OBO’s Valparaíso gateway supports seasonal arrivals from Australia, return shipments to Australia and longer overland journeys through the Americas.
Use Valparaíso to:
Collect and return your motorcycle for a South America loop.
Ride north to OBO’s Cartagena connection.
Continue through Central America towards OBO’s Seattle gateway.
Locations
Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport (Santiago’s International Airport).
Pajaritos Terminal: Major public transport hub with a subway station and bus connections between the airport and Valparaíso.
Plaza Wheelwright: Valparaíso meeting point. The historic building at the meeting point is the Customs Office (Aduana).
Terminal depot: Secure depot where motorcycles are stored, 15 minutes from the meeting point.
Import and motorcycle collection
Owner presence
Since December 2025, the registered owner must be present for the temporary import process.
A Letter of Authority can no longer be used in place of the owner.
Until the owner completes the TIP, the motorcycle must remain within the Customs-controlled terminal depot process.
Before December 2025, a Letter of Authority could be used to complete the import process, move motorcycles to better-value storage or arrange trucking to Punta Arenas before owners arrived.
OBO’s local agent has a long-term relationship with the terminal depot and has cleared hundreds of European riders’ motorcycles there over many years.
Import storage
First 14 days after container unpacking: Free.
After 14 days: US$15 plus 19% Chilean VAT - approximately AU$26 per motorcycle, per day.
Day one of the storage period is the day the container is unpacked.
Given the available alternatives, the two-week free period is an exceptional arrangement and is used as the buffer period in the shipment schedule.
Collection timing
Allow approximately three business days after vessel arrival for container discharge, transfer and unpacking.
Collection is normally planned 12 to 14 days after unpacking, using the free-storage period as the schedule buffer.
Because each owner must attend, OBO selects timing expected to suit the majority of riders.
Motorcycle collections are planned for Monday, Wednesday and Friday, with a maximum of 15 riders per day and the aim of everyone being on the road by noon. If demand requires it, OBO and the local agent may add Tuesday or Thursday collection days.
Collection process
Meet the local agent at Plaza Wheelwright at 9 am.
Square away the Customs documents.
Travel together to the terminal depot for the Customs inspection and motorcycle collection.
Export handover
OBO’s local agent can manage export for motorcycles on the owner’s behalf.
The Chilean TIP must still be valid when the motorcycle is delivered.
The motorcycle must be delivered cleaned and ready for Australia’s biosecurity inspection. Cleanliness is also required for terminal-depot acceptance.
Delivery, loading, terminal closing and sailing dates are confirmed for each shipment.
Export and longer-term storage
OBO’s private storage arrangement can still be used for export because the owner-presence requirement does not apply to export.
Terminal storage before export: Final 14 days before container packing are free.
Private storage in Quilpué: US$100 per month, or pro rata.
Transfer from Quilpué to the terminal depot: US$75 per motorcycle.
Professional export cleaning: CLP50,000 per motorcycle.
Cleaning includes trailer transport to and from the private storage.
Quilpué storage cannot be used to avoid the inbound owner-presence requirement.
June 2027 working example
For the June 2027 Valparaíso return shipment, working backwards from vessel departure:
Vessel departure: Thursday 10 June 2027.
Container loading: Friday 4 June 2027, but it could be Monday 7 June 2027.
Motorcycle delivery deadline: Wednesday 2 June 2027.
Assumed free terminal-storage period begins: Monday 24 May 2027.
For riders using Quilpué storage, final entry into Chile should be after 1 March 2027 so the three-month TIP remains valid when the motorcycle is delivered to the depot.
These dates demonstrate how the schedule works backwards from the vessel departure. Final dates published for the individual shipment always take precedence.
Breaking up your journey
Chile’s motorcycle TIP is valid for three months. The three-month period resets when the motorcycle leaves and re-enters Chile.
Argentina: Eight-month TIPs have been available at some crossings since January 2024.
Uruguay: A common South American overlander base with a 12-month TIP.
Riders bound for North America can pause their journey using Customs-bonded storage in Panama.
Connections
Australia ⇄ Chile
Ride window: Four months, from the end of January to the end of May.
The timing is designed for February in Patagonia, March riding north, and April and May around north-west Argentina, Chile’s Atacama, the Bolivian Altiplano and the Peruvian Andes after peak wet season.
Australia → Chile → Colombia
Ride window: Seven months, from the end of January to the end of August, finishing with OBO’s Cartagena connection for export from Colombia.
Australia → Chile → USA
Ride window: Eight and a half months, from the end of January to mid-October, connecting with OBO’s October return shipment from Seattle.
OBO recommends Customs-bonded storage in Panama to pause the journey and align the North American leg with better riding seasons.
Colombia-Panama connection
Colombia’s motorcycle TIP is valid for three months. Panama’s motorcycle TIP is valid for 30 days. There is no continuous road through the Darién Gap, so the motorcycle must travel separately between Colombia and Panama.
Air freight from Bogotá: Budget US$1,600 for the all-inclusive connection.
Container-share sea freight from Cartagena.
Customs-bonded storage near Tocumen: US$100 per month.
The rider can fly home from Bogotá after delivering their motorcycle, then resume their journey from Panama City whenever they are ready.
RETURN TO MOTORCYCLE SHIPPING