Sailboat Shipping

Sailboat Transportation - How Much It Can Cost?

We all have experienced receiving parcels or sending products internationally through maritime cargo shipment. It is not only light on pockets but safe and convenient. And that is why 80% of the goods' transport around the world takes place by water shipment.

But have you thought about ship transport? How are these sailboats, cargo ships, and other maritime boats transported? How do the import and export of these ships take place?

Probably yes, right? In this article, we will comprehensively discuss the process of sailboat transport and how much it can cost. Therefore, stick to this article until the end and give it a thorough read!

So, without further discussion, let's jump straight to our first heading and understand what sailboat transport is exactly before reviewing its transporting process.

Sailboat Transport: An Overview

Seeing sailing sailboats on the water is ubiquitous, but seeing them on trailers is undoubtedly not an expected or typical scene. But this is one of the ways sailboat transport takes place.

Sailboat transport moves sailboats from point A to point B, probably their pickup to drop-off locations. It could be different cities, countries, or even continents. The main point is to transport the sailboats without sailing or using them in water.

However, you will be surprised to know that this concept is not workable for every sailboat. In the case of larger sailboats, the transporting rule is the opposite but is implemented with specific regulations and affecting factors that we will discuss in the article later.

How Are Sail Boats Transported: Transferring The Boats Internationally

Using the dragging pressure of the wind and backward pushing of water, riding a sailboat is one of the most prior activities to seasides.

Many people take sailboat riding as a game and hold competitions for it on the seasides. But, the majority don't know this when it comes to sailboat transport.

Therefore, we discuss several methods used for sailboat transportation, either through exporter and importer countries or through the same country's manufacturing industry and delivery area.

Sailboat Transport Through Towing Services:

Sailboats can be towed with trucks and trailers and transported through the roads. Although it requires proper licenses, permits, and documentation, it is convenient to transfer sailboats.

However, this method is not implementable for large-sized sailboats. If the weight of the boat doesn't exceed the towing capacity of the trailer, a heavy truck, trailer or SUV will work fine.

Moreover, in this method, you will need to remove the parts of the sailboats, like mast and booms, etc., to make the transport simple and secure.

Professional Sailboat Transporting Services

Towing a sailboat and taking it across the city is not as common as towing a car with your truck. You must fulfill specific protocols and regulations to make your transport secure and free from legal troubles.

And for this, taking the help of experts is, undoubtedly, the best option. Especially if you are planning to transport a vast sailboat, then leaving this process to the industry professional is profitable.

By getting professional help for your sailboat transport process, you can expect:

• Expert and licensed drivers
• Insurance policies
• Less costly than private transport

With the professional shipment of sailboats, you free yourself from every kind of damage. However, suppose any damage is still caused to your boat during travel. In that case, the insurance policies offered by most shipping companies cover your injury and pay you according to the cost of repair.

Sailboat Transport Through Shipping Cargo Ships

If you want to export your sailboat internationally, the road towing method will not work. So, you can go for sailboat transport through shipping cargo ships.

Large size and small-sized sailboats are often shipped all over the world by maritime transport. Although it is not as quick as road-towing shipment, it is cost-effective in many ways.

You have to wait for months until you find a specialized cargo ship that transports vast products such as sailboats and then wait for the weeks and months it takes to reach its destination country.

Similarly, hiring a professional to get help in shipping has many advantages. It saves your efforts and time and gives you benefits that you cannot manage to have by doing whole of the transport by yourself. Some of them are:

• Insurance against the damage caused during shipment
• Safe loading and unloading of the sailboats on cargo ships
• Availability of cranes and trailers to load and transport sailboat
• Complete documentation of exporters' and importers' countries
• Secure payment of taxes, import fees, and other charges
• Less costly as compared with private transport of the sailboats
• Clearance from the customs officers of both countries

So, now you know that getting the help of experts for your sailboat transport is quite beneficial and more effective than entirely transporting it by yourself.

Sail Your Sailboats To The Destination

So, this is a unique but effective and less-expensive process compared with the other two methods. In this, you will hire crew members for your boat, and they will sail it to the destined country.

And from leaving your country to reaching the destined country or city, the four or five crew members will be living on the boat. But, this is a bit of a complex method as compared with others.

First of all, finding the ship's reliable and budget-friendly crew members is time-consuming and effort-taking. You can find the crew members with the help of shipping or maritime companies or through your family or friends' connections.

Secondly, you have to do a lot of documentation and pay any charges for different services by yourself. Still, this process might be less costly than hiring an entire shipment company for your sailboat transport.

What Are The Factors That Can Affect Your Sailboat Transport?

Sailboat transport is not an expected shipment of books or electronic appliances put into cubes and containers and easily transported from one continent to another.

It requires a lot of workforce, engineers' expert help, documentation, permits, and many other protocols. And you have to be careful and specific towards all of them as they can increase or decrease the quotes you get from different shipping companies.

Let's look at some factors that can affect your sailboat transport.

Your Drop Off Location

This is the factor that doesn't need to be addressed. The far your final destination, the more your sailboat transport will cost.

Whether you choose trailers, trucks, SUVs, or maritime shipment through cargo ships, the fuel, documentation, and services of the drivers and crew members (in case of ocean transport only), your sailboats drop-off destination is the central pillar of your quote.

You go for professional shipment companies or personal transport; you have to pay the above workforce for their tasks.

Moreover, the fuel of the trucks and trailers, the equipment used in securing the boat and crane experts, and the cranes used for loading and unloading the sailboats will increase your transportation quote.

Additional Charges

Suppose you have a small sailboat and plan to get a road towing service for your sailboat. If you believe that getting a trailer, a permit from the government, hiring an expert and licensed driver, and making a route will make your sailboat transport successful, that is your mistake.

The additional charges will make your budget shoot. You have to pay for the trailer's fuel, complete specific documentation, buy equipment like hooks and chains to secure your sailboat from getting damaged, and a workforce to handle your sailboat before leaving and after reaching the destination.

And, if you are going for private sailboat transport through maritime shipment, then charges of the customs clearance department of both countries, paying for the storage, and other additional services will significantly affect the quote you get from the shipping companies.

Availability Of The Routes And Cargo Ships

There was a time when roads were the most common way of transporting and traveling. But, now you can also experience the traffic in the ocean. The oceans are now open to shipping companies, traveling, restaurants, and hundreds of other activities.

And this ocean traffic can make your shipment rare, expensive, or delayed. Sailboat transport is not as same as the shipment of footballs from China to Mexico, nor like the transport of tea from Srilanka to Egypt; it is way more than most of the products transported through maritime shipment.

Sometimes, because of the unavailability of alternative routes or ocean traffic, the cargo ships cannot reach their destination. In such cases, the shipment can take around days, weeks, or even months.

Weather And Extreme Climatic Conditions

The weather can also affect your sailboat transport. And sometimes, nature doesn't follow the predictions of the weather forecasters.

Heavy rain can make your journey prolonged and dangerous in road towing services and harm your sailboat. If you plan to travel from one city to another, a land sliding, storm, rainy weather, or snowfall can badly affect your transport.

Therefore, before setting your dates and routes, look at all the possible climatic conditions, extreme weather, and natural limitations. You can make facts in the router and prepare alternative routes for them.

Similarly, suppose there is a prediction of storms or heavy rain. In that case, the ships are avoided to sail in the oceans, and they are either stuck at the locations or in between the seas until the weather conditions are clear and favorable to their travel.

Size, Shape, And Height Of The Sailboats

The sailboats with small dimensions are easier and less costly to transport in cities and countries, but in the case of big sailboats, the transportation processes are not less than a challenge.

Sometimes, with the help of ship experts and an engineering workforce, the sailboat parts like mast, booms, and others are removed to secure the boat from damage and save the natural structures and buildings from harm. This can cause a need for the entire workforce and engineers, resulting in a rise in your estimated budget.

In short, the bigger your sailboat, the larger the budget you have to keep for its transport.

Is Sailboat Transport Expensive?

The cost of sailboat transport will be a little more costly than the transport of furniture. The vehicle of sailboats is one of the most expensive transports that can take place through maritime cargo shipments.

The expensiveness of sailboat transport depends upon various factors, as discussed earlier in the article.

Accordingly, road towing sailboat transport is more budget-friendly than cargo shipping transport. It saves money for the customs clearance department of both countries, but you also don't have to pay for the cranes and crane experts that are meant to load and unload your sailboat on cargo ships safely.

Similarly, if you are transporting your sailboats within the countries, the additional fares and charges will not be as applicable as international shipments.

Again, suppose the size of the sailboat is enormous. In that case, the shipping quote will be high, and the charges of the engineering teams and ship experts are needed to disassemble it at the time of loading and reassemble it after unloading from the cargo ships.

The charges for the distribution areas and the trucks and trailers needed to deliver them to their destined address are also applicable.

Conclusion

Sailboat transport is a time-taking, complex, and effort-taking yet exciting process. However, if you believe that an expert driver, a trailer, a few chains, and ropes will do your work, you are mistaken.

A sailboat transport is much more than just three or four things. The complications and restrictions of this sailboat transport process urge you to get professional help to experience professionalism and expertise from routes to documentation, from clearance of customs officers to insurance policies of damage.

Therefore, getting the most professional sailboat transport services in your city can be the best decision to safely transport sailboats from one city to another city or country.