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In Saint-Martin, call CROSS Antilles-Guyane on +596 596 70 92 92. Local short number: 196 — it may not connect from a foreign SIM, so the full number comes first. On the radio: MAYDAY on VHF channel 16, or a DSC distress alert on channel 70.
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From official sources · checked 2026-10-14
Sea rescue in the French Antilles is coordinated by CROSS Antilles-Guyane (MRCC Fort-de-France), which keeps watch on VHF channel 16; French CROSS centres ask you to call on VHF 16 at sea.
CROSS Antilles-Guyane broadcasts the coastal forecast on VHF from a transmitter at Pic Paradis, Saint-Martin: channel 64 at 09:00, 12:30, 20:00 and 22:00 local time (2022 Météo-France table).
Météo-France Guadeloupe issues the official marine forecasts (special warnings, coastal and offshore bulletins) for Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy at meteofrance.gp/fr/marine.
Météo-France gives the Atlantic cyclone season as 1 June – 30 November.
France's Division 240 (pleasure boats): even close inshore (within 2 miles of a shelter) every person aboard must have a quickly accessible lifejacket (EIF) of at least performance level 50, or wear a wetsuit/drysuit; children up to 30 kg need a level-100 EIF at any distance from shelter.
No licence is needed to skipper a sailing yacht at sea. A French licence is required for motorboats over 4.5 kW (6 hp); on a French-flagged boat a foreign licence can be used under conditions — a non-EU visitor may use a licence from their own country within its limits, with a translation.
On a French-flagged charter boat, French licence rules apply (see licence). Renters should ask the charter company for the boat's 'registre de vérification spéciale', the annual safety-equipment check record required by Division 240.
Every pleasure boat arriving from a foreign port, foreign waters or the high seas must clear in (and clear out on leaving) with French customs. Since 1 September 2024 clearance is done online at demarches-simplifiees.fr.
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Who you are, where you are (latitude and longitude), what happened, how many people are aboard, and what your boat looks like.
How to make a MAYDAY call →That is a job for marine assistance, not sea rescue — keep the rescue line free for lives.
Mayday or a tow? →In Saint-Martin, call CROSS Antilles-Guyane on +596 596 70 92 92. Local short number: 196 — it may not connect from a foreign SIM, so the full number comes first. On the radio: MAYDAY on VHF channel 16, or a DSC distress alert on channel 70.
We found no official source confirming that 112 reaches sea rescue in Saint-Martin. Call +596 596 70 92 92.
Short codes like 196 are routed by local phone networks and may not connect from a foreign SIM card while roaming. The full number +596 596 70 92 92 reaches the same service from any phone.
The one whose search-and-rescue area you are in — not the country of your SIM card. Near borders that can change during a trip; the VesselSOS app picks it from your GPS position.
No licence is needed to skipper a sailing yacht at sea. A French licence is required for motorboats over 4.5 kW (6 hp); on a French-flagged boat a foreign licence can be used under conditions — a non-EU visitor may use a licence from their own country within its limits, with a translation.
Météo-France gives the Atlantic cyclone season as 1 June – 30 November.
France's Division 240 (pleasure boats): even close inshore (within 2 miles of a shelter) every person aboard must have a quickly accessible lifejacket (EIF) of at least performance level 50, or wear a wetsuit/drysuit; children up to 30 kg need a level-100 EIF at any distance from shelter.
Météo-France Guadeloupe issues the official marine forecasts (special warnings, coastal and offshore bulletins) for Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy at meteofrance.gp/fr/marine.
Numbers change. If this one has, tell us: support@vesselsos.com