Our thanks to Dominique Cabarroque for this feedback.

Entering Australia at Darwin

Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory in a region that is known as the “Top End” of the country of Australia. It is a vibrant, multi-cultural city with a fascinating mix of Asian and European cultures, that was largely rebuilt after the devastation of Cyclone Tracy in December 1974. It sits on the eastern side of the large, 20-mile long inlet, known as Darwin Harbour and is a popular port for cruisers heading to or from Indonesia.

Darwin’s proximity to Southeast Asia makes it a key link between Australia and countries such as Indonesia and East Timor and it is a popular entry and exit point for vessels arriving from and departing to South East Asia.

Clearance process

This was undertaken at the Cullen Bay Pontoon.  Stay on the right of the pontoon, just below the lock. Stay clear of the left side which is only for ferries.

Australian Border Force (ABF) formalities

Seamless process undertaken by officers with care.  They will provide answers and any information you might require.

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) Biosecurity formalities

There has been an increase in Biosecurity fees.  Here is what we were charged.

The two first lines are a fixed cost of AU$192.  The last line is a cost of AU$62 / 15 minutes.

During the inspection, the officer found some tiny ants. He collected some samples and DAFF ran an analysis for AU$37. Luckily those were already present in Australian territories.

If they were not already in Australia then DAFF would ask you to request a specialized company to treat the yacht (just beside us a larger yacht had to pay AU$1000 for the company to place the baits). Then you have to wait for two weeks after which time DAFF would undertake a second visit at your expenses.

Food permitted…..or not

The official DAFF website has 21,000 references for food allowed or not! We had removed all of the fresh food and most of the spices. As well as rice, flour …. However, beware that white pepper is not allowed, as it is not in the list! We had on board an excellent white pepper from Sarawak, Borneo, with the packaging, confiscated!

At the moment DAFF is very attentive at not allowing any meat or meat products, either canned or frozen into Australia. We didn’t feel any relaxed attitude from the officer, he was operating strictly by the book.

Aquatic biosecurity

The process takes 10 hours at the Cullen Bay pontoon, and one must stay on board in case of emergency.

Diesel & petrol at Cullen Bay pontoon

The station is not operated by BP anymore, but by Ausfuel. The terminal doesn’t accept any pre-paid card (we tried three different cards, with or without pin code). International Visa and Mastercards are said to be accepted. However, the terminal had some issue in accepting our cards, we had to get in touch with the customer service of Ausfuel and they must have fixed something, as we could use our cards by taping them, for $100 maximum. So you must repeat the process if your needs exceed this maximum.

Ausfuel contact: Sales Manager Rebecca Watts:  +61 (0) 458 605 523. E-mail:  r.watts@ausfuel.com.au
Darwin sales team landline: +61 (08) 8922 1742. E-mail:  sales@ausfuel.com.au

And, no more pre-paid cards at the office, or by arrangement with the lockmaster.

Marine supplies

• Darwin Shipstores – 30 Fishermans Place, Frances Bay, Tel. (08) 8981 7322
• Navcom Marine Electronics – 6/30 Fishermans Pl, Darwin City, NT 0800, Tel. (08) 8981 1311
• Nautical Supplies – 80 Frances Bay Drive, Darwin, (08) 8981 6651
• Road Tech Marine – T3/356 Bagot Road, Darwin City, (08) 8947 1504

General hardware

Total Tools – 518 Stuart Highway, Winnellie, Darwin, (08) 8919 8383

Darwin Hospital

The hospital is quite a distance from the downtown area so you need to take Uber or a taxi to go there. Be patient. Without insurance, for a visit by a qualified nurse plus an X-Ray, cost AU$425.

Dominique Cabarroque and Arne Leuhrs 
SV Manuka

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Read Dominique’s other reports for Noonsite:

• Indonesia, Lombok:  Returning to our Yacht after a 12 Month Absence
• SE Asia: Updates from Borneo and Belitung
• Malaysia:  Competent Repair Services
• Thailand:  Anatomy of a Refit

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Related Links:

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry – Australia:  Arriving by Vessel

The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of Noonsite.com or World Cruising Club.

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