Dominica, Guadeloupe, Antigua

[Downsman]

"Officials in Antigua were rude and arrogant. Be prepared to keep calm and don't let them wind you up. "

0830 Customs/Immigration office English Harbour. Shaved, clean 'T' shirt and shorts...Only customer in there and I'm sitting on the bench seat in the office clutching ship's papers, passport etc: while two lady Immigration officers in smart white shirts with the big shoulder badges (like US Highway Patrol) paint each others nails.

Man at the Customs desk is looking embarrassed, so is the lady from the Port Authority at the desk by the door. ( The new office at Nelson's Dockyard)

09.10 approach Immigration.."excuse me what time do you open please?"

"When we are ready and we feel like it"....

See Snow Leopard's above quote..

 

[fliti]

There seems to be a near universal confirmation that the situation in Antigua has not improved one jot in the 12 years since I was up and down the islands. Rude, arrogant, unhelpful and money grabbing...probably also corrupt. A bit like most of the other Antiguans I met. Eventually, I gave up and stopped checking in and out. Just dropped the hook in English Harbour, stayed as long as I wanted, then sailed away. Bit like Greek DEPKA. Anyone heard of any problems with this approach?

 

[Downsman]

On that occasion I lay astern of this big Ketch and they got an official visit of some description, but I don't know if it was Police, Immigration or some other department I went to the office at 08.00 having anchored in the early hours in the bay.
I have to say the lady in the office who took money for the Port Authority and the Customs bloke were polite and helpful enough.

 

[macd]

I'll be in Antigua in a few days, so the comments above are helpful, if slightly conflicting. Maybe the surliness comes from imitating King Vyv, who definitely had something to be surly about. (That's Richards, btw, not Cox.)

re Jonic's photo of 'Seacat': that's Dwight. Far too cheerful and helpful to be an Antiguan, by the sound of it.

31/3: just checked in at English Harbour: a slightly laborious process, but still took less than 30 mins. Port authority and immigration ladies nice as ninepence; customs chap a bit on the surly side; overall, nothing to complain about (other than the local bar prices).

 

[BrianH]

A side trip to Barbuda is worthwhile. This was the famous pink beach just north of Palmetto Point.

Officials in Antigua were rude and arrogant. Be prepared to keep calm and don't let them wind you up.

That looks like Low Bay, Barbuda, where I anchored. I should have cleared from Antigua while there, but no, I wanted to do it by the book by visiting Barbuda and clearing properly from there. But what a performance that was, hauling the dinghy over the dune into the lagoon, plugging all the way across to Codrington, the only port of entry, walking for hours in the heat looking for three quite separate small offices with hardly any means of identification, then all the way back again. Next time I'll clear from Jolly Harbour.

I found it's true what everyone says about English Harbour. When I went to enter the immigration official overwrote every entry I had made on the form. When I asked "is that because you have a better pen?" (the ball-point I had used was getting faint), he replied "No, because I have better handwriting". Hmm, perhaps, but he didn't smile when he said it.

 

[TQA]

Eventually, I gave up and stopped checking in and out. Just dropped the hook in English Harbour, stayed as long as I wanted, then sailed away. Bit like Greek DEPKA. Anyone heard of any problems with this approach?

Err well the $10,000 EC dollar fine levied on one cruiser who got caught would seem to be a problem for me. Also the overnight stay in jail and the seizure of the boat pending payement.

Another charter skipper was fined $5,000 for letting his passengers and crew go ashore before he had cleared in. They arrived after customs closed and went out for dinner.

I have always found the Customs/Immigration/Port authorities to be polite and courteous. Although having to fill out the same info three times is tedious and some times they make you come alongside in Jolly harbor [ So they can read the name I was told by the officer ] which is hard for me single handed with a boat that has a mind of it's own in reverse.