canadians shipping purchases home from Europe
 

heading to Europe in a few weeks, and have an idea that I woud like to buy Venetian glass for the special people in my life. My Mom did this on my parent"s first trip to Europe 35 years ago...so I am carrying on a tradition!
Wish my Mom was still here to tell me what she remembers about shipping, but in 35 years, things could be VERY different!
Reading the Canada Customs info, it states that you have to ask for a form E24 on arrival back to Canada, and you will have to pay the duy/taxes when the package is delivered, but then you submit this form to get them refunded. So far, so good.
Two things I am concerned about:
1) It says you have 40 days to claim the refund with the form. What if the package takes more than 40 days? Do they get to KEEP the duty/taxes cuz it took longer?
2)Venice is the first stop of our trip of 3.5 weeks. What if the package arrives BEFORE we even get home? Is that likely?
Where does it go when no one is home?

If anyone has recent experience with shipping from Italy, particularly with Venetian glass, I'd appreciate your experiences.
Thanks so much.

Hi T,

>What if the package arrives BEFORE we even get home?

I assume that you are going to have your glass shipped by the people from whom you bought it.

If so, have them delay shipping so that it will arrive after you get home.

((I))

Unlikely to get there much quicker than 3.5 weeks by Sea Mail i think

most shops i believe will ship for you so you could tell them to hold off shipping for a while

For your other questions contact Canadian Douanes and Postes Canada!

how do you know you get the same glass shipped that you bought?

Re: recent posting about tourist scams that are rife in Venice.

PalenqueBob,

Could you direct me to this thread? I searched under "tourist scams in Venice", and got one result titled, "is Italy worth the hassle?". I scanned through it fairly quickly, but didn't see anything other than the pickpocket/moneybelt type comments.
Has someone specifically received the incorrect glass?

No - glass was not mentioned by the article listed many scams on tourists - some very reprehensible like gouging tourists more than the menu price. One local guy said that ripping off tourists was a local tradition. I'll see if i can find it.

But i think if you can determine what a reputable shop is you'll have no worries - but there are loads of Venetian glass sellers there so do research

An option you might want to consider is to have an outfit such as Mail Boxes Etc. to ship your items home. I used this option last year to ship some small glass objects home. Mail Boxes Etc. did all the paperwork. Because they couldn't promise delivery within a certain timeframe, I shipped it to myself care of a friend's address. The package arrived about 10 days after I had already returned home and one of the glass roosters had a broken tail. It was almost half as expensive as the items cost originally to ship the items, but since Venice was the first stop of four cities I visited, it was better than risking all of the items being broken before I finished my trip.

MKE: do you remember the name of the company you did use? Did you pack the things yourself at their office, in a box you purchased from them? Why did you do this instead of letting the glass manufacturer send them? Are you Canadian? Did your friend who received them pay the duty and you were able to get a refund no problem?
Thanks.