From Kathmandu, Nepal to Bangkok, Thailand - November, 2006

in ktm we didnt use an agent. the way we did it:

1. contact the crate maker (SQUARE Packing Box, at Bhagwanbahal, Thamel) walk from thamel chowk in direction of kings palace or himalaya bank, turn left on the first junction. you'll see a lot of wood in a "garage" with blue doors (I guess...)
if u dont find: tel 4413502 or 44120183

ask them for a box for your motorcylce - they come to your hotel and measure the size. TAKE care that they've seen all of your luggage to know how big it must be. they try to keep it as small as possible. re-check their measurement!!

make an appointment with them for the date you want to pack the bikes. they will organise the transport of the wood to the airport (not included in their price for the box! app. 500 Rs.)

At our boxes they forgot to nail 4 pieces of wood at the bottom of the box, each on the edge of every corner - THIS IS IMPORTANT for the forks of the forklift!! they tried to tell us that it is possible without - don't trust and insist!

2. when you know the day for packing (don't do saturday! customs is supposed to be closed!!), drive with your bikes and all your luggage which you want to ship within the box to the airport (air cargo terminal). you don't need an appointment at the customs. when the passenger terminal is on your left hand side go ahaed on the main road, after 1 k the air coargo will come (also left).
you may enter without registering at the gate. otherwise you have to write your name in a reg.book.
go to the desk where some people sitting (about at the middle of the ground floor) ask for Prem Rarg Pokharel (Tel 01-6211240)

he is the "real" agent who is working usually for agents like London Cargo or Eagle Eyes. He is very kind, speaks passable english and knows how to handle things.

3. put your bike on the ground of your crate. frontwheel off, etc... while you're doing this, give Prem Rarg Pokharel your carnet. you will need a passport and a carnet copy as well. he'll do the work then on your custom papers.

4. tell Prem Rarg Pokharel as soon as you're ready to close the box. he will bring the customs officers who'll check your luggage. when you're lucky you can leave some petrol in your tanks. actually they have to be empty, battery disconnected, lower airpressur of tyres

5. put your luggage in the box, tight it. the cratemaker will close the box. don't forget to paint arrows and "UP", NAME (which is mentioned on the customs-papers), DESTINATION (bangkok, if you got an address e.g. your hotel) on the top-cover.

6. some guys will provide you iron bands. it's up to you if you use them, 100 rs each. I took 3.

7. the boxes will go through x-ray, then on the scale and will stay in the warehouse after that. DON'T FORGET to masure and remind the size of the boxes as thaicargo will charge you either for weight or for volume (find more below....). this is the last time you'll see your bikes in nepal!

8. Prem Rarg Pokharel will organise the carnet stamp and the correct fill out of the customs paper. He will tell you a lot of charges in this process. one bribe here, one charge here. for example he has to bribe the x-ray officers that they don't make you to open the box again (we paid 300 rs)!! then you have to pay the man at the scale to weight the boxes (100 Rs..). Our whole calculation will be attached below.

9. After you have your carnet stamped out and you have the customs paper take a cab to the passengers terminal. contact thaicargo. You'll find their office in the building below the tower, second floor.
They told us the best time to come around is between 3 - 4 pm. Probably you can't manage to visit them at the same day on which you packed the bikes as it took us the whole day. If so, visit them the next day before 10 am.

10. they will only need the yellow customs paper on which the number of the place in the warehouse or a kind of "customs register number" of your boxes is mentioned. they are very kind and know how to do it. in our case we visited them at 9 am and they shipped the bikes the same day. but it can take up to 2 or 3 days!

the prices (only for ThaiCargo) are:
e.g. your total weight is 600 kg and the total volume is width 180cm x length 230cm x depth 100cm.
they divide the volume by 6000. either this or the weight is the factor, whichever is higher. my example: 180*230*100 / 6000 = 690

so it would be 690.

if your total weight is over 500 kg, the price per kg is 1,07 USD. (below 1,37). We had all our four boxes on only ONE name of us. So the customs paper was only for one name, but mentioned FOUR boxes on it. This was necessary to make only ONE airway bill with THAI. If you would have one customspaper for each box, you would have to pay 1.37 usd (because one box less than 500 kg) and 80 usd dangerous goods for each airwaybill. if you have two boxes on one customspaper, then you can make one airwaybill and the bill looks like this:

690 * 1,07USD
+80 USD dangerous goods
+690 * 0,07 USD surcharge (for whatever)
---------------------
total .... something....

in bangkok:

we landed at 2 pm and went straight to the cargoarea. we had our bikes at midnight. so it took a while...

the process:
1. take a cab to International Aircargo Area. The airport is brandnew, so even the cabdriver didn't know, where it was. After leaving the taxistand, they should NOT drive on the road which leads upwards. Take the road, which goes left down of it. On the left hand side there you can see after about 1 km aircargo companies. the entrance is about 2 km away from the taxistand.

2. after entering the cargoarea, ask for the FREE ZONE. you'll need a pass to enter, which you get in the 6th floor in the building opposite of the passenger entrance of FREE ZONE. (11 baht each).

3. after passing the free zone entrance: you'll see TNT, DHL etc... left of this building there is the cargo area and office of THAI. If I remember right it was building F2, second floor. There you get your first papers, a map and further instructions.

4. go with these papers to the customs. leave the free-zone through the entrance, on the left you see the building with a yellow edge. go to second floor right. show your THAIpapers, get new papers.

5. same buidling, groundfloor, left. get some stamps or so (can't remember, it was late already and we were annoyed....)

6. Go to another officer in the FREE ZONE, after entrance opposite right (they will tell you where exactly, I can't remember)

7.. back to Thaicargo office (F2) pay a terminal handling charge at the cashier, sec. floor right.(about 500 baht each box). storage is free for 3 days, after you may pay more than this 500?!?

8.. when you leave F2, turn left, walk along this big gates and all these parcels, packers and cargocompany guys until there is the office (written paper): TG JL UA (Thai, ??, United Airlines)

8. Show them your papers - get your crates. pay 100-200 baht to some boys opening the crates for you. there is enough space to rebuild the bikes.

9. get off, be free after passing the last customs checkpoint (you need to show the rest of your papers again)

You don't need your carnet be stamped at thailand (only for the details of your engine number etc...) You get another paper which you HAVE TO keep for your departure!!

Our bill:
4 bikes (1 BMW, 2 Suzuki DR 650, 1 Yamaha XT)

Nepal:
3000-3500 Rs each crate
500 Rs transport for wood to airport
7000 Rs for customs, bribes, commission at all (about 1700 each)
1300 USD THAICARGO at all

Bangkok:
500 Baht each overtime for customswork (they were already on their way home as we asked them to do our papers....PLLLLLZZZZZ)
500 Baht terminal charge Thai
200 Baht each tipping the boys for box opening and help with the bikes taking of the crates.

GOOD LUCK!!

If you don't understand everything - please tell me. It may sound a little confusing, but it worked everything perfect!! We heard of two germans who waited more than one week for their bike because their agent forgot to sign something or giving to Thai or whatever....
In our opinion there is absolutely no need for an agent like eagel eyes as you have Prem Rarg Pokharel in Kathmandu. And so you do it directly with THAI and THEY know how things work....

This 'how to do' was written by Nils Emmrich
http://www.blickpunkt-horizont.de

my homepage is:
http://www.mundito.info