Hong Kong to Gdansk shipping route.

The shipping route from Hong Kong to Gdansk, Poland covers 10,642 nautical miles port to port, via Suez Canal. On a globe the two ports sit 8,353 km apart, so the ship sails 2.36 times the straight line distance. On the way the vessel passes Suez Canal, Bab-el-Mandeb, Strait of Malacca and Strait of Gibraltar, so canal transit fees and waiting time at the canal are part of every voyage.

Shipping time depends on speed. At 14 knots, a common container ship service speed, the passage takes 31.7 days at sea. Slow steaming at 12 knots stretches it to 37.0 days, while 18 knots brings it down to 24.6. Liner schedules on the lane quote 47 to 60 days port to port, because the services call at other ports and some transship. Over the last 30 days we counted 10 sailings by 4 carriers (CMA CGM, Evergreen, Maersk and OOCL).

Red Sea security changes the sea distance on this lane. A ship sent via Cape of Good Hope sails 13,977 nm instead of 10,642 nm and spends roughly 9.9 extra days at sea. Ask your forwarder which routing the carrier uses: the booking price and the arrival date both depend on it.

3,185 nm of the route, 30% of it, lies inside North Sea ECA, Baltic Sea ECA and Mediterranean Sea ECA. In an emission control area ships must burn fuel with no more than 0.1% sulphur or clean the exhaust with scrubbers. That fuel costs more, and carriers add it to the ocean freight bill as a low sulphur or ECA surcharge.

Recent freight rates for HKHKG to PLGDN start at $1,700 for a 20GP and $3,090 for a 40GP. These are spot market prices from carriers that sail the lane; your quote will also include terminal handling, documentation and any bunker surcharge. At Gdansk (PLGDN) carriers give about 7.5 free days before demurrage and detention charges start, so plan the truck or rail pickup before the box lands.

Of the 63 port to port routes from Hong Kong in this directory, Gdansk is the 58th shortest. Closer destinations include Buenos Aires (10,544 nm), Santos (10,340 nm) and Gothenburg (10,246 nm).