Vancouver to Jeddah shipping route.

Vancouver to Jeddah is a 11,219 nautical mile shipping route via Suez Canal, heading north from Canada to Saudi Arabia. That is 20,778 km of water against 11,951 km as the crow flies. On the way the vessel passes Suez Canal, Panama Canal 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 33.4 days at sea. Slow steaming at 12 knots stretches it to 39.0 days, while 18 knots brings it down to 26.0. Container transit time on a liner service is longer than the steaming time: ships call at other ports on the rotation, and cargo may transship at a hub. Add terminal time at Vancouver and Jeddah to plan the full ocean transit time.

The next option is via Strait of Malacca, 11,576 nautical miles, 357 nm longer than the main route. Carriers pick it when Bab-el-Mandeb is congested or closed.

3,372 nm of the route, 30% of it, lies inside North American ECA, US Caribbean 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.

Container freight rates on Vancouver to Jeddah move with fuel prices, ship capacity and the season. Compare several carriers before booking: the cheapest sailing is often the slowest one. At Jeddah (SAJED) carriers give about 7 free days before demurrage and detention charges start, so plan the truck or rail pickup before the box lands.

Of the 64 port to port routes from Vancouver in this directory, Jeddah is the 62nd shortest. Closer destinations include Djibouti (10,964 nm), Cape Town (10,793 nm) and Jebel Ali (10,689 nm).