Practical guides
Formalities and Practical Information
Visas, clearance, insurance, medicine, documents, budgets and practical guidance.
Publications are arranged chronologically – from the earliest to the most recent. Select a title to open the full entry.
Informalities in the Canaries
Informalities in the Canaries for those travelling by sea As we had expected, no one is particularly interested in whether sailors have visas (so far, on this side of the Atlantic). Durin…
Informalities: Leaving the Canary Islands Without Visas
Leaving the Canary Islands without visas. The departure procedure from Spain’s island territories deserves a story of its own. Over the past week, we left the Canary Islands and made it t…
The Canaries Without a Visa: Continuing the Story
The Canaries Without a Visa: Continuing the Story. Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. The other day, like a respectable newly arrived citizen, I went to register my arrival at the port immigration…
The Tale of How We Sailed to Senegal Without a Visa
Getting a Senegalese visa on arrival by yacht. The captain’s notes When it comes to visas for Russians travelling to Senegal, the internet offers three versions: — Timatic and Wikipedia: …
Clearing In by Yacht in The Gambia
Captain’s notes. We’ve arrived. Lady Mary dropped anchor opposite the old ship-repair yard in Banjul, in a place with the optimistic name Half Die. It was Friday, and the authorities were…
Clearing In by Yacht in Cape Verde (the Cape Verde Islands)
Clearing in by yacht in Cape Verde (the Cape Verde Islands). A brief point-by-point guide Clearing in by yacht in Cape Verde (also known as the Cape Verde Islands) was almost boringly sim…
Caribbean Islands. Clearance
Caribbean Islands. Clearing In on a Yacht The most interesting yacht clearance procedure is in Trinidad and Tobago. On the other Caribbean islands, the formalities are fairly straightforw…
Cuba. Clearing In by Yacht. Visa and Customs Formalities
Cuba. Clearing in by yacht. How we covered the final miles, what American aircraft ask Russian yachts, and who is interested in the crew’s body temperatures. . Repairs and provisions So, …
A Mexican Visa for a Sailor
A Mexican visa for a sailor, and clearing a yacht in and out. Formalities, ports of entry, personal experience For Russian citizens flying into the country, a Mexican visa has now been re…
The Galápagos. Strict Rules
The Galápagos. Strict rules. Two anchors, sharks and electric rays. Clearing in by yacht. Government officials aboard Lady Mary. And how we saved our pets. We’ve arrived! The anchorage at…
Easter Island. Visas for Sailors
Easter Island. Visas for Sailors. Clearing in by yacht, the whims of the weather, and passages from one end of the island to the other. Attentive officials, a radio that never falls silen…
The Crew Made Landfall in the Smallest Country in the World!
The crew made landfall in the smallest country in the world! Pitcairn Island. How it happened and how it ended. Our first—and so far last—landing on Pitcairn. We wait for the weather, exc…
Visa for French Polynesia
Visa for French Polynesia: how to obtain one in a third country—Panama, in Panama City—costs and formalities Each French overseas territory requires its own separate visa. In some places …
French Polynesia: Clearing In by Yacht
French Polynesia: Clearing In by Yacht How we turned ourselves in to the gendarmes. Can you enter Polynesia without a visa? Here’s what we started with: A visa for French Polynesia obtain…
Australia by Yacht. Travely-Family’s Visa and Entry Formalities. Sailing Around the World via Antarctica and the Great Capes with Children
Obtaining an Australian visa in a third country, the particulars of entry formalities, and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on border crossings. And so, at 11 a.m. on 18 March, we e…