Shipping luggage

[PaulaJK]

We have never done this but wish to do it for our next cruise.

I have found DHL, Luggage Forward, Luggage Free,and My Baggage.

if you have other resources, I would appreciate their names….also

whether you would give a + or a - to the service you utilized.

Bags will be shipped east coast to Barcelona and return from Lisbon.

Thanks, Paula

 

[Observer]

I have had great experiences with Luggage Forward, even when there were snafus not of their making.

[Observer]

BTW:  Did Silversea stop its Baggage Valet service?  Someone reported (on Facebook?) that it was stopped because FedEx wouldn't take bags to Europe because there were flooded with material for Ukraine.  My one experience with Baggage Valet was not a happy one.

 

[mysty]

11 minutes ago, Observer said:

BTW:  Did Silversea stop its Baggage Valet service?  Someone reported (on Facebook?) that it was stopped because FedEx wouldn't take bags to Europe because there were flooded with material for Ukraine.  My one experience with Baggage Valet was not a happy one.

 

 

Our ship ahead luggage ( FedEx) for our Grand Northern Europe cruise scheduled to depart on May 6th was canceled.   FedEx said they couldn't guarantee delivery so Silversea has stopped shipping with them for now.

[Observer]

54 minutes ago, mysty said:

   FedEx said they couldn't guarantee delivery so Silversea has stopped shipping with them for now.

This is puzzling. FedEx is not on strike or otherwise incapacitated, as far as I know.  Moreover, there are other shippers such as UPS and DHL.  Why doesn’t Silversea turn to one of them?  Is Silversea leveling with you/us?

[mysty]

1 hour ago, Observer said:

This is puzzling. FedEx is not on strike or otherwise incapacitated, as far as I know.  Moreover, there are other shippers such as UPS and DHL.  Why doesn’t Silversea turn to one of them?  Is Silversea leveling with you/us?

 

I can't speak to the "leveling " with us.   Explanation was that the priority for FedEx was the deliveries of arms and supplies to Ukraine.   Thus FedEx could not guarantee timely delivery to ships.

[Observer]

23 minutes ago, mysty said:

Thus FedEx could not guarantee timely delivery to ships.

 

In fact, FedEx with SS Baggage Valet does not deliver to the ships.  The luggage is sent to the port agent and generally arrives there a number of days before emarkation.  The port agent then takes the luggage to the ship.

 

The FedEx website says that service to Ukraine is suspended (as it is to Shanghai).  The FedEx money back guarantee has been suspended in Europe.  But otherwise things seem to be normal.

 

[mysty]

27 minutes ago, Observer said:

 

In fact, FedEx with SS Baggage Valet does not deliver to the ships.  The luggage is sent to the port agent and generally arrives there a number of days before emarkation.  The port agent then takes the luggage to the ship.

 

The FedEx website says that service to Ukraine is suspended (as it is to Shanghai).  The FedEx money back guarantee has been suspended in Europe.  But otherwise things seem to be normal.

 

 

Okay.  Not to split hairs...yes FedEx delivers to the port agent and luggage then makes its way to the ship.  We are embarking in Lisbon.  Silversea told us we must take all our luggage with us.   Things are not normal for Silversea ship ahead luggage!!! 

[PaulaJK]

Moving on from Fed Ex, are other companies operational?

[faucet]

We have used FedEx on out last two recent cruises without any problems. Once to  Europe (Sept. 2021) and US (Jan 2023). 

[dawntrdr]

How are the prices for this Fed Ex service?

[Stumblefoot]

4 hours ago, faucet said:

We have used FedEx on out last two recent cruises without any problems... US (Jan 2023). 

How did you pull that trick off?

 

1 hour ago, dawntrdr said:

How are the prices for this Fed Ex service?

Very expensive.

[Tothesunset]

34 minutes ago, Stumblefoot said:

 

5 hours ago, faucet said:

We have used FedEx on out last two recent cruises without any problems. Once to  Europe (Sept. 2021) and US (Jan 2023). 

I bought a time machine next Tuesday. They don't make them like they're going to any more. 

Edited April 28, 2022 by Tothesunset
Bad quoting

[PaulaJK]

An add- on question…..a poster stated that he had inserted an airtag in each piece of luggage so that he could track it. Sounded like a good  idea..but when I researched airtags, I learned that they contain batteries..,which most services seem to prohibit.
Any experiences?

 

Edited April 29, 2022 by PaulaJK
Form

[alainciao]

16 hours ago, Tothesunset said:

They don't make them like they're going to any more. 

Very clever!

[bitob]

We use luggage forward all the time and there are AirTags in all our bags   We are in Southampton uk now. We sent one bag to Amsterdam for a river cruise and another to hotel here for queen Elizabeth ta 

 

no issues 

[cruiseej]

On 4/29/2022 at 7:36 AM, PaulaJK said:

An add- on question…..a poster stated that he had inserted an airtag in each piece of luggage so that he could track it. Sounded like a good  idea..but when I researched airtags, I learned that they contain batteries..,which most services seem to prohibit.
Any experiences?

 

Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries are banned from checked luggage. But this doesn’t apply to the single-use CR2023 batteries used by Apple AirTags. (In fact, it may be the reason Apple selected these batteries over rechargeable ones.) So there's no problem putting them in checked baggage. (Just be aware they may not work in certain areas, such as baggage claim belts, or if they're in a baggage storage area away from people and their iPhones.)

[bitob]

I always get a location. I have AirTags in shipped luggage checked luggage and carryons 

[CruzinFeraBruzin]

Its actually fortunate your luggage service was cancelled before you departed.  Ours was cancelled 5 days before disembarkation in Lisbon and we had to schlep 7 suitcases home ourselves.  Silversea is supposed to credit our credit card on file for the inconvenience and excess baggage fees incurred from the airline, but had we known ahead of time, we certainly wouldn't have taken the amount of luggage knowing this may be the outcome.  The service was included as part of the Grand Voyage which for us was 6 weeks.  We know there are pros and cons to the luggage valet and whether its worth it or not, but when its included, then cancelled before you disembark, that's a problem that deserved a better solution than what we received.

[Observer]

18 minutes ago, CruzinFeraBruzin said:

Its actually fortunate your luggage service was cancelled before you departed.  Ours was cancelled 5 days before disembarkation in Lisbon and we had to schlep 7 suitcases home ourselves.  Silversea is supposed to credit our credit card on file for the inconvenience and excess baggage fees incurred from the airline, but had we known ahead of time, we certainly wouldn't have taken the amount of luggage knowing this may be the outcome.  The service was included as part of the Grand Voyage which for us was 6 weeks.  We know there are pros and cons to the luggage valet and whether its worth it or not, but when its included, then cancelled before you disembark, that's a problem that deserved a better solution than what we received.

 

Why didn't Silversea contract with another vendor.  If promised flights booked through Silversea were canceled, people would be put on alternate flights. Why not put the luggage with alternate vendors?  I had understood in previous posts that the blame was laid at the feet of FedEx that would not take luggage because they were so busy sending items to Ukraine.  It looks as though your luggage was going westbound. What would Ukraine have to do with this?  

[CruzinFeraBruzin]

15 minutes ago, Observer said:

 

Why didn't Silversea contract with another vendor.  If promised flights booked through Silversea were canceled, people would be put on alternate flights. Why not put the luggage with alternate vendors?  I had understood in previous posts that the blame was laid at the feet of FedEx that would not take luggage because they were so busy sending items to Ukraine.  It looks as though your luggage was going westbound. What would Ukraine have to do with this?  

We were wondering the same thing.  We suspect there were several factors involved and FedEx was initially responsible for delayed luggage for several guests who boarded at the start of our voyage in Athens.  We aren't 100% sure FedEx is solely to blame for the discontinuation of the service 6 weeks later.  When we disembarked, we noticed a few suitcases with the luggage forward tags and some also had DHL tags, both of which were arranged by guests and not by Silversea.

[Observer]

3 minutes ago, CruzinFeraBruzin said:

We were wondering the same thing.  We suspect there were several factors involved and FedEx was initially responsible for delayed luggage for several guests who boarded at the start of our voyage in Athens.  We aren't 100% sure FedEx is solely to blame for the discontinuation of the service 6 weeks later.  When we disembarked, we noticed a few suitcases with the luggage forward tags and some also had DHL tags, both of which were arranged by guests and not by Silversea.

 

What explanation was offered on the ship regarding the sudden removal of a promised service that was included in the fare?  I have a vague recollection that they attributed this to FedEx, explaining that FedEx was too busy to take luggage because they were transporting vital supplies to Ukraine.  This makes zero sense to me if the luggage is going east to west. 

[CruzinFeraBruzin]

2 minutes ago, Observer said:

 

What explanation was offered on the ship regarding the sudden removal of a promised service that was included in the fare?  I have a vague recollection that they attributed this to FedEx, explaining that FedEx was too busy to take luggage because they were transporting vital supplies to Ukraine.  This makes zero sense to me if the luggage is going east to west. 

FedEx could no longer guaranty the shipment of passenger's luggage due to the backlog of military and humanitarian shipments to Ukraine.  It was the only excuse we received.  They also indicated the situation will be ongoing for quite some time so there is no expected date to resume the service.

[rkacruiser]

On 5/10/2022 at 4:06 PM, Observer said:

Why didn't Silversea contract with another vendor.

 

I experienced this same issue.  The luggage service that picked up and delivered my luggage on the ship went out of business during my world cruise and the cruise line had to contract with a different vendor (DHL) for the return of my luggage.  

[Observer]

Is the baggage valet service being offered to people disembarking from the world cruise? It was surely offered as an inclusive element for world cruise guests.  It would simply be unacceptable IMHO for Silversea to say that FedEx is too busy.  What about DHL or UPS?