Shells and sand

[lovestocruise19]

My parents are going on their very first cruise with DH and I in January. Mom was talking about collecting seashells. I told her that I don't think you are allowed to bring shells/sand back onto the ship. Am I correct? I never have before and I don't want her getting in trouble or bringing bugs back on the ship or whatever.

[lottsomom]

I've brought sea shells back on board, never had a problem. Just put them in my beach bag.

[KPfromCT]

We've done it on previous cruises. I usually bring some ziplock bags and we collect them.

Now, whether you are supposed to, or not, I don't know.

We don't try to hide them, and nobody has ever said anything to us.

 

Good question......

 

Curious to see others replies.

[lovestocruise19]

Hmm...okay. I thought I read somewhere you can't bring conch shells back onboard. Maybe it's only for larger shells?

[RCmommy]

Hmm...okay. I thought I read somewhere you can't bring conch shells back onboard. Maybe it's only for larger shells?

 

Maybe they would only say something if the shell was large enough to have a critter inside?

 

Interested in others replies as well as I know the kiddos will collect a few.

[KPfromCT]

That's odd because I have read MULTIPLE reviews where people have gone to the Conch Graveyard in Grand Turk and brought them on with no problem.

 

Maybe certain islands have certain restrictions?:confused:

[goduckies05]

I took some small shells from Antigua and a conch from Nassau on my last cruise.

[mrsfuzzmo]

You can take shells and sand back with you as long as there's nothing living in them and you didn't pluck them off of the sea floor and pull the critter out.

 

If it's an abandoned, empty shell, there is no problem. Warning.....they can stink, especially conch, so put them in an airtight bag.

 

Smaller shells found on the beach, as long as they are empty, they should be fine. :)

[loxley]

Why would you want to steal a poor sea creatures home? Yes, I know people do it, but I think it is wrong.

[guxu]

My kids always collect shells every time we cruise, some of them are not small.

[kona_wahine]

Why would you want to steal a poor sea creatures home? Yes, I know people do it, but I think it is wrong.

 

Once it's empty no creature is going to move back into it.

[NightOne]

We had a shell in our bag in Cozumel. After it was X-Rayed they wanted to search the bag. They found the shell and would not let us keep it. They dropped it into a carboard box with others. This was the Mexican authorities.

 

If it would have been in our front pocket it would have made it through. ;)

Edited April 7, 2015 by NightOne

[dioxide45]

Why would you want to steal a poor sea creatures home? Yes, I know people do it, but I think it is wrong.

 

Shells that you find now were a critters home most likely a few thousand years ago. The critter very rarely just died and left it. Some shells you find are actually fossils of the original shell. Some shells do become homes to new critters, like hermit crabs. Though the standard clam type shell on many beaches likely doesn't.

 

In many cases if a shell is on the beach with a critter inside it, the critter is on its last legs. Though I usually throw them back out in the water. A shell with a stinky critter is no shell I would want.

 

One is likely better collecting shells on a beach than buying commercial shells sold in stores. In some cases those shells are collected live, then killed and cleaned for sale.

 

We have never had an issue bringing shells back on the ship. In Nassau we saw locals selling large conch shells near the port. I am sure people had no problems bringing those back either. I would think the only time you need to be careful is if you are in a protected nature reserve or park. It may be illegal to take shells out of that type of environment.

[KPfromCT]

Why would you want to steal a poor sea creatures home? Yes, I know people do it, but I think it is wrong.

 

Really? We are talking about shells that have washed up on the beach. Nothing is living in them.

 

Not talking about taking them off the sea floor.

[cmptrwiz]

When we were in Nassau I bought 8 or 9 large beautiful counch shells. I had no trouble getting on the ship or going through customs.

[Kcarp]

Don't try this in Hawaii, they will take any sand or shells. One of our friends had a pebble from Black Sand Beach taken from her at the airport.

[lovestocruise19]

Do planes have different rules than ships? The ports we are going to are Amber Cove, DR; St. Thomas; San Juan and Grand Turk.

[dioxide45]

Do planes have different rules than ships? The ports we are going to are Amber Cove, DR; St. Thomas; San Juan and Grand Turk.

 

Just pack it in your checked luggage and you should be fine on the flight home.

[brookeq]

On some private islands you can't take back any sand or shells.

 

Disney's Castaway Cay is one where they stop you from taking anything. There are signs up not to.

[pghsteelerfan]

Do planes have different rules than ships? The ports we are going to are Amber Cove, DR; St. Thomas; San Juan and Grand Turk.

 

I've taken small shells (all empties from beaches) in my carry on bag to get on a plane but before we went to Grand Turk, I read if bringing back a large conch shell to put it in the checked bag because...get this...they can be considered a weapon. I bring gallon (or larger) sized zip lock freezer bags and pack them among clothes to prevent breaking. I got mine back without any problems. On the customs forms, we don't declare anything.

[Flatbush Flyer]

Don't try this in Hawaii, they will take any sand or shells. One of our friends had a pebble from Black Sand Beach taken from her at the airport.

 

 

Like Hawaii, California's agricultural inspection agents would have a major issue with someone bringing into the state soil, sand, shells, etc., which have not been properly sanitized, declared and okayed by government inspection. Even then, the agents may still take them away from you.

 

Some of the posts above suggest that, if you can't see any critters in those materials, they are acceptable. Nothing could be further from the truth- it's what you can't see that often causes havoc for agriculture.

In addition US customs requires that all such items be declared and that shells and the like must be properly sanitized. So, if you can't boil them and/or nuke them, please, at least, keep them out of California, Hawaii and any other state whose economy depends in large part on agriculture. Better still, just buy the sealed packaged pre-inspected items if you really need to collect that stuff.

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

Edited April 8, 2015 by Flatbush Flyer

[cb at sea]

Some places have laws about removing things...so get a guidebook, and read up on where you're going. Ignorance is not a valid excuse for breaking the law! And you DO NOT want to break the law in a foreign country! So...read up on the countries you'll visit! They are countries...not just vacation spots!

[pghsteelerfan]

Do planes have different rules than ships? The ports we are going to are Amber Cove, DR; St. Thomas; San Juan and Grand Turk.

 

I don't know if you're still checking this thread or not. Just replying again with more specifics about shells/rules from the islands you'll be visiting. As a few previous posters mentioned, it's a good idea to check rules of the countries you'll be going to. I usually try to do that. I'd hate to find beautiful little shells and then have them confiscated when trying to bring them back home.

 

Amber Cove, DR: I've never been there, so I don't know. A friend was in the DR at an all-inclusive several years ago and had no problems bringing shells back. They were small shells on the beach. I don't know if this is allowed or not but she did.

 

St. Thomas/St. John: Both USA Territories. If you're on St. Thomas, it's OK to remove shells from some beaches. We were in Sapphire Beach in 2013 and found a few smaller shells and it's allowable. There weren't many, so it's probably not a good shelling spot. If you go over to St. John, removing sand/shells is not permitted since most of St. John is National Park. They clearly stated that when going over the rules with our excursion group before snorkeling in Trunk Bay in 2010.

 

San Juan: USA Territory. Not really known to be a good shelling spot since it's more popular for the Forts, Rainforest, Old Town, etc. We flew down to San Juan a day pre-cruise before our Valor cruise two years ago and stayed at a hotel in Isla Verde Beach, which is about 20 minutes from Old San Juan right near the airport. I found some really nice little shells right up on the beach there. Isla Verde Beach isn't a National Park/Marine Reserve and there were no rules against taking any. None had critters.

 

Grand Turk: Yes, it's allowable to bring shells back, even the conch shells from the "graveyard", which have been harvested of the animal and discarded (thus the nickname "graveyard"). Those will have either a hole or a slit at the top from where they cut the animal from the shell. The shells aren't pretty with the pink interior that you normally see for sale, these are rather worn (some broken) and some are bleached white from the sun and some were gray. The confusion here is that there are certain cruise lines that do not allow passengers to bring conch shells back on board (do a search on the Grand Turk board under the "Ports of Call" section, there's plenty on the graveyard) but Carnival still allows it, at least to my knowledge. We had ours in our beach bag and didn't just walk on carrying it in the open. Little shells washed up on the beach, not a problem as long as it's not in a protected Marine Reserve. I don't think the beach at the cruise pier is Marine Reserve.

 

I saw Flatbush Flyer's post about getting things into CA. That is definitely a fact. Several years ago some neighbors of ours (good friends) moved from our neighborhood in VA to CA and she had a lot of beautiful house plants. She ended up having to find new homes for all of them (I have a few) because they would have had to have a horticulturalist inspect every house plant and were told that the moving van would have to have proof of that inspection when entering the state. They had enough to do with preparing for the move and didn't want to have an additional thing to plan for/do.

Edited April 8, 2015 by pghsteelerfan

[Out of Iowa]

As we were providing our passports after debarking the Dream in March, I overheard the Customs staff asking the family in the next lane whether they had any shells, shellfish or natural items.

 

Just know - you might be asked!

[calisilent]

My parents are going on their very first cruise with DH and I in January. Mom was talking about collecting seashells. I told her that I don't think you are allowed to bring shells/sand back onto the ship. Am I correct? I never have before and I don't want her getting in trouble or bringing bugs back on the ship or whatever.

 

Last year DH and I were in Roatan. We spent the day on the beach and I collected some lovely shells on our walk along the beach. After we had walked about a mile along the shore I saw a sign, a BIG sign, saying that it is against Honduran law to remove ANY shells, coral, or sea plant from the country. The penalty included fines and imprisonment.

I left the shells on the beach and DH and I walked back to the beach bar and ordered a margarita exhillerated and relieved by our escape. :)