Saint Thomas returning home · Returning home in Saint Thomas  TodayTourism All Destinations | Europe | Asia | North America | Africa | South America | Oceania | Hotels

Returning home in Saint Thomas


Returning home in Saint Thomas

(Emphasis U.S.; please expand): Driving. If you return home on land from the end of a cruise, you are weight/size limited only by the capacity of your vehicle, and your ability to put everything in your luggage or carry it off the ship. You'll probably go through customs processing at the U.S. port where your cruise ends. Flying. With airlines now charging for checked bags (plus heavy fees for overweight and too many bags), the economics and practicalities of flying with heavy or large purchases gets complicated. Many bottles of liquids in luggage greatly affect weight, e.g., six boxed, well-padded one liter glass bottles can approach 30 pounds. Purchases may also be too numerous or heavy to be hand-carried on flights even if permitted. Compare luggage fees you may encounter with cost-savings enjoyed at purchase, especially for large or heavy items. (Yes, these realities have greatly affected merchants' business worldwide.) If you have weight or size challenges, consider shipping what you are allowed to. If you need to pack fragile items in luggage, avoid placing them in the same bag with heavy items. Even if in checked luggage, high-alcohol-content liquids (e.g., liquor over 140 proof, major quantities of perfume/cologne) are deemed a fire hazard and will be confiscated if found. For perfumes/colognes, you might wrap, bag against leaks and pack single bottles separately in different checked bags. If you fly home from Saint Thomas:
  • U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) now provides special services for U.S. citizens. They perform Customs and Immigration (C&I) processing after you check-in at your airline ticket counter, but before you surrender luggage to be checked and then go to your gate. You can then fly to your final U.S. destination without further C&I processing.
  • The terminal has two stores, with offerings focused primarily on perfumes, cosmetics and liquors.
    • Carry-on: TSA and airlines both have limits...numbers, size and weight. For current U.S. carry-on restrictions when flying, see , e.g., to understand the "3-1-1 rule". Some travelers try to avoid TSA restrictions by purchasing items (e.g., perfumes, liquor) in shops inside airport secure areas immediately before boarding flights. Though that purchase option is available at the Saint Thomas airport, it may only be usable if you are flying non-stop to your destination airport. Shops may put the items in specially-sealed bags, and may deliver items to your flight gate for you to claim and carry on. Specially sealed bags have no "standing" if you leave the secure area in an enroute terminal to change planes. (Note: TSA is gradually implementing scanners that detect dangerous liquids in carry-ons; their restrictions on liquids may eventually be relaxed as world-events permit.) Liquor Packing Insights: Boxes: Those offered by stores are usually strong enough to be used as checked "bags" if well-strapped with strong tape, e.g., wide, nylon reinforced. (Note: Some airlines may not accept them as checkable, so know in-advance from the carrier before you count on it.) Two boxes of up to three bottles each can be strapped together, but be careful...dual box handles are clumsy and can only support so much weight and casual handling, your airline may have limits on numbers and weights of such boxes, internal padding alone may not be enough to avoid damage from mishandling (accidental or otherwise), and the costs of more than two checked items per person can escalate rapidly Securing box contents: Regardless of how to be transported, before you tape any box of bottles shut, check the arrangement of bottles (all-upright preferable). Then add internal padding all around each bottle to avoid breakage, e.g., crumpled newspaper on bottom and around necks, sides wrapped in newspaper...to eliminate any movement in box and complement internal box dividers. Then strap each box outside with strong tape, place a name tag on a handle and write similar information on the box. (You can choose to bring the materials with you or purchase them at a store such as K-Mart.) Boxes/bottles in luggage: If the boxes must or should go in your checked luggage, do it thoroughly in your room/cabin.
  • Put each internally-padded/strapped box in a strong, leak-resistant plastic bag (e.g., kitchen trash bag), and tape or tie it closed so that a leak is less likely to harm other contents. Then pad each box well all-around (e.g., with clothing) so it can't move.
  • If you lack a box for your bottles, tape two or three bottles together with liberal padding in-between and around them, put them in a plastic bag, tape/tie it shut, and use other baggage contents to thoroughly pad them to eliminate any movement of the bottles in the suitcase.
  • Your hotel or cruise ship may have scales to weigh to-be-checked bags.
    • The above challenges may be helped if you pack lightly at home for your trip, and bring or buy an extra, soft carry-on bag/duffle for things displaced by the bottles/boxes in your to-be-checked luggage.

    The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Saint Thomas


    Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Saint Thomas - updated Apr 2024

    SAVE up to 75% on Last Minute deals! Search for discount Saint Thomas hotels, motels, apartments, hostels, guest accommodations and vacation resorts. Book now and pay at the hotel. Instant email confirmation!


    >>> SEARCH FOR DEALS <<<

    WHERE TO TRAVEL NEXT IN 2020


    Saint Thomas Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.

    Europe | Asia | North America | Africa | South America | Oceania | All Destinations