Port of Esmeraldas - Ecuador

marcomueses wrote:

Moving from Toronto, Canada to Esmeraldas Ecuador in December.

As a returnee, you may be subject to looser car-importation rules than a typical Expat.  However, you still should find out what the age limitation may be on your car.

Also, check into what the Quito Embassy/State Department are saying online or through your consulate about safety and security in Esmeraldas city and province.. and Ecuador's nearby Colombian border zones.

cccmedia in Quito

Thank you for your reply.
Note.- all relevant information already received from the Ecuadorian Consulate in Toronto.
I purchased a small Villa in Tonsupa, Esmeraldas, thus, reason request for information regarding shipping Co. and Customs paper work handling at the Port of Esmeraldas.
So far, all the Shipping Companies are aware of Guayaquil, but not Esmeraldas which due to its location is the most convenient and closest Port in Ecuador for me.

Marco

marcomueses wrote:

I purchased a small Villa in Tonsupa, Esmeraldas, thus, reason request for information regarding shipping Co.... So far, all the Shipping Companies are aware of Guayaquil, but not Esmeraldas which due to its location is the most convenient and closest Port in Ecuador for me.

Dear Marco,

North American Gringos are mostly avoiding a move to Esmeraldas province, due in part to the U.S. State Department's security warnings about areas in EC near the Colombian border.  So containerized shipments of household goods and personal cars from Canada to Esmeraldas may be few and far between.

Check the website www.seafreightmiami.com for quotes from shipping companies serving Miami to Esmeraldas.  You can use the Contact button on that site to ask for a referral for the other segment of your freight-carry ... Toronto to Miami.   Best-case-scenario would be if there's a single company that can serve the entire route at a "reasonable" cost.

cccmedia in Quito

marcomueses wrote:

Moving from Toronto, Canada to Esmeraldas Ecuador in December.
Looking for information regarding Container Shipment with household items + a car.

Dear Marco,

If your furniture is valuable, the decision to move it to a coastal area needs to take into account the difference in climate from Toronto.

Author Nicholas Crowder, who has lived in Ecuador for decades, has noted that many Expats from the U.S. and Canada leave their furniture back home in storage for a year or two.  That way, if they find the move to Ecuador isn't working for them, they don't have to start from scratch.

"Some Expats regret shipping things," he wrote, finding it "onerous, and extremely stressful, as the rules and regulations change regularly and are applied unpredictably at the whim of whatever official" you encounter.
  -- Nicholas Crowder, 100 Things to Consider Before Moving
            or Retiring to Ecuador

If the matter of possibly leaving a treasured car could be a deal-breaker, Nick Crowder's book presents a concept few Expats may have thought about.  More of that coming up.

cccmedia in Quito

It's well-known that you can't drive a car from the U.S. or Canada all the way to Ecuador.  The Darien Gap in Panama is impassable.

You can drive to Panama and have your car shipped the relatively short distance to Colombia .. then drive the rest of the way to Ecuador.

So now, at the very least, Marco, you have a backup plan.

Source:  100 Points to Consider Before Moving or Retiring to Ecuador,
   available as a Kindle book from amazon.com with access
        to free Kindle Cloud Reader ($4.99)

cccmedia in Quito

Good morning thanks for the book tip. This that I am writing about is meant for people still at home or that  have not visited jet.  Not for people that live or have visited here & have looked around. I will make the move to Cuenca my self and looking @ setting up a home here. I priced some of the items.  I have decided to ship things that are important to me in boxes and leave furniture @ home!   Large appliances like wash machine, dryer and such I will  buy those items here.  Prices for items very substantially.  Furniture for example varies in price like in the US.  You can buy expensive furniture or a good selection of not so expensive furniture.  You can choose the fabric in most stores in either price range. I found the stle of furniture tends to be in the modern stile. The very in-expensive is there too.   You can also have furniture made to your personal specifications with out breaking the bank.   Antiques are also available not as much I noted.  The large appliances like stove, fridge and so on, the best prices are on locally EC made items at reasonable cost compare to shipping, I think.  Most average from $600- $750. The quality of the large EC made appliances, I am not sure off.  Maybe some one with experience in these items can chime in on this.  Please note The type of large appliances I was pricing are for the more or less average price US Items not the high end stuff.  On the very high end I would ship, the price here is high to buy.  One of the things I would bring how ever are my pots & pans also baking stuff.  EC pots & pans I have seen are not the quality I have @ home.  Hope this helps on deciding or contemplating weather to ship or not.  My best advise: Come & see before you do ANY thing.  One persons opinion only & you know what they say about opinions!  .  Come and see.   It is a fantastic & Different place. 
Good luck.