There are land, air, and sea connections between Europe and China. Shipping via sea is the most economical, but it takes the longest. Other factors also speak in favor of this mode of transport of goods, such as there are no dimensional limitations on board ships; you can accommodate any number of products, and the transport itself is safer than the other alternatives. Sourcing from China consists of several stages: picking up goods from the warehouse, shipping by sea from China, customs clearance, and land delivery in Europe. See how long it takes to transport goods via ship from China.
Ship from China – modes, ports, transit times, costs, routes
Sea freight from China – what are the shipping modes?
Loads of traditional maritime transport are divided into:
- Less than Container Load (LCL), space in one container is shared between many shippers
- Full Container Load (FCL), a whole container is used only by one shipper.
Specially designed ships are used for oversized transport (eg, wind farms, machines). It is categorized into:
- loose load (aggregates, coal, grains) – with bulk carriers
- liquid load – using tankers
- rolling load (cars, trucks) – Ro-ro ships are used
A ship from China – main ports for transport between Europe and China
Europe has many ports. Most goods are transhipped in five major container ports: Antwerp (Belgium), Felixstowe (United Kingdom), Hamburg (Germany), Le Havre (France), and Rotterdam (the Netherlands).
It is also popular to ship cargo from China to Aarhus, Alesund, Amsterdam, Arkhangelsk, Belfast, Bergen, Bilbao, Bremerhaven, Bristol, Dublin, Dunkirk, Gavle, Gdańsk, Gdynia, Gothenburg, Helsingborg, Helsinki, Kaliningrad, Kotka, Copenhagen, Kristiansand, Liverpool, Odessa, Oslo, Tallinn, and also Palmas.
How long does sea freight from China take?
From loading cargo on a ship in China, it takes 4-6 weeks to reach the destination port in Europe. It is difficult to say exactly how long the sea shipping from China to Europe will take. Speed-up of the process is possible when using the services of forwarding companies. They maintain contacts with Chinese customs agencies to complete the formalities faster.
Quality control during container loading, loading the ship in China, and unloading at the destination port all take time. Sometimes you also need to take into account port-to-door transport.
Sea freight vs rail transport from China
If you want to ship cargo from China to Europe faster, but don’t have the means for air freight, take rail freight into consideration. Even though shipping via rail is more expensive than sea freight, the transit time makes up for it. For example, a container from the port of Shanghai to Gdańsk travels by sea usually for 35 days. For comparison, rail transport from China to Europe takes up to 20 days.
Estimated transit times by port
Estimated transit time between selected ports:
| Ports | Le Havre | Felixstowe | Antwerp | Rotterdam | Bremerhaven | Hamburg | Gdansk |
| Dalian | 32 | 34 | 41 | 32 | 36 | 34 | 47 |
| Tianjin | 32 | 35 | 41 | 33 | 37 | 37 | 48 |
| Qingdao | 30 | 30 | 39 | 31 | 31 | 29 | 36 |
| Shanghai | 30 | 32 | 32 | 27 | 28 | 30 | 35 |
| Ningbo | 32 | 26 | 30 | 28 | 30 | 28 | 37 |
| Xiamen | 26 | 30 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 27 | 44 |
| Guangzhou | 26 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 29 | 28 | 44 |
| Shenzhen | 22 | 22 | 26 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 34 |
Door-to-door vs port-to-port transit time
The delivery time described in the table above is transit time, meaning the time it takes to transport cargo from port to port. When importing from China, it is necessary to take into account the door-to-door transport, ie, the time the shipment needs to reach the recipient from the Chinese supplier. It can lead to days’ worth of delay, because there are additional procedures that need to take place. All factors cause the entire door-to-door process to be extended by an extra 5-7 days.
Cost of sea freight from China
Sea freight is the cheapest option when transporting goods to and from China. However, freight rates change constantly, taking into account factors such as the cost of fuel, other fees, and the global market situation. The transportation cost depends on the volume of cargo, distance, duties, taxes, insurances, handling fees, etc. Even the dollar exchange rate influences the cost of sea transport.
You don’t have to keep guessing shipping costs. To get free shipping quotes, send an inquiry via ShipHub.co and pick the best freight forwarder to ship your cargo.
Shipping from China via the Suez Canal to Europe and the Panama Canal to the US
The traditional maritime route between China and Europe runs through the South China Sea, the Malacca Strait, the waters of the Indian Ocean, and the Suez Canal. This route from China usually takes 28-45 days. When it comes to shipping from China (or Asia, for that matter) to the American continents, the Panama Canal is important. Here’s the comparison of the Panama and Suez Canals.
| Feature | Panama Canal | Suez Canal |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Atlantic → Pacific Oceans, connecting the US West Coast to the Caribbean and the Pacific | Mediterranean → Red Sea, connecting Europe and Asia |
| Average vessel capacity | ~4,600 TEU (Pre-expansion) to ~14,000 TEU (Post-expansion) | 7,800 TEU average capacity, larger vessels can pass |
| Primary routes | 25–30 days to Europe via the Suez Canal | China to Europe (via Mediterranean) |
| Global trade impact | Handles about 5% of global trade | Handles about 12% of global trade |
| Typical transit time (from China) | 20-25 days | 28–45 days |
| Strategic importance | Shortens trips between East Asia and the US East Coast, reducing time compared to Cape Horn | Primary route for China-Europe trade, vital for global shipping |
Ship from China – to sum up
The transport of goods by sea is undoubtedly one of the cheapest forms of transportation. Usually, it takes 30-33 days to ship from China to Europe by sea. If you want to ship low-cost, choose sea freight, but if time is of the essence, choose rail freight or air freight.
