Moving long distance can feel overwhelming, but with Gentle Giant, you can expect exceptional care and complete peace of mind from start to finish. Since 1980, we’ve built our reputation on providing top-tier moving and storage services, and when we expanded into long-distance moving in the early 2000s, we set out to redefine the industry.
Unlike traditional van lines that rely on subcontractors, we self-haul every long-distance move—meaning the same trusted Gentle Giant team handles your belongings from pickup to delivery. Whether you’re relocating across state lines or coast to coast, our commitment to quality, reliability, and customer care ensures a seamless transition to your new home.
Tip 1: Choose Independent Long Distance Movers
What does that mean, you ask? We self-haul, which means that we don’t subcontract out the pickup or send a driver to the destination to find labor once he gets there. We self-haul to control the quality of our moves (only Gentle Giant employees are involved).
The vast majority of long-distance moves in the United States are conducted by van lines and their affiliated agents. That means you might hire Company “A” to load your items in Boston, and Company “B” to drive it from Boston to San Francisco, and once you’re there – Company “C” will unload it into your new home.
Gentle Giant only uses Gentle Giant employees from start to finish for all our customers, so we can offer our 100% crew member guarantee. Check out reviews from our long-distance moving customers.
Tip 2: Schedule Your Long Distance Move a Month or More in Advance
Long-distance moving can be a challenging process, and the more time you commit to planning, the smoother it will go. We typically recommend scheduling your move at least a month in advance (and up to six weeks prior during the summer), especially if you’re moving more than 500 miles.
When you schedule your move with us, we’ll work with you to establish a delivery window for when your items will arrive at their destination. Because we are an independent mover, we are able to give our customers much more accurate delivery windows than our competitors.
Note that even if your long-distance move is less than a month away, you should still give us a call – sometimes, there are cancellations or other last-minute openings.
Tip 3: Get an Accurate Estimate for the Cost of Your Long Distance Move
To give you an accurate quote for your long-distance or cross-country move, one of Gentle Giant’s move consultants will work with you and obtain an exact inventory of all the items you plan to move. In most cases, we are able to do this online and over the phone. Sometimes, we will send someone out to survey your items in person for larger moves.
Once we have an accurate inventory for your long-distance move, we use a formula to extrapolate the weight of your items in pounds. We combine that weight plus the distance in miles your items will be transported to calculate a price, called the “line haul.”
Tip 4: Understand Shuttle Charges, Truck Sizes, and Packing Costs
The line haul charge will make up the bulk of your moving cost, but there will almost always be additional charges in your estimate. For example, if you are moving from or to a neighborhood with narrow streets, we may have to use a shuttle to load or deliver your items. Shuttles are sometimes necessary for long-distance moving because goods are transported on tractor-trailers (18-wheelers) over 60 feet long.
If we cannot maneuver a tractor-trailer near the door at pick-up or delivery, a fee will apply to use a smaller truck to shuttle the goods to and from the trailer. Additionally, many of our customers hire us to pack their items for moving before loading them on the truck. There is an additional labor and materials charge for this service.
Tip 5: Make Your Long-Distance Move Hassle-Free by Going with the Giants
Gentle Giant is committed to 100% customer satisfaction – whether you’re moving across the street or across the country. You can trust your belongings will be safe with us, while taking advantage of our other moving services that make the entire process easy for you.
See more of our long-distance moving services and advice:
Packing & Unpacking
Moving Box & Supply Delivery
Moving Checklist
Moving with Kids
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