snowdog said:
Last December I sailed my boat from the BVIs to Culebra with a stop in STT. When I checked in at Cruz Bay (coming from Tortola) the US Customs Office told me that I did not have to check-in at Culebra. He did suggest that it might be "nice" if I made a courtesy call to customs there and let them know that I arrived.
You got bad info and lucky. The rules have not changed we deal with this on an almost weekly basis with the charter boats. Coming from the USVI you must clear into Puerto Rico/SVI's. If the boat is us flagged, has the customs decal and US Citizens on board this can be done on the phone. If not you have to go in person at the airport in Culebra. The fine is a maximum of $10,000.
