Le Havre to Yantian shipping route.

The shipping route from Le Havre, France to Yantian, China covers 9,637 nautical miles port to port, via Suez Canal. On a globe the two ports sit 9,713 km apart, so the ship sails 1.84 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 28.7 days at sea. Slow steaming at 12 knots stretches it to 33.5 days, while 18 knots brings it down to 22.3. Liner schedules on the lane quote 21 to 62 days port to port, because the services call at other ports and some transship. Over the last 30 days we counted 106 sailings by 10 carriers (CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen, HMM and Hapag-Lloyd).

Red Sea security changes the sea distance on this lane. A ship sent via Cape of Good Hope sails 12,972 nm instead of 9,637 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.

2,159 nm of the route, 22% of it, lies inside North 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 FRLEH to CNYTN start at $1,800 for a 20GP and $2,735 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 Yantian (CNYTN) carriers give about 6 free days before demurrage and detention charges start, so plan the truck or rail pickup before the box lands.

Of the 61 port to port routes from Le Havre in this directory, Yantian is the 48th shortest. Closer destinations include Hong Kong (9,616 nm), Manila (9,540 nm) and Haiphong (9,496 nm).