Submitted by Patti Rhode
Booking passage for ourselves:
Shipping the van home - a sad thought, but we have traveled more than we ever intended when we shipped to Europe in 2016. We decided to book passage on a ship that would also carry our van, so have booked with SeaBridge for the passenger passage home. The shipping line is Grimaldi. We load from Liverpool and unload in Halifax. You can leave from Hamburg, Antwerp or Liverpool. North American ports are Halifax or Baltimore.
Cost for passengers varies depending on your destination and cabin choice. We the double owners cabin, as we thought the larger space would be more comfortable. The cost for us is €1,625/person; the smaller cabin is €937/person. Sounds expensive but when I did a quick calculation (compared to flying and staying in hotels) we come out about even in transportation, accommodation, and food costs, plus we get the experience of crossing the Atlantic on a ship.
The crossing takes 8 days and a ship leaves once a week. You have to deliver the van to the port 2 days before sailing, and do not have access once it is delivered to port. This is a requirement for all vehicles shipped to North America. You can pick it up 1 to 2 working days after it has arrived in Halifax. The port times are a bit of a hassle, but we have wanted to visit Liverpool and Halifax so now is the time.
We booked 5 months in advance for October, but more popular times of the year may need to be booked out earlier. There are only 6 cabins on each ship. This is a working ship, not a cruise ship, so you need to bring your own entertainment. There is no internet!
Our reservation is only for us; the van must be booked separately 1-2 months before shipping — another North American requirement. The web site for SeaBridge is www.seabridge-tours.de We sent them an email with our questions and they are very quick to respond. We had also used them to ship to Africa. They are a good company to work with.
Last thought: when we booked they sent a document that gave required documents and other stuff (like passport, vehicle insurance). The one surprise was medical insurance coverage that includes emergency evacuation by helicopter, and they require proof. Our health insurance does have this, but be sure to check. I looked at a picture of the ship and it does have a helicopter landing pad on it, so if you need to be evacuated, the ship is ready.
Booking shipment of the van:
Our van is 85" wide(2.159 meters), 236.25" long(6.0 meters), and 108.75" high(2.762 meters). Shipping doc listed volume of 1260 cuft (35.7 cubic meters) and weight of 7600 pounds. It cost $2,825 to ship from Liverpool to Halifax in October 2019. There was an additional Freight Forworder fee of $150 canadian in Halifax. We never purchased Maritime Insurance. We don't think we had coverage on the van while it was onboard a ship from our US policy or from our Europe and African policies. Just took a chance with no insurance and no one asked for proof.
The van was on same the ship we also were passengers on. We contacted seabridge-tours.de to reserve, but all payments for the van were to Grimaldi.
When we shipped from the US to Europe, England to South Africa, and England to Canada we used seabridge-tours.de. They were excellent. They send tons of helpful information.