Gigante Express operates USA-to-Guatemala shipping out of Miami and Los Angeles, with fast 48-72 hour transit on Monday and Thursday departures and a notable feature: import duties are pre-paid and included in the shipping fee, so no customs broker is needed on the Guatemala side. For diaspora family shipments where the recipient doesn’t want to deal with SAT paperwork, this is a strong pitch. The one flag to watch: Gigante shares its Guatemala phone and apparently its Zona 11 office with King Express.
Verification status: Partially verified. Service description and US office presence (Miami + LA) confirmed. Rates NOT published. Shared GT phone number with King Express is an open question worth verifying before sending money. Last verified April 2026.
Who writes this: We’re Guatemala Life, a Guatemala-based team. We track diaspora couriers in the USA-to-Guatemala corridor because they handle the vast majority of Guatemalan family-box shipments. Gigante Express surfaced in our Q2 2026 courier research as the primary “taxes pre-paid” positioning in the Miami+LA corridor. We could verify their service description and office locations but not rate card — consistent with most family-box couriers.
The shared-phone flag: Gigante Express’s Guatemala City phone is +502 5305-3371. King Express also lists this as its GT number, and both reference 13 calle 12-96 zona 11 Ofibodega 1037 (behind Roosevelt Hospital) as the GT address. Three plausible explanations: (1) the two companies share a warehouse and staff, (2) Gigante and King are affiliated or related businesses with shared GT infrastructure, (3) one rents space from the other. We could not verify which. Before wiring money, confirm: (a) which specific US office your box ships from, (b) the exact GT delivery address, (c) who signs for the box at arrival. Get it in writing. See the King Express page for the other side.
Rate structure (not publicly published — quote only)
Gigante Express does not publish a rate card on their site. To get a quote you call, WhatsApp, or visit the US office. Based on the tier typical of their market segment, expect:
| Tier | Expected range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Standard box shipment | Quote per box or per weight | Tax-inclusive model |
| Documents / small parcels | ~$15-$30 / small parcel | Typical diaspora courier range |
| Family box (mid-size) | $100-$300 flat or quote | Diaspora family-box tier |
| Large box (30×30×30 size) | $300-$400 est. | Comparable to King Express’s $325 flat |
We emphasize these are estimates, not published rates. Call for the actual quote.
Conversion to Quetzales. At Q7.75/USD, a $300 shipment ≈ Q2,325. See today’s exchange rates.
Transit time
| Stage | Time |
|---|---|
| US office → GT arrival | 48-72 hours (Mon/Thu departures) |
| GT arrival → final delivery | 1-3 days within Guatemala City |
| Typical end-to-end | 4-7 business days |
Departure days are Mondays and Thursdays. A Friday drop-off waits until Monday. A Tuesday drop-off waits until Thursday. Plan drop-offs for the day before a departure to minimize warehouse time.
What to ship
- Family encomiendas (clothing, household, gifts) — the core Gigante product
- Documents — pre-paid taxes positioning helps here
- Small- to mid-size boxes (under 30×30×30 inches)
- Consumer goods with declared value under $500 to stay in simplified customs
What NOT to ship
- Perishables (rejected by most couriers)
- Alcohol in commercial quantities — DAI 15-30% means tax-inclusive pricing may not apply
- Pharmaceuticals without prescription
- Live animals, plants
- Firearms, ammunition, explosives
- High-value items without verified insurance — ask explicitly about declared-value limits and insurance coverage
Gotchas
- Shared GT phone +502 5305-3371 with King Express. Read the flag at the top. Do not assume Gigante and King are independent operations at the Guatemala end. Verify your specific delivery address in writing before sending money.
- No published rates. You cannot price-compare on the web. You must call for every quote. This is a friction point versus Quick Box USA (published $2.25/lb) and USPS (published flat-rate boxes).
- No public tracking. Like King Express, Gigante does not advertise an online tracking portal. Status requires a phone call.
- “Taxes included” may have limits. The pre-paid duty positioning is a real differentiator, but high-declared-value or restricted items (electronics over $500, alcohol, appliances) often fall outside the tax-inclusive tier. Confirm per-item before dropping off.
- Mon/Thu departure cadence matters. Holidays shift the schedule. Check the calendar before dropping off around major US or Guatemalan holidays (July 4, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Semana Santa, Independence Day September 15).
How Gigante Express compares to the Miami + LA tier
| Courier | US hub | Rate | Transit | Duty handling | Tracking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gigante Express | Miami + LA | Quote only | 48-72 hrs Mon/Thu | Pre-paid / taxes included | None public |
| King Express | LA Pico Blvd | $22 / $13 / $3.50 / lb + $325 flat | 5-15 days | Recipient pays at GT | None public |
| Quick Box USA | Miami PO box | $2.25 / lb (Premium) | 72 hrs + pickup | Simplified under $500 | Confirm at signup |
| Chapines Cargo | LA Koreatown | Quote per box | 1-2 weeks | Recipient pays | None public |
| CPX | Miami | ~$3 / lb | 5-10 days | CPX handles on behalf of customer | Online portal |
Gigante Express’s advantage: pre-paid duty positioning reduces recipient friction. Fast 48-72 hour transit. Both Miami and LA offices give it broader US pickup coverage than King Express (LA only).
Gigante Express’s disadvantage: no published rates, no tracking, and the shared GT infrastructure with King Express is unresolved.
Contact and office info
- Website: paqueteriagiganteexpress.com
- US offices: Miami, FL and Los Angeles, CA — confirm exact street addresses by phone
- GT phone: +502 5305-3371 (same number as King Express — verify specific GT handoff before shipping)
- GT office: 13 calle 12-96 zona 11 Ofibodega 1037, behind Roosevelt Hospital (per Gigante listing — shared or adjacent to King Express)
- Departures: Mondays and Thursdays
- Duty handling: Pre-paid / taxes-included positioning (confirm per-shipment)
Related pages
- USA to Guatemala Courier Directory — Full 4-tier comparison
- King Express — The other half of the shared-phone story
- Quick Box USA — Cheapest casillero if you’re online shopping
- USPS Priority Mail International — Flat-rate baseline
- Chapines Cargo — Other LA Koreatown family-box courier
- Ship a box from USA overview — High-level comparison
- Import duty calculator — Estimate SAT DAI + IVA
- Moving from USA hub — Full relocation pipeline
Sources
Last verified: April 2026.
- Gigante Express official site — service description, US offices, Mon/Thu schedule
- King Express published GT phone (+502 5305-3371) cross-referenced — King Express
- SAT Guatemala Aduanas — simplified customs thresholds
- Guatemala Life courier market research (April 2026) — cross-references
Corrections & updates
If you’ve shipped with Gigante Express recently and the rate, duty-handling arrangement, or GT office no longer matches what we describe, email us and we’ll update within 48 hours. Reader input on the shared-phone-with-King-Express situation specifically is welcome — we’d like to resolve whether they’re one company, two related companies, or independent operators sharing GT infrastructure.
Service and office presence verified April 2026. Rates not published — quote required. Shared GT phone with King Express flagged for verification.
