Packages and Amazon and Thousand Trails, oh my!!

Hello Mike,

Tinmania said:

Amazon is using USPS more and more, and especially for Prime. About half or more of my prime shipments now come via USPS, when using the default 2-day delivery included with prime. For me it is mostly a benefit, as I get my mail at 10:30 AM whereas UPS arrives anywhere from 4:30 PM to 8 PM. Around here Amazon began using USPS, regularly, around May of this year. Before that it was UPS nearly exclusively. Yesterday (Saturday) I received a package I ordered on Thursday. If it was UPS I would have had to wait till Monday for delivery.

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Very interesting, this is contrary to my experience: I ordered a ton of packages from Amazon via Prime during my last US trip (December/2014-January/2015) both in Pahrump/NV and San Jose/CA, and everything was delivered by UPS.

So it seems we're back at the "impossible to set carrier" situation in regards to Amazon and UPS... :-/

Glad it's working great for you, tho.

Here is an article about it:
http://www.wallstreetdaily.com/2014/11/26/amazon-ups-usps/

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And this article is from November last year, therefore before my trip... perhaps Amazon is just using USPS in some areas of the country? BTW, what is your area?

By the way: That above article's author doesn't like Amazon partnering with USPS because he claims packages aren't being left and he has to go to the PO to retrieve them. That has never happened to me as well as many of the people who commented on the article.

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I didn't mind picking up the stuff at the USPS POs at all, it was pretty fast (I was the only one on line) both in the Baker and FurnaceCreek POs. 

Perhaps in larger cities/busier POs things would be worse, tho.

Cheers,
--
  Vall.

Keep in mind it just started happening in my area around May of this year. So you wouldn't have seen it if you were here last December and January.

I also think it might have to do with where you are in relation to an Amazon fulfillment center. I live in AZ, very close to the CA/NV borders (Colorado river). My packages come from Phoenix, either from Amazon's own fulfilment center there, or after being shipped there if from another location.

Presumably Pahrump would be handled by Las Vegas. Ironically I am closer to Las Vegas than to Phoenix. Indeed my regular USPS mail is routed through Vegas. But from Amazon it comes in via Phoenix. Go figure.



Mike

Hello Mike,

Tinmania said:

Keep in mind it just started happening in my area around May of this year. So you wouldn't have seen it if you were here last December and January.

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This makes sense. 

I also think it might have to do with where you are in relation to an Amazon fulfillment center. I live in AZ, very close to the CA/NV borders (Colorado river). My packages come from Phoenix, either from Amazon's own fulfilment center there, or after being shipped there if from another location.

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OK, this too makes sense, (and for our next US trip we were probably going to have our Amazon stuff delivered to a Phoenix/AZ address, so the info is very relevant to us).

Presumably Pahrump would be handled by Las Vegas. Ironically I am closer to Las Vegas than to Phoenix. Indeed my regular USPS mail is routed through Vegas. But from Amazon it comes in via Phoenix. Go figure.

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LOL well, not everything has to make sense, now does it? ;-)

Thanks again,
--
  Vall.

Hello folks,

Slightly OT as it's not specific to Amazon, I've just read this interesting article on USPS General Delivery: http://www.doityourselfrv.com/general-delivery-mail-for-rvers/

I'd never heard about that "-9999" ZIP code trick mentioned in that article; has anyone else heard of it, or better yet, tried it?

Cheers,
--
  Vall .

I'd never heard about the -9999 either. Will start using that, too.

She's not quite got the whole procedure down, though. It really is better if you use the street address of the PO; that is, AFTER you call the PO in the zip code in which you're staying, to make sure they're the ones which accept General Delivery.

I've read that sometimes General Delivery for an area will not necessarily be handled by the PO you'd think would be handling it.

herekittykitty said:

I'd never heard about the -9999 either. Will start using that, too.

She's not quite got the whole procedure down, though. It really is better if you use the street address of the PO; that is, AFTER you call the PO in the zip code in which you're staying, to make sure they're the ones which accept General Delivery.

I've read that sometimes General Delivery for an area will not necessarily be handled by the PO you'd think would be handling it.

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You can get all that information at www.usps.com Just put in the zip code and it will bring up all of your options, then just choose which ever works for you. We've had mail delivered to P.O.s in large cities and never had a problem. Just get the adress right.