living without a permanent address can have its drawbacks. receiving mail while traveling full time is one of those inconveniences. It’s not always easy to receive packages on the go, but in this video and post, we’ll explain the best ways we’ve found to receive mail on the go.
note: some of these tips work only in the united states!
packages are a pain
While receiving letters is fairly simple (more on that shortly), receiving packages while traveling has proven to be quite difficult. in the last two years, we’ve had packages lost, returned to sender, sent to the wrong address, and even had a package shipped three different times for the same item (we ended up with two of those items after all was said and done) ! In short, it has not been an easy transition. however, we have found a few ways that work most of the time.
amazon prime and amazon lockers
by far, amazon prime 2-day shipping combined with new amazon locker locations has been the easiest and most reliable way to get packages. To use Amazon Lockers, simply find the nearest locker location and select it as your shipping address when you check out. once the item arrives, it will be kept in the locker for up to 3 days. all you have to do is scan the barcode on the locker and a door will open with your package.
Click here to learn more about Amazon Lockers.
While you don’t need to have Amazon Prime to use Amazon Lockers, having guaranteed 2-day shipping on most items makes the whole process easier, especially if you won’t be in the same place for a long time. you can pay for the prime membership annually for $99 or monthly for $12.99, which isn’t a bad deal for the benefits that come with it.
There are two main drawbacks to using amazon lockers. First, it only works for items ordered on Amazon, which limits a lot of the packages we need to ship. second, amazon lockers are fairly new, so they’re not in every city yet. there are lockers in most major cities, but we have come across some states where there are no lockers in the entire state. so while it’s a reliable way to receive mail on the go, you may be limited in where it’s available.
USPS GENERAL DELIVERY SERVICE
For packages that are not shipped from Amazon or for those areas that do not yet have Amazon lockers, the second best option for getting packages on the go is through USPS General Delivery. To use the USPS General Delivery service, simply put the General Delivery at the top of the address (above your name) and use the Post Office address as the delivery address. the post office will hold your package for up to 5 business days for you to pick it up.
sounds simple, right? well, not so fast…
the main problem we have found with usps general delivery service is that some postmasters are reluctant to hold packages for you, specifically if they were originally delivered via ups or fedex. the post office is supposed to hold onto them no matter what, but in our experience that’s not always the case. In addition, we have found that many postal workers simply do not know about the service and therefore packages sometimes get lost. We recommend that you call the post office before sending a package to make sure they accept packages for general delivery. after calling to make sure they understand the process, we haven’t had any major issues receiving packages during the trip.
ASK FRIENDS AND FAMILY TO ACCEPT PACKAGES
The third option for receiving packages while traveling is to ask a friend or family member to accept the package for you so you can pick it up. Of course, this only works if you have friends or family in the area you’re traveling in, but we’ve found it to be a great option for those packages that are most important to us. Using social media, we have been able to find someone willing to accept a package on our behalf almost everywhere. we’ve met some great new friends that way too! “Hey, would you mind accepting this package for me? by the way… it’s 45 pounds. Thanks!” <<true story, ha!
receive mail while traveling
While packages are a big challenge, receiving paper mail like letters and checks on the go is pretty simple. We use Traveling Mailbox’s virtual mailbox service to receive all of our paper mail. From holiday cards to checks and bills, their service makes it easy to receive mail on the go.
The service gives you your own address where mail can be sent. once the mail is received at your location, they scan the envelope and send you an email letting you know you’ve received new mail. you can then choose to open and scan it, forward it to an address of your choosing, hold it for another time, or shred it and delete it. You can even have trip mailbox deposit checks in your bank account in your name.
Click here for more information on the Travel Mailbox.
This service has been a lifesaver for us and has made it very easy to handle mail on the go. We also use it as our permanent mailing address for government documents, although it cannot be used as a physical address (similar to a post office box).
TWO METHODS PROVEN TO NOT WORK
There are two other ways we have tried to receive packages while traveling: fedex and ups general delivery. both have been unsuccessful.
While ups actually gets the package to where it’s supposed to be, the service is pretty limited. You must ship the package to a UPS center, which is essentially your distribution center office. these centers have very limited hours, generally only open to the public 1-2 hours per day, and hours vary greatly from center to center. Alternatively, you can ship them to a UPS store; However, a UPS store is independently owned and will charge a fee to accept a package for you. These fees typically range from $5 to $15, but they can (and do) make up for you on the spot.
We are 0 for 3 in receiving fedex packages using their general delivery service. every time we try to use this service, we call to confirm the address to ship to and make sure they accept blanket delivery. after confirming, all three times finished returned to sender.
Both of these methods also require you to know in advance which method the sender is sending the packet. When you order from a store, they often don’t know which method they’ll use until after they’ve placed the order. so these two methods are very limited in how you can use them anyway, so we don’t recommend it.
receive mail while traveling full time
Because we’re a moving target, it can be a challenge to receive mail while traveling full-time. after testing many different methods over the last 2.5 years, we have found these ways to be the most reliable and successful for receiving packets. If you’re traveling full-time in the US, let us know in the comments how you’ve found it to be the best way to get mail on the go.