UK gamer needs Essen help - DHL and Hermes Paketshops

[EYE of NiGHT]

Hello,

Sorry, I cannot speak, read or write Germnan, so I apologise for using English here.

I'm a regular visitor to Essen. I'm writing an Essen FAQ on BGG to encourage more people to go.

Usually I bring games back home in my suitcase. But this year I want to send games home by parcel. I know that I can use DHL at the Post Office but I have never tried them. And I've been told about Hermes Paketshop.

But I need some help from locals in Essen. This is your chance to help...

I need to know the correct locations of DHL offices. I have got conflicting info about which Post Offices are also DHL offices and which are just Paketstations. (Remember I cannot read German, so I cannot use the machines). If you live in Essen, can you please provide proper addresses for real DHL offices I can use?

I also need to know more about the Hermes Paketshops. What sort of places are they? They seem to be other businesses and they take parcels. Is that correct? How do you pay? Do you have to complete a form like for DHL? Will the staff in the Paketshop be able to speak English well?

I think there is a Paketshop on Girardetstrasse, which is where I am staying. Is this correct, will I be able to use that location easily? Is in the Girardethaus close to Ruttenscheidestrasse or is it farther away?

I need accurate advice please. Thank for you your time.

Cheers,
Jon.

[EYE of NiGHT]

Ha!

"Sorry, I cannot speak, read or write Germnan, so I apologise for using English here."

I meant German of course!

[Oliver K.]

Hi there,
since I´m not from Essen, just spend quite some time there I will try to answer your questions as good as I can.
DHL is doing all the larger parcel for the Deutsche Post since a few years ago, so you can actually use every Post Office to send out parcel by DHL Worldwide.
Essens Main Post Office is just opposite of the Main Station, the first building on the left, if you head down the Kettwiger Strasse, which is Essen shopping mile. There are of course a lot of smaller post offices all around town, but they may have weird opening hours, and I can't tell you exact locations without looking that up. The forms you need to fill up for an international Paket (by the way: Paket is always insured, a Päckchen is not - but these are 2 kg maximum anyway) should be German and English, I have not got one at hand right now, but I think I remember ;)

Packstations are fully automatic stations for receiving and sending parcel, they can be used 24 hours a day and have a German and English menu system. You need to have an EC bank card there to pay the parcel - and I am not quite sure if you have to be a registered Packstation user. I can at least look that up on my next visit.

Unfortunately I can't tell you anything about Hermes, because I only use DHL.
You should be able to find someone speaking English in any office where at least a few people are working, since anyone is learning it at school (what does not keep some of forgetting all about it ;)).

Hopefully this helps a bit.

Greetings,

Oliver

[SpieleHolger]

I would not recommend Hermes for your need although I use Hermes regularily. It's good and cheap if you are going to send small parcels (can be quite heavy). But I assume you will send a whole bunch of games ;-)

If you are sending via DHL/Deutsche Post be sure to ask for premium service (additional 7 EUR). Otherwise postings to Great Britain will not be insured. Only parcels within Germany are always insured.

Price will depend on weight: Up to 5 kg: 17 EUR (+7 EUR premium), up to 10 kg: 22 EUR + 9 EUR, up to 20 kg: 32 EUR + 13 EUR.

[Michel]

Hermes to UK (90 x 60 x 30, 25 Kgs, insured) 29,80.
A 10 Kgs package via DHL is more expensive.
Why your reservations against Hermes?

[Simon-spielbox]

Exactly: Hermes handles heavier parcels cheaper - only if you have a bigger size DHL is less expansive. Especially within Europe now Hermes offer a good service. And btw: their parcels are always insured!
Ciao,
Simon

Michel schrieb:
>
> Hermes to UK (90 x 60 x 30, 25 Kgs, insured) 29,80.
> A 10 Kgs package via DHL is more expensive.
> Why your reservations against Hermes?

[Thomas]

For pricing and shipping information, see english version of DHL product information webpage (UK belongs to "Zone 1 (EU)"):
http://www.dhl.de/dhl?tab=1&skin=hi&check=yes&lang=de_EN&xmlFile=3001057

and for information on Packstations, see: http://www.dhl.de/dhl?tab=1&skin=hi&check=yes&lang=de_EN&xmlFile=53008

[Richard Stubenvoll]

I can recommend HERMES absolutely.

a) much cheaper for heavy parcels (as games use to be)
b) always with insurance
c) DHL insurance I always had difficulties for sending abroad, with Hermes I never had difficulties.
d) Hermes has usually no queues to wait. Everything is fairly easy: Just enter the shop with your parcel. You do not even have to speak. The staff will know that you are sending a parcel. -- You will have to fill out a simple formular with the address and you pay in real cash
e) I always use hermes for sending inside EU with my small game company and never had made any bad experience. Even Poland works very fine :-)

Richard Stubenvoll
histogame

[Richard Stubenvoll]

p.s.:

DHL stops at 20 kg, while Hermes accepts 25 kg IIRC.

[Heinrich Glumpler]

Hi,

I could imagine Eye of Night would be interested to get an address in Essen:

You could use this search page:

http://www.hermespaketshop.de/f_paketshopfinder.html

In the Dialog

PLZ Ort Straße

just enter the Ort (place):

PLZ Essen Straße

and click GO

At the right side you'll see several Hermes shop addresses in Essen - I would assume that the shop in the "Bahnhofstr." is suitable.

(by the way - nice to meet you here EoN)

Regards
Heinrich

[Simon-spielbox]

I already (yesterday) uploaded a picture of the forms you have to fill out: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/image/239001 :)
Ciao,
Simon

Richard Stubenvoll schrieb:
>
> I can recommend HERMES absolutely.
>

[Simon-spielbox]

Jon hat mich gerade eben noch einmal gebeten speziell nach den genauen Orten der DHL-Filialen zu fragen.
Auf diese Frage hat er leider noch keine genaue Antwort bekommen - die DHL-Webseite hat er natürlich schon besucht aber ein anderer Poster auf BGG hat andere Adressangaben gepostet...

Von daher wenn es geht noch einmal eine Bestätigung von einem lokalen Essener.

Aber auf jeden Fall ein dickes Dankeschön von ihm, auch wenn er noch nicht geantwortet hat hat er doch alle Antworten gelesen (Traut sich nur nicht zu posten, mit seinem F in german :D )

Ciao,
Simon

[Oliver K.]

Essens main post office is impossible to miss if you follow my description in my first post ;)

[EYE of NiGHT]

Hello Everybody!

Thnak you for the advice so far. I do know the main PO in Essen (I haven't gone in at all).

Because I am staying near the show halls, it is not easy to carry a 20+kg parcel all the way to the main office. Also, I am trying to get information to help a lot of UK/US gamers who visit Essen. Our time in Essen is short and expensive. If we can work out the most efficient places to send big, insured, parcels from, we can spend more time inside the show and less time in the PO.

I know there is a PO on Alfredstrasse, but I'm not sure if they do DHL pakets. The DHL site does not show them, only Willy-Brandt-Platz 1 and Logonstrasse (and one other place).

And I think the actual PO near the station is not on Willy-Brandt-Platz but in the corner of hacherstrasse and Lindenallee. But I could be wrong of course!

So I want to know the proper locations that will help non-German speakers sned DHL parcels.

One answer above said that all Post Offices will take parcels for DHL. Maybe that is so, but why does the DHL website only list three, and not the PO on Alfredstrasse?

Anyway, thank you for helping, but I need more precise answers from an Essener.

Cheers,
Johann.

[bewitched]

Hi Jon,

it seems Hermes only sends to the EU, so for the US and Canada only dhl will work (see the other postings).

there is a Hermes Paketshop on Girardetstr. at the
Musikh. Rhein Ruhr
Girardetstr. 2-38
45131 Essen
Phone: 0201/8777555

It is open Mon-Fri 11am - 7pm, Sat 10am - 2pm.

Another one is at
Trinkhalle Gawdi
Caesar str. 16
45130 Essen
Phone: 0201/2465484

It is open Mon-Fri 6am - 8pm, Sat 8am - 1pm.

You can print the postage from the internet (saves you 1 EUR), click on "internationaler Versand", enter length, width, height of your box, click on "Paketschein erstellen" and enter your data (it might help to have sb who reads German around).

As for dhl:
The post office (with dhl service) next to Girardetstr is at 45130 Essen, Alfredstr. 38

They are open 9am-6pm on Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri, 9-2pm on Wed and 9-12.30 on Sat.

HOpe theis helps,
best,
Andrea