Shipping a bike from the U.S. to Munich

Has anyone shipped a bike here from the states. I miss my Gary Fisher & I am trying to decide if it is worth having it sent over. How much did it cost, who did you use, & how long did it take?

Well I have lived in Europe on two diffirent stints and have shipped alot of things
over. Never a bike though. I have shipped photo equipment over and I was
stressed everyday it was not here. By boat is the cheapest...and the German mail system is very good. And, a Gary Fisher bike is very nice. The question is are you
willing to stress out during the wait? Because by air will be expensive . Well i have
answered your question and by reading this post I see not very helpful. Well I miss
my Canondale but a canondale is noooooo Fischer. I use just a peice junk that gets me from A to B and think well it gets me in shape with just one gear...LOL
Sorry..good luck

Next time you visit home, pack your bike up in a approved bike box and it can be one of your luggage allotments or you can pay 75 extra. At least that is what is was 8 years ago when I brought my bike over.

I brought my bike with me, and they packed it up for me- as I am a women, and I just cannot do somethings (actually I couldn't be bothered, and I know men are always willing to show off). So, it landed in Munich when I did.

E'bill,

I *think* it cost about $200 to have my mountain bike shipped over last year via DHL. Call them and get a quote. They can't, however, guarantee that it will slip past customs.

When mine arrived, it had been opened and retaped, presumably by the customs folks. It was pretty obvious that mine was an older model so they let it in without an duties.

The best way, as someone else mentioned, is to bring it back after your next trip home OR have someone bring it for you who is visiting.

I brought my bike over in a bike case. Didn't cost extra either. If you'd like you're more than welcome to borrow the case next time you go.

Sorry, cannot answer your question ... but it sounds like one of the best excuses I have ever heard to buy a new mountain bike

Thanks for the input folks!


I already have a peice of junk, that's why I want my ol' Fisher, fits like an ol' pair of Levis, I have had it for 5 years!


This sounds like the plan to me, as I will be returning for a month in mid June!

The prices seem a little out of wack here, not to mention I am still on the US payroll, so I have the exchange rate to deal with. Of course when I return, I will be on the €! ...

On the subject of new bikes in Munich...what is a "good" buy for a X-country rider living in the city?

Can't help you with shipping details or what is a 'good'buy, but it is worth investing in a decent lock(s) if you are buying/bringing over a decent bike. I've now had 2 decent bikes nicked, the first one completely, the second everything but the frame (because it was locked to some railings). If you're just riding round the city buy a crap bike locally.

Eurobill,
Definitely bring it back with you. But either have a bike shop do the packing for you or buy lots of bubble wrap type stuff. I bought my road bike in the States two years ago and brought it back. The good part is that your bike is already used so you won't have to worry about customs. I would, however, find the receipt to the prove it just in case the customs guys at the gate gets a little overzealous(although we breezed right through with two huge bike boxes, go figure).

Good luck!

Thanks for the advise. Better to be safe than sorry.

Yup Eurobill

A few dollars at a bike shop to get it properly boxed, then bring it over next time with you on the plane. This works in Europe, but call your carrier beforehand to doublecheck about outsize luggage.

hi, i've got a Klein back home and thought of shipping here which will cost about 200 Euro. just want to know if it's worth it to do this or forget it and get another bike here...

@Eurobill - so finally what did you do?

I would like to ship not a bike but a snowboard - anyone has done it or has an idea how much it would cost? Or It's better to wait till January when I will be there. But I'm so want to ride my new board during my x'mas & new year trip I'm willing to pay $200 if it will arrive in 2-3 wks as my board costs more than 400 eur used!!! here

okay. so i've checked the website (Delta Airlines) and couldn't find specifics so i'll have to call them, but...
i thought i'd also ask if anyone has flown a bike to Munich from the US on Delta.
i'm wondering what their specifics are and price and all that wonderful jazz...
any info would be great! (or any suggestions on shipping a road bike. don'worry i did a search and read what people have previously posted!)
thanks!

I don't have information regarding flying a bike, but if you have the money buy a hardcase, and check it as regular luggage. Some airlines don't charge extra for sport equipment packed in a hard case.

To do it on the cheap, get a bike box from a bike shop, and the piece of plastic that manufacturer's place in the forks durng transport, in place of the front wheel. Take off your saddle/seat post, front wheel and pedals. Wrap your frame in bubble wrap, ram small chunks of wood or tape cardboard over the axle ends of your front wheel (or again, the plastic pieces manufacturers use, available when you get the box), loosen your handlebars and twist them sideways; tighten again. Use zip ties to prevent your cranks from turning by attaching them through your crankarm and around the chainstay. Tape your saddle/post and front wheel (placed alongside the bike) securely to your wrapped frame to immobilize them. Push the bike to one end of the box and if there's empty space, fold a sturdy piece of cardboard into a U shape and insert it into the box to effectively shorten the length of the box (required if a road bike is to fit in a mtn bike box). Seal the box thoroughly with tape and write "fragile" all over it with an obviously fat marker. The plane loaders will ignore that but it's worth a try. Due to the pressurised nature of cargo bays it's not necessary to let the air out of your tires, but I would soften them anyway--better safe than sorry.

@MPI- wow thanks for all that! much appreciated!

Name a few please?

Airlines used to give you the bike boxes for free, but that was 8 years ago and from what I have heard, they now charge 10 whatever currency.
I shipped my bike and my skiis over in a bike box and a ski bag respectively and they both got charged the same price. They did let one overweight bag go, but I think that is because I was checking 13 of them.

Now I have a bit of a situation on this subject. I want to get my bike to Canada. I just got back from Deutsche Post (We are sending our things this way) and they said there is nothing they can suggest if a package is over their 120*60*60 size limit. So I can't post it as I was planning.

Lufthansa told me I can check it in as one of my allowed pieces of luggage. When I asked about packaging she did not mention the need for any extra packaging. This seems odd to me. This option will probably not be possible anyway as I would need to somehow get my bike back from Toronto airport to where I will be living which will not be easy. I could leave it locked up at Toronto airport but it will probably get stolen then.

Anyone got any other siggestions for sending the bike somehow? It's too big for UPS as well.

If your bike is packed correctly in a bike box by a bike shop, you will be able to fit it in the back seat of just about anything. I bought a bike in the States 4 years ago (actually, we bought 2 bikes) and both fit across the back seat of the rental car (a normal midsize rental) along with our other luggage in the trunk.

The bike shop will take off the pedals, turn the handlebars, etc, and pack it in bubble wrap to make sure it is protected. It will fit.

I have the box, but we also have luggage, a snowboard and 2 cats. There is not going to be space in the car for that too.

I just checked with the Toronto airport baggage storage - 8CAD a day. I think that is quite reasonable and will probably do that and pick it up a few days later.

Still a bit concerned about how to pack it (or not, as I was told) for the flight. I think I will phone and try and extract that information again - don't want to try and check it in unpacked and then be told otherwise, i'd have to dump the bike then.

You won't be able to check it unpacked.
Bring the bike to a bike shop and have it packed by them or try to pack it yourself (instructions on how are on the internet, but you might need special tools for the pedals and stem).

Lufthansa do take bikes unpacked. What they ask you to do is the following:

Take off the pedals (dead easy). Remove the rear mech and tape it to the frame so that the bike. You have to be able to free wheel the bike. Loosen the handle bars and turn through 90 degrees. Deflate the tires a little.

I have an e_mail somewhere from a mate from my old mtb team that used Lufthansa to move his bike - he included all the instructions (I will try and find it). He commented how gently the baggage handlers then free-wheeled his bike gently down off the plane (as like any normal bike nut he was scared to let anybody near it...).

I have always used a bike bag (for both my mtb and my triathlon bike) with airlines within europe. These are not favoured - as a lot of the time baggage handlers will just throw them about like a normal piece of luggage - which is the reason lufthansa state for prefering bikes to go unpacked.

Thanks for that rich mole. I will keep those particular tools handy in my main luggage then so that I can prepare the bike at the airport and 'unprepare' it at the other end.

Great news then. Now... anyone need a bike box? I haven't even taken it out of the car yet!

I recently shipped a very large musical instrument (marimba) from New York using Bax Global. I was very pleased with their service. I was able to track it and I was concerned about shipping a $7,000 fragile instrument overseas. The only frustrating element was customs. In NY and Berlin, it seemed like they took a very long time to allow clearance. It finally arrived in 2 small boxes and 2 large boxes weighing in at around 300lbs and the cost was slightly under
600 Euro.