Courier or post: the best way to send a parcel between the UK and Lithuania

The three ways people send parcels

Broadly, there are three options. The national post, where you take the parcel to a post office and it is handed to the postal service in the other country. Large international parcel networks, where you drop the parcel at a shop or book a collection and it passes through sorting hubs in several countries. And route couriers like Siuntų Bitė, who collect from your door and drive the parcel themselves to the recipient's door.

Each approach has its place, but for boxes of personal belongings, gifts and food between the UK and Lithuania, the differences in practice are larger than the headline prices suggest.

Price: headline versus real cost

Post and parcel networks often advertise a low starting price, but that is usually for a small, light parcel. Prices rise steeply with weight, and many services charge by volumetric weight, so a big box of clothes is priced as if it were heavy. Collection from home, larger sizes and rural delivery can all add charges.

With us, a medium parcel of 1 to 30 kg starts from £40 or €40, including collection from the door and delivery to the door. For a typical family box of 15 to 25 kg, that is often very competitive once everything is counted, and you know the price before collection.

Time and effort

Post means packing, carrying the box to a counter, queuing and filling in forms. At the other end, the recipient may get a card saying the parcel is waiting at a post office or pick-up point, which is a real problem for elderly parents in a village or a busy family without a car.

Door to door with Siuntų Bitė means nobody carries the box anywhere. We call to agree times at both ends, collect from the sender and hand the parcel to the recipient.

Handling and safety

In large networks, a parcel is scanned, sorted, loaded and unloaded many times, often on conveyor belts. Every handover is a chance for a dent, a crushed corner or a delay. Heavy or oddly shaped items may be refused or charged extra.

On our route, your parcel is loaded by our driver and stays with our team until it is delivered. Bulky items such as appliances, tyres, bicycles and even motorcycles travel the same way, which networks often cannot handle at all.

Communication

When something goes wrong with a large network, you often reach a call centre or a chatbot, sometimes in a third country. With us, you call a UK or Lithuanian number and speak to the people who are carrying your parcel, in Lithuanian or English. Our 87 five-star Google reviews come largely from that personal contact.

Side-by-side summary

Here is how door to door with Siuntų Bitė compares with a typical post or parcel network for a family box between the UK and Lithuania.

• Collection: from your door with us, usually a drop-off elsewhere
• Delivery: handed over in person with us, often a pick-up point elsewhere
• Bulky items: carried by us, often refused or surcharged elsewhere
• Price: clear categories with us, weight and volume surcharges elsewhere
• Contact: one team with us, a call centre elsewhere

The verdict

For an envelope with a postcard, any service will do. For the parcels that really matter, such as a box of presents for grandparents, a parcel of home food, documents, a child's bike or your belongings when you move, door to door delivery on a dedicated route is the better choice. It saves time, avoids hidden extras and keeps your parcel in the same hands from start to finish.

The same is true in both directions. Whether you are sending from London to Kaunas or your family is sending from Šiauliai to Luton, booking door to door with Siuntų Bitė takes a couple of minutes and the rest is handled for you.