Shipping Items Abroad?

[Light]

Do you think I could ship some of my items in boxes abroad to an AirBnB if I rented an AirBnB for 180 Days while I sort out what I want to do in Europe, where I want to live, and other finer details? Do you think the person who is renting the property through AirBnB would allow a person staying that long to ship things abroad?

[gsjackson]

Doesn't Airbnb have a function where you can ask the landlord? Sometimes they don't live at the same address, and handling the delivery might be an inconvenience. Otherwise, I don't know why they wouldn't try to accommodate a 6-month tenant (Mexico and the UK are the only countries I know that let Americans stay that long without leaving for 90 days). But then three of the eight Airbnb hosts I had in 2014 were jackasses. I use only Booking.com now. Only way to know is ask them.

[Light]

Doesn't Airbnb have a function where you can ask the landlord? Sometimes they don't live at the same address, and handling the delivery might be an inconvenience. Otherwise, I don't know why they wouldn't try to accommodate a 6-month tenant (Mexico and the UK are the only countries I know that let Americans stay that long without leaving for 90 days). But then three of the eight Airbnb hosts I had in 2014 were jackasses. I use only Booking.com now. Only way to know is ask them.

I know that AirBnB does have a message system where a landlord could be asked questions. I don't think I ever mentioned it on the forum but I am permanently moving abroad. My goal is October 14 at the latest.

I'm not sure but I think I heard some shipping companies have a delayed ship option to drop-off the packages and then they will ship it at a specified date, so I'll be at the AirBnB to receive my boxes.

I am very excited to be almost to the finish line on leaving the United States.

I plan on going to Bulgaria. I was also considering places like Croatia, Romania, and Estonia but I decided on Bulgaria. It's more affordable, I read much more about it, the Balkans should have a more Mediterranean culture, and I can land in a city and have an AirBnB booking waiting. I also selected it because of its good location to other places in Europe and the driver's license exam can be taken in English. I am going to get a European Union driver's license.

What countries did you encounter bad AirBnB hosts?

[Winston]

If you pay the rent, airbnb hosts may let you put your boxes there, as long as there's not too many. If there's too many they may worry you won't be able to get them out. It's an unusual request. If you have good references on your airbnb profile, you probably will have better luck getting them to agree to it. Why use airbnb for storage though? Why not rent a storage shed like at a U-Haul company or similar?

[gsjackson]

Doesn't Airbnb have a function where you can ask the landlord? Sometimes they don't live at the same address, and handling the delivery might be an inconvenience. Otherwise, I don't know why they wouldn't try to accommodate a 6-month tenant (Mexico and the UK are the only countries I know that let Americans stay that long without leaving for 90 days). But then three of the eight Airbnb hosts I had in 2014 were jackasses. I use only Booking.com now. Only way to know is ask them.

I know that AirBnB does have a message system where a landlord could be asked questions. I don't think I ever mentioned it on the forum but I am permanently moving abroad. My goal is October 14 at the latest.

I'm not sure but I think I heard some shipping companies have a delayed ship option to drop-off the packages and then they will ship it at a specified date, so I'll be at the AirBnB to receive my boxes.

I am very excited to be almost to the finish line on leaving the United States.

I plan on going to Bulgaria. I was also considering places like Croatia, Romania, and Estonia but I decided on Bulgaria. It's more affordable, I read much more about it, the Balkans should have a more Mediterranean culture, and I can land in a city and have an AirBnB booking waiting. I also selected it because of its good location to other places in Europe and the driver's license exam can be taken in English. I am going to get a European Union driver's license.

What countries did you encounter bad AirBnB hosts?

The bad Airbnb hosts were in Serbia, Poland and Thailand. Serbia and Poland otherwise were great countries, Thailand just a bad experience all around.

How are you going to be able to stay in Bulgaria past the 90 days? I think I read that their residence permit is very easy to get, but then when I looked into it, not so much. This was a few years ago, and I don't remember the details. I was going to spend most of this summer there, at the beach, but then Crazy Time happened.

Congrats on getting to the point of making a permanent move. I may be going to Europe permanently too, in three weeks. My routine has been to come back to the U.S. after the summer and pick up a few bucks substitute teaching, then return to Europe in the spring. But now face diapers are required in classrooms across the country, and I won't be doing that. I expect I'll be finding a way to stay in Europe full time, most likely in the Balkans also. All things considered -- including cost of living, quality of women, climate relative to Northern Europe, etc. -- that area looks like the best bet.

The Airbnb hosts in Serbia and Poland, by the way, had no reviews, so I was rolling the dice on completely new entries. The Thailand guy -- an old Frenchman with some bats in the belfry -- had good reviews, so I was surprised when he turned out to be a bit prickly.

[Light]

How are you going to be able to stay in Bulgaria past the 90 days? I think I read that their residence permit is very easy to get, but then when I looked into it, not so much. This was a few years ago, and I don't remember the details. I was going to spend most of this summer there, at the beach, but then Crazy Time happened.

Congrats on getting to the point of making a permanent move. I may be going to Europe permanently too, in three weeks.

EU Citizenship. That gives me many more opportunities than people who are just American citizens and American passport holders.

The beaches at Varna? I know that's a popular tourist spot in Bulgaria.

[Light]

If you pay the rent, airbnb hosts may let you put your boxes there, as long as there's not too many. If there's too many they may worry you won't be able to get them out. It's an unusual request. If you have good references on your airbnb profile, you probably will have better luck getting them to agree to it. Why use airbnb for storage though? Why not rent a storage shed like at a U-Haul company or similar?

I want to live at the AirBnB and while I'm living there, ship some personal items from America. It wouldn't be for a storage situation. I want my personal items while I am abroad and then I ship them from the AirBnB to a permanent address if I decide to get a property or a officially rent a property, or move them to a new location if I move to a completely different country.

I am not returning to the United States after I go to Europe. I'm selling my furniture, selling my car, giving other things away and that would be everything I won't be needing, and I won't be leaving much in the United States. I also wouldn't have anywhere to go if I wanted to return to the United States, so me leaving will be permanent. There's no way I can return to the United States because I can't afford to live in the United States and I wouldn't want to. The United States is terrible and I'm always happier abroad. I love the convenience of online shopping in the United States but I'm happy to give that benefit up in exchange for happiness, personal advancement, and to find a foreign girl. My credit score would also be terrible so even if I did return to the United States, I wouldn't be able to get anything and in the United States people need a car. I could walk to the grocery stores in most European cities and I did so when in Europe. I'll be fine without a car if I live in a major city in Europe.

[gsjackson]

How are you going to be able to stay in Bulgaria past the 90 days? I think I read that their residence permit is very easy to get, but then when I looked into it, not so much. This was a few years ago, and I don't remember the details. I was going to spend most of this summer there, at the beach, but then Crazy Time happened.

Congrats on getting to the point of making a permanent move. I may be going to Europe permanently too, in three weeks.

EU Citizenship. That gives me many more opportunities than people who are just American citizens and American passport holders.

The beaches at Varna? I know that's a popular tourist spot in Bulgaria.

I was going to Sunny Beach, southwest of Varna. Lots of great beaches and mountains in Bulgaria. The country is well blessed by nature. And I'm told by a couple of Ukrainian women that the Black Sea has many health-giving properties. Spend a week there in the summer and you won't be sick all year, the local adage goes.

You won't need a car in Europe. In 31 months there over the last 11 years, I've used a car once -- driving down the coast of Croatia. That's a drive very much worth taking for the scenery. Just be careful of the speed trap at the end of the tunnel coming back north from Dubrovnik. But if you're caught, don't worry about it going on your driving record. The cops just pocket cash on the spot, and what happens in Croatia stays in Croatia.

[Frankd011]

Doesn't Airbnb have a function where you can ask the landlord? Sometimes they don't live at the same address, and handling the delivery might be an inconvenience. Otherwise, I don't know why they wouldn't try to accommodate a 6-month tenant (Mexico and the UK are the only countries I know that let Americans stay that long without leaving for 90 days). But then three of the eight Airbnb hosts I had in 2014 were jackasses. I use only now. Only way to know is ask them.

I been reading that lots of digital nomads are in Thailand or Vietnam because it's cheap to live there.

[Winston]

I've just ordered my Z2 Auto CPAP from SecondWindCPAP.com. The staff seem kind and helpful. However, I have one issue though. Their international shipping fee is a fixed $95. That seems like a lot. Furthermore, it's taking a long time, I thought Fedex or UPS (which they claim to use) comes very fast? How can it take two weeks? That's definitely NOT express as they claim.

What I don't get though is that other companies that ship overseas usually charge around $20, like Amazon for instance. And iherb ships overseas to me for free, as long as my order is over $50, or $5 or $7 if my order is under $50. They use DHL too or a comparable service, and I get it in only 3 or 4 days.

So why is it necessary for them to charge $95? Is it just an excuse for them to pocket an extra hundred bucks? Why can't they do whatever Amazon or iherb or Ebay does? Even on Ebay, I sometimes get free shipping overseas, or else under $20. Never $95. Can any of you explain why? Do they have a legit reason to charge that much? And why is it taking more than a week to arrive too? Should I be concerned? Did I get overcharged? What do you think?