spiceandsausageburglar Posted June 6, 2011 Report Share Posted June 6, 2011 Hey peeps, Any advice for moving stuff from Toronto to Calgary? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vdoon Posted June 6, 2011 Report Share Posted June 6, 2011 I'm looking at making nearly the opposite move, but I've done a little looking into this. A UHaul is expensive (Edmonton->Kingston was ~$3300, +Gas and time). PODS is similarly expensive, though you don't need to drive (If you're not familiar, they drop off a storage unit in front of your house, you fill it up, then they drop it off at your new place, saving you the driving. Costs about the same, and takes about a week for it to arrive). What I've settled on it moving out to Kingston, and buying the large stuff there. It will cost about the same as moving it. For small furniture I'll just troll Kijiji etc. I'm going to take everything that I can on the plane, and ship the largish stuff (small applicances, computer, monitors, bike) via Canada Post. If anyone knows of a better way, I'd love to hear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
astrogirl Posted June 6, 2011 Report Share Posted June 6, 2011 I just moved from Halifax back to my parents' place in southern Alberta, and it was going to be more expensive to ship all my furniture (some of which was crappy and broken) than to buy new furniture once I get to Calgary. So I gave the furniture away to some crazy guy with a truck I found on Kijiji who called himself MacGiver, and shipped the rest with UPS. It was like $600 and I had about 30 boxes. When I move up to Calgary next month, I'm just going to rent a cargo van from Enterprise. It's cheaper than a U-Haul and they give you unlimited mileage if you're staying in the same province. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starling Posted June 6, 2011 Report Share Posted June 6, 2011 This isn't Toronto-specific, but for anyone who is moving smaller stuff, I've used Greyhound before and found they were pretty cheap and speedy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jordynbreanne Posted June 7, 2011 Report Share Posted June 7, 2011 Burglar, my husband and I are in the same situation as you, only we're making the move from Ottawa to Calgary. Vdoon is right, PODS and Uhaul are unnecessarily expensive ($4500 and $3500 respectively, were the quotes they gave us). Greyhound has limitations on size and weight, as well as value. For example, they wouldn't move a queen sized mattress. Also, I wouldn't trust them with anything semi-breakable. We have decided to go with a moving company, Mid-West Moving, based out of AB. I got quotes on a bunch of similar units, and they all gave us a similar price, so I'm sure you could go with another one too (Troy Moving looked good as well). They load/drive/store/insure/unload everything for you, and they charge you based on weight. Their estimate for a single bachelor apartment was around $1500. Anyways, despite the convenience of not having to actually drive yourself, its a much more affordable option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lew Posted June 9, 2011 Report Share Posted June 9, 2011 I moved from Ontario to Calgary. Honestly, I sold all of my furniture and re-bought new here. I packed my car (and I mean paacckkkeedd it-there was not an inch of free space-books under the seats, socks stuffed in glove compartment), and then I shopped some stuff via Grey Hound (they are pretty cheap and qutie quick). If you are moving furniture though... I don't know what to tell you:S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LostLamb Posted June 9, 2011 Report Share Posted June 9, 2011 I moved from Ontario to Calgary. Honestly, I sold all of my furniture and re-bought new here. I packed my car (and I mean paacckkkeedd it-there was not an inch of free space-books under the seats, socks stuffed in glove compartment), and then I shopped some stuff via Grey Hound (they are pretty cheap and qutie quick). If you are moving furniture though... I don't know what to tell you:S HAHAHAHA i did exactly the same thing when I moved from Ontario. It was just more practical and realistic to buy new here. Over time, as I've gone back and forth between AB<-->ON I would bring extra things with me on the plane. I really miss the 'free' second bag allowance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawsea Posted June 9, 2011 Report Share Posted June 9, 2011 I haven't tried it yet, but I'm probably going to use Global Pack n Ship Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vitaminD Posted June 11, 2011 Report Share Posted June 11, 2011 I recently moved all my stuff from scarborough to calgary and I found Greyhound by far the cheapest (<$400). other than a few crushed corners in my cardboard boxes, nothing was damaged. I would recommend shipping at least some of your stuff (not easily damaged) this way. http://www.shipgreyhound.ca/scripts/en/quotes/home.asp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
md2be Posted June 14, 2011 Report Share Posted June 14, 2011 I also moved from Toronto to Calgary and used a moving company, because I wanted to move some small pieces of furniture + about 10 small boxes. I used Across Canada Van Lines (1-877-890-5558, http://www.acrosscanadamoving.com) - they were great! Great service, nothing damaged, pick-up and drop-off on time. Total cost was $525. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiceandsausageburglar Posted June 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2011 A friend of mine who also moved from Toronto to Calgary just informed me that Canada Post can be quite affordable. Granted they don't find a loophole to continue striking, I will be using this method. 1) Sell off/give away as much of the big stuff (furniture, electronics, etc.) 2) Sign up for a ventureone account from Canada Post (small business) - entitles you for 10% off everything 3) Pack your belongings in boxes and prepay for the labels before you move. Once in Calgary, have a friend/family member send it over. My friend didn't specify the dimensions but he said that a large box cost $30-$40 and that he could pack alot of stuff into it. He's a pretty strong guy and he said the boxes were pretty heavy. He shipped 10-12 boxes for $300 which is not bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mavrik13 Posted June 28, 2011 Report Share Posted June 28, 2011 When I went from Toronto to Halifax, I found Canada Post was by far the cheapest. They do have a weight and size restriction on boxes, but it was pretty generous. I didn't ship furniture (it will be worth your time and money to sell and rebuy), but shipped things like my desktop computer, electric guitar, all my clothes, other random stuff - it all arrived safe and sound. I don't have specifics, but I know of someone who shipped a mattress accross the country via train - don't know how, but I guess that was the cheapest option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiceandsausageburglar Posted June 29, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2011 shipped things like my desktop computer, electric guitar, all my clothes, other random stuff - it all arrived safe and sound. Can you please elaborate on how you shipped your electric guitar? I have an acoustic guitar I wanted to ship but wasn't sure how to package it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnb88 Posted June 29, 2011 Report Share Posted June 29, 2011 I'm going to be doing the opposite move and this is what I'm planning (I'm loading up my car and driving it there)- -leaving most furniture here (I love my desk though, and haven't seen one like it since I bought it, so I'm taking it apart (it's an IKEA desk) and taking it with me. -putting my clothes in vacuum bags/space savers. Yeah it still weighs the same, but takes up SO much less room -leaving most of my breakables here (I should mention that I live at home, so leaving things to bring back later works perfectly!) -packing my skating clothes as above. Competition dresses will just be in the dress bag that fits in my skate bag -packing blankets/pillows in the vacuum/space saver bags as well Still unsure how to pack my jewellery (or at least some of it), my skates (these babies can't get squished!!), and other little things I want to bring. I'm hoping that if I save enough room using the vacuum/space saver bags, I'll be able to bring another piece of furniture (like my nighttable or somehthing). If not, no huge deal. I'll buy a new bed/frame, a futon, and then check out kijiji for most of the rest. Because of westjet's new bag policy, I think it would work out much cheaper for me to drive it over than to fly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oly Posted June 30, 2011 Report Share Posted June 30, 2011 I'm going to be doing the opposite move and this is what -putting my clothes in vacuum bags/space savers. Yeah it still weighs the same, but takes up SO much less room Never heard of that, so I looked it up, it's brilliant, I'm sold. Thank you. For those that don't know: https://www.spacebag.com/15/Index.dtm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiceandsausageburglar Posted June 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2011 I didn't know what those were b4 either and when I saw it...it actually blew my mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnb88 Posted June 30, 2011 Report Share Posted June 30, 2011 I know! They are awesome! My mom and I initially figured it was a gimmick, but we had a lot of blankets and comforters taking up a ton of space, saw them on sale, so we decided to give it a shot. And we were totally surprised! It works! Really well! This was a few years ago, and they are still working well! (except for the one, but that's because when we were moving stuff around it got poked by something really sharp- so watch sharp corners). Just be careful when you "zip" it shut. I don't think you could use it for travelling overly well (that used to be one of their selling points years ago)... I mean, if you open it in Mexico (for example), you'd have to bring a vacuum bag (or ask Consuela for hers, but.... ). It's great for moving and storing though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnb88 Posted July 3, 2011 Report Share Posted July 3, 2011 Just an update for those of you making a big move: dollarama has a Space Bag/vacuum bag equivalent for $1.25 or $2 each. So far it seems to be pretty comparable to the more expensive "Space Bag". I'm testing it out to see how long the air stays intact, and if it's good for a week (or expands before the week is up) I'll let you guys know. In the smallest size one dollarama has I packed my winter coat, a blanket, the faux fur hood liner thingy from my winter coat, 6 wool sweaters, and 2 long sleeved shirts (I figured even in AB I probably wouldn't need any of that before I moved). So it really fits a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiceandsausageburglar Posted July 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 4, 2011 I'd love to save a few bucks so do keep us posted! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnb88 Posted July 10, 2011 Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 I'd love to save a few bucks so do keep us posted! So, it's been almost a week and the cheaper dollarama one is holding up awesomely. Hasn't let any air in (from what I can tell). The space bags do come in larger sizes (so it might be better for quilts). So I'm keeping the ones I bought but instead of buying more Space Bags, I'll probably go get dollarama ones. Price breakdown: 2 extra-large cube Space bags: $14 3 large Space bags: $12 Dollarama size (this is the size I tested out above): $1.25 Dollarama extra-large (probably equivalent to the Space Bag "large"): $2 So you get twice as many dollarama ones... So even if one is faulty, you're still doing ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myselfstorage115 Posted September 24, 2013 Report Share Posted September 24, 2013 My Self Storgae has been providing self storage solutions for individuals and businesses within toronto and GTA area since 1994.We offer an unmatched Self Storage Selection of storage units from 6 to 600 square feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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