Ordering off Aliexpress? Advice?

airborne said:
By that do you mean pop into your local PO once very 2 weeks or so?
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I'd rather not. Last time I was at our PO, and it is one of the better run ones, I heard them tell a guy to check 17track because they don't know where his parcel is.
So unless you have a parcel number that they SMS'd you or you have the tracking number from 17track and it shows it is at your local PO - there is not much you can do.

My recently dealings with Aliexpress has been favourable and I think I will be buying more there. Delivery time is acceptable - in my neck of the woods at least.
 
HI Folks. Is there a post on here which delineates the entire BEST STEP BY STEP process of ordering off AliExpress. A kind of HOW TO that is up to date. Reading through the pages of history here doesn't inspire confidence, and I don't see any consolidated post? Happy to be told to Get Lost too...
 
WholesomeGuy said:
HI Folks. Is there a post on here which delineates the entire BEST STEP BY STEP process of ordering off AliExpress. A kind of HOW TO that is up to date. Reading through the pages of history here doesn't inspire confidence, and I don't see any consolidated post? Happy to be told to Get Lost too...
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Just order from them using your street address and you should be fine. In general the post officed have upped their game.
 
Rouxenator said:
I'd rather not. Last time I was at our PO, and it is one of the better run ones, I heard them tell a guy to check 17track because they don't know where his parcel is.
So unless you have a parcel number that they SMS'd you or you have the tracking number from 17track and it shows it is at your local PO - there is not much you can do.

My recently dealings with Aliexpress has been favourable and I think I will be buying more there. Delivery time is acceptable - in my neck of the woods at least.
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Ok by check regularly you mean check online tracking to see if it’s at the PO ready for collection?
 
Rouxenator said:
Just order from them using your street address and you should be fine. In general the post officed have upped their game.
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But no one should be ordering from now till end of December because parcel delivery over the Xmas period is a total sht show, that’s what ai learnt the hard way back when I ordered last from China.
 
Rouxenator said:
I'd rather not. Last time I was at our PO, and it is one of the better run ones, I heard them tell a guy to check 17track because they don't know where his parcel is.
So unless you have a parcel number that they SMS'd you or you have the tracking number from 17track and it shows it is at your local PO - there is not much you can do.

My recently dealings with Aliexpress has been favourable and I think I will be buying more there. Delivery time is acceptable - in my neck of the woods at least.
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Mostly correct, but there is this other issue. I have a tracking code, that only goes up to "reach destination country". With this, I have no idea where it is. Guy at PO said, only way is to wait for that little paper that they deliver at your street address to let you know there is a package.

Like yours, this is one of the better PO out there, also telling people to use 17track. So I asked him, but these papers never arrive at my house, for my last car license disc, I waited 3 months. He then mentioned, they only have 2 delivery guys for both my PO and another PO!

The next work around for that issue, he mentioned, I can go to the depot right behind the PO I have, ask for the manager and then ask for all mail that is waiting to go to our house address. Only open on weekdays, not weekends like the PO itself.

Haven't done that bit yet, but I should because I do have a package that is waiting.
 
Bought from AliExpress on 23/10/2023. Received a Whatsapp today from MailAmericas to say that I must fetch my parcel from the post office. They even supplied the post office location.
 
I see manu items on AliExpress now offers this as the cheapest shipping option with Tracking Unavailable. I assume its the option that goes to SAPO. Question is, do they not provide a tracking number of any sorts with this option?
The more exensive options are obviously the courier company options but with fees x10 that of the cheapest.
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The tracking unavailable put me off for the longest time, until there was an item I really wanted and could not find elsewhere so cheaply. I took a chance and I see I got full tracking. A second order also through the Post Office with full tracking. 3rd and 4th orders on the way with tracking - despite the option always having shown as tracking unavailable for all these orders. (R950, R750, R450, R430 each including shipping).

Once my HA..ZA tracking number arrived at linehaul office I started monitoring https://trackingnew.postoffice.co.za/?ParcelId=HA...ZA and it was usually a week or so until it picked up the items, the Aliexpress tracking was less detailed after line haul office. I never did receive any SMS from the post office, I checked tracking daily and once the tracking said first notification I went to the Post Office with a print out - Aliexpress app also updated with the notification that it was ready for collection.

I have yet to try the super low value item with low shipping, and when you add a second of the item the shipping steps steeply to over R100, with smaller steps on further items. I do wonder if that first cheap item is not tracked.


Update: 3rd order received 26 days, 19 days in SA, paying R100 at the Post Office on R450 shipped.
 
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Annoyingly my latest order (on B/F 2023) tracking remains on

In Transit2023/12/2010:12 AMJIMC C AIR, PRIORITY PARCELSDispatched

whilst AliExpress as notified me the my package is ready to pick up. For the previous 3 orders I only received this notification when it is at the local delivery office (and passed via Durban Speed services after JIMC)

Example of previous tracking after JIMC when also received ALI notification :
At Office2023/12/1212:26 PMPHOENIXFirst Notification to recipient
At Office2023/12/1212:22 PMPHOENIXIn Delivery Office
In Transit2023/12/111:06 PMDURBAN SPEED SERVICESReceive item at delivery office (Inb)

I know it has been an handful of working days for most since the 20th , and I would have expected delays over the break, but Aliexpress notification throws me off.
 
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Vis1/0N said:
Annoyingly my latest order (on B/F 2023) tracking remains on

In Transit2023/12/2010:12 AMJIMC C AIR, PRIORITY PARCELSDispatched

whilst AliExpress as notified me the my package is ready to pick up. For the previous 3 orders I only received this notification when it is at the local delivery office (and passed via Durban Speed services after JIMC)
At Office2023/12/1212:26 PMPHOENIXFirst Notification to recipient
At Office2023/12/1212:22 PMPHOENIXIn Delivery Office
In Transit2023/12/111:06 PMDURBAN SPEED SERVICESReceive item at delivery office (Inb)

I know it has been an handful of working days for most since the 20th , and I would have expected delays over the break, but Aliexpress notification throws me off.
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Did you ask the Phoenix office if parcel is there?
 
Don't see myself having much luck turning up at a Post Office serving a huge footprint and asking them to look for an item that has never been tracked to them. Having said that I am not sure if they even do any mail deliveries anymore and maybe parcels are all they have for the few that end up using their services.

Wonder if Unisa uses them these days, study packs will keep them busy.

Never did receive an SMS notification from this Post Office in all these years either. I note that they do have a written register in which they also include the cellphone numbers with cleaner handwriting and they also highlight it on the packages.
 
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Not bad - although the SARS team is hard at work again and slapped me with R280 taxes+duty on the CPUs.
IO shield was normal R38 handling fee - which brings the total cost to just over R200 - folks, don't loose the g.damn IO shields!
 
Vis1/0N said:
Annoyingly my latest order (on B/F 2023) tracking remains on

In Transit2023/12/2010:12 AMJIMC C AIR, PRIORITY PARCELSDispatched

whilst AliExpress as notified me the my package is ready to pick up.
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https://trackingnew.postoffice.co.za, https://packageradar.com/courier/cainiao/tracking/, and track17.net, and the Alixpress app tracking all don't show any tracking past the 20th Dec.

I found https://www.ordertracker.com/track/ that shows movement 23rd Dec, 05th Jan and 08th Jan to Durban speed services - it is more up to date than the postoffice website!
 
Vis1/0N said:
https://trackingnew.postoffice.co.za, https://packageradar.com/courier/cainiao/tracking/, and track17.net, and the Alixpress app tracking all don't show any tracking past the 20th Dec.

I found https://www.ordertracker.com/track/ that shows movement 23rd Dec, 05th Jan and 08th Jan to Durban speed services - it is more up to date than the postoffice website!
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It can be yes. The PO's own website will show JIMC inbound, then sometimes nothing after that and also skip a bunch of stuff inbetween. I usually see these in-between items on https://globaltracktrace.ptc.post/gtt.web/

Its possible ordertracker like parcelsapp etc use that in combination with a bunch of other trackers. I rarely find myself watching the PO's website at all. Its more down than than not sometimes.
 
Noted that Jet Park Speed Services now handles the parcels....what happened to JIMC?
 
Got 1 parcel that is R1200 or R1400 in fees (Didn't understand the lady properly when she called).
The highest I ever paid was R700 so freaking out a bit....none of the items parcels i'am expecting was over R1500 and ali also declare a lower value.....
 
Any way to order off Ali and have Aramex GS do the shipping? Aramex will charge me about R2,000 whereas the standard delivery is R9,000 and DHL is R27,000.
 
Mirai said:
Any way to order off Ali and have Aramex GS do the shipping? Aramex will charge me about R2,000 whereas the standard delivery is R9,000 and DHL is R27,000.
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If its a big item rather try alibaba. They usually have more shipping options.
 
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