Sea Shells at Grand Turk

I saw on another CC post that shells picked up from the beach on GT cannot be brought back on the ship. Has anyone had the experience of shells being taken away? Do they check to see if you have sea shells? Been to GT twice in previous years and brought back conchs that we found on the beach...no questions asked. Of course, there were no animals inside them.

how did you get the conch through customs? I don't know if the ship cares or not, but you can not bring conch. It could have been a don't ask, don't tell situation.

On my last cruise, we had a conch shell taken away when going through security. They said it would start to smell in a few days even though it was cleaned out. No problem with regular shells.

On our first 2 trips we brought about 6 conch shells back home with us with no issues, on our stop last year we had our shells taken from us by ship security over an issue about smell, these were not freshly harvested shells , but old shells from the beach , I have since been told that the conch graveyard is now part of the Turks national park system and shells are not supposed to be taken.

Last time we were there (November), they were taking conch shells from people coming on board. I wasn't sure if it was because there was a limit or taking all of them. The guy behind us had like 2 bags of them!

Right before we pulled away from Grand Turk last month on the Magic, we watched from our balcony as several trash bags were brought off of the ship by security personnel. The bags were opened and emptied onto the gangway. There were dozens of conch shells in these bags. We thought that they must not allow you to bring conch shells on the Magic. We did bring a conch shell back on the Dream last year from a snorkeling excursion we did in Grand Cayman. The conch had been cut out, so it was just a shell. It was not confiscated and it was in plain view in our beach bag.

John Heald announced this (bringing shells back on the ship) in February of this year on his social media page. Grand Turk and conch shells weren't specified, only that "shells were not allowed". I've attached a screen shot of that message. He did comment on the post that if the shells were purchased and receipt for purchase can be provided, that they'd be allowed. Several people posted on his page asking the reason and he replied that he would "check with the beards" and get back. Never saw anything else posted or a reason. I've seen recent reports (including here on CC) that shells, even small beach collected shells & sea glass, were being confiscated by security when coming back onto the ships from ports. We had no issues on our last cruise, but that was in September 2015. We also had no issues bringing back a couple of conch shells from GT when there in 2010. They were on the beach and there was no smell at all.

It's not a Carnival policy, it's a Turks and Caicos government policy. You are required to have a government permit to export conch shells and most other types of shells. All of that is clearly spelled out on the Turks and Caicos government visitor site.

Mine was confiscated in Belize.

I brought one back on my January 2017 cruise. I purchased it on the beach form a man on a table in GT for my niece (birthday gift she is five and that is what she asked for). It was looked at by the Carnival Staff and then allowed through the scanner. I am not sure how they can tell I bought it and did not find it on the beach, but needless to say it was allowed on.

. The guy behind us had like 2 bags of them!

That's ridiculous, it sad that some people can't visit a place without trying to take from it or destroy the environment :mad:

They are dead conch, how is this destroying the environment?

We've brought back shells from many islands over the years, most recently in April. Neither Carnival or RC said anything.

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They are dead conch, how is this destroying the environment?

Seashells are an important part of the ecosystem, they provide shelter and home for some sea life, nests for some birds, they also provide surface area for sea vegataion. Sea shells also aid in erosion prevention. Also many countries regulate the amount of sea shells that can be sold or taken to prevent a high demand causing over fishing and a negative effects on the ecosystem. I get people might want to take 1 shell, but I though 2 bags full was ridiculous

Here is a great article about ethical shell collecting,if you care

https://www.travel4wildlife.com/ethical-shell-collecting-guide/

John Heald announced this (bringing shells back on the ship) in February of this year on his social media page. Grand Turk and conch shells weren't specified, only that "shells were not allowed". I've attached a screen shot of that message. He did comment on the post that if the shells were purchased and receipt for purchase can be provided, that they'd be allowed. Several people posted on his page asking the reason and he replied that he would "check with the beards" and get back. Never saw anything else posted or a reason. I've seen recent reports (including here on CC) that shells, even small beach collected shells & sea glass, were being confiscated by security when coming back onto the ships from ports. We had no issues on our last cruise, but that was in September 2015. We also had no issues bringing back a couple of conch shells from GT when there in 2010. They were on the beach and there was no smell at all.

 

This is accurate. LAst year on the conquest, security had collected 1000's of shells from people who had purchased them from locals along the beach. No further questions were asked, they were just taken. I was worried because i had paid $10 for a very large shell from a vendor at the market. SEcurity asked me where I got it, I told them, they noted that it had gold lettering on the side that said Grand turk. They waved me on thru and I got to keep it. Didnt even need a receipt.

We've brought back shells from many islands over the years, most recently in April. Neither Carnival or RC said anything.

 

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The bigger question is - did you declare them on your customs form?????

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/1226/~/seashells%2C-sand%2C-pebbles%2C-driftwood-for-personal-use

I was just in Grand Turk last week and brought an empty conch shell on board with no problem. Our tour guide stopped and gave us them. They were empty, but fresh from the beach, still with sand inside. I just put it in my backpack and walked right on the ship with no problem. Our tour guide did say to put them in our checked luggage and not our carry on, so we did just that. No problem with customs either.

This is accurate. LAst year on the conquest, security had collected 1000's of shells from people who had purchased them from locals along the beach. No further questions were asked, they were just taken. I was worried because i had paid $10 for a very large shell from a vendor at the market. SEcurity asked me where I got it, I told them, they noted that it had gold lettering on the side that said Grand turk. They waved me on thru and I got to keep it. Didnt even need a receipt.

That's is so sad, they probably don't know the impact of taking them has on the ecosystem and sea life

That's ridiculous, it sad that some people can't visit a place without trying to take from it or destroy the environment :mad:

Since this thread speaks of Grand Turk specifically, I think many people get their conch shells from the "conch graveyard." It's where the local restaurants dump the empty shells after harvesting the conch for consumption. There is very little to no impact on the ecosystem if taken from here. The locals who harvest them from the ocean for human consumption, as opposed to acquiring them from a farm, have more impact than a tourist looking for a nice souvenir.

And even if the conch shells appear empty, they can harbor all sorts of microbes inside of them. If someone insists on bringing a conch shell home, they should wash it out and securely bag it before it goes into their luggage.

Upon getting it home, they should bleach the inside of the shell once or twice for proper sanitizing.

Of course, many will just want to follow the travel advice of "leave only footprints, and take only photos" while abroad.

Since this thread speaks of Grand Turk specifically, I think many people get their conch shells from the "conch graveyard." It's where the local restaurants dump the empty shells after harvesting the conch for consumption. There is very little to no impact on the ecosystem if taken from here. The locals who harvest them from the ocean for human consumption, as opposed to acquiring them from a farm, have more impact than a tourist looking for a nice souvenir.

Its posts like this that really make me wish that there were a "like" button on this site!

In addition to the conch graveyard, Grand Turk also has some lovely sea glass. My kids and I collected a bit at Governors Beach last month and brought it back with no problem. Again, it was "trash" that others (like me) determine to be excellent finds/souvenirs and are not negatively impacting the ecosystem by harvesting, but rather cleaning it up :confused: ;p

Since this thread speaks of Grand Turk specifically, I think many people get their conch shells from the "conch graveyard." It's where the local restaurants dump the empty shells after harvesting the conch for consumption. There is very little to no impact on the ecosystem if taken from here. The locals who harvest them from the ocean for human consumption, as opposed to acquiring them from a farm, have more impact than a tourist looking for a nice souvenir.

I agree with you 100%. The two conch shells we brought back from Grand Turk in 2010 were, in fact, from the "conch graveyard". We knew ahead of time that is where the local restaurants dumped them after harvesting the meat (thanks CC). Each of ours have the "harvest hole" that is drilled at the top where they cut the animal out. Both were very faded/bleached white from sitting in the sun where they were dumped. There were a LOT of them there when we were there. There was no smell but I brought large zip lock freezer bags to store them in (also great for damp bathing suits/other clothing btw), just in case and never had an issue with smell. They aren't the beauties that are for sale in the souvenir shops but I prefer the ones we have as great, authentic mementos from Grand Turk. We keep them displayed and every time I look at them I think of our fun day in Grand Turk.

Since this thread speaks of Grand Turk specifically, I think many people get their conch shells from the "conch graveyard." It's where the local restaurants dump the empty shells after harvesting the conch for consumption. There is very little to no impact on the ecosystem if taken from here. The locals who harvest them from the ocean for human consumption, as opposed to acquiring them from a farm, have more impact than a tourist looking for a nice souvenir.

Wrong animals live in old seashell, spiral shells are expecially important for the ecosystem, many sea life will die if they can't find the perfect shell to live in. I studied marine biology in college and seen first hand the effect of tourism and shell collecting. Personally I think people should leave the shells where they are so that the Animals that need them can find them. I would only buy them from the permitted shops and only the legal limit. But I care about other peoples environment, and seek to respect the laws and land that I visit

Also if you did take a shell off the beach there may be an animal inside that you can't see!