Shipping luggage

[Furbo]

I'm off to Florence for a couple of weeks and am wondering about shipping my hold luggage instead of taking it with me. Has anyone here done this? If so recommendations appreciated.

[psi310398]

I have a house in Italy and have some vicarious experience through an American friend who routinely uses FedEx or UPS to ship her stuff ahead.

The main drawback is that, if these couriers are catastrophically crap in the UK, their Italian colleagues elevate that awfulness to an art form. Her stuff has been known to turn up weeks after she has returned to the US. That is, if the buggers find the destination address at all.

If you can do it at all, buy a business class ticket and pack everything you need into the two by 32kg bag allowance you’ll have.

[Furbo]

psi310398 said:

I have a house in Italy and have some vicarious experience through an American friend who routinely uses FedEx or UPS to ship her stuff ahead.

The main drawback is that, if these couriers are catastrophically crap in the UK, their Italian colleagues elevate that awfulness to an art form. Her stuff has been known to turn up weeks after she has returned to the US. That is, if the buggers find the destination address at all.

If you can do it at all, buy a business class ticket and pack everything you need into the two by 32kg bag allowance you ll have.

Flights booked and Ryanair doesn't have business class....

[psi310398]

Furbo said:

Flights booked and Ryanair doesn't have business class....

Ah.

How long before you go, and would you have a reliable recipient?

[Furbo]

psi310398 said:

Furbo said:

Flights booked and Ryanair doesn't have business class....

Ah.

How long before you go, and would you have a reliable recipient?

3 weeks and no. it's need to be a secure unit near my apartment

[psi310398]

The only other service I’m aware of is the one offered by a non-exclusive BA partner called Airportr but I don’t know what their coverage is, as I’ve never used them.

[Furbo]

psi310398 said:

The only other service I m aware of is the one offered by a non-exclusive BA partner called Airportr but I don t know what their coverage is, as I ve never used them.

It's this sort of thing I want probably. https://www.sendmybag.com/?gad_source=1&gad_ca...

[craigthecoupe]

As mentioned, I wouldn't trust an Italian courier for anything. The amount of times stuff simply doesn't show up is bonkers. We frequently have to redirect to drop shops, or drive 5km to meet a courier at a junction of a main road because they won't drive up the hill to our address.

[Mrr T]

It's not worth it. While we where moving we tried sending stuff by courier so the trips where easier. Filled in customs declarations. Stopped by customs. Loads of problems, DHL customers services where helpful, but needed to provide details of purchases, not easy, and an EORI number. About 3 wasted days and 20 emails.

[snuffy]

psi310398 said:

The only other service I m aware of is the one offered by a non-exclusive BA partner called Airportr but I don t know what their coverage is, as I ve never used them.

I used them just before Covid, but its pretty much died now.

It was brilliant; they collected my suitcase from my house in the afternoon the day before our flight. They took it to Manchester Airport, they check it into hold and then I just collected it as normal at the baggage reclaim at the airport (Cyprus or Malta, I can't recall which now).

We were going to use it again, then Covid came along, they had no real business, so i assume thats what pretty much killed it off.

[smallpaul]

Just pay the enormous Ryanair baggage fee.

BA do Florence flights from various airports with generous luggage allowance (even without business class)

DHL once shipped a motorcycle mirror from Germany to Scotland via… The USA. Watching the tracking was interesting.

[tr7v8]

There is a reason I don't do Ryanair (aside from not wanting to have anything to do with O'Leary) or Queasyjet and this is it. By the time you've paid excess baggage or chased around Italy in a cab or expended money on 0345/0800 type calls the BA flight will seem cheap.

[languagetimothy]

its a nice thought but in reality i would think it would be a Pita. as others hv mentioned you will be sending something from outside the EU and it might be subject to customs paoerwork and costs.

are you actually staying in florence? as Ryanair tend to fly to "near" airports which could an hour train ride.

[andy43]

Algarve here and we’ve used a removals company called Algarve Removals based in Essex for smaller items - ship direct to their address or they’ll collect, and then pick up from their Portuguese depot or get it delivered to our PT address.
If you could find an equivalent Italian version with trucks moving regularly between there and the UK it could work… I think I’d just go with Ryanair - at least you know where your luggage is throughout.