Question:
My husband and I are moving to Honolulu in June. How long does it take to ship our car and furniture?

Answer:

Cars take minimum 3 weeks: one week to cross and one week at each port to load/unload. If the ports arent very busy, it could take 10 or 14 days to get your car, and Matson can estimate this for you. Your furniture should take about the same time, depending on how busy the ports are then. So three weeksfor your stuff is a safe guess. However, expect delays.

For example, my stuff took 6 weeks: one week to cross and five weeks in ports. The delay was caused by the military. The Army commandeered all civilian shipping vessels to move some troops during the time I was moving. There’s no way to anticipate such a delay, and the military can do it a any time. Still, it’s a rare occurrence and me being the optimist I am, saw the bright side: my stuff shipped later, avoiding rough seas that caused some containers to be lost overboard.

Tip:

Try using a 3-tier priority shipping system when considering how to time your move.

1. Carry your must-haves on the plane (for me this included cherished family photos, heirlooms and back up drives).
2. Then mail whatever is most crucial using usps flat rate boxes (I sent my hs year book, warranties, files and a few more photos).
3. Then ship everything else insured for replacement value.