Courtesy Flags

[T J Furstenau]

Two questions -

• How prevalent is your use of courtesy flags when sailing? We're headed to the Caribbean next summer and I was looking to be prepared and get a "Q" flag, as well as flags for the islands/countries we plan to stop in. But, as the name says, they're "courtesy flags" and not TECHNICALLY required. Are there islands/countries where you've found that you were treated differently (better/worse) if you did/didn't display the flags?
• Related - technically the Turks and Caicos courtesy flag SHOULD be the red ensign, but all that I've been able to find on line are the blue ensign. For those that have stopped in Turks and Caicos - did you fly a courtesy flag, and if so, which one? I figure that the blue is better than nothing, but I also like to do things "right" if I can.

Thanks!!

T J

 

[dlochner]

Yes, you should fly a courtesy flag from the starboard spreader above any other flags.

The Q flag indicates that you have entered a country's waters and intend to visit the country. Once you have cleared Customs and Immigration, the Q flag comes down and the courtesy flag is raised. While visiting the country you are expected to have your national ensign/flag displayed. Failure to do so invites the authorities to inspect your boat and your clearance into the country. When you are a guest in a foreign country, it is best to follow custom and custom is flying a courtesy flag, not flying one would draw attention, attention you probably don't want.

So, the answer to your first question, is yes, get the courtesy flags. The No Foreign Land website has PDF files of all or almost all of the courtesy flags for the world. They can be downloaded and a screen printing shop can print the flags for less money than purchasing them individually.

 

[dLj]

Two questions -

• How prevalent is your use of courtesy flags when sailing? We're headed to the Caribbean next summer and I was looking to be prepared and get a "Q" flag, as well as flags for the islands/countries we plan to stop in. But, as the name says, they're "courtesy flags" and not TECHNICALLY required. Are there islands/countries where you've found that you were treated differently (better/worse) if you did/didn't display the flags?
• Related - technically the Turks and Caicos courtesy flag SHOULD be the red ensign, but all that I've been able to find on line are the blue ensign. For those that have stopped in Turks and Caicos - did you fly a courtesy flag, and if so, which one? I figure that the blue is better than nothing, but I also like to do things "right" if I can.

Thanks!!

T J

The Q flag is not a courtesy flag - it's a code flag. You really should use it. It is actually a requirement although many places don't care. I have been told there are some places that will be sticklers for it's use, lack of which can result in fines. As I've always been on top of using the Q flag, I have no first hand knowledge of that.

Courtesy flags are the flags of yacht clubs, sailing clubs and countries you may be visiting. There is not "requirement" that they be flown. I like to use them, but have often not had one for the country I'm in so didn't fly one. The Turks and Caicos is one such example. I was in South Caicos for awhile and did not have the courtesy flag. It didn't matter. I've never had a problem flying or not flying the countries courtesy flag. I do like to fly it, but I also like to collect those flags as I travel.

I also have the No foreign Lands .pdf (several) of all the flags. But I decided not to use it to print out the flags. Instead I bought them from locals in the countries I visited. It would definitely be less expensive printing them out, sometimes just a little less, sometimes a lot less... But as I run pretty low on the "spend money" front, I figured that was an OK expense and as I looked for locals that made them and sold them, I felt I was doing a bit of my part to support the local economies, especially in some of the less affluent regions I visited.

dj

 

[PaulK]

Two questions -

• Related - technically the Turks and Caicos courtesy flag SHOULD be the red ensign, but all that I've been able to find on line are the blue ensign. For those that have stopped in Turks and Caicos - did you fly a courtesy flag, and if so, which one? I figure that the blue is better than nothing, but I also like to do things "right" if I can.

Thanks!!

T J

Mention of the red ensign prompted me to find out more about this. Researching "red ensign" shows that it is flown on vessels registered in certain English Commonwealth countries. It would seem that a visitor would not qualify to fly a red ensign since they are by definition not registered there. It might be compared to the US yacht ensign, which is theoretically supposed to be flown by U.S.C.G. Documented vessels. Would a vessel from Turks and Caicos visiting the U.S. fly the US yacht ensign as a courtesy flag? It would look a bit "off", no?

 

[colemj]

The only country/place we have had an issue with courtesy flags was Panama - specifically in Bocas Del Torro. The port captain there is notoriously corrupt and looks for every opportunity to lift money out of your wallet. It wasn't an issue for us since we had one, but he did try to "fine" us while checking in immediately after stamping our papers. The courtesy flag was sitting on the table with us, and we couldn't lower the Q flag and raise the courtesy flag until we were officially checked in, but immediately upon finalizing our check in, he called foul because the Q flag was still up, and the courtesy flag was not. Yeah, we've been around enough to know when and how to push back hard, and he folded like a cheap suit. But he did get others. Nowhere else in Panama does this happen.

Otherwise, we've never had anyone even mention courtesy flags or pay any attention to them. Check in in many places is remote from where the boat is, and even when the officials were doing check in on the boat, the most that was ever said was "don't forget to lower your Q flag".

The cheapest/easiest is buying stick flags and remove the sticks. They only last a month or two depending on the wind - tradewinds can disintegrate even the highest quality flags quickly. If you stay longer, consider buying a better one locally. Here is just one example of a website selling them. Make sure you get the larger size, as they list a tiny one that wouldn't be appropriate. North America

Mark

 

[colemj]

As for the T&C, any flag you fly will be appreciated, if noticed. Many countries have different ensign flags - the Bahamas has 5 of them depending on what type of boat/organization/situation/nationality. We always fly the Bahama national flag instead of the specific ensign because it is more beautiful than the ensign, and the Bahamians are proud of it. Few of them probably recognize the foreign recreational courtesy flag (same for the US). Once in a while we get harassed by a cruiser who is a pedantic stickler for flags and feels the need to go around and bother people about it (and the only one in an anchorage flying the courtesy flag rather than the national flag), but we just use that type of interaction to know who to ignore in the future.

If you buy locally, you will almost always be buying a national flag and not the specific courtesy flag.

Mark