sell all such big appliances there and get them here. do the same if/when you leave.

if you buy in the US, you'll not only be worrying about PAL/NTSC, but also voltage and plugs/adapters.

Save yourself the headache.

And welcome to glocals.

Zonkers right. Don't waste your time, or money buying or bringing anything electrical. (except your computer).

As far as moving companies go, I've moved in and out of Geneva a couple times and had 4 local moves. I used Harsh moving company every time. The work they performed for me, every time, was flawless. However, you should know up-front, that they might be the most expensive in the region (not sure).

From the US side, my company has twice used Mayflower to pack and ship my household and store what I didn't ship. Honestly I am quite unimpressed with the level of service I got from them.

Best of luck on your move.  KEN///

I don't know who the American agent is for Interdean, but I would work with no one else. I found them so easy to work with. When I moved from Holland to Geneva, they stored my stuff, they watered my plants and just in general took really good care of my things. My family used them in the 70s-90s with all of our international moves as well, so they have earned and kept my trust. 

Good luck. Moving is stressful enough without trusting your stuff to the lowest bidder. Do your homework, and go with the company that makes you feel secure, even if you have to pay a little more.

Also, to echo what has already been said, the only electrical item you should bring is a laptop.  Though lamps are okay (change the bulb and the plug).

Welcome to Geneva!

Hi I moved from Geneva to DC  and back to Geneva, always with Harsch and it was fantastic. They packed everything both ways and only 1 piece of furniture had a problem(broken glass and a scratch) and they took care of it , send me a highly professional person. All was solved properly . Ask them for a quote.  As they said before don't bother with any electrics (just a headache) . Now ALL THE REST pack your container !! furniture, clothes, food anything u might think of is half the price in USA.  If you have a car also bring it , here same car will be double the price.

Good luck !

We moved from NY using Sea and Air.  They seemed nice and efficient while we were in the US.  We purchased extra insurance at their suggestion.

When our things arrived we had damaged furniture, because several pieces of wooden furniture were wrapped in paper only with no padding!  The refused to pay for the damage and claimed that the insurance which we paid for through their company was only in case the container sank.  I guess I could have fought it, but it was just not worth the hassel.  So whomever you choose, do not choose Sea and Air if you want a hassel free move.

I do agree about bringing the car i, unless you have full diplomatic status, cars are super expensive.   Also stock up on any toiletries or household items that you like, because the choices here are limited and very expensive.  I still get things like baking soda, vanilla paste and Ziploc bags whenever I go to the US.  Also buy tons of clothes-preferably things that won't go out of style because it's again very expensive and limitied choices.

Just realized you were already here.  So ignore the shopping tips.

I move here last month from New York (Westchester).  Shipped all my stuff in boxes via UPS and bought furniture at Ikea and Conforma....much cheaper than shipping it.  Buy a TV here. Drop me a line once you're in town to grab a drink.

Good luck with the move!

Just adding my two pence for Harsh. Expensive but worth it! Really amazing stress free service.

how much did that ups cost? per pound or per cubic meter...moving to geneva fro new york too wonder if it's worth it to ship-thx for advice =sonia

UPS and Fed Ex are VERY expensive.  I took a small box (one that would fit, 5/6 outfits) and they were joking and taking bets on how much it would cost to send it ended up being like 200usd (same size box at USPS is 47).  I have gone back and forth a few times, and if its not enough to get a container and its things like massive amounts of clothes (like me ;) ) shipping extra suitcases/boxes through cargo on the airline was by far the cheapest method I used. 

I moved in Novemebr using NY International Shipping and I am still waiting for my stuff.  An absoulte nightmare.  They were much cheaper than the others and now I understand why.  My TV is also in transit so I hope it will work when it finally gets here

I shipped one box with UPS and one box with USPS.  Both boxes were 50 lbs (22.3 kg), 36" x 24" x 24".  UPS cost $500, took about a week.  USPS cost $220 and took 2-3 weeks.  To save money if you're paying out of pocket use USPS, its fine.  If your company is paying ship UPS

If your TV is PAL compatable and can convert to 220V AC then it will work here...if not (ie its NTCS and 110V) then it wont work and youre wasting money shipping it....

There are online user manuals for most TVs and I would check before plugging it in ....

I gave up watching TV since I am here. Don't know why but I never received more than 2 channels.

And welcome to Geneva which might be less boring then NYC!

how much did harsh charge you?

i have a quote from a company they charge 483 per cubic meter and 220 for the nxt cubic meter...not sure if it's a good deal they pick up from my apartment in new york and deliver to door of my temporary home in geneva: well i have to confirm that last detail...so complex

A belated thank you to everyone who responded to this!  I'm now back in Geneva and decided to forego using a moving company at all and just sell all my stuff in the states.  I brought three huge suitcases and just paid the overage charges on Swiss.  I heard similar horror stories about NY International Shipping (a friend used them to move to the UK and it took more than three months) and the quote I got from Harsh was over 4,000 CHF to move a small couch, two pieces of art, and 5 boxes.  I decided it wasn't worth it. 

I got two other quotes from other companies (unfortunately have now forgotten which) that were in the $2,000 to $3,000 range for the same amount of stuff.