Ever forget your passport?

We were booked on the Grand Princess to leave 2/2/08 from Ft. Lauderdale traveling with our adult children and their spouses. The plan was to leave Chicago on Friday, 2/1/08 and stay overnight one night pre-cruise to allow for any weather delays. It started snowing on Thursday and continued for 24 hours, dumping about a foot of snow in Chicago, canceling 600 flights on Thursday and continuing on Friday. Lucky for us, we were flying United which has its hub in Chicago and we not only had an aircraft at our gate but our flight was on time. The anxiety over the weather had overshadowed everything else on our minds.

As we winged our way to Ft. Lauderdale, I turned to my DH and asked if he had brought the passports as they had been sitting on his dresser. The horrified look that he gave me confirmed my fears. We weren't going to land for another 2 hours and we frantically discussed this with the kids.

The girl sitting next to me suggested that we have someone go to the house and FEDEX them to us. The problem was that no one else had a key to the house. She suggested that we get a friend to get a locksmith to open the house and then send the passports. This sounded like a good idea to me but DH felt that there were too many parts to the plan that could go wrong and his plan was to fly immediately back to Chicago and come back the next day.

We called Donna, our trusty travel agent for advice and she called Princess to confirm that we needed passports or a certified copy of your birth certificate which you could get from a national data base here in the States. The fly in the ointment for that idea was that DH was not born in the USA.

She started checking flights from Ft. Lauderdale when I mentioned the locksmith idea. She became very excited and said that she had a good friend who was a locksmith and she would call him and ask if he would do this for her. While we went down to baggage claim, we also talked to the Princess rep who met us for the bus transfer to the hotel and told her that DH might not be coming with us.

Donna called back and said that while the locksmith would open the house, he would not go in it because of the liability. His best friend however was Donna's ex-boyfriend and he agreed to go along and get the documents off DH's dresser and take them to a FEDEX-KINKOS for next day delivery.

We boarded the bus to the hotel and Donna called us about 10 minutes later and conferenced us in with the locksmith who was having trouble opening the lock and he said that he had to make a key and did my key have a number on it. It did and he was able to open the door. We gave Donna the hotel address and she called us later to confirm that the package was on the way and should be delivered by noon, guaranteed.

Our SIL asked us to get the tracking number and he would check it for us the next day. Donna called us back that evening with it and we all breathed a sigh of relief. We were so grateful to her for going above and beyond for us; we could not thank her enough! You would not get someone to do this for you from an online agency. She charged the locksmith fee, about $100 and the FEDEX fee about $44 to our credit card. This was a small price to pay for our stupidity.

The next day, Jeremy checked the tracking number and said it was in Pompano Beach which was the next town away. We went in for breakfast anticipating that it would be there shortly. By eleven it was still not there and I asked him to check it again and it came up with an "exception". I called 1-800-GOFEDEX and they told me that the address was incorrect! But the package was on the truck and I could pick it up at the facility when the driver came back and they were open until 7:00 PM. Small comfort when the ship was sailing @ 5:00! They asked for the correct address and said that they would leave a message for the driver.

The hotel had given us a letter telling us to meet downstairs @ 11:30-12:00 for "pre-check-in". We sent the kids down and checked out of our room and anxiously awaited a call back from FEDEX. Unbeknownst to us, Donna had also noticed the incorrect address that morning and was also calling FEDEX.

I tried again around 12:15 and got the same response, that they would send a message to the driver. In the meantime, we pulled our luggage out of the Princess pile so it wouldn't get on the ship without us and waited while the Holland America reps boarded about 12 buses for their cruise.

We discussed our problem with the hotel manager and he assured us that the FEDEX depot was only 10 minutes away and most Saturday deliveries were over by 1:00 so we should have no problem getting there to get our package and making it to the ship on time. He even said that he would arrange a Towncar for us that would be the same cost as a cab and would wait for us. So we had an alternate plan. Meanwhile, DH was waiting outside looking for any FEDEX truck that came by so he could throw his body in its path just in case it was the one with our passports.

We tried to call again @ 12:50 and the FEDEX person noticed a message that said that the driver would be there in 15 minutes! As soon as I hung up, Donna was calling us with the same news. She was feeling responsible since it was her friend who had put down the wrong address!

DH, DS, DIL, SIL all waited outside for the FEDEX truck to make an appearance while DD stayed with me calming my frazzled nerves. A few minutes later, FEDEX pulled up and DH ran to him to claim our envelope. The driver questioned him because our name was spelled incorrectly but DH pulled out his driver’s license to prove it was him and then tipped the guy.

And yes, inside were the passports, the bill for the locksmith and the key he had made to get into the house. Princess was still boarding buses and had not yet called our color. Our luggage went back into the pile and we were finally on our way!

Had we ever discussed our passports before leaving? Yes, a few days earlier I had asked where they were thinking that if they were in the bank vault, I would have to go get them. But DH had assured me that they were on his dresser. And we then promptly forgot about them with all the anxiety over the weather. From now on, they will be the first thing on my list! Donna saved us from having to make another flight back home and saved our vacation with our children.

wow what a start to your cruise.

I think Donna's boss needs to know what an awesome agent she is!! I hope you will write a letter to her boss.

after all that, how was your cruise?

Hope it went better than the start to your cruise did:D

I always carry our passports clinched in my fist all the way to the port, a 90 minute drive for us. I always worry I will forget them. I set them in the doorway the night before so I cant get otu the door until pick them up.

mom x4,grandma x4

Donna is self-employed and works from home. We sent her flowers and I am sending her a gift card in a thank you card today.

The cruise was great and our kids had a great time on their first cruise. Hated to come home to Chicago weather, though!

Wow. I've seen Mission Impossible episodes that were simpler.

I'm glad that it all worked out for you.

Maybe it's just me... but I would have asked my relative or friend to meet the locksmith and handle my "in home" stuff... rather than the "best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with the girl*" guy.

Maybe that's just me... but I figure the fewer strangers know my house will be sitting empty, apparently without an alarm to worry with and who know the layout of the interior... the better.

* Thank you Ferris Bueller's Day Off

We weren't sure we could even find anyone at home or work since the weather in Chicago was very bad w/driving conditions hazardous. It would have also involved us faxing an authorization to the person or locksmith giving them permission to break into our house causing more delay.

We had a short window to get the passports to FEDEX-KINKOS before the last pickup time to ensure the overnight delivery. Believe me, this was not something we took lightly. DH was concerned over some stranger having a key to our house. The fact that Donna knew him & his friend and would vouch for them was good enough for us since we have known Donna for several years.

Besides, if our house was or is subsequently broken into and robbed, wouldn't these guys be the first on the list? They did send the key he made w/the documents so he couldn't be accused of keeping it.

It saved our trip and $$$ that DH would have paid to fly home and back again.

Wow what a nightmare! Glad it all worked out!

Probably a dumb question, but are passports required yet? I didn't think they were.

We got ours for our last cruise, so we are prepared! Just have to remember to pack'em!

Wow, you had me biting my fingernails wondering how your story would end. I have this same nightmare every few weeks, and more frequently as we approach our cruise in May. :)

Probably a dumb question, but are passports required yet? I didn't think they were.

We got ours for our last cruise, so we are prepared! Just have to remember to pack'em!

Yes, as of Jan. 1st, 2008.

Your information is no longer correct. Initially, it was going to be Jan 31, 2008... but that date came/went without implementation.

This is from travel.state.gov:

AIR TRAVEL

Implemented on January 23, 2007, ALL PERSONS traveling by air between the United States and Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, and the Caribbean region are required to present a passport or other valid travel document to enter or re-enter the United States.

 

LAND AND SEA TRAVEL

The following summarizes information available on the Department of Homeland Security’s website.

 

JANUARY 31, 2008

U.S. and Canadian citizens will need to present either a WHTI-compliant document, or a government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, plus proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate. DHS also proposes to begin alternative procedures for U.S. and Canadian children at that time.

 

LATER

At a later date, to be determined, the departments will implement the full requirements of the land and sea phase of WHTI. The proposed rules require most U.S. citizens entering the United States at sea or land ports of entry to have either a U.S. passport; a U.S. passport card; a trusted traveler card such as NEXUS, FAST, or SENTRI; a valid Merchant Mariner Document (MMD) when traveling in conjunction with official maritime business; or a valid U.S. Military identification card when traveling on official orders.

 

Note: The passport requirement does NOT apply to U.S. citizens traveling to or returning directly from a U.S. territory.

Your information is no longer correct. Initially, it was going to be Jan 31, 2008... but that date came/went without implementation.

 

This is from travel.state.gov:

Thanks. I thought I was losing my mind.:eek:

I still can't stress enough how much I think you should have a passport anyway... but there are plenty of people who somehow feel they are cost-cutting by not having one.

Welcome to the USA 2008: Wal-Mart Prices are Falling, So Who Cares About the Quality Generation

I still can't stress enough how much I think you should have a passport anyway... but there are plenty of people who somehow feel they are cost-cutting by not having one.

 

Welcome to the USA 2008: Wal-Mart Prices are Falling, So Who Cares About the Quality Generation

Yes, I agree (about the passport :D). You never know when that rule may change.

Plus, this way if I see a great deal on a European cruise, I can hop on it!

(Just kidding, I am lucky my husband will cruise the Caribbean with me!)