The other day I moved house from Munich to Berlin, and found a nice easy way to do this, without having to even speak any German!
I’ve been living in Germany for a couple of years, and moved apartments a couple of times during that period, but each time it’s been a hassle to organize. You’ll know what I mean if you’ve ever tried to move in Germany! It involves calling up different companies who don’t speak much English, trying to arrange all the details and hoping they show up on time.
This time, I was recommended an online service called Smoovr.de , who help expats move house.
I thought I’d write a review of the process, as it’s by far the best way I’ve found to move, and will certainly be using them again when the time comes.
The site is simple enough - click Move, then fill in a form and provide your inventory.
As I was moving quite a bit of stuff (2 bedroom apartment), they contacted me and told me to video all my stuff using WhatsApp. It’s a good idea, as before I’ve had to list items over the phone or arrange for someone to come and look in person.
The offer they sent was quite competitive, not the cheapest, but not the most expensive of the other quotes I received. The big bonus for me as a non-German speaker was that they communicate with the company they line up to carry out the move, and sort out things like disassembly of beds + wardrobes, packing service, and No Parking Zone.
Smoovr uses WhatsApp a lot for communication, which is fine for me as I use it as my regular Messenger app. They set up a group with the moving company and me, and so everyone was able to ask questions and confirm things. It was nice to know when the company would arrive on the day of the move, as they were delayed in traffic and were an hour late in arriving in Berlin.
The move itself was fine - AS Trans carried out the move and were right on time on Munich, packed quite quickly, and took apart the beds and wardrobe and then put it back together much faster than I could do! Nothing got broken or scratched, which has happened to me before. The team was friendly, although didn’t speak much English, but my German was good enough to point out where I wanted things and offer them coffee! I tipped the guys 30 Euro each and they were happy. :)
The main stress during the move was getting from Munich to Berlin before the moving truck. I thought train would be quicker, but even with traffic on the autobahn, we only just beat the movers to our apartment.
We’re mostly unpacked now, although still need to find motivation to unpack those last few boxes.
