Hi all, I'm looking to ship my KTM 640 Adventure from Fremantle, WA over to South Africa (Pref Durban) towards the end of this year.
So far I have been quoted airfreight through Air Menzies International at A$2300 to Jo'burg airport to airport, and A$2,200 through Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics shipping from Fremantle to Durban.

I had been hoping to pay much less than this, does anyone know of any other shipping agency's I can try or even if this is how much it is likely to cost. If so I will just have to bite the bullet.

Thanks for your help,
Safe riding

For airfreight, that sounds to be about in the ballpark... (but I would not be too surprised, if you could get it a little bit cheaper, if you keep asking around.) For seafreight, I think it´s a bit expensive, especially if you compare to sending it as regular seafreight (LCL), but for that type of transport, you´ll need to put the bike in a crate.

I´d give Tradelanes a call (google: Tradelanes Global Solutions). They´re in Melbourne, but I used them to ship my DL650 by sea from Sydney to Helsinki in Apr-2008, and they, in turn, used their agent in Sydney, so I could handle everything over there, no need to even call anyone at Melbourne.
I used a Suzuki factory crate (metal), and gross weight was 250kgs, and volume was 2.024 m3. A self-made crate will probably be a bit bigger, so sending it will cost more.

Those guys seemed very professional. Shipping took some 2 months total (the original ETA was 42 days, so it took almost three weeks longer), but this was because of some hassle, when the container was supposed to change vessel in Singapore, so probably nothing Tradelanes could do about it. (This is something to think about, especially when you´re in the middle of a trip: waiting could be expensive, and very frustrating! Luckily for us, the trip was finished, and we were back home, so it did not matter so much).

The prices may not be the same any more, in fact they probably are not, but I´ll mention them anyway: I payed less than 500 euros at the Australian end. On top of that, I payed about 180 at the port in Helsinki (charges at the receiving end are something to be wary of, especially when you send by sea!)

It is also worth noting, that I got some 3-4 other quotes for seafreight, and they were all considerably more expensive, some were over double compared to what I payed. So it seems, in every way critical, to find a good shipping company to deal with.

Thanks for that, I'll give them a call and see what they quote.

Id like to airfreight if possible as we all know how much easier and quicker it is but hey, so long as it gets there! And port fees on the other end I am not looking forward to, nor customs! Still, at least I wont have to get past AQIS again!

Thanks for the reply,
Safe riding.

I rung qantas last week from Brisbane and gave them a few dimensions and I believe they quoted me something under 2000. They don't like private shipments much, but once you get through to the right person you should be able to get a quote.

i shipped privately with qantas and have nothing but praise for them.telephone doesnt work with them but.just get your dangerous goods cert and go to the cargo office .bike was flown within 3 days and i was also bumped up kindly to first class.i think they felt sorry for me as they saw the bike being loaded on the same plane. just my tcw

Hey Aj,

What was your experience like at the South African end getting the bike through their system and out the door?

Yeah,I'd also be interested in this.

Would you be able to give us breakdown in costs please?

just to follow...

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Round the world by bike. www.RTWbyBIKE.com

Hey buddy,

I'm friends with your bro George and heading that way at the end of the year as well. What route are you taking through Africa. Can you let us know how the shipping works out. I've got a good contact in Sydney if you want to leave from here.

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Ride on
Kev

we flew 2 bikes from Abuja to Joburgh last year. It was a very simple process to clear them through customs and cost about $40 for both bikes, no agents required. You need to have a valid carnet.

Simon

Is there a cargo office in the arrivals hall or is that all off site?

Hi Kev,

Im planning on heading over around november to South Africa. Hoping to do a little tour around Mozambique, Zim and Botswana before heading up the west coast. Though that is (as always) pretty much all subject to change.

How about you?

On shipping: I got a quote from Quantas of A$6 per kg from Perth to Jo'burg. I guess that would work out about $1500- 2000. Depending on how small i can get the bike.

Other than that i am checking in with a company that is shipping a bike (in a crate) from here to norway for $600. so will post on that..