YOUR CALL AT ST BARTS.

Before you arrive

• Call “Port de Gustavia” on VHF 12 before entering the channel. 5 knots in the navigation channel, 3 knots inside the harbour. Port de Gustavia website ↗ · Marina formalities ↗
• Complete the port’s online clearance up to 24 hours before arrival; note your file number and password. Port de Gustavia online clearance ↗
• Harbour office: 7 am to 6 pm every day except Sunday. Harbour dues and the Marine Park fee are paid there at clearance.
• Gustavia is Saint-Barthélemy’s port of entry; fly the Q flag on arrival. The island is French but outside the EU customs union.
• 5 knots within 300 m of the shore, inside Marine Park bays and within 100 m of its islets.
• Hurricane season runs from 1 June to 30 November. St Barts is not a hurricane hole: leave in time. Follow Météo-France Antilles-Guyane and CROSS bulletins on VHF 16.
• Local time UTC−4 all year, euro, French and English spoken, 220 V sockets.
• Boat fuel, water and dinghy landing points: see “Ashore”.

Where to anchor

Three anchorages. Positions are not given here: use the buoys, the marks and your charts.

The Marine Park, plainly

Created in 1996, the Saint-Barthélemy Marine Park covers 12 km² of sea in five zones: Fourchue, Colombier bay, Pain de Sucre and Gros Îlets, Frégate and Toc Vers, Grand Cul-de-Sac.

• Two levels: simple protection (Colombier, Fourchue, Gros Îlets, Pain de Sucre, Toc Vers, Frégate) and reinforced protection, where fishing, anchoring and scuba diving are totally prohibited.
• 5 knots in the bays and within 100 m of the islets.
• Forty eco-moorings at Colombier and Fourchue, one boat per buoy, 25 m and 20 t maximum, 96 hours then 96 hours out. Anchoring only in these two bays, outside the mooring fields, within the authorised area. Elsewhere in the Park: no anchoring.
• Jet-skis, seabobs and motorised boards prohibited; marked corridors allow transit at 5 knots, without stopping.
• Fishing: licence required, barbless hooks, no bait, catch and release; sharks and rays protected; spearfishing and collecting prohibited; no fishing gear on board at dive sites.
• 23 dive sites with eco-moorings: boats up to 15 m and 10 t, one boat per buoy, 2½ hours maximum; sailboats and gloves not allowed at these sites.
• Grand Cul-de-Sac: its own rules, posted on site; 3 knots in the channel, foils only to cross via the channel, no kitesurfing within a 50 m strip, no anchoring, snorkelling only over the protected corals.
• Underwater hull lights prohibited.
• Any commercial activity in the Marine Park requires prior authorisation from the Territorial Environment Agency.
• Territorial Environment Agency (ATE), Gustavia: office 0590 27 88 18 (Monday–Friday 8 am–12 pm), emergencies 0690 31 70 73.
• Source: 2023 “Regulation” leaflet and the ATE website ↗

Safety and good practice

• Rescue at sea: VHF 16 or 196, 112 from a mobile. CROSS Antilles-Guyane coordinates rescue assets around Saint-Barthélemy.
• Diving accident: alert the CROSS. The nearest hyperbaric chamber is at the Guadeloupe university hospital; evacuation is decided with the CROSS and the SAMU (15). Respect decompression stops and the no-fly interval.
• Drones: in practice, no flight without paperwork. The island counts as a built-up area next to an airfield: prior declaration to the prefect, ATE authorisation to overfly the Marine Park, airport surroundings prohibited and monitored. Do not launch from the boat without these authorisations. State services: drone flights ↗
• Fishing licence: required in the Marine Park; obtain it at the Marine Park office in Gustavia (Monday–Friday 8 am–12 pm).
• Good manners afloat: no black or grey water discharge in the bays; reef-safe sunscreen; keep your distance from turtles, no feeding; dinghy anchored on sand only; no underwater hull lights.
• Dinghies: padlock and a navigation light at night, as everywhere in the Caribbean.

Yacht services

Categories, not advertising. An error, a missing company? Write to us.

Useful numbers

Ashore

Where to leave the dinghy: seven points around the harbour, on the map.

• Dinghy 1
• Dinghy 2
• Dinghy 3
• Dinghy 4
• Dinghy 5
• Dinghy 6
• Dinghy 7
• Boat fuel
• Water

• Phone: Dauphin Télécom sells SIM cards in Gustavia; the best coverage is Orange, whose shop is in Saint-Jean with very limited hours: go early.
• Euro; cards accepted almost everywhere; cash machines in Gustavia.
• Sundays and French public holidays: harbour office closed on Sunday, shops often closed; plan your formalities accordingly.
• Taxis, car and scooter rental: the island can be seen in a day.
• Events of the year: New Year’s Eve Regatta (31 December), Bucket Regatta (March), Les Voiles de Saint-Barth (April), Gourmet Festival (November).

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to call the harbour before entering Gustavia?

Yes: call “Port de Gustavia” on VHF 12 before entering the channel. Speed limit: 5 knots in the navigation channel, 3 knots inside the harbour.

How do I clear in at St Barts?

Online on the harbour website up to 24 hours before arrival, then at the harbour office (7 am to 6 pm except Sunday), where harbour and Marine Park fees are paid. Fly the Q flag on arrival.

Where can I anchor at St Barts?

Three anchorages: Gustavia outer harbour (at anchor), Anse de Colombier and Île Fourchue (Marine Park moorings, 25 m and 20 t maximum, 96 consecutive hours maximum). Colombier is poor in a northerly swell, Fourchue in a southerly or westerly swell.

What are the Marine Park rules?

5 knots in the bays and within 100 m of the islets; one boat per mooring; anchoring only at Colombier and Fourchue, outside the mooring field, in the authorised area; jet-skis, spearfishing and underwater hull lighting are forbidden; boats over 25 m are not allowed.

An error, a company to add?

Write to contact@serialdivers.com: this page is maintained by SERIAL DIVERS, scuba diving centre in Gustavia.