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Hello guys,

im looking for some help and advice, i recently purchased an imac from apple.com and had it delivered to my colleagues address in the states. we want to ship it to beirut, but the estimations we are getting from dhl and others are insane, 1100$+ for shipping fees alone.

is there any service that would ship it to beirut in a more convenient and cost effective way ?
NuclearVision wroteHonestly shopandship for 3900 is unfair.
Heck, 6000 is unfair.
If you pay usd for your imports then 6000 won't be a problem.
Try to quote borderlynx and see the difference.

I bought a few 20dollars items in the past month, they would reach lebanon i 3 days everytime.
And i paid like 50,000 lbp. That's really like free.. 2$ for shipping an item across the globe...
can't i register anymore to borderlynx? I can't find the register button or even the login button. And what's the difference between borderlynx and dhl easyshop?
dont know, never dealt with them.
Why should I? I'm paying in LBP at 3900 with aramex while these require usd
arached wrote
NuclearVision wroteHonestly shopandship for 3900 is unfair.
Heck, 6000 is unfair.
If you pay usd for your imports then 6000 won't be a problem.
Try to quote borderlynx and see the difference.

I bought a few 20dollars items in the past month, they would reach lebanon i 3 days everytime.
And i paid like 50,000 lbp. That's really like free.. 2$ for shipping an item across the globe...
can't i register anymore to borderlynx? I can't find the register button or even the login button. And what's the difference between borderlynx and dhl easyshop?
I think you misunderstood me.
I was implying that 6000 is too good, hence unfair for aramex. Killer deal for us
20 days later
NuclearVision wrote
arached wrote
NuclearVision wroteHonestly shopandship for 3900 is unfair.
Heck, 6000 is unfair.
If you pay usd for your imports then 6000 won't be a problem.
Try to quote borderlynx and see the difference.

I bought a few 20dollars items in the past month, they would reach lebanon i 3 days everytime.
And i paid like 50,000 lbp. That's really like free.. 2$ for shipping an item across the globe...
can't i register anymore to borderlynx? I can't find the register button or even the login button. And what's the difference between borderlynx and dhl easyshop?
I think you misunderstood me.
I was implying that 6000 is too good, hence unfair for aramex. Killer deal for us

Do I have to assign an agent if i order items of value more than 2k?
NuclearVision wroteanybody received anything recently?
Got a package from Fedex this morning--I don't hold much faith in Libanpost.
NuclearVision wrotepaid in usd right ?
The order was in USD, correct. BION, it was some OTC drugs for my parents . Such things are getting harder to get these days, so I bought $100 of them and they shipped here to my surprise. I wouldn't normally order something like this though, but these are extraordinary times
xazbrat wrote
NuclearVision wroteanybody received anything recently?
Got a package from Fedex this morning--I don't hold much faith in Libanpost.

The courriers (Fedex, Aramex, etc) are still running, Libanpost is functional but slower than ever. Still haven’t recieved anything, according to their customer service there’s a very large number of packages being sorted (especially in my area). I presume they’re understaffed and underfunded, as well as suffering from the current crises, so I do expect them to be slow.

Might have to sign up to Aramex, but truthfully I feel guilty ordering stuff online in this situation, so no clue if I’ll be using it.
5 days later
Aramex Shop&Ship exchange shipping rate is now 8000LL/$

is there any cheap alternative you guys are using?
zizo99 wroteAramex Shop&Ship exchange shipping rate is now 8000LL/$

is there any cheap alternative you guys are using?
Where did you get this rate? I checked my email and they didn't send an update.

I received a package yesterday @6000LL/$
xazbrat wrote
NuclearVision wrotepaid in usd right ?
The order was in USD, correct. BION, it was some OTC drugs for my parents . Such things are getting harder to get these days, so I bought $100 of them and they shipped here to my surprise. I wouldn't normally order something like this though, but these are extraordinary times
could you till me which site you use to order
Is the shipping paid on delivery at 6000 LL/$ or you need to pay it via card?
bobo619 wroteIs the shipping paid on delivery at 6000 LL/$ or you need to pay it via card?
Cash in LL on delivery.
anyaddress2014 wrote
xazbrat wrote
NuclearVision wrotepaid in usd right ?
The order was in USD, correct. BION, it was some OTC drugs for my parents . Such things are getting harder to get these days, so I bought $100 of them and they shipped here to my surprise. I wouldn't normally order something like this though, but these are extraordinary times
could you till me which site you use to order
I used https://binge.com.lb/ to order since their minimum order for free delivery is $100. Just keep in mind if you want a certain drug, put in the active ingredient in the search to get even more options---for Tylenol for example, put acetaminophen in the search engine. You get the generics, but really no difference but in name and better prices.
3 months later
ggtks wroteI have a handful of packages from Ali coming to Leb (relatives abroad are a precious help), will share statistics on how long things are taking. Will also note things like "extra" fees or whatever. I've heard rumors of these things lately.

Libanpost has been a class act for years in my experience with the occasional customs hiccup but with the way things are going I wouldn't be surprised if that was no longer the case now. I'm seeing a lot of people mention the tracking numbers not showing up in LiPos's system, honestly I've always used parcel tracking services to scan multiple couriers and give me the full timeline. YMMV depending on shipping provider obviously.

What's interesting is that there are packages from China that are getting to Lebanon within less than two weeks. This was never the case for me in the past. The worst one is the package that spent 10 days in transit with twice that time in customs.


Also, ShopAndShip fees at a 6000 rate sounds like highway robbery. Maybe it's time to make an account?
ggtks wrote
xazbrat wrote
NuclearVision wroteanybody received anything recently?
Got a package from Fedex this morning--I don't hold much faith in Libanpost.

The courriers (Fedex, Aramex, etc) are still running, Libanpost is functional but slower than ever. Still haven’t recieved anything, according to their customer service there’s a very large number of packages being sorted (especially in my area). I presume they’re understaffed and underfunded, as well as suffering from the current crises, so I do expect them to be slow.

Might have to sign up to Aramex, but truthfully I feel guilty ordering stuff online in this situation, so no clue if I’ll be using it.

Signed up for Aramex about a month ago, may start using it soon. I am worried about getting shafted by customs, but it is what it is.

I never used Aliexpress as much as I did this year, I had a lot of small items I needed for one of my jobs and there was zero supply in Lebanon for it. Thankfully I have the means to get these this way, which is something I am grateful for.

As for my many packages, here are some statistics as promised:

(used an old school BBCode table generator but it looks like LG doesn't support that.. Oh well)
Disclaimer: This is just for information, none of my figures should be taken as reference or gospel, this is just anecdotal.
All items were ordered between March and August of 2021.
I've anonymized some of the info as well.
I added the middle ranges in a non-statistical way, just by ear, because I'd say some 20% of packages are outliers in some category.

Cainiao Standard Shipping for Special Goods: Mostly smaller items
  • n = 5.
  • China Transit: 2-6 Days
  • Overseas shipping: 8-9 Days
  • Customs: 10-20 Days
  • Libanpost: 35-40 Days
Cainiao Super Economy for Special Goods: Mostly smaller items
  • n <10.
  • China Transit: 2-4 Days
  • Overseas shipping: 8-11 Days
  • Customs: 52-54 Days
  • Libanpost: 2 Days
Cainiao Super Economy Global: Still mostly smaller items. That's just what I get from Ali anyways.
  • n = 10.
  • China Transit: 4-5 Days
  • Overseas shipping: 22-24 Days
  • Customs: 40-70 Days
  • Libanpost: 2-11 Days
China Post Registered Air Mail: Bigger, heavier items
  • n <5.
  • China Transit: 3-4 Days
  • Overseas shipping: 8-22 Days
  • Customs: 8-39 Days
  • Libanpost: 2 Days
Totals:
  • n <30.
  • Average total days from ship date to received date: 76.6, SD 22.6
  • Average China Transit: 9.2, SD 15.1
  • Average Overseas Transit: 25.1, SD 18.9
  • Average Days in Customs: 41.5, SD 20.3
  • Average Lebanon Transit (Libanpost): 10.0, SD 20.0

There are also small packages sent through other carriers but those aren't enough to draw any conclusions from.
I had one China Post Regular Air Mail outlier that spent 100 days bouncing around China until it returned to the seller. I know the seller from previous sales (they sell items for a very specific hobby), so I immediately contacted them. They gave me the option of a refund or sending again, I went for sending again. It went through 4px and it was a breeze.

YMMV as always. My items were mostly small, cheap (~$7.9, SD $7.2) items, with one exception. I did not pay any extra fees.


TLDR: The mail system is still functional, slow but functional. Customs is slower than ever, especially with smaller packages. LibanPost will sit on your packages for a while if they are small, and then send them to you asynchronously regardless of how long customs takes. Patience is more important than ever. All the Libanpost staff I had to deal with were helpful and friendly.

I hope this helps.
Best of luck with your shipping endeavors!
Over the past few months, I have used Aramex (ShopAndShip) quite a bit. I find them to be the best and cheapest option available, and their rates remain very affordable.
zizo99 wroteOver the past few months, I have used Aramex (ShopAndShip) quite a bit. I find them to be the best and cheapest option available, and their rates remain very affordable.
What are the shipping and customs/VAT rates nowadays? I may try them for the first time in the near future
Aliexpress deliveries are being "fast" again, I am receiving stuff between 3 to 4 weeks after it's shipped