Cruise With No Passport

Just my two cents worth here. I would check the numerous government web sites concerning what documentation is required for your cruise. Or contact the cruise line either on their web site or via phone to confirm. It's better safe than sorry.

Thanks for the reply!

I did just that to make sure it was in line with you guys...resonance is someone else told me that they had contacted the cruise line and they would not let them on the ship and had lied about being able to.use the birth certificate and ID and I thought they had said.is was carnival. They could not get a refund and lost thousands of dollars.

I have cruised on Carnival with just my birth certificate and my drivers license. You will be fine.

I did just that to make sure it was in line with you guys...resonance is someone else told me that they had contacted the cruise line and they would not let them on the ship and had lied about being able to.use the birth certificate and ID and I thought they had said.is was carnival. They could not get a refund and lost thousands of dollars.

To be able to tell you WHY this happened we would need to know all the details you provided for your own situation; place of birth, itinerary, cruise line (Carnival) and the most likely culprit...the BC that they used. Very important that the BC be a government (US federal or local) issued copy. Not an informational copy (which may or may not be accepted), nor a hospital copy (which should not be accepted, but in rare occasions was accepted), and it cannot be a US or foreign issued BC showing a foreign place of birth. All these examples have shown up on the boards as reasons for denial of boarding at one time or another. So knowing that someone was denied boarding with a BC and ID doesn't tell anyone what the actual issue was. Hence the third degree on your specific situation.

I did just that to make sure it was in line with you guys...resonance is someone else told me that they had contacted the cruise line and they would not let them on the ship and had lied about being able to.use the birth certificate and ID and I thought they had said.is was carnival. They could not get a refund and lost thousands of dollars.

I seem to recall there was a short time a few years ago when a passport was required even for closed loop cruises. One of my children was about to turn 18 and we would have had to renew her with a child's 5 year passport, where if we waited a few months we could renew it as an adult 10 year. We didn't cruise that year, took National Parks vacation instead.

The incident you cite may have been during that period.

I would get a passport because if an emergency or medical situation came up and you had to fly home than having a passport would be required.

Keith

I would either pick the response on here you like best or maybe it would be a good idea to ask Carnival

The responders on here will say Oh no don't ask Carnival you will get different answers based on who answers the phone. Well that is certainly something that won't on this website!

I want to take the cruise listed below:

 

8 Day Eastern Caribbean Cruise from Miami

 

Departs Miami on select Saturdays.

 

Depart, At Sea, Grank Turk, Laromana, Dominican Republic, Curacao, Aruba, At Sea, At Sea, Return

 

For Grank Turk, (Laromana, Dominican Republic,) and Aruba will I be able to first take the cruise and second get off at the port of calls for a port excursion?

 

I would like to be able to sample the food, view the city and souvenir shop?

 

Thanks in advance for your reply,

 

TravelerLloyd

If you are a US citizen, and a on a closed loop cruise (a/k/a round trip) departing from the US, the mass market lines, such as CCL, RCCL, NCL, Princess, etc. allow you to cruise using a government issued ID , and a government issued birth certificate. Here is a link to what Carnival says they require: https://help.carnival.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/3409

While it is always nice to have a passport under the circumstances I mention it is not required.

Lloyd, my good person, leaving the country is not a time to be frugal. Just get the passport, please! :)

I'm sure you qualify for getting one, and since the city you live in was named after me, my advice is the one you should take! :D

I know that the US State Dept says that a valid U.S. passport is not mandatory for US citizens to take a cruise that starts and ends at the same US port. What I did NOT know is that (according to an earlier poster) many luxury cruise lines do not abide by this and will deny boarding without one.

I heard second-hand that this recently happened to a friend-of-a-friend who was denied boarding an Oceania Cruise Lines NYC-Boston-Canada-NYC cruise because she left her passport home (don't ask me why), but did have in her possession a valid state driver's license and birth certificate.

Why would luxury cruise lines' policies on closed-loop cruises be different than mass-market lines? i.e., if the U.S. State Dept says it's OK, why won't Oceania agree?

I know that the US State Dept says that a valid U.S. passport is not mandatory for US citizens to take a cruise that starts and ends at the same US port. What I did NOT know is that (according to an earlier poster) many luxury cruise lines do not abide by this and will deny boarding without one.

 

I heard second-hand that this recently happened to a friend-of-a-friend who was denied boarding an Oceania Cruise Lines NYC-Boston-Canada-NYC cruise because she left her passport home (don't ask me why), but did have in her possession a valid state driver's license and birth certificate.

 

Why would luxury cruise lines' policies on closed-loop cruises be different than mass-market lines? i.e., if the U.S. State Dept says it's OK, why won't Oceania agree?

A cruise line can require more stringent documentation for ID than the law specifies. Some do.

That's why you should always check with BOTH the law and the cruise line.

Oceania, as far as I know, is not an US company. Why should they abide by the US laws?

I know that the US State Dept says that a valid U.S. passport is not mandatory for US citizens to take a cruise that starts and ends at the same US port. What I did NOT know is that (according to an earlier poster) many luxury cruise lines do not abide by this and will deny boarding without one.

 

I heard second-hand that this recently happened to a friend-of-a-friend who was denied boarding an Oceania Cruise Lines NYC-Boston-Canada-NYC cruise because she left her passport home (don't ask me why), but did have in her possession a valid state driver's license and birth certificate.

 

Why would luxury cruise lines' policies on closed-loop cruises be different than mass-market lines? i.e., if the U.S. State Dept says it's OK, why won't Oceania agree?

I don't know the answer, but I will speculate. The more interesting question is why the State Dept says it's OK to leave the US, visit foreign nations, and return to the US on a cruise ship without having a passport. The cruise industry lobbied hard for exemptions to the passport requirements that came into place after 9/11. The industry lobbyists won the day, thus, under certain circumstance, a passport is not mandatory.

The luxury lines tend not to do the repetitive closed loop cruises, but generally schedule more adventurous itineraries. Rather than the ship compliance officer juggling the different minimum document requirements for only a few "closed loop" cruises, the passport standard is uniform for all cruises. Even the lines that regularly do the closed loops highly recommend passports. Allowing the birth certificate/photo ID to be sufficient is the exception to the rule, not the other way around.

I know that the US State Dept says that a valid U.S. passport is not mandatory for US citizens to take a cruise that starts and ends at the same US port. What I did NOT know is that (according to an earlier poster) many luxury cruise lines do not abide by this and will deny boarding without one.

 

I heard second-hand that this recently happened to a friend-of-a-friend who was denied boarding an Oceania Cruise Lines NYC-Boston-Canada-NYC cruise because she left her passport home (don't ask me why), but did have in her possession a valid state driver's license and birth certificate.

 

Why would luxury cruise lines' policies on closed-loop cruises be different than mass-market lines? i.e., if the U.S. State Dept says it's OK, why won't Oceania agree?

You have hit on one reason, among many, that most experienced travelers (and all cruise lines) recommend that everyone have a valid passport. You are correct that the US Regulations regarding "closed loop cruises" do permit qualifying folks to cruise without a Passport. But you are wrong when you think that cruise lines are required to abide by that regulation. Cruise lines are private corporations that are free to set more stringent requirements.

On CC we have a group of folks who insist that there is no reason for folks to get Passports when they take closed loop cruises....and many of us keep suggesting that having a Passport is a very good idea. I have personally seen several people turned away at Florida ports because their birth certificates did not meet the requirements of the cruise line. And there was recently a situation where a family of 4 was delayed by an airline and missed their cruise (departing from Galveston) by a few hours. The airline (Southwest) offered to fly them all to their first port (in the Caribbean) but one family member did not have a Passport. So they did not go on their cruise and also did not qualify for a refund. So sad...but things like this do happen.

Hank

I so fully a=gree with those who recxommend you get a passport. If you are going to travel, it is a small investment to be certtain you hav e tghe proper teraveledocument for boarding air planes and cruise ships.

You have hit on one reason, among many, that most experienced travelers (and all cruise lines) recommend that everyone have a valid passport. You are correct that the US Regulations regarding "closed loop cruises" do permit qualifying folks to cruise without a Passport. But you are wrong when you think that cruise lines are required to abide by that regulation. Cruise lines are private corporations that are free to set more stringent requirements.

 

On CC we have a group of folks who insist that there is no reason for folks to get Passports when they take closed loop cruises....and many of us keep suggesting that having a Passport is a very good idea. I have personally seen several people turned away at Florida ports because their birth certificates did not meet the requirements of the cruise line. And there was recently a situation where a family of 4 was delayed by an airline and missed their cruise (departing from Galveston) by a few hours. The airline (Southwest) offered to fly them all to their first port (in the Caribbean) but one family member did not have a Passport. So they did not go on their cruise and also did not qualify for a refund. So sad...but things like this do happen.

 

Hank

I don't personally insist that there is no reason for folks to get passports when they take a closed loop cruise, but I do point out that if someone is traveling on a closed loop cruise (on a cruise line that doesn't require passports) that there are alternatives to using a passport and their travel needs should dictate what travel documentation they use. If the only travel that they can do is a closed loop cruise every year or two and they have no plans to travel by international air then the alternative birth certificate/government issued photo ID is a viable alternative for them as long as they are comfortable with the small risk of having to return from the cruise early.

If someone presents a government issued birth certificate issued by a state they will not be turned away- it is only when they present something else that causes this (such as a certificate issued by a hospital, certain BCs issued by Puerto Rico before a specified time as two examples). Yes, not having a passport would prevent you from catching up with the ship at the next port should that happen, but there are ways to minimize that risk as well.

A cruise line can require more stringent documentation for ID than the law specifies. Some do.

 

That's why you should always check with BOTH the law and the cruise line.

 

Oceania, as far as I know, is not an US company. Why should they abide by the US laws?

Companies doing business in the US are required to abide by US law. That being said companies (US or not) may impose a stricter standard than what the law requires, unless of course the law says otherwise.

Companies doing business in the US are required to abide by US law. That being said companies (US or not) may impose a stricter standard than what the law requires, unless of course the law says otherwise.

Actually, companies doing business in the US do not have to abide by all US laws. An example frequently found here on CC is the ADA. The Supreme Court ruling in Spector v. NCL states that aspects of the ADA that relate to the foreign flag ship's "internal policies and procedures" do not fall within the purview of the ADA. Also, the well known fact that the ships do not follow US tax, labor, or USCG laws or regulations.

What we are debating is what the US requires for the individual to be able to return to the US, not what is required to be on the ship or what is required to visit other countries. The other countries of the Western Hemisphere have all signed the WHTI, permitting the use of BC/DL for US and Canadian citizens on cruises, so this is still not a US law, it is an international agreement.

Actually, companies doing business in the US do not have to abide by all US laws. An example frequently found here on CC is the ADA. The Supreme Court ruling in Spector v. NCL states that aspects of the ADA that relate to the foreign flag ship's "internal policies and procedures" do not fall within the purview of the ADA. Also, the well known fact that the ships do not follow US tax, labor, or USCG laws or regulations.

 

What we are debating is what the US requires for the individual to be able to return to the US, not what is required to be on the ship or what is required to visit other countries. The other countries of the Western Hemisphere have all signed the WHTI, permitting the use of BC/DL for US and Canadian citizens on cruises, so this is still not a US law, it is an international agreement.

I was using "companies" in its broadest sense to include all foreign based companies to show that just because a company is foreign based doesn't mean that they are exempt them from following US law if they are doing business in the US. What laws a foreign company have to follow is of course dependent upon many factors and cruise lines because of their unique nature are not obligated to follow some laws as you point out. Documentation requirements are governed by both the laws of the US and the laws of the host country so the current debate is a question of both since both need to recognize travel being undertaken with something other than a passport in order for such travel to take place.

I want to take the cruise listed below:

 

8 Day Eastern Caribbean Cruise from Miami

 

Departs Miami on select Saturdays.

 

Depart, At Sea, Grank Turk, Laromana, Dominican Republic, Curacao, Aruba, At Sea, At Sea, Return

 

For Grank Turk, (Laromana, Dominican Republic,) and Aruba will I be able to first take the cruise and second get off at the port of calls for a port excursion?

 

I would like to be able to sample the food, view the city and souvenir shop?

 

Thanks in advance for your reply,

 

TravelerLloyd

Dear OP:

Welcome to Cruise Critic. This website is a great "go to" place for tons of information. I bet though, that not in your wildest dreams did you expect this simple question to give such controversial answers.

I am on the side of get your passport. All of my grandchildren had passports before they were one. No exceptions.

I will never forget my lost opportunity to travel. I was in between getting sworn in to become an American citizen by handing in my documents (including my Canadian passport) and getting that precious piece of citizenship paperwork. My husband had to travel to Africa for business. I would have had to pay the airfare and all other expenses would have been paid by the company. Except - I didn't have my passport. Never again for me!

Thanks to all for your replies. I guess luxury cruise lines believe they can set more stringent passport-required rules and not lose business from the wealthy passengers who sail those lines.

Actually, companies doing business in the US do not have to abide by all US laws. An example frequently found here on CC is the ADA. The Supreme Court ruling in Spector v. NCL states that aspects of the ADA that relate to the foreign flag ship's "internal policies and procedures" do not fall within the purview of the ADA. Also, the well known fact that the ships do not follow US tax, labor, or USCG laws or regulations.

 

What we are debating is what the US requires for the individual to be able to return to the US, not what is required to be on the ship or what is required to visit other countries. The other countries of the Western Hemisphere have all signed the WHTI, permitting the use of BC/DL for US and Canadian citizens on cruises, so this is still not a US law, it is an international agreement.

Once again, :) , Chenkgkpanother Excellent post. great information.

Actually, companies doing business in the US do not have to abide by all US laws. An example frequently found here on CC is the ADA. The Supreme Court ruling in Spector v. NCL states that aspects of the ADA that relate to the foreign flag ship's "internal policies and procedures" do not fall within the purview of the ADA. Also, the well known fact that the ships do not follow US tax, labor, or USCG laws or regulations.

 

What we are debating is what the US requires for the individual to be able to return to the US, not what is required to be on the ship or what is required to visit other countries. The other countries of the Western Hemisphere have all signed the WHTI, permitting the use of BC/DL for US and Canadian citizens on cruises, so this is still not a US law, it is an international agreement.

Thanks to all for your replies. I guess luxury cruise lines believe they can set more stringent passport-required rules and not lose business from the wealthy passengers who sail those lines.

What does eealthy have to do with holding a passport? The cost is so minimal, especially if amortiz ed over the(roughly) ten years validity ?

What does eealthy have to do with holding a passport? The cost is so minimal, especially if amortiz ed over the(roughly) ten years validity ?

Minimal is of course defined differently by different people. When we first started cruising the cost of passports for the family would have been around $850 which was not too much less than what we paid for the cruise itself. In any event the PP was wondering why the luxury lines require passports of everyone and it's likely that no one really knows (unless of course they had a hand in formulating the policy).

[i IF ONE FEELS THE NEeD d to parsse thewhole idea ov er a masweive $75 for a passport, maybe that c ruiser should save a littlle longerbefore traveling. as they likely should not b e stretching gtheir tight b udget for a cuise at that point in gtheir lives, c areers. We can't alway have what we wnat when we want itl. WSometime we have to wait until we can aford it with less strain on the budjgbe. i DON'T 'BUY' GTHATT THRE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE OUGT TGHERE THAT DON'gFET a [PASSPORT dued to gth $75 COST FOR THEMSELVESS but are tuly in a position to grravel. D Some of theser forums aregettting to the abvsurd, IMO wheer every other word, statement seems to require parsin.g. fun o tyhese forums quickly leaves when one reads thread after thread weree theer is always a contradigtion; or requrest for clarifaica tion over anyalysis of the most simple concepts. Seeing I know these forums so well, I'll save the nesxt conradition and head it offf with,,,,, I get it some families are 8 people and all th e ksid,k parents,bgrandparents don'tt havd passports and oh my, what a waste to get passports when we might never travel agfain. really?

here we post expressions of our opinions and observations. asnd the foregoing is wehat I observed far too often lately. No every post has to bre picked apaart and congradicted. IMO