I’m planning on being in Buenos Aires for a year or two, and since I heard that shipping anything from the US is a real pain in the ass, I’m planning on bringing everything I need with me. This includes all my clothes and personal items, as well as laptops, small electronics (Vonage router, wireless router, iPods, Wii, Wii Fit, iPod speakers, voltage converters), a PC and LCD screen. I’ve already sold a lot of my stuff on Craigslist and eBay, and the rest of my stuff is being put in storage.
I’m flying Delta and they allow you to bring up to 10 bags per person, but once you go over the fifth bag, that rate increases substantially (Bags 3-5: $150ea, Bags 6-8: $300ea, Bags 9-10: $600ea) . I’ll probably try and bring no more than 5 bags and try to keep each one under Delta’s size and weight requirements, thus avoiding additional charges too (51-70 lbs: $80ea, 71-100 lbs: $150ea / 62-80 inches: $150 ea). Still at 3 extra bags, I’ll probably plan to pay at least $450 at the airport.
I’m bringing my electronics and computers because I’ve heard that these items are quite expensive in Argentina, so it makes sense to bring what you can with you. Being that my work is pretty much all based on the Internet too, I need to have all the same things I would have at home.
I have a flight back to the US scheduled for December, so I’m hoping that anything else I need can be picked up then.