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owly · 26-07-2021, 17:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

If you had bothered to watch it you would see that the title was in response to all the queries they had regarding their entry.
The also had a good bit about not upsetting the authorities the way Zatara did last year.
I was rather disappointed by the title - I prefer my clickbait to have more T&A.

Ditto the T&A ;-)

This is potentially useful information. Informing people that there IS a process and roughly what it is. I wonder if they cleared it with NZ immigration before advertising the process to the whole world?

Seriously this is an invitation for for others to follow the same process.... save up a collection of needed major repairs.... It's about supporting their local boatyard industry... it's about MONEY. Not for the light of wallet ;-) This is not a low budget boater couple, they will be spending many tens of thousands of dollars in NZ and that's what they like ;-)

Buttoning up the border tight is at best a short term solution, the ONLY long term solution is a massive vaccination campaign. With variants like Delta a single "Typhoid Annie" can unknowingly spread it to a huge number of people without even very close contact. With millions of morons in the US refusing vaccination, there should be plenty of doses available for New Zealand.

Buzzman · 26-07-2021, 18:19

I, too, was disappointed by the clickbait title but, as Ping says, it was in response to the huge number of inquiries on their blog as to the "actual how", and many of those used the term "sneak" or a facsimile therefof.
One of the *actual* reasons they cited in the video above is that NZ had to be the 'nearest port where the work could be reasonably achieved'.
As they have several windows that are broken and need replacing, plus the underdeck pod containing their liferaft which tore off in a patch of bad weather on the way from Tonga..... Those two alone probably could not be done anywhere closer than Hawaii, LA, or Brisbane. And they did a cute little graphic showing that, from Va-vau, Opua was closer than any of them.
That, ultimately, will be the "reason" they were allowed an exemption into NZ.
And the fact that they are also prposing to rent a camper and "do NZ" while the boat is being repaired, thereby adding a bit more to the economy of NZ, probably didn't do any harm.
TBH, I'm more concerned about Matt and Amy on Florence, who have tried twice to leave the Mentawis for the Seychelles, and been forced to turn back by a dud engine starter battery and lack of wind respectively.
Can't see them getting a look-in in too many places in Africa, but they are planning to refit in Cape Town, apparently.
Anyone know if this is possible?
Maybe there are more places than NZ allowing in foreeign vessels requiring refit..??