Hi there. I will be traveling back to the States soon, and I'd like to bring several dozen Kunming flowers back for my girlfriend (she lived here for a while). I'm looking for a few pieces of information:
- Do you know where I could buy excellent quality flowers, i.e. roses with very large petals, no wilting, etc.? Most of the roses that I see around here have smaller petals than what I usually see in the US.
- Have you ever traveled with cut flowers? Are there special flower boxes suitable for taking on an airplane that will help protect them? Anything else I should know about traveling with flowers?
My email is jeff17033@gmail.com . Thanks for any help you can give me!
Jeff
Importation of fresh fruits, vegetables, flowers, meat, fish, wood products or just about anything else farm related is regulated heavily by the USDA. Just saying you were in a rural area can bring you extra scrutiny and inspection.You can always apply for a permit if it's really important, but I wouldn't try sliding something by them. The fines for trying to slip something in are very substantial(think of the range in thousands of dollars!).
Check out USDA for more info. www.aphis.usda.gov/[...]
Hi DaMiao. Thanks for the warning! I've checked out their guidelines on cut flowers here: www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/permits/cutflowers.shtml . The USDA treats cut flowers pretty leniently, which is good news for me. When I'm wondering is if anyone has experience with either good local florists, or how to package flowers well for travel. Thanks!
Thanx for the updated info!
They were really harsh to a few of my fellow travelers last time we passed through customs.
I think roses are likely to look pretty beat up, even if boxed, after 15 plus hours of transit plus a couple airplane changes. Consider taking some Kunming lilies. They are more durable, especially if you buy some that are not fully opened yet.
Large flower market here:
maps.google.com/[...]
It's right next to the Suning Store (苏宁电器) which is marker A on the map. Not far from Green Land Hotel, south of Tuodong Lu in the triangle formed by it,Chuncheng Lu and Huancheng Nanlu.
Or use this search string in Google maps: 苏宁电器云南省昆明市官渡区岔街1号 if the above link is not clear.
I'm sure there are other equally good flower markets, some of which may be more convenient for you. This one has a better selection than the 花鸟市场 off 东风西路。
Please post your experience, if you get a chance. Entry point, were the officials civil at Customs,etc. I'd really love to hear. I've never been hassled too bad personally, outside of some questions that I felt were really none of their business as a U.S. born American citizen, but I've seen others singled out for "special" treatment when they peeked the inspectors interest. Anybody else have experiences with US Customs that they would like to share?
Thanks for your thoughts everyone! I just put a deposit down on some flowers today, and I'll do my best to post my experiences here after I get home. I really appreciate all of your thoughts and help!
