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9265359

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Everything posted by 9265359

  1. No, just no. Aside from the cost - there will be no advance tickets on the St Pancras via Brighton route because they are commuter services - so you are likely looking at quadruple the price for that route, you will also be spending three times the amount of time on the trains (and having suffered commuting on those trains they are built down to a specification and comfort on seating was not a high priority). Just get the train from Waterloo.
  2. Correct. EES (Entry Exit System) is to control how long you have been in the Schengen Area and the fingerprints and photograph are to make sure that it is actually you that has entered and left the country. And so there is nothing to do in advance, just having your fingerprints and photo taken on the first time you arrive and those details recorded against your passport. The only potential thing you can do in advance when EES is up and running is to check on the website that will be available to see that you have not exceeded the 90 days in 180 rule that applies to those arriving without a visa. ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System) is to control who comes into the Schengen Area and when it is in operation visa exempt visitors (hence it is not a visa or visa waiver) will need to apply before they travel, and will need to declare such things as employment, criminal convictions, travel to war zones, etc. and then either you will be approved to travel or you won't be.
  3. Because your view on what is smart may be at odds with what everyone else's view might be. A few years back I was on an NCL ship and dining in the French speciality restaurant which was marketed as a sophisticated evening's dining. On one of the other tables was a man wearing a 'wife beater' vest, baseball cap, and ripped jeans, and I am sure that he thought what he was wearing was smart enough for him and it met NCL's minimal dress code. Would you be happy with someone turning up to play a round of golf at your private club dressed like that and then have a few beers in the bar afterwards? And if not why not.
  4. The start date for EES has been confirmed as the 10th November 2024 - eu-LISA - EU Commissioner Ylva Johansson Visits eu-LISA Headquarters in Estonia (europa.eu) The discussions focused on the Agency's main achievements and ongoing work at operational level as well as important organisational changes, in particular in view of the forthcoming launch of the Entry/Exit System (EES), which has now been officially announced to enter into operation on 10 November 2024. The website to keep an eye on is the official EES website - EES - European Union (europa.eu) There has not been any announcement of the start date of the linked travel authorisation system ETIAS but it is rumoured that applications for it will start to be allowed in May 2025 and the authorisation required from November 2025, and the official website is ETIAS - European Union (europa.eu) Since people get confused between the two, EES is a system to control how long someone has been in the Schengen Area and ETIAS is to control what type of person is in the Schengen Area - the Schengen Area being all of the EU countries other than Ireland and Cyprus, plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
  5. As any other details on the place of stay are optional, then there will be no need to put anything other than the country - so if the first stop is Vigo then it would appear that entering 'España' will be sufficient, and similarly if you were flying into Barcelona to join the ship there the same would apply.
  6. To add to that, the EU law contains the details - Regulation - 2018/1240 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu) Each applicant shall submit a completed application form including a declaration of the authenticity, completeness, correctness and reliability of the data submitted and a declaration of the veracity and reliability of the statements made. Each applicant shall also state that he or she has understood the conditions for entry referred to in Article 6 of Regulation (EU) 2016/399 and that he or she may be requested to provide the relevant supporting documents at each entry. Minors shall submit an application form electronically signed by a person exercising permanent or temporary parental authority or legal guardianship. The applicant shall provide the following personal data in the application form: (a) surname (family name), first name(s) (given name(s)), surname at birth; date of birth, place of birth, country of birth, sex, current nationality, first name(s) of the parents of the applicant; (b) other names (alias(es), artistic name(s), usual name(s)), if any; (c) other nationalities, if any; (d) type, number and country of issue of the travel document; (e) the date of issue and the date of expiry of the validity of the travel document; (f) the applicant’s home address or, if not available, his or her city and country of residence; (g) email address and, if available, phone numbers; (h) education (primary, secondary, higher or none); (i) current occupation (job group); where the application is subject to the manual processing in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 26, the Member State responsible may in accordance with Article 27 request that the applicant provide additional information concerning his or her exact job title and employer or, for students, the name of their educational establishment; (j) Member State of first intended stay, and optionally, the address of first intended stay; (k) for minors, surname and first name(s), home address, email address and, if available, phone number of the person exercising parental authority or of the applicant’s legal guardian; (l) where he or she claims the status of family member referred to in point (c) of Article 2(1): (i) his or her status of family member; (ii) the surname, first name(s), date of birth, place of birth, country of birth, current nationality, home address, email address and, if available, phone number of the family member with whom the applicant has family ties; (iii) his or her family ties with that family member in accordance with Article 2(2) of Directive 2004/38/EC; (m) in the case of applications filled in by a person other than the applicant, the surname, first name(s), name of firm, organisation if applicable, email address, mailing address and phone number if available of that person; relationship to the applicant and a signed representation declaration. In addition, the applicant shall provide answers to the following questions: (a) whether he or she has been convicted of any criminal offence listed in the Annex over the previous 10 years and in the case of terrorist offences, over the previous 20 years, and if so when and in which country; (b) whether he or she has stayed in a specific war or conflict zone over the previous 10 years and the reasons for the stay; (c) whether he or she has been the subject of any decision requiring him or her to leave the territory of a Member State or of any third countries listed in Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 or whether he or she was subject to any return decision issued over the previous 10 years. The list of crimes in the Annex is 1. terrorist offences, 2. participation in a criminal organisation, 3. trafficking in human beings, 4. sexual exploitation of children and child pornography, 5. illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, 6. illicit trafficking in weapons, munitions and explosives, 7. corruption, 8. fraud, including that against the financial interests of the Union, 9. laundering of the proceeds of crime and counterfeiting of currency, including the euro, 10. computer-related crime/cybercrime 11. environmental crime, including illicit trafficking in endangered animal species and in endangered plant species and varieties, 12. facilitation of unauthorised entry and residence, 13. murder, grievous bodily injury, 14. illicit trade in human organs and tissue, 15. kidnapping, illegal restraint and hostage-taking, 16. organised and armed robbery, 17. illicit trafficking in cultural goods, including antiques and works of art, 18. counterfeiting and piracy of products, 19. forgery of administrative documents and trafficking therein, 20. illicit trafficking in hormonal substances and other growth promoters, 21. illicit trafficking in nuclear or radioactive materials, 22. rape, 23. crimes within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, 24. unlawful seizure of aircraft or ships, 25. sabotage, 26. trafficking in stolen vehicles, 27. industrial espionage, 28. arson, 29. racism and xenophobia.
  7. The border guard manual has not been updated for EES yet. However as EES is to be the record of arrival for passengers arriving after 10th November then it would make no sense to stamp passports, unless they were concerned that EES was not reliable. For passengers who arrived before 10th November so were not entered onto EES but are leaving after 10th November there is a question about what will happen. Will they enter those departures onto EES without a corresponding arrival? Perhaps, but it wouldn't be very easy to do as there would be no individual to load those details against, as that requires fingerprints and photos which they don't have and you would also have unmatched exits with no entry in EES. Will they simply stamp the passport with an exit stamp next to the entry stamp? Well that seems an awful lot more likely. But as before, until the border guard manual is updated we won't know for sure.
  8. I doubt it, because they would have to set up the systems to capture those 'one way' people (those who entered pre-EES and exited with EES) for only six months or so. Far easier just to use passport stamps, like now, to control those 'one way' people for that transitional period. I won't, because I have dual citizenship so will be travelling on my EU passport!
  9. Even if you are travelling after November 2024 you won't get fingerprinted and photographed anywhere. Fingerprinting and photographs are for EES and EES won't apply to cruises that start and end outside the Schengen Area, which Southampton and Miami obviously are, even though there are stops at ports in the Schengen Area. EES is to allow the authorities to know if you have overstayed and cruise ships are low risk because they have to let the authorities know if anyone has not got back on board. However if you are travelling after May 2025 then you will likely run into ETIAS, although the start date still not confirmed, which does apply to cruises that start and end outside the Schengen Area if they have port stops in the Schengen Area. ETIAS is to allow the authorities to control who is arriving and it is a travel authorisation (not a visa or a visa waiver) where you have to declare your background, criminal convictions, etc. which will allow the authorities to deny you entry (and likely boarding on the cruise ship) if they don't want you. Two different systems doing different things and apply to cruises in different ways - people are going to get very confused!
  10. I doubt even then. You will arrive in Schengen when you fly into Rome when EES isn't active so your entry into Schengen will be recorded by a passport stamp, and then you will be leaving in the transitional 180 day period following its start. That will mean that when there is no EES record of your entry into Schengen when they scan your passport when you leave then there will be no issue as the border guard can see the entry passport stamp is there. Will your exit be recorded on EES or will you just get an exit passport stamp - at the moment the border guard manual hasn't been updated with the details, but a reasonable presumption would be to say you would not be recorded on EES as an individual's record on EES requires the photo and fingerprint data which would not have been taken as EES would not have been in operation when you arrived. And anyway there will be millions of people in exactly this situation, so realistically it isn't going to cause an issue otherwise the airports would cease to be able operate.
  11. Possibly taxis as it is the start / end of the walk, but if not you could walk to the Garrison Gym bus stop and get the number 2 back - Bus Network Map | Gibraltar Bus Company If you are using Google then all the bus routes and times are shown on there.
  12. The guidance for airports on the introduction of EES says - During a 180-day transition period, the competent border authorities will check the stamps in the travel documents, in addition to the entry-exit data recorded in the EES. In case of a discrepancy, the stamp will prevail (Art. 22 of the Regulation).
  13. Once EES is in operation then yes your entry (and the start of the count of 90/180) will be recorded when you fly into Barcelona. When you leave on your cruise from Barcelona the EU border guard manual says - where a cruise ship departs from a port situated in a Schengen State to a port situated outside the area without internal border control, crew and passengers must be subject to exit checks on the basis of the nominal lists of crew and passengers. If an assessment of the risks related to security and illegal immigration so requires, passengers going on board must be subject to exit checks in accordance with general rules So the situation is pretty much as now when your passport wouldn't be stamped when you left on the cruise ship to a non-Schengen country - the cruise line will send a list of passengers and their passport details to the authorities and the authorities will perform their checks on those details and in the future should enter those details onto EES. But if you are concerned that your exit has not been recorded correctly, EES will have a web page where individuals can access their travel information so you can see whether you have been shown as leaving correctly, and undoubtably (as now when passports are not stamped in some circumstances) there is a process that allows you to provide evidence to show that you had left on a specific date (cruise tickets, etc.) and had not broken the 90/180 rule, and then when EES is in place the database could be updated with that information.
  14. The smart choice is to leave it secure back on the ship or in the hotel, and not needlessly take it with you. And how often have you been stoped by the police demanding to see it? Never...
  15. Yes, to check for stamps to ensure neither of you had not overstayed - as is their job.
  16. The EU regulation on ETIAS is Regulation 2018/1240 Regulation - 2018/1240 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu) and it says - The travel authorisation fee shall be waived for applicants under 18 years or above 70 years of age at the time of the application. If you applied the day after your 70th birthday then you would be above 70 years old at that time, but irrespective of that, undoubtably the system which you will need to apply through will determine whether a fee is payable or not.
  17. It certainly is a personal judgement, and my judgement based on the many many times I have visited Italy (and lots of other European countries) over many decades is that it would be utter madness to carry your original passport. The very real risk of loss or theft far outweighs a very very theoretical possibility of it being demanded to be seen by the police, and any significant action if you didn't have it. The only time I have seen the inside of a police station in Italy was after being pickpocketed, and as the officer I was dealing with commented, fortunately the only thing taken was an insured mobile phone and not a passport or anything else. The only exception to my 'don't take it with you rule' is when driving, and then the risk flips over and it would be far too risky not to have all your documents on you then.
  18. Yes, the press especially do seem to be wanting to be 'chicken little' about this, but then they do whenever it snows or the wind blows or... Pretty much - and that you will need one if you are on a cruise with a stop in the Schengen Area when it eventually comes in but you will have loads of notice to apply. Yep, and it should be quicker for most people as there will be no stamps and the border guard flicking through the passport to look at those stamps, and when exiting to put the stamp on the same page as the entry. It also opens the theoretical possibility that non-EU travellers will be allowed to use the automatic gates again when there is no need to 'wet stamp'. However the issue for some is that if you were playing 'fast and loose' with the 90/180 rule because you knew the border guard likely didn't have the time to look at all the stamps in the passport then they will be caught out by the new system. Yes, but other than at Dover and St Pancras the queues will at the Schengen Area airport and I doubt those airports want to disrupt flights because the airport is too full of queuing passengers - and then once done it is done for years. However undoubtably the press will have a field day with 'look at all these awful queues' in November.
  19. To be pedantic you don't obtain EES, but your entry onto the EES is simply done to you when you present yourself to the border guard in the passport queue when you arrive into the Schengen Area for the first time, with the border guard taking your fingerprints and photo. I make this distinction because the other system that is due to come in next year is ETIAS where you do have to obtain it in advance of presenting yourself to the border guard in the passport queue. Is undoubtably the correct answer - if you don't go through passport control into Iceland and stay in the transit area then you don't get put onto EES because it is the border guard at passport control who has to do that. However if your flights are that tight then I hope they are booked as a connecting flight and it is the airline's responsibility if you don't make it, but even so I hope you are arriving in the UK the day before your cruise because even if the airline puts you on the next day's flight...
  20. And two very useful facts! As someone with dual UK and EU citizenship my wife simply accompanies me in the EU passport queue when I travel with my EU passport because thats what the EU law says she can do https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32016R0399 relevant extracts with my bolding - (16) In order to reduce the waiting times of persons enjoying the Union right of free movement, separate lanes, indicated by uniform signs in all Member States, should, where circumstances allow, be provided at border crossing points. Separate lanes should be provided in international airports. Where it is deemed appropriate and if local circumstances so allow, Member States should consider installing separate lanes at sea and land border crossing points. and in the Art 2 Definitions 5. ‘persons enjoying the right of free movement under Union law’ means: (a) Union citizens within the meaning of Article 20(1) TFEU, and third-country nationals who are members of the family of a Union citizen exercising his or her right to free movement to whom Directive 2004/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (21) applies;
  21. It is around £15 per class and you can buy a pass that will cover you for all the classes on the cruise that does give a slight discount if you actually went to all of them - and at that price it doesn't compare too badly to the price you would pay for a class onshore. There is usually a 'stretch' class around 5.30pm or so that is free of charge. From when I have used the gym the classes seem to be reasonably well attended, but I cannot attest to their quality as I just use the gym equipment. The gym itself is free of charge and is pretty well equipped with a good number of running and rowing machines for cardio, a good variety of weight machines, plus a reasonable selection of free weights.
  22. Happy to help, as there seems to be a lot of confusion on the subject - not just here but in the media generally. Absolutely correct. EES biometric data can only be captured by an EU border guard, so nothing could be done at Southampton whatever happened. And as the purpose of EES is to know who is in the Schengen Area then if you failed to get back on board then your details would be passed to the authorities on shore so they would know then - plus when you tried to leave the Schengen Area to return back to the UK after failing to get back on board you would be caught by the exit checks not seeing you arrive. EES really isn't going to be an issue, other than for queues at Schengen airport passport / ferry port / Eurotunnel control for the first year as people are scanned onto the system. It is ETIAS that is going to be an issue, particularly for the over 70s (or those with children) where there is highly likely to be misunderstandings that no fee does not mean no requirement to have an ETIAS - or other variations, such as "well I never get off the ship so why do I need one", etc.
  23. To start with you are confusing EES and ETIAS, which are two different systems. Firstly EES (Entry Exit System), this has an announced start date of the 10th November 2024 and there is no charge for it. With EES, if you are a non-EU citizen then on your first entry to the Schengen Area your fingerprints and a photo will be taken by the border guards at the Schengen Area airport or at Dover (etc.) or St Pancras. The purpose of EES is to monitor the time spent in the Schengen Area and to ensure that the 90/180 day rule is correctly enforced, plus removing the need to 'wet stamp' passports. Unlike now, the border guard won't need to try to look at all the stamps in the passport to try to calculate how long someone has spent in the Schengen Area, the system will simply tell them when they put the passport in the scanner. Individuals will have access to a website so they can see how long they have spent in the Schengen Area and how long they have left in the current rolling 180 day period so they don't inadvertently break the rules. EES is also designed to work with family members of EU citizens and ensure that they time they spend in the Schengen Area with their EU family member does not count towards the 90 day limit (it does if they are there on their own). Turning to the impact of EES for cruise passengers (not ETIAS which is covered below) For round trip cruises starting and ending at non-Schengen ports, e.g. a cruise starting and ending at Southampton, then EES will not be required at port stops in Schengen countries - exactly the same as you don't have to go through passport control now - cruises are a low risk for the Schengen Area because you are scanned on and off the ship and the ship has to report if you have not got back onboard. For cruises starting at a non-Schengen port and ending at a Schengen port, e.g. a repositioning cruise from Southampton to Barcelona, then EES will be required at Barcelona, because you have simply used a cruise ship as a method of transport from A to B. For cruises starting at a Schengen port then EES will be required but that will be at the airport you fly into (or whatever other means you take to get to that Schengen country. Thus for any P&O passengers doing Southampton to Southampton cruises then they will not be troubled by EES. Now for ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System) which does not have an announced start date. ETIAS is a 'travel authorisation' and although it isn't a visa or a visa waiver it has pretty much the same effect - you don't have one then you are not getting in! The purpose of ETIAS is so the Schengen Area countries have some control on the type of people entering with a passport as the ETIAS application contains details on your background, employment, criminal convictions etc. Once in operation then non-EU citizens will need to apply before they travel to the Schengen Area and it has a cost of 7 euros unless you are under 18, over 70, or a family member of an EU citizen. There is no announced start date for ETIAS but the indications are - - You will be able to apply from May 2025 for an ETIAS but importantly there will be no requirement to have one for another six months, likely to be up to November 2025. - From November 2025 you will be required to have an ETIAS but you will be allowed into the Schengen Area once and once only provided everything else is OK, and this state will last for six months up to May 2026. - From May 2026 you will be required to have an ETIAS and there will be no allowance if you don't. But as before, all those dates are not certain yet and may yet move. Turning to the impact of ETIAS for cruise passengers (not EES which is covered above) For round trip cruises starting and ending at non-Schengen ports, e.g. a cruise starting and ending at Southampton, then an ETIAS will be required if the ship has port stops in Schengen countries. For cruises starting at a non-Schengen port and ending at a Schengen port, e.g. a repositioning cruise from Southampton to Barcelona, then an ETIAS will be required. For cruises starting at a Schengen port then an ETIAS will be required but that will be at the airport you fly into (or whatever other means you take to get to that Schengen country. Thus for any P&O passengers doing Southampton to Southampton cruises then they will need an ETIAS if there are any Schengen Area port stops. In summary, EES will make no difference to almost anyone using P&O, because either it will not apply (Southampton to Southampton) or it will be dealt with at the airport on a fly cruise into Malta or Tenerife. However ETIAS will make a difference and look out for 'sad faced posts' from people denied boarding at Southampton or denied boarding an aircraft for a fly-cruise, when the firm requirement kicks in. And lastly, for those who are fortunate enough to be EU citizens (or dual UK and EU) then neither EES or ETIAS will trouble you if you travel on your EU passport - and importantly, it doesn't matter if you are an Irish citizen as Ireland is a non-Schengen country due to the 'common travel area' with the UK, the same is true and EES and ETIAS is irrelevant. Plus your non-EU spouse (and children under age 21), although they will need to do EES and do ETIAS (unless they have residency in a Schengen Area country) can go with you through the EU passport controls and as mentioned above are not limited to the 90 days if you are somewhere in the Schengen Area (it doesn't need to be the same country) at the same time. Confused - I am not surprised!
  24. Yes an iPhone 13 takes eSIMS. With these apps such as Airalo (there are many) you simply download the app form the Apple App store, open the app, select which location you are in, how much data you want, and for how long, pay for it and it installs an eSIM and then you then need to select that eSIM from the normal sim that is in the phone. It is easier than buying a physical SIM provided that you are familiar with installing apps and selecting an eSIM.
  25. If you have a phone that takes eSIMs then just look at one of those providers that can add an eSIM from an app, providers such as Airalo.


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