Guatemala City to London - tying up some loose ends

[tdsfox]

Hello all.

After a fantastic three weeks, I've finished my trip from Toronto to Guatemala City. I've just put my bike on a plane in Guatemala and it should arrive at Heathrow on Wednesday (fingers crossed).

The cost of the air frieght was just under two thousand dollars ($1958 to be precise). I used a friendly company called the Aimar Group to arrange shipping (Aimargroup.com). They replied to my e-mails very efficiently and were very helpful when I arrived in Guatemala. Their English isn't fantastic, but it's a lot better than my Spanish.

The only downside is that I don't think the price includes customs clearance charges in the UK. So I have a question: what paperwork do I need to clear my bike through customs - I don't have a clearing agent and the bike is not UK registered - I'm importing it from Canada. Any estimate of costs would be great too.

Thanks very much.

[mollydog]

I'm sure the Tea Bag customs guys will be very polite and well spoken....as they gently ream you on costs.

[marieandguy]

Hi There,
After a couple of good years in the freight forwarding business, i can only recommend that you appoint a customs clearance agency and get a quote for the estimated cost of releasing yr bike.
You can ask the guys in Guatemala City to contact you with their counter party on the other end. Even if you end up not using their services at least you will have a clue about the costs and can ask them all the questions of which papers and all..
Good Luck!

[tdsfox]

Thanks for the replies.

The trip was a bit of a rush it has to be said. 6500 miles in three weeks doesn't leave you a great deal of time to see the sights, but I did catch a glimpse of some interesting places on the way down. Highlights in the States were Monument Valley, the Grand Canyon and Meteor Crater. In Mexico, Copper Canyon was brilliant (though I missed the truly spectacular road) and Durango was a lively city. In Guatemala I had but two days to get everything sorted, so I only got the chance to visit Quetzaltenango before shipping my bike out of Guatemala City.

As for a customs clearance agent - I was afraid I might have to organise one. Can anyone recommend a good (and cheap) agent? My Guatemalan shippers don't seem to have any contacts in London.

Thanks again.

Firefox.