Shipments done by Travellers

We took the expensive ferry, too. But liked it a lot! We heard the other ferry from Sakhalin only goes in summer staring 15 June. Here just some additional information to the earlier reports:

We asked at DBS Ferry in Vladivostok if it is possible to get off the boat in South Korea for longer then the few hours the ferry stops there. They said we could leave the bike on the boat and board it again 2 weeks later. Its only one boat doing circles. It is not possible to leave it at a warehouse etc. in Donghae (we found information in the internet that Germans and Croatians for some reasons are not allowed to ride in South Korea). In the end we didnt do it, but the Japanese employee working in Vladivostok was very helpful, but also spoke hardly any English (but Russian).

Its possible to book the ferry tickets in Germany (Reisebuero Gleisnost) for a small fee. You pay when you get to Vladivostok. For the bikes booking is not possible and needed.

In Vladivostok you can stay at the basic base of the Iron Angels (http://ironangelsmcc.com/index.php) or other motorbike clubs.

Yes, Yuri is a nice guy. He is right now working on a website with more information for overlanders. He has an employee Svetlana speaking German too. But there is a problem with his email adress, as his replies e.g. to web.de dont get through. You can send him copies of your passports including Russian entry stamp, the vehicle registration and a foto of the frame no. of the bike to reduce your time in Vladivostok. Originals are only needed the Monday before departure when you go with Yuri to customs. Only after that you can get the Bill of Lading (very important!) at the DBS office.

In Japan you have to get the bike of the ferry first. There a Russian employee Tatiana offered me to do customs clearance for me for free. Then you need the validation of the Carnet de Passage from the Japanese Automobil Club JAP. You can do this ahead (Mr. Minami, h-mi...@jaf.or.jp) or Tatiana will fax your documents to their office in Matsue (Tel. 0852251123, Fax 0852253411). But you have to go there in person to pick it up by taxi, bus/train (Ichibatabus 9:00-15:30) or they might offer you a lift by car for the same price. In the meanwhile Tatiana will organise the third-part insurance (Jibaiseki Hoken) for you, which you can also do yourself (or prolong it later) at any motorbike shop (e.g. Red Barron). With the validation and the insurance papers you will get the stamp in the CdP from customs.

Keep in mind its Friday, so you really have to hurry up, because customs is closing at 5 pm and if you dont have your papers ready until then you have to wait until Monday! To my mind this is only possible with the help of Tatiana. I gave her the 12.000 JPY, which I had to pay anyway for customs clearance. She processed my bike as normal cargo so there were no additional cost for her.

And off you go! Have fun! Camping is nearly everywhere (car parks, beaches, parks) possible in Japan and for free and normally comes with a clean toilet!

The price in the original currency

80000Nepalese Rupee

Process

The prosess is quite symple you just contact them and after measuring the bike you´ll be detailed of all prices (shipping, crate, etc.) in my case i didnt take out the front wheel as many does to make smaller the crate don´t worry they will advise you what is the bette option for you.

For people who are flying a lot like me will agree about this is the fastest and best transport you´ll experience.

When you arrive to Thailand it would be a bit tricky ;)

Last week my overland trip Netherlands-Nepal came to an end. I looked at the forum and decided to contact Eagle Export. Suraj and his wife are very friendly people. They know how to organize things, which is difficult to find sometimes in Nepal.
I was very limited in time. They managed very well to organise my whole transport in time, and for a reasonable amount I can say. It felt safe, reliable, and without any headache. The guys they work with (carpenter and the cargo-guys) are experienced and experts. So I would recommend everybody to use Eagle Exports services if you want to have a good service for a reasonable price.

One user seems to think different about Eagle Export on the forum. He is complaining about the price and about Suraj' margin. When I read it (before choosing Eagle Export) it felt like gossiping. Who are we do say how any agent should run his business and what is margins may be? If you agree on a price, and both parties keep their word on deliverables (timing, service, etc), you simply have to respect the agreements you made. And don't start bargaining after you closed the deal, and writing these type of messages on the forum. This is how I felt, and this feeling was confirmed after working with Eagle Export!

Very easy at both ends. Took the bike to Manchester and it was carried by lorry to Heathrow. We only needed to remove one pannier and the top box prior to it being crated. Our helmets were placed in boxes and shipped with the bike. All luggage was locked prior to crating. (James Cargo staff were friendly and helpful and one of them kindly gave us a lift to the train station so we could catch a train Derby).

Canandian Customs for us and the bike was really easy. We passed through customs with no more than a quick discussion regarding our plans and showing them the bike's (emailed from James Cargo) airway bill. Was shocked just how quick we were.

Getting the bike involved a visit to the cargo depot to collect the original airway bill, a visit back to the airport to get it stamped and then back to the cargo depot to unpack her. The staff were helpful and friendly and told us not to worry about the packaging and that the cleaners would dispose of it.

(Be aware that you aren't supposed to take photos in the warehouse - we didn't know that and we took a photo of the crate. The staff were nice about it but explained that people weren't supposed to do it).

All in all a great start to our 18 month trip.

We shipped two Honda Africa Twins from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Johannesburg, South Africa, by Air, and used the services of Dakar Motos
The first quote (months ahead) we got was about 2300 USD per bike, but this had to be checked again a few weeks upfront.
About 6 weeks upfront we asked some more questions, and sent in our flight details to confirm the booking. We got a reply about the costs: "I can confirm you that from that date we had sent many others traveler's bikes to South Africa and they pay far less than that, less than USD 2000.- in most cases", so we expected this would apply to our bikes too.

On the first day of arrival we had to pay 100USD (but this is included in their offers, so no suprises) to DM, the fee for their assistance. We got clear descriptions on where to go and how to arrange it all. They also told us we could save money by making the bike lower, the rest of the dimensions were determined by the pallet.
They told us examples of bikes (on the pallet) being lowered to a height of 120-125 cm's, because we asked for a 'goal'.

Once at the airport, we started packing the bikes together with a guy from the airport.
We lowered the bikes to 110cm's in total, so we thought we'd saved some money.
Our handlebars were wider than the pallet, but the guy assured us this was no problem, as the pallet dimensions would be taken for the 'footprint'. We told him we wanted to change the bars 4 times, but he insisted it was nonsense.
After the bike was wrapped, some other guy came to take the dimensions and took the width of the handlebars. We insisted to talk to DM, but when we got a hold of them the airport-guys already had a chat with them. Sandra (DM) didn't even let me tell our side of the story, but simply said: this is only 130USD more expensive per bike, what is all the fuss about? That made us a bit mad, because we pay DM to help us out, not to help the airport.
Once back at DM-HQ we had a chat with Sandra, and we agreed on a 'miscommunication' and had to accept the increased width. We agreed that we should only ask DM questions, e.g. with the handlebar-issue: we should not have discussed this with the guys at the airport, but with DM directly before the bikes were wrapped in plastic.
When we heard the final price (2204USD total, including the 100USD fee) we didn't understand because we made the bikes 10-15cm lower than others. Then we got some stupid excuses about 'our pallet being 20 cm's longer', 'those other bikes were smaller'(?), etc.
Well, what can you do about it? We didn't understand, but had to accept.
FYI: we could have saved 150USD per bike on the width, and another 200 with a shorter pallet (40cm's unused).

Two days later we had to go to downtown-BA to pay, in cash.
We knew the amount, we had all info of the bank accounts on which we had to put the deposit.
This morning, we went to a bank near DM to use the ATM for the last amount of cash. In there, we though: How stupid is it to go in the train, then metro, then walk through the city with 4200USD cash, when we are in a bank now and know everything we need to know?
We called the transport company to ask, but didn't understand them (our Spanish is not super good). Then we contacted DM by phone, just to ASK. Sandra freaked out completely at the phone stating we constantly tried to change the rules :-S. We were super mad after this, because we just asked a question. Nevertheless, we made it to downtown and payed and got it all arranged. (FYI: if you would get robbed that is costly, but you also cannot get the cash anymore before your flight and thus have a huge problem!)
Once back at DM, shit hit the fan. Both Sandra and Javier were furious, and Sandra was constantly telling Javier to 'stay calm' - which he didn't.
Javier was very aggressive and insultive, saying I wasn't smart and we were the only people in the world they ever had an issue with. We just asked why they have been so unfriendly to us since day 1, and then heard a story about them being pissed off with us because of previous emails and us asking questions.
The one thing we did wrong: I've had an envelope sent to their address without pre-approval of DM - what a crime!
I'd heard about their 100USD fee, and asked via email if that was correct. What a crime.
Then came another insult, which made me break out in tears: we didn't have the money or something, and payed in multiple deposits to the transport company. This was nonsense, as we showed them one deposit-receipt with the full amount.
Next they told us that we had had all instructions on 'what to do in South Africa to pick up the bikes' at the transport company, which was not true. We said we didn't know, and then they started to scream again, 'they were working together with these people for years, so they were telling the truth'. I was crying of frustration, Mirjam was shaking but got a piece of paper and asked for the instructions. DM simply did not believe they didn't tell us. After this, we left DM and were both crying and completely shocked about what happened. Nice.

I think Dakar 'don't ask any questions' Motos simply wants to make money on you, so please don't ask ANY questions.
Their hostel costs 50 pesos per night, plus 10 pesos per bike. It is a dirty place with cockroaches in the shower, mushrooms growing in the shower door and a broken toilet seat, that kind of stuff. (think: cheap nasty hostel in Central America) Downtown-BA we found a wonderful super clean hostel for 54 pesos per night, including a good breakfast. The price at DM is very high according to their dirty place far from the center, so you can't say their goal is to help travellers by keeping their prices low.
For the 10 pesos a night for bike parking they want your bike outside during the day, and when you just 'have a look outside whether your bike is still there' (because nobody can see it from the inside!) Javier will grump at you 'what you are doing'? Well, it's my travel bike - my life! ;-)

We feel treated like rabid dogs by them, by far the worst experience on our 14 month trip from Canada heading south. Really do not understand why they had to treat us by this, and lie about stuff. We think their reactions and behaviour are extremely unprofessional towards us as paying clients.
I do know there are a lot of positive stories on the web about them, but also heard a lot of negative stuff from other travellers by now. I hope everybody puts their reviews on HU, positive and negative!

Next time, I will go to Navicon (shipment office) myself and try to arrange it there. They charge you a few hundred USD agent fee too, so why would you need DM? ;-)