Terminal, the Port of Palm Beach
Tropical Shipping drayage
Drayage to and from Tropical Shipping at the Port of Palm Beach: the port's largest tenant, the Bahamas and Caribbean trades, and 350-plus reefer plugs.
Tropical Shipping is a carrier berth inside the Port of Palm Beach, not a terminal operator. Drivers still say “picking up at Tropical Shipping”, so it is listed here. Same gates and the same last free day rules as the rest of Port of Palm Beach.
The port's largest tenant, running the Bahamas and Caribbean trades, and heavily refrigerated: the facility carries 350-plus reefer plugs. If you are pulling a reefer out of Palm Beach it is probably here.
The reefer story on this coast
Tropical is the largest tenant at the Port of Palm Beach and the facility carries more than 350 reefer plugs. If you are dropping or collecting a refrigerated container at Palm Beach, it is almost certainly here.
Reefer changes the job on our side too. It needs the right chassis and a genset, and it needs the box plugged in rather than parked, so tell us it is a reefer when you ask for the rate rather than when the driver arrives.
Mostly going out, not coming in
This is an export operation feeding the Bahamas, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic and the wider Caribbean on weekly sailings. Most of what we do here is delivering loaded containers to the terminal against a sailing date, which is a deadline job rather than a demurrage job.
Miss the cut-off and the box waits for the next vessel, so the useful thing is telling us the sailing rather than the day you would like it collected.
Checking it yourself
Schedules, hours and container status live on their own site: www.tropical.com. Charges and holds sit between you and the line or the terminal. We move the box.
Also at this port
What we do with the box from here
Equipment we pull from here
Where it goes
More in this section
Questions
Straight answers
Do you pull containers from Tropical Shipping?
Yes, daily. 20ft, 40ft, 45ft, high cube, reefer with genset, flat rack, open top, overweight and bonded.
What happens if my last free day is tomorrow?
Tell us today. A pre-pull gets the container out of the terminal and onto the yard before per diem and demurrage start, and it is almost always cheaper than the charges it avoids.
Are your drivers TWIC-carrying?
Yes. Every driver working the terminals holds a valid TWIC, which is required to enter.
What is a pre-pull?
We collect the container from the terminal before you are ready for it and hold it on a yard. It stops demurrage running at terminal rates and it takes the pressure off your receiving schedule.
What is the difference between demurrage, per diem and detention?
Three different charges from different parties. Demurrage is the terminal charging you for cargo sitting inside the gate past free time. Per diem is the shipping line charging you for keeping their container out past free time. Detention is the trucker's time, charged when a driver waits at your dock beyond the free window. They can run at the same time, which is how a bill gets ugly fast.
What is a chassis split?
When the chassis you need is not at the same location as the container, so the truck makes an extra trip to collect it before it can even pick up. It costs a move and it is the single most common surprise line on a drayage invoice.
Is it a live unload or a drop and pick?
Either. Live means the driver waits while you unload, which starts detention once the free window is up. Drop and pick means we leave the container and collect it later, which usually costs less if you have the yard space.
Do your drivers carry a TWIC?
Yes. Every driver working the terminals holds a valid Transportation Worker Identification Credential, which is required to get through the gate at all.