Anyone been to Tobago Cays RECENTLY

[Roux]

Originally Posted by bstreep

We went 35 years ago. And then again 6 months ago. SO disappointed. Be sure and bring food to eat aboard. The boat boys will take you to the cleaners. $55 US for chicken (3legs), $75 US for lobster. The boat boys have unionized. And they have universally adopted what THEY call, a “white tax”. My advice is to stick to Beqia, Mustique, and the Grenada Grenadines. Oh yeah, watch our in Clifton, Union Island. The boat boys have a little scheme where they run you over a mooring line just below the water, and then ping you for huge bucks to have it removed. It’s on Noonsite.

This is bull5h1t to say the least.
Nowhere is a lobster meal 75 US.
There is no such thing as a "white tax". If you believe in doomsite (sic)
You will believe in anything.
You can negotiate a price for the meal at TC. You can tell the boat boys in Clifton to stay away from you (voetsek works well) and catch your own swing mooring.
No need to be a victim.

[derfy]

Originally Posted by RIglehart

Everyone. This is all great info. Thank you. I have more specific questions now...

1) If you snorkel outside the reef, do you need someone extra in a dingy to drop off and pick up? Or... Can you anchor/moor a dingy somewhere and come back to it, or are the currents too strong?

2) It looks like if you anchor, you pay. Say I anchor inside the reef and pay. Then motor out and anchor inside Worlds End Reef, I assume the anchor/mooring pass covers 24 hours, not just a spot. Correct? I am assuming moving around within the park is fine and payment is documented with a receipt of some kind in case you get hit up more than once.

I tied my dinghy off at a dinghy mooring outside the cut, and just snorkeled from there. That day, the current was not too bad. Always start off into the current when leaving your boat so you can drift back. Also reasonable to drift with the dink painter tied around your waist (or around a weight belt). Its quite deep outside the reef and very steep-to. You can see 100's of feet on a good day.

Yes, plan to anchor and pay. Its a park, with official receipts. The officials come around. You pay for as many days as you wish.

[derfy]

Originally Posted by RIglehart

Are you talking about here? I have been eyeballing that. How many boats can fit in that spot? Can you overnight there if the forecast looks ok?

Yes, your attachment shows the Tobago Cays. It's widely known and in every cruise guide, a mandatory stop in the Grenadines. Its a park. You take a mooring, or anchor in designated areas (over sand, not sea bed) and pay a fee for as many nights as you like. Policies and capacities are best learned from official updated sources, like the park web site (which can be googled, I'm sure). Enjoy!

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Ken Goodings

Don't try it. Checking out in Carriacou and in at Union Island is absolutely mandatory. And vice versa. This kind of illegal activity can get you a permanent ban from both SVG and Grenada. Even dumber to put in an open forum.

Please cite the regulations that say this is illegal. Of course we checked out when we moved on.

This was done by countless cruisers because one night you want to be at Petit Martinique and the next night in Bequia, then Tobago Cays etc. It’s all one area.

When you take a cruise out of Miami to the Caribbean, you are not checked out & in of the US either and same for the islands you visit.