THE ULTIMATE GUIDE FOR MOVING OVERSEAS
Everything You’ll Need To Know Before Moving Overseas.
Ask the Moving Doctor
Our resident Moving Doctor, Mark Nash is in the house! Mark has been in the moving business for 33 years, originally from England; he has moved 5 times internationally and has worked in England, mainland Europe, The Middle East and for the past 19 years in the USA. If he doesn’t know the answer to the question, he has enough friends in this industry to find out for you.
He currently sits on the board of the International Shippers Association and the Commercial Affairs committee at the International Association of Movers.
Mark will always do his best to provide an answer honestly, professionally and treat this forum as a place where everyone can learn about moving overseas.
Lou Nash
Posted at 14:07h, 02 JanuaryCan you tell me how long for door-to-door delivery of a small pallet from the East Coast to the Netherlands (ocean)?
The Moving Doctor
Posted at 17:22h, 02 JanuaryHello Lou. Happy New Year to you and your family. I like your last name, are we related?
Jan / Feb are quiet months for International moving so I would say 6-8 weeks. Come spring I would say 5-6 weeks providing there are no shipping delays or strikes which for the moment everything seems to be running well between our offices in Charleston and Rotterdam.
To get a more specific answer, you can always ask when the next sailing is when you book with us and if necessary book the collection of the pallet to coordinate with the next sailing so it doesn’t for example show up at our warehouse the following day after we just loaded a container to Rotterdam.
I hope that makes sense and helps?
Anything else let us know.
Cheers
The International Moving Doctor
Rick Sutton
Posted at 07:50h, 20 DecemberHey Doc! Spouse and I are still awaiting Visa approval (a few months). We are moving Arizona to Spain. We already have life boiled down to enough items to fit into a U-Crate 100. I appreciate your advice on boxing and packing, but I did not see anything regarding wall art. Most items are less than 43″ X 43″ and likely will lie flat right at the top of the box. Others are really too big, but none exceeding 43″ in one direction. I had intended to stand them tall end up. BUT what is the best method to wrap them to protect from other boxes and each other? Some are unframed but all do not really have the option of taking them out of a frame for rolling up. Your best advice please?
The Moving Doctor
Posted at 18:15h, 22 DecemberHello Rick, I need to do a video on this, thank you.
I would wrap really well in bubble wrap. If glass, put a towel over the glass first, if it’s an oil painting put something soft like tissue paper or kitchen roll over it first. Then slide the pictures into picture boxes that you can buy in any self store shop or U Haul. Failing that slide into a flat carton taping up one end first, so like a normal cardboard carton not made up into a cube, keep it flat and slide picture into it. Then load up your U Crate with boxes leaving a gap in the middle to place your pictures up on end. That’s what i have done in the past, I don’t like laying them flat. I hope that helps and let me know if you need more help on this,
Cheers
The International Moving Doctor…..move@upakweship.com
Natashia Fuksman
Posted at 17:48h, 12 DecemberWhere is the best place for me to get a pallet from? I have called my local hardware store, but they don’t give them away…
The Moving Doctor
Posted at 19:22h, 14 DecemberHi Natashia, I have a video on this very subject if you click on the moving doctors you tube channel on http://www.upakweship.com
Take a ride behind the back of stores on through an industrial estate. Big stores like Lowe’s or Walmart might have some lurking around the back, worst case you can buy one on Amazon or look at facebook marketplace place but you hopefully can find one for free.
Cheers
The International Moving Doctor
Leslie Hodgin
Posted at 19:37h, 03 DecemberHi there! We are moving to The Hague and already have an apartment. The address is not going to be conducive to dropping a size 50-crate off outside on a busy pedestrian street. We would like to pick up directly from the warehouse in Rotterdam if possible? I anticipate we would unpack the crate then and load into a van on site. Is this possible to do? Is there any savings with doing this? Thank you in advance.
The Moving Doctor
Posted at 17:23h, 04 DecemberI have answered Leslie on email, but for others reading this, yes you can always collect at our offices in Charleston SC USA, Heinenoord The Netherlands or in England and save a little on the delivery. If you need storage, we can store a U Crate or pallet for 25 per week. That’s US Dollars, Euros or British Pounds.
We are also happy for you to take out an urgent box for example and store the rest.
Hope that helps
Cheers
The International Moving Doctor.
Chuck Flannigan
Posted at 21:47h, 02 DecemberHi there. I’ll be moving with a fair amount of tools as I’m a retired carpenter. Hand tools, cordless tools, a few plug in tools, a small generator, a couple of gas powered tools. Anything to be aware of regarding customs?
The Moving Doctor
Posted at 17:15h, 03 DecemberHello Chuck, it shouldn’t be a problem but it does depend on what Country you are moving to and if you are loading a container that goes straight into the country you are moving to, or say a few u Crates that if you are moving to Europe would go via our Rotterdam office.
If you let us know what service and what country I can be more specific but for the moment, just list as tools on your packing list, make sure all gas is drained and batteries are removed from tools and are drained of juice.
I hope that helps and feel free to email me if you need more clarification.
Cheers The International Moving Doctor
Move@upakweship.com
Dona M LeyVa
Posted at 17:47h, 28 NovemberHello – I have just requested a Quote related to the info below:
My husband and I been a residents of Spain for nearly 4 years, but have never had our used home-goods shipped to us. They have been in storage in Western NY all this time. We have approximately 200 cubic feet of goods, including a few pieces of furniture. Everything is boxed and labeled. (I have photos of everything as it stands now in the storage container, as well as a detailed spreadsheet of the items.)
Can you please tell me what your process is for shipping such goods to the Costa Blanca area of Spain? I am happy to provide more details about location on each end. And, and approximate idea of cost to ship?
Also, is it true that your company ships from the US to maybe Rotterdam, and then trucks the goods into Spain? We are concerned about the possibility of having to pay large duty and other fees, which may lead to us deciding not to ship.
Thank you in advance for any information and advice you can provide.
The Moving Doctor
Posted at 16:04h, 01 DecemberHello Dona, thanks for the question, I see you have completed a quote form and our sales manager John will be in touch with you to provide you with a door to door quote. If you have furniture and about 200 cubic feet, our U Crate 200 might work or if not our shared ontainer service using a PackRat container at your house to load. Either way, yes we ship via our operation in The Netherlands allowing us a simple customs clearance process with no taxes or duties to you. Once cleared through customs in Rotterdam we truck it down to you in Spain and deliver it into your residence.
I suggest taking a look at our video on UPakWeShip’s home page saying what service do I need to get a better idea of what might suit you best.
I hope this help,
Cheers
The International Moving Doctor