Mail in London
Mail call! For any length of period you’re abroad, your friends, family, and loved ones may want to send you a care package, important mail, debit or credit cards, or even cell phones if you need a replacement.
The best mailing address will not be known until you arrive onsite. When you arrive and if you need to have something mailed to you, please ask your Site Director for the best address. If you need something mailed to your address before you arrive please contact your Program Coordinator to see if it is possible.
Below are some resources you may use and send to your family explaining the mailing process in different countries. The USPS has a great website with the Index of Countries that included postal codes, postage prices, and mailing conditions.
Index of Countries and their postal codes, instructions (the Great Britain link)
FedEx International Resource Center
Shipping Internationally with DHL; Customs Support
When shipping internationally, please make sure that your envelope or package has everything necessary to ship.
Please note, that when shipping cell phones, hefty customs taxes may be added on before you receive it. In some locations, you may have to go to the airport to pick up your package and pay the import/customs tax before collecting your mail.
Sending Mail From the UK
You’ll probably want to send a few postcards, packages, or letters while you are adventuring in London. Sending mail from the UK is very similar to sending mail here in the US. For post cards and letters you can just pick up stamps. Make sure you are getting the right stamp for your postage though. When you buy them just check with the cashier to make sure. If you are sending a package you will need to make sure that you get the proper packaging materials or it make cost you extra. Also check this page for how to properly address mail in the UK and when sending something internationally from the UK.
#CISabroadtip when addressing mail in the UK place the address on the left side of the envelope in the middle and your return address on the back bottom right. See here for example.
Post is delivered by the Post Office or Royal Mail in the UK. The post offices are just like at home, you can pick up packaging materials, envelopes, stamps, and much more right there. One thing that is different about post offices in the UK is that they do so much more than ours here at home. Their locations may also be a bit different. They are often inside or part of other shops. Use their branch locator to find your closest branch.
Travelling after the program for an extended period? Don’t want to carry your semester’s worth of luggage around with you and pay hefty luggage overage charges? If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, you may want to look into whether or not luggage shipping services fit your travel needs.
No matter how long you are abroad, you should plan ahead and try to pack light to avoid needing to ship your luggage! You will acquire plenty of souvenirs and gifts while abroad, so make sure you have space for them when you return!
Here’s a list of companies that offer shipping services: