Shipping a container from Rotterdam (NL) to Los Angeles takes approx 28 days. The distance between the two ports is about 6800 nautical miles. That is about 12594 km. If you make a sea shipment, there are 2 important values, ETD and ETA. ETD means the date and time the vessel will leave the dock. ETA It is the date and time that the vessel has been scheduled to arrive into port. The shipping time is determined on the basis of the speed of the boat, sea weather condition and berth availability.