Passport @ Ports of Call (Europe)

[BendORcruiser]

I am concerned about safeguarding my passport in the urban areas like Naples or Rome and would prefer to leave it onboard in the room safe. Does anyone know if a photo ID (state drivers license) and room card are enough to get me back on the ship? Or do I HAVE to have my passport on me?

[Bulldog3777]

We just did the Gem Western Med cruise. The only time they told us to take your passport with you was in Vatican City. PhotoID and NCL card was all that was needed. In fact, I never had to show my photo to get back on the ship.

[Friscorays]

Many ships take your passport at the beginning of the cruise and return it at the end. If NCL allows you to keep your passport, leave the original in the safe and carry a photocopy of the face sheet with you in port. Key card is all you need to reboard ship, when it is swiped the photo they take of you before boarding will flash on their computer scree to confirm you are who you say you are.

[BendORcruiser]

So I will need it in Rome (for Vatican City)?

[lambs2]

We were just at the Vatican this past January, taking the underground Scavi Tour and then inside St. Peter's and they never asked to see our passports. I'm not sure we even had the real ones with us, although I always carry photo copies.

[uppitycats]

Your passport is no more..or less..valuable than your driver's license or your wallet. You protect them the same way -- find a wallent that is close to your body, don't flash it around, don't carry it in your back pocket, make sure you know where it is at al times, and carry your passport with you. If for some reason (attack, lost, stolen, illness, etc.) you don't get back to the ship, you need your passport to get assistance. A copy won't be worth the paper it's printed on. The passport is a guarantee ID of American citizenship, and you can get assistance. a flight, medical care, etc., based on it.

 

I always carry my passport -- in a secure location on my body (not in my back pocket, not in an outer pocket, but close to my body). I keep a copy of it in my cabin safe, and another in my luggage, but the "real thing" is always with me...as well as another photo ID (my driver's license), and a small amount of cash, and one credit card.

[lambs2]

BUT there are TIMES when the ship collects passports and does not give them out for ports! We had that happen last January on our Jade cruise. I believe that was because our itinerary included Egypt and all the passports had to be collected to get a special Quick Trip stamp by the Egyptian customs folks. Some people created a fuss, but as far as I know they still kept all our passports until the night before we docked in Alexandria.

[hamrag]

Your passport is no more..or less..valuable than your driver's license or your wallet. You protect them the same way If for some reason (attack, lost, stolen, illness, etc.) you don't get back to the ship, you need your passport to get assistance. A copy won't be worth the paper it's printed on. The passport is a guarantee ID of American citizenship

 

Not true to say "the passport is a guarantee ID of American citizenship". Rather, it confirms your citizenship be that American or otherwise!!

[Ann262]

Hmmmm. If, for some reason (God forbid!) you didn't get back to port in time and the ship left, you'd need your passport to get around.

[uppitycats]

Hmmmm. If, for some reason (God forbid!) you didn't get back to port in time and the ship left, you'd need your passport to get around.

 

Yes you would.

 

I really don't understand how people misunderstand this, or think that somehow their passport is so valuable that they keep it in the safe, and think a photocopy is sufficient!

 

Yes, it's valuable. Yes, it could be stolen. So could your wallet, your credit cards, etc. All are hard to replace, all are very valuable to thieves. But the passport is your only truly valid form of identification. Except for those rare instances where the ship purser (or agent) gathers them up, mine is with me if I leave the ship.

[dfwguy62]

As stated above, the answer will vary. On the Gem in July, they gathered our passports at check-in in Barcelona and told us that Italian immigration required them to be available for review prior to the first Italian port (in our case Naples). We were told to pick them up in a ship lounge after 6pm on the Naples port day. So this meant we didn't even have possession of them for our stop in Malta... so the decision was made for us as to whether we could take them with us in Malta.

 

I had also pre-ordered online tickets for the Vatican Museum and Coliseum. In both cases, the ordering instructions asked you to bring your picture identification with you with your ticket printout. I don't recall if it specifically asked for your passport, but that seems the logical ID for a non-Italian to show in Italy, i would think. However, I don't recall that anyone ever looked at our passports when we arrived at the Coliseum or Vatican Museum. If I recall correctly, I think Civitavecchia is the one, and only, port where the Gem specifically told us to take our passports with us. They did not explain why.

 

In general, I carry mine with me while in port just in case something happens. I would probably leave it on ship if I were going to a beach port and knew that I would be swimming.

 

To get on the ship (at least the Gem), we only had to show our cruise card. Never had to show any picture ID.

[BendORcruiser]

Yes you would.

 

I really don't understand how people misunderstand this, or think that somehow their passport is so valuable that they keep it in the safe, and think a photocopy is sufficient!

 

Yes, it's valuable. Yes, it could be stolen. So could your wallet, your credit cards, etc. All are hard to replace, all are very valuable to thieves. But the passport is your only truly valid form of identification. Except for those rare instances where the ship purser (or agent) gathers them up, mine is with me if I leave the ship.

 

The main thing that prevents me from wanting to carry my passport with me is that my "undergarment" style travel wallet would feel much more bulky with a passport as opposed to a DL. But it is a VERY good point that if we miss the ship we would need it with us, so I think I'll live with the extra bulk.

[AuntieBarb]

As stated above, the answer will vary. On the Gem in July, they gathered our passports at check-in in Barcelona and told us that Italian immigration required them to be available for review prior to the first Italian port (in our case Naples). We were told to pick them up in a ship lounge after 6pm on the Naples port day. So this meant we didn't even have possession of them for our stop in Malta... so the decision was made for us as to whether we could take them with us in Malta.

 

I had also pre-ordered online tickets for the Vatican Museum and Coliseum. In both cases, the ordering instructions asked you to bring your picture identification with you with your ticket printout. I don't recall if it specifically asked for your passport, but that seems the logical ID for a non-Italian to show in Italy, i would think. However, I don't recall that anyone ever looked at our passports when we arrived at the Coliseum or Vatican Museum. If I recall correctly, I think Civitavecchia is the one, and only, port where the Gem specifically told us to take our passports with us. They did not explain why.

 

In general, I carry mine with me while in port just in case something happens. I would probably leave it on ship if I were going to a beach port and knew that I would be swimming.

 

To get on the ship (at least the Gem), we only had to show our cruise card. Never had to show any picture ID.

 

BUT there are TIMES when the ship collects passports and does not give them out for ports! We had that happen last January on our Jade cruise. I believe that was because our itinerary included Egypt and all the passports had to be collected to get a special Quick Trip stamp by the Egyptian customs folks. Some people created a fuss, but as far as I know they still kept all our passports until the night before we docked in Alexandria.

 

We're headed out on the NCL Jade for the E. Med cruise in March: Barcelona -> Civitavecchia -> Piraeus -> Izmir -> Alexandria -> Valetta

 

So the two of you are saying that we will have to give up our passports at embarkation and that they won't be returned to us until Alexandria? That's absurd! What if for some reason we miss the ship?

[CTCruisers]

I am concerned about safeguarding my passport in the urban areas like Naples or Rome and would prefer to leave it onboard in the room safe. Does anyone know if a photo ID (state drivers license) and room card are enough to get me back on the ship? Or do I HAVE to have my passport on me?

 

We leave the original passports in the safe in our cabin. We bring copies of the passports.

 

You only need your keycard to get back on board a NCL ship. But, you will need a photo ID as well to get into the terminal prior to boarding the ship more often than not.

[AuntieBarb]

BUT there are TIMES when the ship collects passports and does not give them out for ports! We had that happen last January on our Jade cruise. I believe that was because our itinerary included Egypt and all the passports had to be collected to get a special Quick Trip stamp by the Egyptian customs folks. Some people created a fuss, but as far as I know they still kept all our passports until the night before we docked in Alexandria.

 

Are you a U.S. citizen?

 

According to NCL what you are stating is not accurate! They do not collect and retain passports!

 

I just called NCL reservations and asked that this matter be clarified. The reservationist 3 times came back to tell me that NCL does not collect passports; that they only arrange times in advance when necessary for passengers to go (along with their passports) to a designated area for handling stamps.

 

I escalated the call because of all the conflicting information, coming from personalities I've seen at Cruise Critic for years, as well as some I've cruised with. I was transferred to a supervisor in reservations. He adamantly insists NCL does nothing more than check passports at embarkation like normal and that they do not keep them in their possession at any time for this purpose. :confused: He even notated my reservation about our conversation.

[dfwguy62]

AuntyBarb, things might have changed. Or perhaps the customer service reps here in the states are not in tune with the reality of travel in the Mediterranean. Or perhaps our sailing was treated uniquely for some reason. I can't tell you which. I can only tell you what happened last July to us sailing on the NCL Gem out of Barcelona. They only told us that the Italian immigration wanted them available at the first Italian port the ship was to visit.

 

Yes, the 3 in my party were all US Citizens. They gathered our passports at the check in desk and kept them. They put little stickers with our names on them on the outside of them. They gave us a sheet of paper with instructions on when/where to pick them up later in the week.

 

The ship then had a sea day, a day in Malta, and a day in Naples where I did not have my passport in my possession. We were told to pick them up after 5:00 pm on the Naples day in the lounge with the bowing alleys. When I went to the lounge there were about 3 employees there with several boxes of passports arranged alphabetically. They found them by looking at the names on the stickers on the outside cover of them. My passport still has remnants of the sticker that I could not get off my passport case. As near as I can tell, no one stamped the inside of my passport with anything.

 

I don't know if all passengers or all nationalities had to go thru this, but that's surely what they did in our case.

[johnql]

I can also confirm that on some itineraries that American passports were collected. I've had it done to me on a Med cruise and a Baltics cruise. It probably depends on what the visited countries require. I cannot, however, say whether it's done on NCL's current Med itineraries.

[jocap]

If the cruise is touching Egypt, the passports need to be in the ship's hands, because immigration fly to the previous port, and spend the sea day processing them, so that you can step ashore without any long wait.

For my next cruise, Egypt and Jordan, the cruise line have asked for the passport number to be taken ashore. We normally take a photocopy.

jocap.

[zqvol]

Your passport is no more..or less..valuable than your driver's license or your wallet. You protect them the same way -- find a wallent that is close to your body, don't flash it around, don't carry it in your back pocket, make sure you know where it is at al times, and carry your passport with you. If for some reason (attack, lost, stolen, illness, etc.) you don't get back to the ship, you need your passport to get assistance. A copy won't be worth the paper it's printed on. The passport is a guarantee ID of American citizenship, and you can get assistance. a flight, medical care, etc., based on it.

 

I always carry my passport -- in a secure location on my body (not in my back pocket, not in an outer pocket, but close to my body). I keep a copy of it in my cabin safe, and another in my luggage, but the "real thing" is always with me...as well as another photo ID (my driver's license), and a small amount of cash, and one credit card.

 

Out of curiosity what do you do on a when you cruise on a line that keeps your passports? (Most of them do in the European markets)

[njhorseman]

We have also been on cruises where our passports were held by the ship, and it wasn't only on NCL.

Any telephone customer service agent who says otherwise is wrong.

[AuntieBarb]

 

This is driving me to drink! (Sounding pretty good about now.)

 

So what happens if NCL has possession of our passports and we miss the ship? Someone told us along the way that the ship will have to surrender the passports to port authorities before leaving port. Is that true?

[DonMar]

 

This is driving me to drink! (Sounding pretty good about now.)

 

So what happens if NCL has possession of our passports and we miss the ship? Someone told us along the way that the ship will have to surrender the passports to port authorities before leaving port. Is that true?

 

 

AuntieBarb - I feel the same way. We too are doing the Eastern Med on the Jade in March/April. I do not go anywhere without my passport and the thought of not having it on me gives me agida.

 

While we have copies of our passports, it is not official. I think we are going to get the new passport card just to have on us. I understand that the card does not serve as a passport for entry into the US from Europe etc. (Land-based boarder crossing or Caribbean cruises only) - but it is official - better than a photocopy.

[Turtles06]

BUT there are TIMES when the ship collects passports and does not give them out for ports! We had that happen last January on our Jade cruise. I believe that was because our itinerary included Egypt and all the passports had to be collected to get a special Quick Trip stamp by the Egyptian customs folks. Some people created a fuss, but as far as I know they still kept all our passports until the night before we docked in Alexandria.

 

I'll be on the Jade in the Med a week from tomorrow. (:)) I realize the ship will need my passport to put the entry stamp in for Egypt (and they can have it the day before for that), but we'll be docking in THREE other countries before then. I'll be going on private shore excursions in each, and I am in the "take the passport ashore with you camp." If something happened and we missed the ship, it will do me NO good to have my passport back on the Jade...

 

So I hope it's not true that the ship will try to take passports when we board in Barcelona and keep them until Egypt, because I sure don't want to start out the cruise by having to make a fuss with someone. Frankly, I don't understand what reason (let alone what right) NCL would have to keep your passport when you are disembarking in a foreign country. It makes no sense to me whatsoever.

[njhorseman]

AuntieBarb - I feel the same way. We too are doing the Eastern Med on the Jade in March/April. I do not go anywhere without my passport and the thought of not having it on me gives me agida.

 

While we have copies of our passports, it is not official. I think we are going to get the new passport card just to have on us. I understand that the card does not serve as a passport for entry into the US from Europe etc. (Land-based boarder crossing or Caribbean cruises only) - but it is official - better than a photocopy.

 

You'll just be wasting your money getting passport cards. They won't be recognized for any purpose in Europe. It really is no better than a photocopy of your passport.

[njhorseman]

I'll be on the Jade in the Med a week from tomorrow. (:)) I realize the ship will need my passport to put the entry stamp in for Egypt (and they can have it the day before for that), but we'll be docking in THREE other countries before then. I'll be going on private shore excursions in each, and I am in the "take the passport ashore with you camp." If something happened and we missed the ship, it will do me NO good to have my passport back on the Jade...

 

So I hope it's not true that the ship will try to take passports when we board in Barcelona and keep them until Egypt, because I sure don't want to start out the cruise by having to make a fuss with someone. Frankly, I don't understand what reason (let alone what right) NCL would have to keep your passport when you are disembarking in a foreign country. It makes no sense to me whatsoever.

 

Do you think people are lying?

 

And it's not going to do you any good to "make a fuss".