Old And New Ways Of Sending Gifts To The Philippines

Sending gifts to the Philippines is one of the most certain ways of overseas Filipinos could provide for their families back home. Other than sending money to send things like Apparels, electronics, toys and household items like canned food and toiletries could also prove very useful for their families. One way to them to provide such things is through the use of packages usually known as Balikbayan boxes.

Balikbayan box

The use of Balikbayan boxes to send gifts to the Philippines is one of the oldest traditions of being an overseas Filipino and OFW (overseas Filipino workers). The difference between these types of boxes from a typical package is its size. The size of a Balikbayan box is usually the same as those boxes used when you move. The advantage of these types of packages is its size, which is able to accommodate a range of gifts and other things.

These types of boxes were first used by overseas Filipino workers or Offs when they come home from abroad. They used these boxes to keep their things and other things in a package that is far more organized than using several smaller packages. Eventually, these boxes then used to send gifts to Philippines.

Part of the attraction of Balikbayan Boxes are economic. If the items were sent individually or in small boxes through postal services, costs can be significant. But not all is beneficial to use Balikbayan boxes. These use of these boxes are also known for their disadvantages.

Disadvantages

The disadvantage of using Balikbayan boxes is its sailing. Balikbayan box usually takes longer than traditional containers, typically taking several weeks to a month, and the lack of a solid delivery date. This is usually caused Balikbayan boxes are normally transported in container ships compared to the use of aircraft which is much faster.

Online gifts

Other than the use of Balikbayan boxes, many overseas Filipinos also started to use Philippine-based online gift shops. These online businesses are founded for providing overseas Filipinos a chance to send gifts to the Philippines without the hassle of arranging and organizing a Balikbayan box. Another advantage to using these online businesses is that a number of donations could be sent faster than sending a Balikbayan box, usually take 2-5 working days.

Although the use of online gift stores strongly reduced the use of Balikbayan boxes when you send gifts back to the Philippines, many overseas Filipinos still use these fields to send gifts such as rare objects hard to find in the Philippines and from its economic advantages over online shopping.