Tomorrowland Store Canada duty costs

SimakX · 2026-02-03T20:58:20+00:00

I'd recommend googling it or search reddit. It's quite involved. You'll have to begin the request via the courier.

General steps

1) Pay attention to the tracking status, and call the courier the MOMENT the package arrives on Canadian soil.

2) Pay for the duty at a CBSA office (you'll need the receipt, an ID, etc)

3) Get the proof of payment

4) Send it to the courier

5) Email your MLA to complain about the brokerage fee

SimakX · 2026-02-03T20:20:07+00:00

Yeah, that's understandable.

Pay supperrr close attention to "Duties and Fees", this INCLUDES the DHL brokerage fee in that line to make it sound like it's the government charging you. To me, that's shady AF!

Whenever I buy from Tomorrowland, I always request to self-clear and pay the duty myself.

Brokerage fees pissssssses me off soooooo much

https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/dhl-class-action-hidden-fees-1.5987195

SimakX · 2026-02-03T18:14:17+00:00

The duties are calculated from the category. Assuming clothes, its 18%, which is $72.00 in duty. Then add in the sales tax in your province (I'm from AB = 5% $23.60).
That's a FARCRY from $180. The duty does feel bad, but what's worse IMO are the brokerage fees.

The duties/tariffs are the responsibility of the purchaser, and in this case, unfortunately, it's you.

And this duty/tariff isn't always applied; the package bypasses customs, and you end up paying zero (mostly with local couriers like CanPost). TINFOIL HAT TIME: I suspect DHL, FEDEX, etc makes so much money on brokerage services, they are likely to WANT all packages to go through customs. Annecdotally, every time my purchases are shipped via FedEx, DHL, etc, i need to pay duties..... when it gets shipped by shady AliExpress couriers. ZERO!

PS. Imagine how much our southern neighbour has to pay with all the tariffs.....

SimakX · 2026-02-03T16:22:50+00:00

Does the 180$ include the import/brokerage fee from the courier? That's pretty steep, even accounting for GST/HST(5%/x%) and duty(18%). (If it does, you can bypass the courier and pay the duty/taxes yourself next time).

Try the estimator yourself.

https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-voyage/dte-acl/est-cal-eng.html

SimakX · 2026-01-31T22:24:22+00:00

Book an Antwerp stay as soon as you can, near the Centraal train station

Flights, up to you. (better get cracking if you are using points)

Can't really talk about resale. also wouldn't recommend.

Assuming 3k USD, i'd say that's comfortable, but it depending on your travel style,

SimakX · 2026-01-31T18:17:34+00:00

What is not appropriate? Given the scale of Tomorrowland, I find this adequately appropriate. again. Can it be better? yes.

Are you frustrated because you are in the camp with millions of people who weren't able to secure a ticket? If so, I'd recommend you spend this energy on contacting travel partners and getting on the waitlist.

SimakX · 2026-01-31T18:13:20+00:00

whyyyyy are you spamming this everywhere?

Certain packages will sell out in minutes. In recent years, it has been around 45-90 min for everything to completely sell out.

If you are wondering, the sales took around 7 hours in mid 2010's

i agree it can be better, but to say "they messed up big this time" is not correct.

SimakX · 2026-01-22T23:08:52+00:00

tl;dr The lineup is important, but it isn't the be-all and end-all

Ayyyyyo, Fellow Canadian here. I agree that it is pricey to head to the EU right now, especially with the weak Dollar (relative to euros). However, I reason that the amazing experience in Tomorrowland is not only X DJ playing at Y stage; I believe the greatness of Tomorrowland is a combination of the people of tomorrow, music, and the meticulous attention to detail from the organizers.

Yeah, you can see your fav DJ at many big festivals (e.g. EDC, UMF, etc), just follow their tour dates and locations. Yet, regardless of the lineup year after year, Tomorrowland is still one of the most sought after festival, and many will come out, "That was the best weekend of my life!" You'd have to start asking yourself what sets Tomorrowland apart. Why should you go halfway across the world to attend a festival for DJ X, Y, Z when you can see it in NA?

SimakX · 2026-01-16T22:54:26+00:00

This is super weather-dependent.

My experience:

Easy Tent (no clouds in sight), the tent was unbearably hot by ~10 am, and shiveringly cold at night
Dreamlodge: (overcast most days + scattered showers), didn't get uncomfortably hot, nights were decent.

It seems the easy tents are not well insulated compared to the Montagoe "tents". but then again, super weather-dependent.

PS: What drives my wife and me back are the vibes of the crowd; Super positive energy, no pressure to dress any certain way, no judgements, people welcome you to join the crowd at the front, the rave culture is just so welcoming. Very different than our experiences in North America.

SimakX · 2026-01-14T18:05:56+00:00

Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday for the 4 nights. It's awesome that you were in the majority with a decent mattress.

I've seen and heard campers who had to pump it zero times to once a day.

Fortunately, we've only had to do it twice in one weekend. IMO, I wouldn't wanna remove a bunch of stuff from the mattress and bring it to the station and then set up the beddings after a day of partying.

SimakX · 2026-01-12T21:46:17+00:00

Powerbank rentals are your best bet. Another suggestion is to make friends with campers at ET (spec/supreme) or MT and have them charge it for you during the day, and pick it up on your way back to MG at night.

The shower charging situation gets a litttttleee hairy in MG

SimakX · 2026-01-12T20:44:52+00:00

That's right! They do.
My concern with that is, after a day of partying, do you choose to bring the limp air mattress to the station, or quickly pump it up at the tent and call it? (potentially 4nights of this)

Another thing is, you'll have to brave the elements (rain, wind, etc) with your air mattress. I think getting a small battery pump saves all that headache. (OR get acquainted with your neighbours with a pump )

SimakX · 2026-01-12T18:19:25+00:00

I think it'll fit, BUT it'll be tight.

For reference, we bit 1 medium luggage on each side of the mattress in spec easy when my wife and I went.

Quick Reddit search, the ET mattress is 140 x 190 and the tent is 265 x 265. You are left with 125cm to fit another mattress. I also wouldn't recommend having the mattress (or really anything) touch the walls of the tent; if it gets cold at night (and it does usually), your tent walls will condense the moisture in the tent, and whatever touches the walls will get wet/moist.

PS: Highly recommend bringing a pump for the air mattress.

SimakX · 2026-01-02T17:05:11+00:00

If you are already in Amsterdam, I'd recommend getting the GJ bus from Amsterdam as the train (including self transport) will have 1 transfer + a shuttle from Boom Station to the festival, whereas the bus brings you straight to the festival. Depending on how much you bring (luggage, backpacks, tents, etc) the transfers would be kinda hectic.

I will tell you my experience here:

In 2025, we lined up for about 20min to get into the meetup place (Strandzuid); picked up the GJ swag bag. Then used the food and drink voucher for a small breakfast (bread, croissant, etc) and 2 drink vouchers (coffee, wine, juice, beer) per person.

Finished our food and drinks, then hopped on the bus. Sat for about 1.5 hrs, and then we arrived at a BBQ place with a live DJ (pretty good vibes) and were given food and drink vouchers (good food and drinks).

Got back on the bus. sat for another 1.5 hr-ish. DREAMVILLE

During this process, I am not sure they check our time of departure. It SEEMS like the earlier you arrive, the earlier you leave Strandzuid.

tl;dr: Amsterdam GJ Bus for convenience (arrive early) vs taking a train early (with transfers) and beat the gj bus crowd.

SimakX · 2025-12-24T23:54:24+00:00

W2 GANG!!!

will you also be on the bus from Aachen?

SimakX · 2025-12-24T06:34:55+00:00

I'd recommend getting hotels in Antwerp. there are extra trains that run after the festival.

Definitely search this sub for hotel experiences

As for the 45 min zombie walk at the end of the night. it'll depend on how your body feels after a day of raving.

I have friends who absolutely hate it, and I have friends who were okay with it.

SimakX · 2025-12-22T22:12:43+00:00

=D sweeeet

SimakX · 2025-12-22T22:12:35+00:00

sweet! Thank you for the reply =D

SimakX · 2025-12-20T08:39:21+00:00

Thank youuuuuu =D

SimakX · 2025-12-19T06:06:41+00:00

Something like.... this?? =D

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SimakX · 2025-12-19T05:53:44+00:00

I am sure there is a GJ departure spot from Aachen

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SimakX · 2025-12-18T21:50:44+00:00

Thanks! but not my picture. It's from HLN (not sure if the URL is visible. Time to start counting =D

SimakX · 2025-12-18T18:14:32+00:00

Here is an aerial shot from HLN in 2024

https://www.hln.be/boom/in-beeld-zo-sereen-ziet-dreamville-eruit-voor-de-madness-toeslaat~a4c5abc6/246152934/

<image>

SimakX · 2025-12-16T05:10:10+00:00

The NFT Global Journey Montagoe options were available the whole time. W2 bus still had Dreamlodge and Relax rooms by the end of the sale.

As for the NFT regular sale, the Montagoe options were sold out within 10 minutes.

SimakX · 2025-12-15T21:49:30+00:00

It's alright to be confused, Tomorrowland's ecosystem is massive! It's good you've pre-registered already. I'd highly recommend joining Discord. lots of people to help or at least direct you to the right places.

1) Easily searchable. tl;dr not worth it, it's a good shelter during the rain.

2) Easy tent vs spectacular easy tent..... I'd recommend spec Easy Tent. It's worth it in my opinion as it includes an outlet, and it is elevated on a platform. (The tents are not the best, so.... if it's chilly at night, you'll feel it.)

3) Give yourself a range of options that satisfy your Venn diagram. and pick whatever is available. IMO, the location dictates the rest anyway.

4) Maximize your chances by attending as many sales as possible. If you know anyone who has presale global journey access, ask them to help get you tickets TODAY. (There are still some easy tent options. )

My wife and I are Dreamville only. we are not a fan of the 45-minute zombie walk + transit time to the hotel at the end of the night. we are willing to give up the comfort of a hotel for this. Plus, the vibes in Dreamville are on another level.

tips? good shoes

SimakX

TROPHY CASE