Overland travel in South America is perfectly feasible with a private vehicle. All one may have to do is to arrange for a container shipment or a RoRo shipping – Roll on, Roll off. The big question is which shipping port to choose when shipping a car or motor home; which container ports and RoRo ports in South America are reliable and affordable?
Shipping Ports in Argentina, Uruguay and Ecuador
Overlanders – as long-term travellers by private vehicles are known – often have websites and are happy to share information on the latest shipping experiences. Most overlanders seem to agree that, at the time of writing, Buenos Aires in Argentina, and Montevideo in Uruguay are the preferred ports for shipping a car or motor home. Coming from Central America, Ecuador is considered a safe bet.
In these ports, customs clearance appears to take place according to some sort of procedure, as far as procedures exist on this continent, and when the traveller is well-prepared in terms of documents, customs clearances are in most cases handled relatively smoothly and without "facilitation fees".
Shipping Ports in Brazil
Overlanders appear to be unanimous in their opinion of one country: shipping a car or motor home to Brazil is asking for trouble – a statement confirmed by Brazilians as well. Brazilian ports are notorious for fleecing travellers. Experiences have taught that in Brazil, customs clearance is a lengthy and/or costly procedure.
Shipping Ports in Chile and Peru
Valparaiso [Chile] and Lima [Peru] on the west coast of South America are lesser-used ports for shipping a car or motor home to, and shipment to these ports is often more expensive than shipping from Europe to the east coast of South America. From the US it may be an interesting option when shipping a car from the west coast of the US or Canada. Experiences in customs clearance in both ports seem to show a fifty-fifty percent chance from very easy to complicated and expensive.
The Panama Canal
The hurdle between South and Central America is shipping across the Panama Canal - or the Darian Gap. Options on how to realise a container shipment or RoRo shipping vary per year and sometimes per month, which is mainly due to political and economic stability, or instability, in Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador.
Shipping a Car From South America to Central America:
- Ecuador offers RoRo shipping.
- Container shipment is the only way to ship a car from Colombia or Venezuela.
Shipping a Car From Central America to South America:
- Most overlanders opt for Panama, and arrange a container shipment from here to Colombia, Venezuela or Ecuador.
- A RoRo shipping liner currently plies between Costa Rica and Ecuador.
Since the situations of shipping ports around the Darian Gap change so regularly, it is advisable to check with the local authorities or the overlanders' circuit to learn about the latest experiences, possibilities and prices.
Disclaimer: this article is based on the personal travel experience of the writer and should not be taken as a substitute for advice given by an embassy or other authority on the subject.
Karin-Marijke Vis - Karin-Marijke Vis is a bilingual writer (Dutch-English) who has been traveling in Asia and South America since 2003.
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