All items available through Greatland ship free via USPS Priority mail, however, customers can select different shipping options for each shipping class of items during checkout as desired. As you build your order, you will also see total order weight information as items are added to your cart. This information is utilized to compute discounts on your purchase as applicable should you decide to ship with options other than our standard USPS Priority shipping.
Shipping options available through Greatland are determined based on the zip code of your order’s ship to address. Offered discounts (Bypass) and additional charges (Air Freight) are specific to this user supplied information. In some instances, several different communities share the same zip code (Nome, Golovin, and Little Diomede is one example). For these zips, our order system will allow you to select the shipping option desired, but we will need to custom price for your location. You will see either “Discount TBD” or “Price TBD” displayed in these occurrences. As needed, we will follow-up with you to provide this information to communicate applicable refunds or additional charges that will apply to your order with us.
A summary of available shipping options available for Alaska grocery orders is included in the chart below. Click through the tabs for more information about each shipping option.
This is Greatland’s default shipping method and can be utilized to ship all classes of purchased goods (except for non-mailable items). All USPS Priority packages are insured for $100 per package, however, USPS will not honor claims for perishable products. Perishable (keep cool and keep frozen) items are shipped with ice packs in insulated packaging.
While we offer no guarantees with shipping, we have been able to keep frozen goods frozen for 5 days and within acceptable food safety temperatures for 8 days when sealed packaging was exposed to constant 70 degree ambient temperature. The specific items you may purchase and the varying ambient conditions your package may encounter during transport may lead to different results.
We have made substantial improvements in our packaging design over time, but, for reference, have included our internal test results from one of our early packing tests below.
Customers can also have goods shipped to them via air freight as desired for specific shipping classes or for all goods within an order. Air freight is most commonly used for frozen or chill items. When customers select this option, we will package, prepare, and deliver your order to air carriers operating out of Anchorage.
With some exceptions, air freight is not available for most road system communities. There are also a few villages where this shipping option is not available. If available as an option in your community, it will be displayed in the checkout page and the rates displayed are for carrier’s general service.
For zip codes that encompass several different communities (99762 which covers the communities of Nome, Golovin, and Little Diomede is one example), you will see a “Pricing TBD” note next to the shipping option as we need to price air freight to your specific community in these instances. For these locations we will follow up with pricing as orders are received.
Pricing for air freight is specific for the the community that you are having your goods shipped to. We charge based on local carrier’s $/lb rates subject to a minimum order handling charge. Carriers utilized for air freight include Alaska Airlines, Everts, Lake Clark Air, and Northern Air Cargo.
Air freight charges are applied differently on our site depending on the items shipped. For grocery items, air freight charges are applied to your order and paid directly to Greatland. No additional charges are incurred by the air carrier for grocery shipment. For alcohol items, air freight charges are including in the amount you will be charged by our alcohol vendor as part of a separate transaction. For furniture items, we send items air freight items collect. In these instances, the air carrier will contact you directly for payment on the air freight shipping from Anchorage to your destination once Greatland has delivered your order to the carrier.
When your order arrives in your community, it will be delivered by your local agent or you may be contacted to collect your order at the carrier’s local facility.
If your total order weight is greater than 1,000 lbs, your order can be shipped through Bypass mail. As the name suggests, this option by-passes the Post Office all together as your order will be delivered by an air carrier contracted with USPS. If shipping Bypass, your order will also be delivered directly to your physical address (not the post office), by the carrier’s local agent in your community. Bypass, with the exception of southeast and railbelt communities, is available to most all communities in rural Alaska. If this shipping method is available in your zip code, you will see it displayed during checkout. Once you total order weight reaches 1,000 lbs, you will be able to select it as a shipping option. You may also want to consider our Co-op Program as a means to help realize these discounts with smaller orders.
This option offers the greatest value for customers in terms of cost and delivery time. Depending on specific item weights within your order, you may have to ship all items (non-perishable and perishable) to get to 1,000 lbs. and use this option. To consolidate all shipping classes, check the dialog box at the top of shipping options window during checkout. If you have a 1,000 lbs. of non-perishable items, you could split your order between Bypass and other options. We must offer an entire shipment 1,000 lbs. or greater for this option to be utilized.
For some zip codes, there are specific communities which are and are not eligible for Bypass Mail services. If your ship to zip code is one of these zips (99645- Palmer – is one example), you will see a “Discount TBD” message next to the shipping option. We will follow up with you to confirm availability and communicate your discounts.
If this option is available and utilized, we also offer a discount on your order which is factored into the discounted shipping you will see in the checkout screen. Bypass shipping costs much less than Priority Mail and we pass this savings along to you. Please contact us if we can provide further clarification regarding Bypass Mail.
The pick-up shipping option is available for furniture items purchased through our site. Select this option to collect your furniture items in Anchorage. Once your order has been received and available for pick-up, you’ll be emailed a link to schedule a collection time.
Currently, only furniture items are available for customer pick-up.