Route 66

[wainyone]

We have an idea to do route 66 but, on our own bikes as renting is 100 dollars a day plus insurance. So looking at shipping, has anyone done this or even the trip. Any information is needed to plan this life time experience.

[viper]

ive looked into it and shipping is eye watering expensive , like 2 or 3 grand upwards , there are companys that will sort for you but the costs esculate when you factor in the building of a crate ect, you need a rep at the other side and timing is risky , say you are dockside all ready to go and the shipping company are running 4 days late due to bad weather. It is possible but i think the return shipping cost will blow the budget. Ive looked into it several times and the best way is to buy a bike stateside through a contact on a us forum and then sell afterwards. .

[viper]

this is a quote from bryn from another thread on the same


" Well.... having started to explore the actual costings involved.....

Bike transport in container to SF , including extra insurance in case the boat sinks  £2200
Bike insurance to ride over there including Canada     £300
Bike breakdown cover  ? not sure but expecting   £100

Flights at least £1500 for two , and that's with a change in either Paris or Amsterdam  , premium economy will be more like £2300  ( and SWMBO has stated that she want's an upgrade)

Over there 4 nights in SF before the trip starts proper , added to 20 nights hotels    approx £2000

Food/drink at £20 each per day  ...£960

Fuel for 4000 miles approx  £300

Two new tyres and a good service  ( maybe not to be factored in but why not)  £300  ( optimistic)

That lot equals over £8500 , and a good 3k over the first estimate we were given...... can you see where this is going 

[Ant]

I would PM 'Kevin' off here.

Its something he has done and very well travelled. You can actually read about their travels and experiences on their web site.

I enquired about shipping a new bike over from the west cost a couple of months ago and it came in port to port at £1100 ( without insurance ).

Something people do is buy a bike out there, ride it and then sell it again, its works out that you don't lose anywhere near what you would shipping your own bike over there.

At the show this year we enquired about the tours over there for our joint 50th next year, but TBH i don't think its something that really appeals to us yet, mainly due to the £6k price tag for 9 days without flights.  We would rather put that towards a base in the south of France.............Still have plenty of exploring to do in Europe.

But do contact 'Kevin' he will more than happy to help......

[wainyone]

Ship From: Long Beach
Ship To: Southampton
PRICE QUOTE
Item   Description   
Shipping   Method: RoRo   $ 1,280.00
Trucking   Method:    $ .00
Additional Trucking   Method:    $ .00
Other      $ .00
Other (2)      $ .00
AES       $ 40.00
DHL/FedEx   For returning Certificate of Title and Bill of Lading documents   $ 60.00
Insurance   Is provided at an additional charge. Please refer to the 'Notes'* section below for further details   $ .00
   If Payment is by Check or Cash     $ 1,380.00
   If Payment is by Wire Transfer     $ 1,402.00
   Any other form of Payment     $ 1,421.40
this is just one way - looks like I might rent/hire

[viper]

bmw size bike is about 2k for a one way route over 14 days plus the insurance at about 500 dollars. There are companies that let you do a one way route but the premiums are higher obviously.

[Stephen.Stallebrass]

Not done it, but planning a big USA trip in a couple of years. My research leads me to suggest that the best options are:

1. Buy a bike out there, register and resell it when you leave.

2. Share a container and split the cost.

3. Use a RoRo service (roll on roll off: no crating).

4. Fly your bike out.

Check out Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics for your outbound route and inbound check out Aladdin Freight in California. Both are RoRo and have good reviews. For insurance check out Progressive and travel insurance check out Navigator.

[shaggs147]

Hi Wain, did the trip in June this year and had a great time. Looked into shipping my bike, hiring a bike, and buying one over there and all seemed too expensive or too much hassle to me. Ended up hiring an eight seater mpv, and had a great time with all the banter on board.
To be honest, route 66 in my opinion, isn't the most interesting of roads on a bike, and was so glad I didn't spend all the cash getting a bike. It is a great trip and a brilliant way to see the country though and meet a lot of characters along the way.
Be prepared to get lost, as a lot of the route isn't marked out, and sat navs don't recognise route 66 unless someone knows of one that does?
How long were you thinking of going for?
Mark.

[viper]

Hi Wain, did the trip in June this year and had a great time. Looked into shipping my bike, hiring a bike, and buying one over there and all seemed too expensive or too much hassle to me. Ended up hiring an eight seater mpv, and had a great time with all the banter on board.
To be honest, route 66 in my opinion, isn't the most interesting of roads on a bike, and was so glad I didn't spend all the cash getting a bike. It is a great trip and a brilliant way to see the country though and meet a lot of characters along the way.
Be prepared to get lost, as a lot of the route isn't marked out, and sat navs don't recognise route 66 unless someone knows of one that does?
How long were you thinking of going for?
Mark.

thats good advice and if we do it , it would be in a motorhome, the hotel savings would probably pay for the vehicle. maybe we could hire a bike once in SF for a few days

[bacaruda]

Ive done 4 roadtrips in the southwestern US the last 10 years
no1:  sept 2004: 8 guys renting harleys in Las Vegas and going on a 6 day roundtrip vegas-Kingsman-route66-Grand canyon south rim- monument valley-page-zion NP-vegas.
no2: april 2012: Me and my son in a corvette convertible on the same route as above  + Bryce canyon, UTAH and a tour to death valley. 6 days
no3: beginning of sept 2013 : Me and the wife in a dodge Challenger R/T route: SF-Sacramento - Mono Lake- Carson City- HW50 to Bonneville salt flats- Great Basin NP- Reno - SF.
no4: end of sept 2013 with 5 highschool buddies in 3 Camaro SS convertibles route. SF -Reno- Mono lake- Death valley-las vegas-Sedona-GC south rim-Page-Monument valley-Moab- bryce canyon - Vegas.

My conclutions: Renting a cool car in the US is cheap. 1 week rental dodge Challenger: $550. The camaro convertibles even cheaper. (those were V8's Hi perf models, not V6..) All the six of us going the last time are motorcyclist, but we don't regret choosing muscle cars instead of bikes. more relaxed (and cheap) traveling and we had a blast with those cars.
Hotel room are reasonable cheap: double occupation from $60.
Depending on the route you choose, the roads aren't that fun to ride. Sure ive found a couple of nice twisties, but they are rare. The most of the roads are looong and straaaaiiight... When we rented bikes I rented a V-rod to get reasonable good handling and brakes, but found myself longing for an electra glide.
I'm going back (my wife just have to experience Grand canyon and I can't get enough of the area) and we plan to combine car and motorcycle rental. Convertible 1,5 week and motorcycle one week.
Maybe take the main traveling by car and find a nice area to make some motorcycle excursion during the trip. Vegas is a great basepoint for a 5-6 day rountrip to some fantastic areas. 

[jenros]

hi guys have a look on "horizons unlimited",,there are thousands of pages of all info on this type of trip,,,to all parts of the world,,,,an if your like me be prepared for a few very late nights of reading!!!