release/express BL
06/30/2024
Not included
We need 4 working days for planning/removing the RTM container/loading the camper/returning the RTM container.
EURO 8,600 excl. VAT (EURO 10,406 incl. VAT)
Stuffing & Lashing Camper in container, Sea freight, terminal handling costs origin, Register Portbase, current diesel surcharge, removing container from Terminal, loading Camper in container (including 3 hours off), full container return to terminal.
VAT, onward transport, any customs costs/Carnet de Passage and stamping costs. THC destination, local (customs) formalities AUD, Customs clearance, legally payable levies and commercial policy (Covid-19) measures. Surcharge for preparation of original BL. Fumigation is mandatory from 01-SEPT-2024 (cost indication €850)
Unforeseen costs that may occur such as scanning of the container, customs checks, gas-free measurement, extra handling, possible demurrage, detention, rollover and/or storage costs, interim increases such as; peak seasonal surcharge (PSS), Equipment Imbalance Surcharge and/or Fuel Surcharge (LSS), BAF, CAF, GRI, these will be charged on as stated by the shipping company/agent. Late cancellation fee USD 200 for 20ft and USD 400 for 40ft.

Perhaps you can make sense of all this :) since I can not. It seems that even if you have all this money paid and all that stuff taken care of, it can still turn out to be more expensive? Shipping must be a complex business, even if the world ships a gazillion containers a year...

Thanks for any help though!

Cheers,
-P

[V8Ian]

Have you got a quote to Sydney/Melbourne/Brisbane for comparison, they may be considerably cheaper, with more freight coming through those ports.

[prelude]

No, I must say I did not consider that yet. Might be worth looking into. The word on the "streets" in overlanding-land is however that it is considerably easier to (temporarily) import a car in WA than any other state so that's why I choose Fremantle to begin with.

Cheers,
-P

[Tins]

Drive the thing to Ho Chi Minh City. Lots of boxes come out of there, probably way cheaper, and you get an adventure on the way.

[prelude]

Good one Tins, not sure if that would work out though :)

I thought of driving to indonesia since that is relatively close to oz and ship from there and indeed do part of our trip that we were going to do anyway before entering. Thing is, the car needs to be so friggin clean that it is much easier to do that at home and stuff it in a container. The other thing is that most of the routes one would take from here to there have developed, shall we say, troubles. I don't even think there is a realistic way to get to ho chi minh without needing to ship around troubled countries in between.

I have been looking into some gear I still need that is oz manufactured and it is considerably cheaper down under than it is here so I can offset a heap of money by buying that over there and put the savings towards the shipping.

Crazy world we live in today. I would have thought that in (nearly) 2025 the world shipping would be back on its, euhm, feet?

-P

[loanrangie]

Unfortunately far from it, October is in peak season so is usually at the top end of rates as well.

[prelude]

Just out of curiosity; what would be the generally speaking cheapest season/month?

-P

[loanrangie]

Just out of curiosity; what would be the generally speaking cheapest season/month?

-PJanuary to may and it starts to ramp up in June.

[Old Farang]

I looked into shipping my D1 from Bangkok to Fremantle less than 1 year ago. USD$10k was the quote. 20 ft container with a few boxes of personal goods.

The paper work killed it for me, although that was a permanant import, which required an import permit. Not sure what difference using a Carnet would be. It was compulsory to have it cleaned in Bangkok, they would not load it without a certificate. If the Customs, or border control in Australia dont like the look of it they will have it cleaned again at your expense. Older cars also attact close attention to any asbestos, as it is a totaly banned import. Bear that in mind if you are fitting the car out for camping and using insulation.

I notice somewhere you have mentioned window tinting. Be aware that if you want to drive it through Malaysia, any window tinting has to be removed.
Insurance is probably not compulsory, but was the cheapest part of the quote and there are some restrictions depending on what is in the container.

There are many international companies that specialise in shipping cars: dont accept the first quotation and ask many questions. Here and other places!
.................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .......................

Just a thought: Alex Bescoby would have to be the Worlds best authority on how to ship a Land Rover! He is a nice bloke and may be worth sending him an email. He has experince with Australian Carnet rules.

Alex Bescoby (https://www.alexbescoby.co.uk/)

He recently returned from ‘The Last Overland’ (https://www.lastoverland.com/) expedition where he and his team drove 22,000km from Singapore to London, recreating the famous ‘Oxford and Cambridge Far Eastern Expedition’ of 1955. The four-part TV series and book are out now, click here for more information (https://www.grammar-productions.com/the-last-overland).
.

[PhilipA]

Currently from Europe freight is going around South Africa because of the Houthis.
This would not apply from east of the Middle East but good luck through Iran or Russia. AFAIK Myanmar still does not allow any through traffic .
One possibility could be drive down to Dubai but again Syria could be a problem .
Regards PhilipA

[prelude]

Indeed the shipping around africa is what adds to the transit time and costs. I was told that the container needs to be transferred twice even to a different ship to make the trip.

And bugger me! 10K for a trip that is substantially closer kinda surprises me? I heard grizzlynbear note something like that as well shipping from what was it? Japan to OZ but that was during covid years. Also the shipping out to south africa was not cheap either. I might need to get a side hustle down under just to save up for shipping :)

Good to know that malaysia also does not allow tinting, kinda fixes my dilemma of mounting any. It seems that it is simply a no go. Same goes for a drone. Very nice for beauty shots but some countries do not permit them and I can't very well leave it "home" now can I?

It seems carnet imports do require paperwork of course but they should be a lot simpler since they are only a temporary import. The concensus I've read thus far is indeed; it needs to be clean as ever, a certificate would be preferred and even mandatory from sept onwards and a "simple" road worthy test has to be done at arrival. It's the road worthy that worried me with regards to tinting.

My car does not contain asbestos at this time since it was already a banned substance at the time of manufacture in my region and I will certainly not be incorporating any, I could not even buy it anymore :)

I have asked for another quote from the shippers I spoke to on the abenteuer und allrad messe but they have yet to get back to me. A bit worrying. I'll have to start digging a lot deeper it seems and to my surprise (though not preferred) roro is a lot cheaper. I got quoted a flat rack for less than 4k (since roro was full at the time). Now, I personally do not trust roro as much because of plenty of horror stories but then again, with such ridiculous price differences it might certainly be worth looking into again.

To be continued!
-P

[tc_s1]

RORO instead of container should be less and could be 8 weeks or less too. You may want to look into that. We've done it a few times over the years and the RORO route is like a big bus, goes from Europe to US, through the Panama Canal, up the US west coast, to Japan, Korea, then Australia. Multiple stops in EU, US, and ANZ. Last we did it was admittedly pre-covid, but $1250/110Rover. The trick is you can't keep things in it and have to bring or ship your belongings separately, so depending on what gear, clothing, etc you need it could be a wash, TBD.

[PhilipA]

One idea .
Ro/Ro to US east coast.
Drive to Long Beach Ro/Ro to Australia.
Regards PhilipA

[prelude]

Well, that was a bit of a surprise this morning! I woke up to find a quote from a german shipper that was over 60% cheaper. Sure it did not include the port fees in freemantle but I kinda doubt that would be 6 grand.

It sure as hell is better to shop (ship?) around! Now to find a proper local agent. Anyone have any experiences in Freemantle? :)

Cheers,
-P

[V8Ian]

Well, that was a bit of a surprise this morning! I woke up to find a quote from a german shipper that was over 60% cheaper. Sure it did not include the port fees in freemantle but I kinda doubt that would be 6 grand.

It sure as hell is better to shop (ship?) around! Now to find a proper local agent. Anyone have any experiences in Freemantle? :)

Cheers,
-P
Yes, but not with shipping. [wink11]

Agegate - Little Creatures (https://littlecreatures.com.au/locations/fremantle/)

[Old Farang]

Well, that was a bit of a surprise this morning! I woke up to find a quote from a german shipper that was over 60% cheaper. Sure it did not include the port fees in freemantle but I kinda doubt that would be 6 grand.

It sure as hell is better to shop (ship?) around! Now to find a proper local agent. Anyone have any experiences in Freemantle? :)

Cheers,
-P
First up: entry is banned to those that cannot spell "FREMANTLE"!

I used "Perth - Grace (https://www.grace.com.au/location/perth/)", one of Australias oldest shipping agents. Total satisfaction for me, keeping in mind that were selected by the agent in Bangkok.

[Tins]

First up: entry is banned to those that cannot spell "FREMANTLE"!



And yet the way he spelt it is the way it's pronounced. Aussies, hey.

[V8Ian]

And yet the way he spelt it is the way it's pronounced. Aussies, hey.
Yeah, not bad for a clog wog. [wink11]
Maybe he should have spelt it PERTH. [bigrolf]

[prelude]

Woopsie. I'll call it Perth yes :) But I do beg forgiveness since I'd like to enter the country, pretty please!

I'll have a look at Grace and I also found this: Company Profile | Universal Customs Brokers (https://www.ucbrokers.com.au/company-profile/)
It seems there is some choice, which is always a good thing.

That brewery looks like a nice afternoon out! I personally am more of a whisky/wine man but the misses likes beer, except for IPA... (did I curse on the forum AGAIN? [bigwhistle])

Cheers,
-P

[Old Farang]

Fremantle is an old port city; many beautiful old colonial buildings and a bit more of a slower pace. Perth is just another steel and glass business centre.

The following is as far as you need to go for laid back entertainment:

Cappuccino Strip - Attraction - Tourism Western Australia (https://www.westernaustralia.com/au/attraction/cappuccino-strip/5ad0395ec69bc77c4e363b29)

[V8Ian]

I reckon Freo has become Yuppieville.

[Old Farang]

I reckon Freo has become Yuppieville.

I have not been there for many years now, and unlikely to change any time soon. But that area was the birth place of craft beers and small bars. During the America Cup era the whole city was transformed in many ways.


Breweries - Western Australian Brewers Association - Western Australian Brewers Association (wabeer.com.au) (https://www.wabeer.com.au/members/)

Perth's Best Craft Beers and Where to Find Them - Tourism Western Australia (https://www.westernaustralia.com/au/plan-my-trip/planning-tools/travel-stories/perths-best-craft-beers-and-where-to-find-them)

FremantleFreo is the cradle of Craft Beer in Australia. The Sail and Anchor (https://www.westernaustralia.com/au/foodanddrink/sail--anchor-hotel/5caf69f8bdbc0ce95a09b48d) (64 South Terrace, Fremantle, 6160), the original brewpub that kicked off a revolution back in the day. While the microbrewery isn’t operational anymore the Sail still has an amazing tap selection and is still held in high regard within the beer fraternity.
Just across the road, The Monk Craft Brewery Kitchen (https://www.westernaustralia.com/au/foodanddrink/the-monk-craft-brewery--kitchen/5caf647a4c65824869b8fb6f) (33 South Terrace, Fremantle, 6160) has a roster of small batch beers and farmhouse ciders brewed on site.
The Norfolk Hotel (https://www.westernaustralia.com/au/foodanddrink/norfolk-hotel/5caf647abdbc0ce95a09b422) (47 South Terrace, Fremantle, 6160), has serious old world charm with a new world line up. An impressive 32 taps pouring over 20 beers across the venue.
A visit to Freo without a visit to Little Creatures (https://www.westernaustralia.com/en/foodanddrink/little-creatures-brewery/5da54ebae5e913076754bc11) is inconceivable (40 Mews Rd, Fremantle, 6160). An icon in WA brewing, with a sibling brewery over east, the original is still pumping out quality beers from the “brewers favourite” Pale Ale, to seasonal brews. The quintessential Freo beer experience: a couple of wood fired pizzas and a good session.
Clancy’s (https://www.westernaustralia.com/au/foodanddrink/clancy%2527s-fish-pub---fremantle/5caf5e7f784c8cef7815f170) (51 Cantonment St, Fremantle, 6160) are the original craft ambassadors; serving good beer since 1996. Before we we’re even banging on about “craft”. The first pub to serve Little Creatures outside the brewery they’ve become a Freo institution. Also find their other outposts at City Beach and Canning Bridge.

[Tins]

Yeah, not bad for a clog wog. [wink11]
Maybe he should have spelt it PERTH. [bigrolf]

Think he’s looking to go further than Scotland. There is a Dundee nearby but it ain’t Mick.