Shipping a bike to Europe?

[Robbin_G]

Hello all!

I'm wondering if you've ever SHIPPED your bike abroad. Looks like I'm going to be here a while and I have a pretty swank road bike ... sitting in storage in the box it was shipped in TO the storage place.

I thought about having it unearthed and shipped to me in Italy.

My fear is it getting stuck in customs.

Thoughts?

[lunacycles]

errrr....the cost for someone like me (a bike business) to ship overseas a complete bike is usually too exorbitant (i.e., several hundred $$) for most of my customers to even consider, regardless of how efficiently I pack it up. If a customer orders a complete bike from me and lives overseas, I generally send the frame/fork separately from the rest of the components, to keep the cost somewhat manageable by keep box sizes smaller. For that task I use USPS, which last time I checked, are the most affordable option and allow full insurance coverage, via Priority Mail. But box length plus girth cannot exceed 108" with USPS. Bike boxes exceed that dimension. Last time I shipped a bike this way (frame/fork in one box and parts in the other) it cost the customer about $150, but she was on a military base so received discounted charges. For Jane Average (non military), I would expect to pay at least $200.
Then, once you receive it, you must get the bike reassembled.
With both USPS and other companies, be aware of "surface" shipping charges, as those situations often take bikes months to arrive.
In general, I don't recommend doing this unless cost is not an issue. You will also pay some kind of customs fee on top of the shipping fee, as you are aware.

[maillotpois]

Would you really have to pay customs on something you already own? We took road bikes with us on the plane to Europe and didn't have to pay extra for that.

[NbyNW]

Would you really have to pay customs on something you already own? We took road bikes with us on the plane to Europe and didn't have to pay extra for that.

She might.

I don't know about Italy, but in our recent move to Canada, our vacuum cleaner was inexplicably left behind. We had our property manager ship it to us, and got charged about $70 by Canada customs.

I suppose I could have driven down to the customs office with our personal property manifest and contested it, but I decided it wasn't worth the time and cost of gas for what I did not expect to be a successful mission. Easier to expense it to our relocation allowance.

[Robbin_G]

Well, its not like I'd be shipping a Huffy. $200 to get my carbon Coppi road bike that fits me perfectly seems like small change.

Sarah, when you're taking something with you, customs is very different. When you ship, if it looks like commercial goods, you've got problems.

I am already abroad and $200-300 is still cheaper than a flight home to get it! (Not to mention I don't have a flight case and would have to buy one of those too.)

[tulip]

Sounds like you want your bike and are willing to pay for it. Ask the Italian authorities about the details; they know better than we do.

If I ever move back to France, I will definitely want my Luna with me. For shorter visits, though, I take my Bike Friday.

[runningcyclist]

You're in Italy?

Two words:

Shop Ping!

Can we say Mondonico anyone?

Just wishing I could trade places with you :D

Shouldn't that be: shop loads? :D