Boats International - Boat Export Shipping Guide

Boatexport.com Inc is headquartered in South-East Florida and has grown to become one of the largest exporters of new and pre-owned U.S.A manufactured powerboats during the last 35 years.

Since 1989, Boatexport.com has been helping export buyers worldwide shipping tens of thousands of boats, yachts, and PWCs ranging from 9 feet to Mega Yachts to destinations around the world. Boatexport.com is licensed by the Federal Maritime Commission as a Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier and can through its network of domestic land transport and trucking, shrink-wrapping, packing, cradle, container, and RORO intermediaries offer all-inclusive or a-la-carte shipping services in the U.S. and throughout the world.

In Need of Shipping Services?

Boats International - Boat Export

Road Transportation, Truck

For destinations within the continental Americas, including Canada and Mexico, Boatexport.com offers road transportation by truck to marinas, private or public launch ramps, or export facilities and shipping ports.

Ocean Freight, Roll-on/Roll-off (RORO)

Boatexport.com, as a licensed NVOCC by the FMC are available to offer competitive ocean rates to destinations near and far on both cradles and trailers.

Ocean Freight, inside Shipping Container

Boats with a beam of less than 8’6″ (2.59 m) often can be shipped inside standard 40′ or 45-foot high-cube containers. This is especially affordable to remote destinations where the big RORO lines do not have scheduled routes. North America to Australia and the Far-East are popular containerized destinations. Narrow beam boats are loaded straight in and wider beam boats are loaded slanted on specially constructed shipping cradles

Ocean Freight, Flat Rack

Flat-rack shipping makes use of a container base without side walls or roof. Boats up to 38’2″ can be loaded on either cradles or directly on a trailer on top of the flat rack. Flat-rack mode of transport is often used for boats that are too big to fit inside of a regular container. The advantage with flat-rack shipping is price and accessibility as the cargo is loaded on container ships that reach destinations where the RORO lines no always frequent.

Ocean Freight, Lift-on/lift-off (LoLo)

Boatexport.com, as a licensed NVOCC by the FMC are available to offer competitive ocean rates to destinations near and far on both cradles and trailers.

Destinations

Boatexport.com frequently arrange exports and deliveries of boats and yachts to South Korea, Canada, Monaco, Mallorca, Nice, Barcelona, the Maldives, Haifa, Hong Kong, Dubai, Costa Rica, Angola, Turkey, Taiwan, Vietnam, Kuwait, Lebanon, Germany, Ecuador, Chile, Thailand, Australia, Germany, Sweden, and Abu Dhabi.

Some of the port destinations include:

Busan
Hong Kong
Ho Chi Minh
Kaohsiung
Taichung
Bangkok
Laem Chabang
Singapore
Kobe
Brisbane
Port Kembla
Fremantle
Melbourne
Derince
Alexandria
Port Said
Jebel Ali
Abu Dhabi
Kuwait
Oman
Dammam
Jeddah
Beirut
Aqaba
Mina Salman
Bahrain
Doha
Qatar
Bremerhaven
Amsterdam
Gothenburg
Southampton
Drammen
Kotka
St. Petersburg
Klaipeda
Paldiski
Valencia
Le Havre
Athens
Izmir
Istanbul

Busan
Hong Kong
Ho Chi Minh
Kaohsiung
Taichung
Bangkok
Laem Chabang
Singapore
Kobe
Brisbane
Port Kembla
Fremantle
Melbourne
Derince

Alexandria
Port Said
Jebel Ali
Abu Dhabi
Kuwait
Oman
Dammam
Jeddah
Beirut
Aqaba
Mina Salman
Bahrain
Doha
Qatar

Bremerhaven
Amsterdam
Gothenburg
Southampton
Drammen
Kotka
St. Petersburg
Klaipeda
Paldiski
Valencia
Le Havre
Athens
Izmir
Istanbul

Destinations

Buying a Boat or Yacht in the U.S.

A Guide and the Process

FINDING THE RIGHT BOAT/YACHT

Flat-rack shipping make use of a container base without side walls or roof. Boats up to 38’2″ can be loaded on either cradles or directly on a trailer on top of the flat rack. Flat-rack mode of transport is often used for boats that are too big to fit inside of a regular container. The advantage with flat-rack shipping is many time price and accessibility as the cargo is loaded on container ships that reach destinations where the RORO lines no always frequent.

BUDGET CONCERNS

In addition to the boat purchase itself, typical additional outlays include:

Pre-purchase inspection: (Survey cost, haul-out for inspection, captain, fuel etc)

Shipping preparation: A typical do-it-yourself deal includes some or all of the following: costs associated with taking the boat out of the water or out of the marina in which it is presently stored, freight preparation (e.g., de-assembly of radar wing, shrink-wrap), loading, and re-loading, transport cradle, local freight from place of purchase to port of export. Port fees, crane fees, export declaration, ocean freight to foreign port, customs duties, import taxes, VAT, unloading charges, freight forwarder commission, and local freight to your marina/place of discharge.

SHIPPING PROCESS

While most shipping deals are similar, they are still unique and thus require special attention. Boats are being bought all over the U.S. and trucks run all over the continent on a daily basis picking them up for export. Most U.S. boat dealers are limited in the field of boat export and trucking. Some boat dealers have access to mechanics and transporters; some don’t. In the shipping process, it is important to know that practically every boat needs some sort of physical transport to be able to be shipped overseas. Another common denominator is that practically every boat is in need of some sort of freight preparation. This is where Boatexport.com enters the picture with its excellent track record and documented experience of coordinating North American land transportation through trusted partners and trucking intermediaries.

FREIGHT COSTS

Freight costs often include some or all of the following components:

Loading and reloading of the boat from the seller’s dock or marina. Be aware that loading charges can be levied by the marina. It is advisable that you agree with the seller beforehand whether he/she or you should pay for this charge.

Freight preparations such as de-assembly of radar arches and hard tops, winterization of engines and water systems, generators, shrink-wrap, reloading, cradle fees are all part of freight prep charges

Local land transport from place of sale to port of loading, whether this is to be done on its own keel or via truck.

Port fees in the U.S.

Ocean freight from the U.S. to overseas port of discharge is calculated on the total cubic volume of the boat, including cradle or trailer. In other words, an over-sized trailer makes the freight considerably more expensive and a tailor made transport cradle.

Fuel surcharges. It is not uncommon that an extra fuel surcharge is levied on the ocean freight by the steamship line. Make sure that is included in your quote.

Forwarding fees at destination. Although you do not have to, many customers choose to use a forwarding agent in the EU and elsewhere to handle all the import documentation. The forwarder clears customs and pre-pays the duties and charges the customer a handling fee for their work.