Right off the bat I’ve got to thank everyone that has contributed on BA. I have learned SO much about the craft beer scene and much of it is thanks to this site. Your experience and the sharing of your knowledge is very much appreciated. I am doing a beercation in the NE on the back half of a business trip later this month. I’m doing the Portland-Burlington-Boston triangle and hitting up all the big names—Bissell, Main Beer Co, Alchemist, Hill Farmstead, Foam, Tree House, Trillium, etc. This will be a first time at all these places so I’m totally jacked. Because of where I live (Texas), I don’t anticipate being back for some time so I’m looking to bring back a big haul for me and my friends. And I mean a BIG haul. I’m guessing between 10-12 cases. I’m flying Southwest Airlines so I’ve got two empty suitcases ready for about 3-4(?) cases. It’s the rest I’m concerned about. As you can guess, when doing the calculations to ship the rest (200-250 lbs?) the cost is astronomical. I’m trying to think of outside the box ideas to ship the rest without going broke. I’ve come across two alternative shipping options that could ship large amounts at a decent cost: 1) Amtrak Express Shipping and 2) BikeFlights.com. Both are way cheaper than the traditional shipping options but I haven’t read of anyone using either of these before. Does anyone have any experience with these or any other thoughts? Much thanks!
With that much volume you are looking at 350 to 400 pounds of product. Taking it on the plane could be very expensive comparatively. You may want to look into private freight companies and ship it all at once. Maybe even a moving company willing to do the trip?
A family member of mine shipped a snow mobile via UPS freight across the county and it was in the $300 range.
All I'm going to suggest is that you check, recheck, and triple check what ever route you go down. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a bit tougher level of questioning as to what your container contents are. Just on my quick check, it looks like Bike Flights is only shipping bikes. I'm sure they'll suspect something isn't kosher if your container is a different size then what they're used to seeing, let alone the weight being way heavier too.
Do you have the fly? Seems like you'd be way better off just renting a car and driving back. I don't rent cars frequently, but I feel like you could still save money (if your ticket is refundable) by renting a car and driving back, even with the cost of gas. If you have to ship - it just seems hard to not find a way that will cost you $300+ to ship. Even at $30/case. Hope you find a solution that works for you.
OP did mention sharing these with a whole group of friends. For me, if he had 6 friends (2 cases each) that would probably be too much if I was a person wanting them fresh. 1 case (12 friends) would be fine. That's 6 cans a week for. Month.
