Renting furnished VS. shipping all belonging from SA

@NanouSA

Before I came to Mauritius, I sold my house and almost everything I owned. I arrived with one very heavy suitcase and a backpack.

I reserved in a cheap Airbnb for three weeks while I looked for a place to rent.

I found a "furnished" flat within a couple of days. Furnished is an ambiguous term. My place had mattresses, a small dining table with chairs, a couch and coffee table, and a few dishes, etc.

As I started to make friends, it was obvious that my kitchen was under-equipped, so I bought a microwave, a rice cooker, an air fryer, a wok, a pan, and a pot.

Then I got a little carried away with buying stuff from amazon.com and importing it using myus.com (a package forwarding company which I highly recommend). I bought a desk, a billion dollars worth of anti-mosquito artillery, a dehumidifier that runs on diesel (yes, I'm joking), a Zero Water water filter that holds enough water to fill an Olympic pool*, and lots of little electronic things that light up and beep and plug into computers.

* Maybe I'll set up the dehumidifier to drain into the water filter.  That would be genius.

Mauritius is a small place. The whole island is one quarter of the size of the county I used to live in. There are 1.3 million people here. If it were a city, it would rank as the world's 400th largest city (about the size of Prague). It's also far away from everywhere. That means the market for electronic things that light up and beep is fairly small. It has an abundance of truly beautiful beaches, but the parts God didn't make are a bit ramshackle. Incomes here tend to be low. If you are used to wealthy western economies, you'll immediately notice the limited variety and, perhaps more importantly, the dearth of high-end products. There are no Amazons, Costcos, or Walmarts, here. There are a few big stores in Tamarin, Phoenix, Trianon, etc., but if you're looking for a place to buy Mikasa plates and Cutco knives, you're probably going to be disappointed.

People here don't buy a lot of stuff they don't really need. Garage sales aren't really "a thing" here. There is also no serious equivalent to Craigslist.com or OfferUp.com.

If you are particular about your possessions, it will be cheaper and easier to bring them with you than to import them after you are here.

My rule of thumb is that shipping and duties will essentially double the cost of what you import, On top of that, there is a long, arbitrary list of things that customs will turn into torture. For example, I bought a kite. You know... for kids. I probably spent two hours dealing with import issues. I bought a USB Wi-Fi dongle for my computer: three more hours of misery. Mosquito attractant (for a mosquito trap)? Two more hours.

If you are content to make do with the generic stuff that is available on the island, leave it behind and replace it when you get here.

If you can't live without your bamboo sheets, Oneida flatware, and Jimmy Choo's, bring them with you. You won't find them on the island and they'll be very expensive (and often frustrating) to import.

--John

John you are a pleasure to read and had me in stitches! NanouSA I have now lived here for a year and would agree with John all the way.  I recently enquired about a 6m container full from Cape Town to here, R100,000 later I quickly changed my mind.  Add that to cost of contents, import duties and tax and I frankly think you would find all works out more than local supplies.

I have been told ( correct or not ) that renting out furnished houses covers the owners on a legal front should the tenant not wish to move on....  I am currently moving into a new rental that has very little in the way of furniture so add my own touches.    So you do find some with all and others with very little.

Garage sales are your friend but I have also found great second hand outlets and a factory shop where you can get well priced bespoke pieces made.

Good luck!

@Starry Expanse

Thank you John. We are coming with 3 kids and straight from rural Grahamstown where we seldom get tap water and electricity, so I have no expectations ahah.

I think we are going to come with the bare minimum ... But we still want to take toys, books and air fryer along ahah. Any advice regarding the company we could use to do this? Shipping? Freight?

@tashwilmot

Thank you Tash.

Any advice to ship/fly medium volumes? Toy/books/our cherished air fryer ahah. Maybe paying for extra luggages when flying there would be worth it....

@NanouSA Since I came with so little, I can't give you any insight about a big shipment of items. I've heard that there are a lot of sketchy companies in that business, though, so take a little time to check the reputation of whoever you choose.

@tashwilmot Thank you for the kind words.

I would love to know more about the places you described are the end of your post. Around here, we tend to find things through the grapevine, like: my wife has a friend who knows a guy who used to work at a place...

@Starry Expanse sure, but think I am not allowed to share names of companies on here...

Hello tashwilmot,

You can privately message Starry Expanse if you have anything to share.....

Cheers

Yoginee

Expat.com team

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@NanouSA

Hello. It will be costly to ship all your belongings and you have no guarantee of everything getting here in good condition

Sometimes the rental with furniture can be a good option and you can buy a cheap car to get around

• @NanouSA I lived here for two glorious years and once you accept things are different, and there is less choice, just embrace the differences in what is and isn't available and soon the food and things you thought you needed become very unimportant and the life you have here becomes paramount. For me personally, if you can't live without the food and other things you had previously, then maybe don't move. Moving abroad for me was all about experiencing those differences and living as a local. I return twice a year and have never felt at home anywhere else since I left. Pay for extra luggage for your air fryer etc and store everything else … and good luck on the move!!  The positives far outweigh the negatives!

Thanks so much for the advice. We are looking at relocating from Cape Town in July next year and also plan on selling everything, doing Airbnb for a month or so before settling into something long term.

We have already started selling some of our most loved possessions, but for us it's ok because it is just things. The important thing is that we are starting a new adventure as a family together!!

@NanouSA hey, I've got the same predicament... 3 kids (2 teenage boys and a young daughter) and I'm not sure if I should ship my stuff.

Please let me know how you get along once you arrive.

Cheers

Once you look into cost of shipping you may well make up your mind quickly!  No change out of around South African Rand 100,000 for 6m container!  You can buy all here, big second hand market with expats coming and going.  Hope that helps.

@tashwilmot  this is really helpful. Thanks alot!

We're paying around R125000 plus insurance R13000 to ship a full 20ft container - using a very good shipping agent - they pack everything including cutlery, crockery you don't have to lift a finger and the custom clearance is done for you. Your goods are then delivered and unpacked in Mauritius for you. You'll be surprised at how much you can fit into a 20ft container.

@NanouSA The landlord and Tenant Act stipulates, it is practically impossible if not difficult to cancel a rental contract if the property is not furnished. The only way round this, if the landlord is Ok with that, he stores what you don't want (maybe at your cost) but the rental agreement will still show as fully furnished.

Generally, you're be better not shipping anything and rent furnished.