Long Distance Movers Vancouver
Long distance movers in Vancouver take your household from the coast to another province, over to Vancouver Island, into the Interior, or across the US border, on one truck with one crew from load to unload. Always Best Moving Vancouver runs those long hauls out of downtown Vancouver at 422 Richards Street, and we quote the job up front with the breakdown handed to you in writing. We are rated 4.8 stars across 100 reviews, and a long move rides on planning the route, the ferry, and the customs paperwork before the truck ever leaves your door.
4.8 stars across 100 Google reviews · Open 24-7 · Based at 422 Richards St
A long-distance job is not a local move with more highway. Once your things leave the city, you can't run back for a forgotten box, so the packing, the inventory, and the load have to be right the first time. We plan the route around the passes and the bridge weight limits, book the ferry sailing when the road ends at the water, and build the documented inventory when the move crosses into the United States. You get one crew that owns the whole trip, not a handoff halfway. Same team runs the commercial and office move when a business relocates out of the city.
Where Vancouver Long-Distance Moves Actually Go
Most long hauls out of Vancouver run one of four ways, and each one changes how we plan the day. Straight east over the mountains to Alberta and beyond. West across the water to Vancouver Island. Up into the BC Interior on the Coquihalla. Or south over the US border. Pickups come from every part of the city we cover on our areas we serve map. The distances are real and they are long, so the truck, the crew hours, and the overnight stops all get planned around the actual route, not a guess.
Interprovincial is the biggest chunk. Vancouver to Calgary is about 971 kilometres, Vancouver to Edmonton around 1,160 to 1,200 kilometres, and Vancouver to Toronto roughly 4,400 kilometres coast to coast. A loaded moving truck can't take the Lions Gate Bridge, which caps at 13 tonnes, so North Shore pickups leave over the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge before joining Highway 1 east. We plan the driving days, the fuel, and the overnight around a truck that is heavier and slower than a car.
Interior moves to Kelowna, about 393 kilometres, or Kamloops, about 354 kilometres, run up the Coquihalla, Highway 5. It is the fast way in with no tolls, but it climbs hard and it gets snowed in through winter, so the load has to be secured and wrapped for a rough ride through the passes. When the dates do not line up on both ends, we hold your load in moving and storage and deliver the second the new place is ready. Vancouver Island moves to Victoria and Nanaimo are their own animal, because the truck has to ride a ferry, and that brings its own rules and its own cost that we cover in a section below.
What a Long-Distance Move Actually Takes
Picture a two-bedroom apartment in Yaletown heading to Calgary. It starts with a full inventory, room by room, so we know the exact volume going on the truck and nothing gets left behind or double-counted. We pack the fragile and the awkward ourselves, dish packs for the kitchen, mirror cartons for the art and glass, wardrobe boxes so the closet stays on hangers. Every piece is labelled to its room at the far end.
On load day the crew books the Yaletown building's service elevator in a 4-hour block, because downtown towers make you use the freight elevator, not the passenger one, and misusing it can draw a strata fine. We pad the elevator, run floor protection down the hall, and load tight so nothing shifts over 970 kilometres of highway. Because the trip runs more than one driving day, we set the overnight and the delivery window with you before we leave, so you know when the truck lands in Calgary and the crew unloads to the room labels. No mystery about where your couch is on a Tuesday.
Long-Distance Services We Offer
Interprovincial moving (BC to Alberta, the Prairies, and Ontario)
We move full households east to Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, Winnipeg, and all the way to Toronto. The whole load rides one truck with the crew that packed it, so there is no transfer depot where boxes get mixed with someone else's move. We wrap furniture in moving blankets, a blanket on every piece that can scuff, corner it with foam, and strap the load in tiers so it holds through the mountain grades. You get a delivery window and a driving plan before we pull away.
Vancouver Island moves by BC Ferries
Island moves to Victoria and Nanaimo mean the loaded truck rides the ferry with us. We book the sailing, secure the load for the crossing, and drive it off the other side. The vehicle routes are Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay for Victoria and Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay or Tsawwassen to Duke Point for Nanaimo. Since October 15, 2025, vehicles on the Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay run must be booked and paid ahead, so we reserve the truck's spot early. More on the ferry cost is below.
Interior BC moves over the Coquihalla
Kelowna, Kamloops, Chilliwack, Abbotsford, Whistler, Squamish. Interior and Sea-to-Sky moves run over Highway 5, the Coquihalla, or Highway 99. These roads climb and they get weather, so we wrap for the ride and secure the load tight for the elevation changes. In winter we plan the drive around the pass conditions, not a clear-day estimate.
Cross-border moves to the United States
For a move into the US, the load needs a documented inventory for the border, a full list of the household goods crossing, valued and organized by category. The Canada Border Services Agency uses a Personal Effects Accounting Document, the BSF186, to account for household effects at the crossing, with a BSF186A continuation sheet when the list runs long. We build that inventory as we pack and coordinate the crossing so the truck is not stuck at the line. The immigration and duty side is between you and the border agency, and we hand you a clean inventory to do it with.
Full packing and materials for the long haul
A long move needs more packing than a cross-town hop, because the load takes days of vibration on the highway. We pack full households or just the breakables, and we supply the right cartons: dish packs, mirror and picture boxes, wardrobe boxes, plus paper, bubble, and shrink wrap. See our packing services for the full scope.
Why Vancouver Chooses Always Best Moving Vancouver for the Long Haul
One crew, one truck, door to door
The people who pack your load are the people who unload it. There is no transfer depot where your boxes sit with three other families' stuff and come out short. That single-crew chain is the biggest difference between a long move that arrives clean and one that arrives short.
We handle the ferry booking and the over-height rate
A moving truck clears 7 feet tall, and BC Ferries charges any vehicle over 7 feet, which is 2.13 metres, the over-height rate. The discounted over-height Saver fare is for cars, RVs, and campers only. Commercial vehicles, and a moving truck is one, can't book it, so the truck pays the full commercial over-height fare, plus a length charge if the truck runs past 20 feet. We book the sailing, know the fare, and fold it into the quote so there is no surprise dock bill.
We build the customs inventory for cross-border moves
The border wants a documented, valued inventory of what is crossing. We build it as we pack, so the truck moves through the crossing instead of sitting at it.
We plan the route, not just the drive
The Lions Gate weight limit, the Coquihalla passes in winter, the multi-day delivery window: we plan around the real road, and you get the driving plan and the delivery window before the truck leaves.
A 4.8-star record across 100 reviews
No marquee-client name-drops, just a steady book of Vancouver moves, local and long, finished without the damage claims and the surprise invoices.
How We Price a Long-Distance Move
Here is the honest version. A lot of the market prices long-distance by volume, the cubic feet your load fills on the truck, and quoted ranges out there run from a few hundred dollars up past seven thousand for a full-service interprovincial haul. Those are other companies' numbers and market context only, not our price.
We price the way we price every move. You are quoted up front in writing we work, and the rate covers the crew, the truck, and the basic equipment: dollies, straps, blankets. For a long haul we add the parts a long haul actually needs and name each one up front: the driving time and fuel for the distance, the ferry fare if the route crosses the water, and any packing materials. You get the whole breakdown in writing before we start. No flat number guessed over the phone, and no surprise line at the far end.
Nine Tips for a Smooth Long-Distance Move from Vancouver
Step 1
Book early, especially for month-end and the July to August window. Long moves need more lead time than a local hop, and ferry-dependent Island moves need the sailing reserved ahead.
Step 2
Do a full inventory before you get quotes. The volume and the piece count drive both the truck size and any volume-based comparison quote.
Step 3
Purge before you pack, not after. You pay to move every box the whole distance, so the stuff you do not want should not ride 970 kilometres.
Step 4
Pack a first-night box that travels with you, not on the truck: meds, chargers, a change of clothes, the coffee maker. The truck may be a day or more behind you.
Step 5
For an Island move, confirm the ferry route and that the truck's spot is booked, especially on Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay where advance booking is now required.
Step 6
For a cross-border move, start the household inventory list early and keep it valued and organized by category. The border wants it documented.
Step 7
Ask how the delivery window works and get it in writing. A multi-day haul is not a same-day drop.
Step 8
Label every box to its room at the destination, not the origin. It saves an hour of sorting on the far end.
Step 9
Confirm building access at both ends. The elevator booking and any loading permit matter as much in the new city as they did in Vancouver. See our local movers page for how we handle that access.
Frequently Asked Questions
How far in advance should I book a long-distance move from Vancouver?
Book earlier than you would for a local move. Long hauls take more planning, and if the route needs a BC Ferries sailing, that spot has to be reserved ahead. Month-end and the summer stretch from July to August fill first, so give us as much notice as you can.
How much does a long-distance move from Vancouver cost?
We bill with a clear quote agreed up front, with the crew, truck, and basic equipment in the quote, plus the named add-ons a long haul needs like driving time, fuel, and any ferry fare. You get the full breakdown in writing before we start. Some movers price long-distance by volume instead, and quoted market ranges run into the thousands, but those are other companies' numbers, not ours.
Do you move to Vancouver Island, and how does the ferry work?
Yes. For Victoria and Nanaimo the loaded truck rides BC Ferries with us. We book the sailing, secure the load for the crossing, and drive it off the other side. Because a moving truck is over 7 feet tall, it pays the over-height rate, and as a commercial vehicle it can't use the discounted Saver fare, so we fold the real ferry cost into your quote.
Can you move me to the Interior, like Kelowna or Kamloops?
Yes. Interior moves run over the Coquihalla, Highway 5, about 393 kilometres to Kelowna and 354 kilometres to Kamloops. We wrap and secure the load for the climb and the elevation changes, and in winter we plan the drive around the pass conditions.
Do you do cross-border moves into the United States?
Yes. We build a documented, valued inventory of your household goods for the border and coordinate the crossing so the truck keeps moving. The customs and duty side, including the border agency's Personal Effects Accounting Document, is between you and the agency, and we hand you a clean inventory to work from.
Will one crew handle the whole move, or does it get transferred?
One crew and one truck, door to door. The people who load your things unload them at the other end. There is no transfer depot where your load gets mixed with someone else's.
How long does a long-distance delivery take?
It depends on the distance. A move to the Interior or the Island can be a day. Alberta is more than one driving day, and Toronto is a cross-country haul. We give you a delivery window in writing before the truck leaves, so you know when to expect it.
What about the load surviving days on the highway?
A long haul vibrates for days, so we pack heavier than a local move. Furniture gets a moving blanket on every piece that can scuff, glass and art go in mirror and picture cartons, and the load is strapped in tiers so nothing shifts through the mountain grades.
Ready to book your move?
Real crews, real hours, full breakdown in writing before we start.
Areas We Serve
Other Moving Services
Downtown base, city-wide crews
422 Richards St, Vancouver, BC V6B 2Z4
236-885-7710 · Open 24 hours, 7 days
Ready to book your move?
Real crews, real hours, full breakdown in writing before we start.
236-885-7710