What are the best couriers and methods for shipping spirits bottles internationally to markets like Malta and East Africa?

Members have successfully shipped bottles internationally using parcel and freight services. Here's what the community recommends:

**Parcel couriers:** - **UPS** — used for sample bottles to Malta with commercial invoices marking goods as samples; arrived safely and without delay. Members suggest checking UPS pricing for individual shipments. - **DHL** — confirmed to work well for samples to East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe); multiple members report successful delivery.

**Sea freight:** - **Wine Flow** — recommended for pallet shipments to East Africa; one member sent a pallet as part of a consignment that worked well.

**Shipping approach:** For samples, add commercial invoices to parcels clearly noting the goods as samples. For larger shipments, sea freight via consolidators like Wine Flow is a viable option, though members note it can be harder to find reliable pallet options to some regions.

**Caveat:** Members are still actively seeking good sea freight pallet solutions to East Africa, suggesting this route remains less straightforward than parcel options and may require more legwork to source reliable providers.