Many cruisers with documented vessels can not enter FL legally.

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Originally Posted by captbillc

how about cars on florida highways ? i was going to drive there in april. will they be giving you a fine for being on their roads without a permit next ? i guess they don't want tourists.

Yes, they will give you a fine if you do not have a valid current registration from another state or country. I really believe that Florida does like tourists coming here. The state does a pretty good job of highway maintenance and beautification of highways and byways. The state contends with a large number of homeless people, undocumented immigrants and derelict boats, among the usual list of state-supported benefits. For tourists staying in the coastal areas, they can take comfort in the fact that Florida has very rigid building codes and contractor licensing requirements...the result being secure hotel and hi-rise structures. (Of course, other states do also.)
So come on down in April and enjoy the weather. Some of the beaches are terribly eroded from the passage of Hurricane Sandy and Uncle Sam has declined to provide the beachside communities any assistance for renourishment of beaches.

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Originally Posted by Mirari

So if Florida requires a registration/fee...........then what is to stop every state on the east coast from charging you a fee for passing thru their waters? Sounds like more and more of our lives are being taxed and regulated. Sailing use to be one of the last great freedoms. BTW, the waterways as I understand it are Federal waterways, not state. I believe it is the Federal government that dredges the waterways, not the state.

Well...we do have to pay tolls on 'toll roads' when we drive... and Florida has lots of toll booths. Maybe, just maybe, one day we will have to give the bridge tender a credit card just for him to open the draw... at each end of the state. The Army Corps of Engineers maintains the ICW but the state owns the waters within its borders. At least, that's my understanding of how it works.