Hello all, I have had a number of off-line queries about how much it costs to ship a boat across the Atlantic, etc. Some have thought we paid too much while others thought it was a bargain. Anyway, here is how it worked out for us. First, obviously the boat size is a factor; Legrace is 42 ft (12.95 meters) long and weights 16 metric tons (36,000+ lbs). In getting quotes in February of 2005 we specified shipping in September/October from the Netherlands to any US East Coast port. We tried to be as flexible as possible, plus we were willing to book 6 to 7 months in advance. We had one quote from Dockwise for $35,000. We could not travel with the ship and it was from the Mediterranean to Florida. Sevenstar quoted $12,000, from the water back into the water everything included except insurance and customs fees/duties. I have heard (second or third hand) of one 50 ft boat that was shipped from the US to Europe for $4,000 as deck cargo on a Russian freighter but I have no details as to what was & wasn't included in that price. We also met a Canadian couple in Paris in 2003 that had shipped their 33 ft sail boat from Vancouver, BC to Gent, Belgium for $4,000 Canadian dollars - again this was in 2003. He knew someone in the shipping business and had a very, very good deal. So we paid $12,000 for shipping. Insurance was at a rate of 0.23% of the insured value with a 1% deductible Dutch Customs fees - Netherlands paperwork to export Legrace from the EU cost 45 Euros US Customs fees were: - Import Duties at 1.5% of current value - Harbor Maintenance Charge $381.58 - Merchandise Processing Fee $485.00 - Customs agent Entry Fee $250.00 - Bond Fee $600.00 - Messenger Fee $54.50 One last minute surprise was we had to go to the Belgium Customs office in Antwerp to get our passports stamped. It was a 100 Euro taxi ride from Sampogracht to the office 20 minutes away - a very fast taxi ride since we had to do it 1 hour before Sampogracht was to sail. As for the cost for Lynn and I to travel with Legrace on Sampogracht, it was $50/day per person. But since we had a stop over in Rauma Finland, etc. they did give us a significant discount, we didn't have to pay the full amount for the 21 days we were on Sampogracht. This turned out to be a fantastic trip for us, unbelievable. We had the full run of the ship and spent hours on the bridge each day, in the engine room, in the cargo holds when they were loading & unloading. The Dutch officers and Filipino seamen were wonderful, treated us like fellow sailors, answered all our questions - we can't say enough about how well we were treated. Our request to travel with Legrace depended on the captain. The Spielthoff line ships generally have extra cabin space because frequently family members of the crew travel on the ships. So it depends on the captain if cabin space is available and safety equipment - namely life raft space. In Sampogracht case, the life boat holds 23 and with Lynn & I there were 20 people on board So that's how it has turned out for us. If you want to see photos of Legrace being loaded & unloaded plus some of Sampogracht, take a look at: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/bob-w@swbell.net/my_photos Since last Thursday when we were off loaded in Baltimore, we have finally made our way down the Chesapeake to Portsmouth - been snowed on, had spray freeze all over the front of the boat & ice up the windshields and had to scrape frost off the windshields in the morning - it should only rain & blow tonight & tomorrow so we have made it a bit further south. Hope to start down the ICW on Saturday. Bob & Lynn Williamson Legrace Aquanaut Drifter 1250 In Portsmouth Boating Center