Sending personal belongings from Vietnam

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ruzuba1500 Active member

Member since 22 May 2022

ruzuba1500Active member22 May 2022 04:22:44

Hello everybody,

sorry if i started the subject that already exist, but I couldnt find the right information on few first pages.

I moved to Vietnam from China where i lived and worked 6 years. I brought with me some items that i dont need, such as winter clothing, some household items, books and cooking utensils. Now i have 5-6 boxes which i need to send to Croatia. Boxes are of regular size 50 x 40 x 30 cm, weight from 8 - 15 kg. Previously I sent few boxes using China post and while China post is expensive, Vietnam post is a robbery. Eg., a box of above mentioned dimensions and 9 kg, cheapest postage is 3.700.000 VND from HCMC to Croatia. Couriers are even worst, eg. Fedex asked 12.000.000 VND for the same box. International movers, at least the ones i contacted (6-7 of them) answered that minimal quantity is from 1 m3 to 3 or 4 m3.

Anyone please have some suggestion?

Thanks.

cossmo Serial expat

Member since 25 April 2015

cossmoSerial expat26 May 2022 03:16:54

247

Hey mate. Shipping anything to Vietnam through regular post and international couriers is a mistake. Either they cost an arm and a leg or they follow strict import rules. You should look for private forwarders that operate in most countries. They usually charge shipping by $/kg. The price depends on the country and how much of cargo they usually do. Though, I'm not sure if they treat if it is the same for personal goods. Give it a shot.

OceanBeach92107 VIP Member

Member since 31 January 2018

OceanBeach92107VIP Member26 May 2022 03:44:51

7067

Hey mate. Shipping anything to Vietnam through regular post and international couriers is a mistake.
- @cossmo

The OP is asking about shipping FROM Vietnam.

OceanBeach92107 VIP Member

Member since 31 January 2018

OceanBeach92107VIP Member26 May 2022 03:54:10

7067

Hello everybody,

sorry if i started the subject that already exist, but I couldnt find the right information on few first pages.

I moved to Vietnam from China where i lived and worked 6 years. I brought with me some items that i dont need, such as winter clothing, some household items, books and cooking utensils. Now i have 5-6 boxes which i need to send to Croatia. Boxes are of regular size 50 x 40 x 30 cm, weight from 8 - 15 kg. Previously I sent few boxes using China post and while China post is expensive, Vietnam post is a robbery. Eg., a box of above mentioned dimensions and 9 kg, cheapest postage is 3.700.000 VND from HCMC to Croatia. Couriers are even worst, eg. Fedex asked 12.000.000 VND for the same box. International movers, at least the ones i contacted (6-7 of them) answered that minimal quantity is from 1 m3 to 3 or 4 m3.

Anyone please have some suggestion?

Thanks.
- @ruzuba1500

Welcome to the Vietnam forum ruzuba1500.

You've pretty much covered all the options.

Also, if you choose Vietnam Post, keep in mind that people routinely report shipping times up to 3 months.

Yes, couriers cost more, but shipping times will be much quicker.

The only other option you didn't cover was to take it all on your flight(s) with you as excess accompanied baggage.

All things considered (including time and convenience and Croatian customs) that might turn out to be your best option.

Good luck, whatever you choose to do.

O.B.

gobot ViP

Member since 17 January 2014

gobotViP26 May 2022 16:38:47

1430

So 60 - 80 kilos total? International flights allow 2 checked bags around 20-25 kilo each. Maybe you pay extra for another 25 kilos. As OB said, that is cheapest if you are going too.

If too expensive, sell/give away/throw away some of it. Consider the replacement value and if you really need it. You may be happier with less stuff too!

ruzuba1500 Active member

Member since 22 May 2022

ruzuba1500Active member29 May 2022 04:04:19

thanks everybody for comments and help.

OceanBeach & Gobot

you are right, my baggage is already overweight as i know this is cheapest and simplest way to bring the items home. But, you can pay for the difference between free luggage and 32 kg what is max weight, above that the airline will reject the bag. I usually do this stunt except with Lufthansa which is indeed merciless and will oblige to pay each kg at brutal rate of 60 euro/kg. However, as i have a lot of stuff, the only option is to buy additional bag. I did it last time in Dec 2021, from Shanghai to Cro with Air China which is usually not so strict with overweight, but the price was 500 euro (luckily paid by the company). Taking the stuff in the airplane and not shipping it, save us from another nightmare: beautiful EU customs. In my experience, and i have dealt with many in my expat years, this is the worst customs in the world, be it Croatian, Dutch, Polish or worst of all, Italian.

Gobot correctly says if all solutions are too expensive, just forget everything and give away the stuff. I was thinking about it many times, all this fuss what for? since money, time and nerves are in any case above or far above the real value of the items. And you travel light.

On a separate note, it appears it is impossible to find a decent shipping company in Vietnam (decent = reasonable service + cost). Couriers and Vietnam post have astronomic prices, local Vietnamese shipping companies dont even answer mails and phone calls, international forwarders are not interested in small shipments and airlines (air cargo) dont deal with physical persons.

ruzuba1500 Active member

Member since 22 May 2022

ruzuba1500Active member17 June 2022 08:25:35

Hello everybody,

just a short update, to let you all how the things (dont) work. Few days ago i had to go back to Europe and bought a ticket through Lufthansa's Miles and More. Not always, but usually I buy flexible tickets, especially in situation like current one when nothing is sure. The ticket allowed 30 kg of checked baggage- that was strange to me too. The trip was with Thai Smile to Bangkok and than Thai International to Munchen. I said, strange 30 kg but ok and I loaded 27 kg of my stuff instead of 30, just to be sure. When I arrived to Tan Son Nhat, the guy at check in said: oops, overweight. I said, how, i have 30 kg allowance and he said no, you have 20, you can check here in the rules.

****** Lesson learnt (or just confirmed): always try to buy tickets from the air line you are using, buying through 3rd party or worse through another airline, even in the same network (in this case Star Alliance) is a good way to have headaches.*****

Do you want to buy overweight, he asks. I say how much is it? He says 70 usd. I say I buy. After doing something in computer, he says go and pay 490 usd. I say, WHAT? He says, 70 usd x 7 kg = 490 usd. i said nonono, forget everything, I took the bag, discarded 7 kg of the stuff in nearest garbage bin, return to check in line (luckily i had enough time) and checked in again with him

Result: nothing done (again).

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