Wondering where you can print out a document, get something notarized, or get a shipment once you’re cruising away from your home area? I get these questions frequently, and have two frequent recommendations for cruisers in the US:
UPS Stores: These provide pretty much all the “office services” a cruiser could ever need:
- Printing – email documents to the store and have them printed, or use their computer to print something from the internet
- Notarizing
- Faxing
- Package shipping (and packaging) – AARP members get a discount on UPS shipping, too.
- Package acceptance – generally $5 (you do not need a mailbox with them). Will sign for packages from any shipper and keep them securely until you pick them up. Check with the individual store for weight limits and number of days that they will store items as well as how they want items addressed.
Amazon Hubs: If you’re buying items on Amazon and don’t have a local address such as a marina to send them to, you can have them shipped to an Amazon Hub. Note that you have three days from delivery to pick items up or they will be returned. Details here.
Even though we’re at a marina that accepts deliveries, packages are left in an insecure location. We’ve never had anything lost, but I do have high-value shipments (new laptop, watermaker, or injector pump, for example) shipped to the local UPS Store.
See more options for getting packages in this article. And here’s an article on getting mail.
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Carolyn Shearlock has lived aboard full-time for 17 years, splitting her time between a Tayana 37 monohull and a Gemini 105 catamaran. She’s cruised over 14,000 miles, from Pacific Mexico and Central America to Florida and the Bahamas, gaining firsthand experience with the joys and challenges of life on the water.
Through The Boat Galley, Carolyn has helped thousands of people explore, prepare for, and enjoy life afloat. She shares her expertise as an instructor at Cruisers University, in leading boating publications, and through her bestselling book, The Boat Galley Cookbook. She is passionate about helping others embark on their liveaboard journey—making life on the water simpler, safer, and more enjoyable.
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