shipping gear back home

[Dolpheye]

I have googled until now being blue in the face , and yet I can not seem to figure out a good way to ship our dive gear home from Belize, so that we can continue the 2nd half of our trip inland within Central America. We are thinking of various options that might trek us down to Guatemala or possibly El Salvador and obviously, we do not want to carry all of that stuff with us. I've thought about asking potential dive operators we're considering in Belize, but my sense (from talking to people who have been, etc) is that they really aren't going to be helpful on that front.

Most "shipping" searches come up with full on freight and UPS/FedEx might do it, but if their online quick calculators are actually correct, we're talking the shipping would cost as much as the equipment!

A huge thanks in advance if anyone has any thoughts/suggestions on this actual question (and an even bigger thanks for not interjecting on how I should reconsider my trip plans/ideas )

 

[Doc]

Your freight cost research is likely correct.

If you are staying at a real-deal hotel in Belize City, likely they would stash it for you as a "concierge" service, pick it up on your way back through. Not much 5* in Belize City, maybe contact Belize City Hotels | Best Western Belize Biltmore Plaza or the Raddison or Ramada?

I've done this many times at the Hilton Colon in Quito while using it as my gateway to Galapagos, but the Hilton is the Hilton, not so much like the above Belize City possibilities.

At the risk of violating your "trip plans/ideas" admonition, why not rent SCUBA gear from the dive op?

You are planning an expedition-like trip, no different than the multiple layers of gear that you see them drag along on TV. You don't need your mountaineering gear until you get to Base Camp, but you have to drag it all the way to the mountain from Portland.

Sometimes, you can't have everything you want... unless you have a sponsored TV show paying for the freight. You're going to have to pay up one way or the other... for storage or UPS or at the dive shop for gear rental... which, as far as I can tell, they haven't croaked anyone with rental gear.

 

[Lorenzoid]

When I did the backpacking thing through Central America, I rented all dive gear except mask and computer. As I made my way through the region, I dived in Belize, Cozumel, and Utila/Roatan. Plenty of time in between these stops to see a bunch of Mayan ruins and otherwise soak in the culture. Most certainly, one cannot lug dive gear around on a trip like that. Shipping it home is not only costly (as you discovered) but also renders your gear unavailable to you if you later wish to dive elsewhere.

 

[KeithG]

You likely have been searching for the wrong type of service? You want a "logistics consolidator", not a consumer shipping service like UPS/Fedex. For local delivery this type of service is referred to as LTL (Less Than Load).

Consolidators collect a bunch of small(er) packages / pallets until a large enough shipment is achieved (a container full) They then package it all up and send it on its way. The cost is economical, the delay may be huge. They also may not be interested in your "tiny" package.

I have family in the LTL business and on a recent dive trip was very interested to hear stories about a Turks & Caicos restaurant owner describing how he had store fixtures delivered to Provo. He purchased everything in Canada or the US (he was Canadian) and had everything shipped to a consolidator in Florida. The consolidator then delivered to Provo.

 

[Jonn]

I've done this once, shipped dive gear and motorcycle across Canada for about $500CND, then rode and dove my way back. The LTL guys don't want to touch your stuff; it has to be on a forklift pallet. Building your own pallet is OK. They can be fast between big cities, but don't get out to the sticks until they have a full load (the 'consolidation' part) so give them plenty of time.

 

[robint]

I agree with the others. I would rent gear for diving, except maybe my dive computer and mask.

 

[Dolpheye]

Thank you all for your replies. While I understand that this is the most logical choice to end on, I really hate not using my I3 BCD that I spent good money (2 of us) and that I very much feel is a superior piece of equipment to have. If I simply change the trip to a roundtrip and do other stuff (not hit the jungle, ruins or Guatemala, etc) then I have also solved my problem (very economically). Guess this will truly just have to be one of those plans that I split into 2 trips.