NSW
102 posts
Hi,
has anyone taken a kite / wetsuit into NZ lately? If so - did you have any dramas?
I remember someone a while back almost had their gear confiscated/burnt etc.. due to didymo.
just wondering how clean/dry/prepared I'll need to be.
cheers
Adrian.
QLD
1203 posts
Make sure you let them know that the gear has never been near fresh water.
69 posts
It depends on the customs officer. I took my gear in to Auckland airport last Xmas with no trouble. I was asked if it was clean and dry and was let straight through while a woman from QLD who travelled in a week later was asked the same question and had to open everything to prove there was no sand etc in the gear. She was at the airport for ages before they would allow her to take it through customs.
WA
478 posts
HOORAY! time for inside info peeps.
I work at Quarantine at Perth International.
There has recently been a downgrade in the alert level of Didymosphenia geminata (Didymo derr). It has been perceived as almost impossible to stop the invasion as all it requires is a single cell for it to propagate. and so...
All you need to do is ensure all items are dry, even if they have been in fresh water. The Quarantine officer (customs only care about drugs and guns and fun stuff) would just check it by dabbing a paper towel on it to see if its wet, if its dry its all good and you're good to go.
Oh and watch the honey and that weird jam you guys bring back, honey aint allowed in at all, even if its WA stuff.
NSW
169 posts
Dry and salty it how they like it in NZ.
VIC
275 posts
We take gear back to NZ every christmas and never have any issues at customs, if it looks clean and dry they wont hassle you if they bother to look. The only time you are likely to get hassled is when its quiet and they are bored!
QLD
581 posts
fresh water kiting for sure a risk if from aussie and still wet, but clean and dry, not sandy seems to be ok.
They are now checking for a virus that is attacking Aussie abalone (known as Paua in NZ) to make sure it does not get to NZ. Same goes for wetsuits/harness etc they will need to wash them out with detergent if they are still wet (even wet kites I guess). NJOI. They will not burn your kite!
1357 posts
In and out via Wellington last year with no kite kit probs at all
