Snowbird Car Shipping in Burlington, WI
Your vehicle rides south in the fall and comes back north in the spring, on lanes we work every season out of Burlington, Wisconsin. Book one leg or both.
Working out this season’s dates?
Tell us where the car leaves from, where it lands, and roughly when.
Get a Season Quote Call or text (414) 667-7447 · USDOT 3739382 · MC 1323099What is snowbird car shipping?
Snowbird car shipping moves a personal vehicle between a northern home and a warm-weather one on a seasonal schedule, usually as a pair of trips rather than a single delivery. Dawley Logistics books those runs from Burlington, Wisconsin, and most of them ride on our own open haulers.
- Two seasonsDown before the cold, back when it breaks
- Both legsReserve the return when you book the first
- Near your doorOr a nearby lot when the street is tight
- Bring a littleUp to 100 lb of non-valuable items
- Straight rateNo seasonal markup, no discount theater
When to put your dates on a truck
Snowbird traffic is not spread evenly across the year. Everyone from Wisconsin, Illinois and the rest of the upper Midwest wants the same handful of weeks.
- Southbound rush
- Mid-October through December, heaviest around Thanksgiving
- Northbound rush
- April into May, tightening as Easter passes
- Comfortable lead
- Three to four weeks buys you a choice of days
- Booking late
- Under a week, your date becomes whatever deck still has room
- Pickup
- Same day to three days out once the run is confirmed
- Transit
- Same day to three days on the road, lane depending
The people on these seasonal runs
Around Burlington, Racine County and the rest of southeast Wisconsin, snowbird car shipping tends to come from one of these situations:
- Retirees who summer in Wisconsin and winter in Florida, Arizona or Texas
- Couples who keep a vehicle waiting at each address
- Households that drive one car down and send the second
- Anyone who would rather not add 2,800 highway miles a year to a car
- Travelers who fly down and want the vehicle there when they land
- Seasonal workers and students moving on a semester calendar
A round trip is the normal booking here
Plenty of our seasonal customers have been shipping with us both ways for years, and the spring leg is easier to schedule when it is already on the calendar in November.
Snowbird car shipping is priced one leg at a time: each direction takes the direct market rate for that lane and that month. Nothing gets padded first so it can be marked down later.
Gulf Coast
- Naples
- Fort Myers
- Sarasota
- Venice
Atlantic side
- Boca Raton
- West Palm Beach
- Jacksonville
Arizona
- Mesa
- Sun City
- Tucson
Texas
- San Antonio
- Corpus Christi
- The Woodlands
Not on the list? The brokerage covers the rest of the lower 48 on carriers we screen ourselves.
Three things that decide a good season
Seasonal customers come back because the same small set of problems gets handled the same way every year.
The same outfit, season after season
Most of our seasonal business is repeat and referral. You are not re-explaining your driveway, your gate code or your dates to a stranger each October.
Sorted before the truck rolls
Many southern communities will not admit a car hauler. We agree a meeting point in advance — a community area outside the gate, or the nearest well-lit big-box lot.
October is not billed as a holiday
You get the real rate for the lane that month, and it stands once booked — provided the vehicle’s condition and any modifications were disclosed.
Is shipping actually the better call?
For some people the drive is part of the trip. It is worth doing the arithmetic honestly before you book anything.
Roughly two days each way
- About 1,400 miles from southeast Wisconsin to central Florida
- Fuel, a motel night and meals on both legs, twice a year
- Wear, tires and a service interval you were not planning on
- November weather on I-65 and I-75 is its own gamble
You fly, the car follows
- Your odometer and your calendar both stay where they were
- Rides open on our own equipment on most seasonal lanes
- Up to 100 lb of non-valuable items can travel in the vehicle
- One price per leg, confirmed before anything is dispatched
Covered transport is rarely worth it for a seasonal driver, but if the vehicle is a collector or a low-clearance build, ask about covered enclosed shipping instead. Heading to or from the city instead of the suburbs? We also run Chicago car shipping on the same seasonal schedule.
How a season gets booked
Booking snowbird car shipping out of Burlington takes one phone call and two rough dates. Here is the whole sequence.
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You give us two windows
The month you leave and the month you come home, plus both addresses.
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You get a number per leg
Priced for the lane and the month. Nothing is committed until you say go.
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We agree the meeting spot
Your driveway if a hauler fits, otherwise a community area or a lit lot nearby.
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It is waiting when you arrive
Walked and signed off on the bill of lading at both ends, same as every run.
Not a seasonal trip at all? Job moves, college runs and online purchases are handled as vehicle relocation, and the full service list sits on our Burlington auto transport page.
Our own trucks work the Midwest corridor. The brokerage covers the rest.
Dawley Logistics is a carrier first, based in Burlington, Wisconsin. Our open nine-car haulers run Minneapolis, Chicago, Milwaukee and Detroit as the bread-and-butter lanes, with coverage across the Midwest plus Kentucky and Tennessee, roughly a 500-mile radius. Beyond that, DS Brokerage, our sister company, moves vehicles anywhere in the lower 48 on carriers we vet ourselves.
Snowbird lanes we run every season: Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, Chicago and Schaumburg south to Tampa, Miami, Naples and Jacksonville; Phoenix, Glendale and Scottsdale; Austin, Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth, and back north in spring.
Questions about snowbird car shipping
Do you offer snowbird round trips?
Yes. Many of our snowbird customers ship with us both directions, year after year. You get the direct market rate for the lane each way; we do not inflate a price to discount it back down.
What if my travel dates move?
Call as soon as you know. Before a carrier has collected the vehicle, changing or cancelling is not a problem; after that it is a conversation with the driver on the road.
Do I have to be there myself for pickup?
No. Anyone you trust can hand the keys over and walk the vehicle with the driver. Whoever signs the bill of lading is the person the condition notes belong to.
The car sat all summer. Does that change anything?
Say so when you book. A flat battery or soft tires changes how the vehicle gets loaded, and a surprise at the curb is what turns a pickup into a delay.
My community will not let a car hauler in. What then?
We meet you in a community area outside the gate, or at the nearest well-lit big-box parking lot, for everyone’s safety.
Can I leave things in the car?
Up to 100 lb of non-valuable personal items. Keep valuables out of the vehicle.
Will the price change after I book?
No. The number we quote is the number you pay, even if it costs us more to secure the carrier. The one condition: the vehicle’s condition and any modifications have to be disclosed when you book. No hidden fees, no negotiation, no asterisk.