A simple coffee order from Danville to Nicholasville turned into an unexpected cross-country trip, underscoring nationwide holiday shipping delays that have frustrated customers across the region.
Scott Harvey ordered bags of his favorite coffee blend on Nov. 19, shipping them through USPS from a Danville coffee shop to his home in Nicholasville, a distance of just 20 miles. Instead of traveling directly, the package went on a 1,400-mile journey through three states before arriving 19 days later.
“USPS said, you want shipping? We’ll give you tourism!” Harvey said.
The package first traveled from Danville to Louisville, where it remained for several days. It then moved to Rochester, New York, before heading to Indianapolis, returning to Lexington, and finally reaching Harvey’s doorstep on Dec. 10.
Two weeks into the delay, Harvey visited the Louisville postal facility to ask about the missing package.
“I went down there like, two weeks into it, when it was in-between places for like 4 or 5 days. And they told me this is tracking in our system, there’s nothing we can do. Welcome to holiday shipping time,” Harvey said.
Harvey said he can laugh off the delay since it involved coffee, but friends have faced even longer shipping issues.
“I had two friends say, let me know if mine ever shows up, it’s been 4 months,” Harvey said.
Despite the frustration, Harvey said he does not blame postal workers and instead pointed to broader system problems.
“Good friends work for the post office, but they’re like, we can’t do anything about this either. It’s a system issue that’s not up with the times. It makes their jobs easier. They’re as frustrated as we are,” Harvey said.
The unusual delivery highlights the wider shipping challenges customers often encounter during the busy holiday season, when higher package volumes strain delivery networks nationwide.
LEX 18 has reached out to USPS for comment and has not yet received a response.
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