Bimini 2015 - July 6th to 11th

[robert843]

Did we ever get orginal Bahamas imigration forms? I have another friend going in May I might be able to get him to grab some or maybe @tim h can grab us some if goes back within the next 90 days

 

[Bruce]

Did we ever get orginal Bahamas imigration forms? I have another friend going in May I might be able to get him to grab some or maybe @tim h can grab us some if goes back within the next 90 days

Last year Bimini Sands mailed them over to us. I feel certain they will do so again once we know how many to request.

If your friend wants to grab some and can get them back in good condition, that would be great.

 

[Murf'n'surf]

They are online somewhere aren't they? I can remember downloading a form to list all food being brought into the Bahamas.

 

[Bruce]

There is a "landing card" type form that we needed to have mailed over last year. @justason took care if it.

 

[justason]

There is a "landing card" type form that we needed to have mailed over last year. @justason took care if it.

the immigration form, every person fills out one. I called Bimini sands and they mailed them to me. I asked for a given qty but they just threw a bunch in an envelope.....we were short a few.

Dont forget...The "hospitality chief" PROMISED that customs would be at the bimini sands marina "next time"....

 

[upperdeck]

I'm not holding my breath over that promise! The hospitality dude seems a bit sketchy!

 

[justason]

Found this for you divers. This was a photo i took off a sheet from neal watson GPS dive spots

Hawkbill is just north of bimini sands and 40 feet deep. My scuba video is of this spot FYSA

ENJOY

 

[kthrash]

any of yall planning on Diving? I wouldnt mind renting some equipment and taking a couple of 40' dives if I had a Dive Buddy..

Nobody in my group Dives..

 

[Andy S]

any of yall planning on Diving? I wouldnt mind renting some equipment and taking a couple of 40' dives if I had a Dive Buddy..

Nobody in my group Dives..

2 of the 4 and possibly 3 out of 4 people on my boat will be diving and you are more than welcome to join our crew when we dive.

 

[kthrash]

2 of the 4 and possibly 3 out of 4 people on my boat will be diving and you are more than welcome to join our crew when we dive.

Excellent!!

 

[BigJay17]

@Bruce on passport situation. My kids have the card not the book. Can I use the card? We had got them for the cruise ships

 

[Bruce]

@Bruce on passport situation. My kids have the card not the book. Can I use the card? We had got them for the cruise ships

We had full passports for our kids so I do not have experience with the passport cards.

There is a thread discussing their usage at http://www.thehulltruth.com/boating-forum/341701-passport-vs-passport-card-bahamas.html#b

I googled a little but did not find anything official to confirm that passports cards are ok. But every unofficial statement that I saw said that they were.

The US State Department says "The U.S. Passport Card can be used to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda at land border crossings or sea ports-of-entry and is more convenient and less expensive than a passport book"

 

[robert843]

@BigJay17 I have been researching the same thing and have not found a real clear answer yet but the only disadvantage is in an emergency situation they could not fly back if they had to.

 

[tim h]

@kthrash I'll be your buddy. No one on my boat scuba dives...

On the passport for kids topic.we just sent off the application for our girls.we went with full on passports in case we needed to fly them out.otherwise with the card they would have to take the boat back across...

 

[BigJay17]

Ok thanks everybody.

 

[Speedling]

I know it was recommended to have a handheld vhf. How much was that used and when? I have the built in one but didn't want to buy a handheld one if i don't need to.

I have a 1300 mile trip either way to ft. Lauderdale. This equates to (reasonably) under $1000 in gas when pulling the boat. Would it be plausible/recommended to room with someone in a double room condo, ride on their boat, and my wife and i fly down to florida and meet up? For 2016 this is. Or, is it just simply better to have your own boat?

We are looking for couples that we know that may want to come. Lots of interest but no one with money to go! What would a realistic cost be for us to split the whole trip? I figured almost $2000 per couple!

Sorry to partially hijack guys

 

[Bruce]

I know it was recommended to have a handheld vhf. How much was that used and when? I have the built in one but didn't want to buy a handheld one if i don't need to.

It is illegal to use a marine radio on land in the US. But in Bimini they are used everywhere. All group organization was accomplished via marine radios. Boats going out would often announce where they were going and ask if others wanted to join before leaving. We took a pair of inexpensive handhelds along with the fixed VHF in the boat. We kept them on until we went to sleep each night. I linked to the Uniden MHS-050 which can be purchased for $45 per pair in the Preparing for Bimini thread.

I have a 1300 mile trip either way to ft. Lauderdale. This equates to (reasonably) under $1000 in gas when pulling the boat. Would it be plausible/recommended to room with someone in a double room condo, ride on their boat, and my wife and i fly down to florida and meet up? For 2016 this is. Or, is it just simply better to have your own boat?

We are looking for couples that we know that may want to come. Lots of interest but no one with money to go! What would a realistic cost be for us to split the whole trip? I figured almost $2000 per couple!

Most boats had more than one couple onboard in 2014 and I believe most shared condos. If we were not brining our kids we would likely bring friends. But I would only want to bring close friends that I was confident we would enjoy crossing the gulf stream and spending the week with.

Under BiminiSands pricing, and using round numbers, a one bedroom with a loft and two bathrooms is only $25 more per night than a one bedroom. A two bedroom is over $100 more. The lofts do not offer privacy but certainly reduce the cost.

I understand the fuel costs. We are towing 1,200 miles each way and I budgeted $1,000 for gas in our truck. If we are lucky that will be less this year.

Our costs from 2014 are approximately documented in the 2014 thread. Excluding food, we spent roughly $2,675 after arriving in Fort Lauderdale. By the time you add in groceries, $300 we spent in restaurants in Bimini, $1,000 in gas, 5 nights in hotels and five days of food on the road I would guess that our total cost was close to $5,500. So I think you would need three couples to get the cost down to $2,000 per couple.

 

[justason]

I know it was recommended to have a handheld vhf. How much was that used and when? I have the built in one but didn't want to buy a handheld one if i don't need to.

I have a 1300 mile trip either way to ft. Lauderdale. This equates to (reasonably) under $1000 in gas when pulling the boat. Would it be plausible/recommended to room with someone in a double room condo, ride on their boat, and my wife and i fly down to florida and meet up? For 2016 this is. Or, is it just simply better to have your own boat?

We are looking for couples that we know that may want to come. Lots of interest but no one with money to go! What would a realistic cost be for us to split the whole trip? I figured almost $2000 per couple!

Sorry to partially hijack guys

I personally thought the handheld is mandatory......it works for in house communications with the others as well as ship to ship. In the event of a crossing mishap I was relying on @upperdeck or @Bruce or someone with a quality radio. marine radios are used like cell phones on Bimini

cost: My first year had about $1k in overhead between radio, GPS and passports....our commute was 850 miles one way...we spent the same in road fuel as boat fuel which was about $500 each. I'd guess the entire trip cost us $5k first year, $4k 2nd year for 2 adults, 2 kids. money we spent that could be avoided was $150 for scuba stuff and $100 for eating out........we brought EVERYTHING for food/drink with us both times.

its great to be there with your own boat, but your proposal has its attraction. I guess it'd be a matter of boat space or occupancy to be weighed as the date draws near

 

[kthrash]

I pre-bought 1000 gallons of fuel for this trip on mygallons.com at $1.96 all in.. I figure between the truck gas and the boat gas, I will use a good bit of that this summer..

 

[DiverB]

Count me in for either June or July. I can only stay 5 days in Bimini. I've been watching YouTube videos and reading about the 2014 Bimini trip and it looks like an awful lot of fun! More than likely I will be traveling solo so I will look into booking a regular hotel room, not a condo. I'm interested in SCUBA diving while there .

I'd be more than happy to convoy down with the guys coming from Wisconsin or Indiana or just meet up somewhere.