Unaccompanied Baggage ... Decisions, Decisions!
 

I am moving to Wellington to be with my partner (who is a Kiwi born and bred) on a year's temporary partner visa. I only need to ship clothes, books, some kitchen bits (nothing electrical) and some keepsakes (I'll only be taking a couple of fragile items) as he has most everything already! :)

I was thinking of using either Pickfords or Anglo Pacific ... both offer a packing service or the option of DIY. I'm leaning towards the DIY method at the moment and was wondering if anyone here has any advice or suggestions that might help me decide ~ I've made the big decision about moving to NZ but just can't get my head round this bit!

We're flying out on 9th May (he's coming to escort me 'home' bless him :) ) so I have a wee while yet but obviously don't want to leave it til the last minute ...

Any advice or info will be most welcome ... cheers :)

Re: Unaccompanied Baggage ... Decisions, Decisions!
 

How many boxes do you think it would take? I would pack the fragile in amongst the clothes to give added protection. if it is just a couple of boxes I would pack myself and then ship them over. Sure others have shipped a few items and not used the big shipping companies so hopefully some of them will be along soon to give their advice and experience.

Re: Unaccompanied Baggage ... Decisions, Decisions!
 

I've been using my large suitcase to give me a rough idea and I reckon it's going to be about 40 cubic feet max

Re: Unaccompanied Baggage ... Decisions, Decisions!
 

I used PSS to ship around 70 cu ft. Took about 3months to get to NZ. I shipped books, clothes, CDs and records, my computer and my beloved stereo system
P:)

Re: Unaccompanied Baggage ... Decisions, Decisions!
 

We used PSS and used their packing service - excellent value as it gave us more time to do other stuff like catching up and saying goodbye to people, rather than getting stressed doing a very labour intensive task that rarely has an end in sight.

Re: Unaccompanied Baggage ... Decisions, Decisions!
 

Hi,

We used Anglo Pacific and packed ourselves. I would agree with TommyLuck on this one - get professionals to pack! They know what they are doing (well, more so than you!) and it will save heaps of time. I packed our stuff myself and it was such an arduous task and we didn't even have much stuff. And then on top of packing the boxes I then had to pack our suitcases for the flight. I was really over packing by the end of it! Anglo Pacific were pretty good on the whole. Our boxes arrived on time (within about 2 months). One box had been bashed on the side and had broken an oven dish inside, which I wasn't too impressed with. One of our lamps was also broken but that was more down to how I had packed it.

As for clothes we packed them in suitcases and took them on the flight as hold luggage. We were allowed 30kg each, which fit all of our clothes, shoes with some of the over flow going into the shipping with Anglo Pacific. MrsFychan's suggestion of packing breakables with clothes is a good idea.

Good luck with the move. Wellington is a great wee place :)

Re: Unaccompanied Baggage ... Decisions, Decisions!
 

I shipped over around 12 boxes and a golf bag with http://www.sevenseasworldwide.com/home.
They delivered all packing materials to me, including bubble wrap, tape, boxes and a marker pen :).
When I was ready, they collected it from me and delivered to my home in ChCh around 11 weeks later.
I brought books, records/cd, photos, clothes etc.

Re: Unaccompanied Baggage ... Decisions, Decisions!
 

I'm considering sending a box of books and photos to my daughter in the UK. Do you think Seven seas or similar is the best way of sending these? I'm a bit nervous about the photos and don't have time to scan all of them before sending.

Re: Unaccompanied Baggage ... Decisions, Decisions!
 

Hi everyone and thank you for your advice, tips and experiences,

I've bitten the bullet and gone for self pack with Anglo Pacific ... I looked into having the packing done for me and for the small amount I'm taking I felt I couldn't justify the extra money (1 quote was more than double what I'll be paying for the DIY method!!)

So my cartons are arriving on the 1st April (not an omen I hope!! lol) and I can take my time sorting and packing.

I'll come back and let you know how it goes :)

Oh and Pom_ChCh I have to agree that Wellington is a great place and I can't wait til I'm there and settled :)