Bike weight has no bearing on the charge. Dimensions make no difference either. More than likely that cost is sans "dangerous goods handling"..


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Nice one! Keep us posted.

It looks like this ferry will be making a few trips.
San Blas Ferry - Home, Portobelo, Cartagena, San Blas, Panama, Columbien

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Amsterdam to Dakar - Completed November 2014, Alaska - SoCal - Planned for 2016, SoCal - Peru - Planned for 2017, Peru to Argentina - Planned for 2018

That one is about $1k for bike and rider.

So I made it to Cartegena via the Wildcard, sans glitch. No export/import problems, the food was great, the captain was professional and my bike was not dropped into the sea. I did get a DIJ inspection in Panama City which proved to be a godsend, as we were visited by the police after loading the bikes and I'm pretty sure they would have either forced us to unload or insisted on "fixit" cash if we hadn't had all the paperwork in order (DIJ/Panamanian import permit/Panamanian insurance/passport copy/title). Not sure how it works going from Colombia to Panama..

I highly **highly*** recommend this boat as an option. It's smaller than the Steel Rat but it's steel hulled and very stable - stable enough for 3 bikes (including an R1100) and the sea sickness wasn't a major issue (for most, anyway..).

To book, contact Mamallena Hostel in Panama:
info@mamallena.com
507-393-6611 / 507-6676-6163
They have a hostel in Cartegena as well.

Feel free to shoot me a message if you guys have any questions. Pics are on my FB page: https://www.facebook.com/TheFrighteningAndBeautiful

Cheers everybody,
Heather

Excellent news. Can you confirm that the same boat transports bike the other way - to Panama from Cartegena. Thanks .

It does. You'll need to figure out the paperwork for the bike. They take care of the immigration part for yourself.


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I am delighted that there is a decent alternative since the Stahlratte (4 trips including Cuba) is not in service now. I definitely did not want to take the Independence as I had one miserable trip with them.
Actually, I had already decided to leave my bike in Quito at a shop I trust and highly recommend. I will fly back to Michigan for a brief family reunion. I will then use Lulu's Stahlratte in the Fall.

I had serious charging issues and replaced major components on my way to Quito from Santiago. The local HUBB folks suggested going to the Suzuki, but I decided to return to Willy at City Motosport. He found the problem of a bad switch between the thermostat and radiator fan right away. The only challenge was getting the needed parts from the dealer, Comandato, who were terrible. I ended up telling them that I have worked for Yamaha, BMW, Harley-Davidson, and Ford in 14+ countries besides the US and have never seen such a poor parts process. After four trips there, I finally got one of two needed parts from them and Willy found the other somewhere else.

By the way all the many official (including the president) motorcycle escort riders bring their work and personal BMW's, Suzuki's, Honda's, etc. to "Chilly Willy," because they know and trust him. This a strong recommendation in my book. So, even if you only need to do some basic maintenance, on your own there, I strongly recommend him. He charges motorcycle travelers VERY reasonable rates and is an all around great fun guy.
This was an unpaid non-political endorsement,
Chris/motomon "Pinche Gringo Loco"

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motomon at pobox dot com
Have returned to Latin America ... again in 2020.

It sounds as if the government of Panama is the problem with this issue. Has anyone considered bypassing Panama altogether and shipping a bike from Costa Rica to Columbia or vice versa?

Not a bad idea, BUT I've heard of no one shipping from CR to COlombia (The Colombians are sensitive about the spelling of their countries name)

Certainly worth checking out on the way down, (volunteers? ) San Jose has a good airport and there are probably flights to Bogota regularly. MAY not have much cargo capacity or infrastructure for bikes, but you never know - it might be easy!

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Grant Johnson
Seek, and ye shall find.
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Inspiring, Informing and Connecting travellers since 1997!
www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

The Costa Rica option could be worth looking into. Eons ago, THE WAY to get past the Darien was to go via Costa Rica. As a back packer I did this in the early 70's ... and saved a bundle over flying from Panama to Bogota.

I've NO IDEA what the situation is now, but I'm guessing bigger, better planes are being flown? Perhaps they can fly small bikes? Or ... perhaps there is ship traffic from Caribbean side of C.R. to Colombia?

I flew from San Jose, C.R. to the Colombian island of Providencia, out in the Caribbean but near to C.R. Lovely island. NO tourism back then. Stayed one day, then flew out to Bogota.

In the 70's prices (passenger only)
S.J. to Providencia : $30 usd
Providencia to Bogota: $30

It was triple that cost to fly Pan to Col ...

NOW? Who knows, but maybe worth a look as an alternative to the inflated
situation in Panama/Colombia.

I corresponded with the San Blas Ferry. They are doing 2 round trips a month (about every 2 weeks). Their prices are high - they quoted me $4000 for my Unimog camper. I hope they make a lot of money and stay in business.

Charlie

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Unimog U500 w/Unicat

In the late '80s I flew from Guatemala to the Colombian island of San Adres, then to Cali for very cheap. i had driven down to Nicaragua and then to Belize in an ex NYC yellow taxi that I sold in Orange Walk Belize for $300. Took the bus to Guat city and hopped a plane. Not so easy with a bike though.

Their prices are outrageous, sure Ferry Express was too cheap but this guy is charging 3 times the price for a piece of crap boat.

Doesn't matter too much what the boat is like as long as it gets there. Outrageous as a superlative is only applicable if there is reasonably-priced competition to compare it with. If it is take it or leave it, some travellers might find it very reasonable.

Previous owners of our camper - 5 1/2 tonnes - paid $3500 for RoRo across the Gap a couple of years ago and a Unimog is likely heavier.

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Tony
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