Shipping Liquor From St. Thomas

[UBinfwa]

Now that you can no longer bring liquids on airplanes, has the St. Thomas liquor store/sellers [Riise, etc.] come up with a safe & economical way of shipping purchased liquor as checked baggage? Must be costing them business!!

 

Any recent St. Thomas cruisers come up with a solution?

 

Thanks!

 

A Cruising Hoosier :cool:

[dlbutler5]

Most posts I've read, people are just packing it in their checked bags. The shops use a special box if you tell them you are flying. Don;t think about shipping, UPS and DHL is about $130 - $160 for a 10 pound box.

[Betsy's Mom]

You can not mail or ship any liquor or cigarettes out of ST Thomas. It must go with you either packed in your checked luggage or a seperate box. Take bubble wrap and pray loudly!

B.

[Us2inFL]

I remember some advantage to buying liquor and cigarettes in St Thomas. There was something to do with US duty tax. Someone said you can only buy 1 liter/pp and one carton of cigarettes, unless you purchase the items in St Thomas, in which case you can buy considerably more per person.

 

Any information please?

 

Thanks

[laser110]

My parents, Aunt and Uncle were just in St. Thomas in Nov and my Uncle brought home liqour. He bought at K-Mart and they drank some while on the Island. Then repacked the box and put it through baggage on the plane. My mom said Customs gave him some trouble because he used duct tape to reseal the box, but after going through the x-ray machine it was fine. When I picked them up at the airport, I also saw several others with liquor boxes from AH Riise etc.

 

UB- we aways just put our box of liquor through the baggage, no special box needed, I don't think this has hurt business at all. The liquid restriction is on what you can personally carry on and I never saw anyone carry on a box form the liquor stores on St. Thomas, it was always sent with baggage.

 

 

Scott

[jackdiamond]

I remember some advantage to buying liquor and cigarettes in St Thomas. There was something to do with US duty tax. Someone said you can only buy 1 liter/pp and one carton of cigarettes, unless you purchase the items in St Thomas, in which case you can buy considerably more per person.

 

Any information please?

 

Thanks

I believe that it is 5 liters per person. We returned on the 14th and had a few more than the amount allowed; and, we were charged extra by customs, as were a fair number of people. This was interesting, since I had exceeded the limits in the past, although always declaring the amounts, and I never had to pay extra-just waived through. I believe that this is part of the new scheme of things wherein we will pay tax on virtually everything.

[Us2inFL]

Thank you for the responses to my question.

[The Islander]

"$1,600 Exemption

If you return directly or indirectly from a U.S. insular possession (which includes the U.S. Virgin Islands), you are allowed a $1,600 duty-free exemption. You may include 1,000 cigarettes as part of this exemption, but at least 800 of them must have been acquired in an insular possession. Only 200 cigarettes may have been acquired elsewhere. For example, if you were touring the Caribbean and you stopped in Jamaica, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and other ports of call, you could bring back five cartons of cigarettes, but four of them would have to have been bought in U.S. Virgin Islands.

 

Similarly, you may include five liters of alcoholic beverages in your duty-free exemption, but one of them must be a product of an insular possession. Four may be products of other countries. Duty free allowance on alcoholic beverages applies if you are 21 years old, it is for your own use or as a gift and it does not violate the laws of the state in which you arrive.

 

Travel to More Than One Country

If you travel to a U.S. insular possession and to one or more of the Caribbean Basin countries, for example, on a Caribbean cruise, you may bring back $1,600 worth of items without paying duty, but only $800 worth of these items may come from the Caribbean Basin country(ies). Any amount beyond $800 will be dutiable unless you acquired it in one of the insular possessions.

 

For example, if you were to travel to the U.S. Virgin Islands and Jamaica, you would be allowed to bring back $1,600 worth of merchandise duty-free, as long as only $800 worth was acquired in Jamaica.

 

Keeping track of where your purchases occurred and having the receipts ready to show the CBP officers will help speed your clearing customs."

 

--Islander

[Us2inFL]

Good news, thanks.

 

I'm taking liquor orders....state your preference.

 

;)

[JustinPlusLauren]

We have always just put it in our checked luggage and it hasn't been a problem! Enjoy all of the wonderful cheap alcohol :D

[Us2inFL]

We have always just put it in our checked luggage and it hasn't been a problem!

 

That raises a issue since you cannot carry-on boxed liquor at an airport. We drive home from Miami, but what happens when the ship returns your purchase the night before disembarkation? Whether it's two bottles or ten, do you have to check it at the airport as luggage? Aside from breakage issues, many airlines now charge per piece for luggage.

[LBumb]

checked bags with large ziplock bags, then bubble wrap wrapped around clothes.