Passports????

[fishtaco]

I don't disagree....I love my passport.

 

But

 

no member of CC that I have ever read has enough horsepower to overcome the powerful lobbies of cruise lines, tourism industries and local governments who foresee reduced revenues if anything is put in place that will make it more difficult for people to visit, as tourists, the ports included in the WHTI.

 

A family faced with a $1000. bill for passports could well decide on a different venue for their vacation.

 

Right? Wrong? Irrelevant. It is what it is and without a major shift in policy, passports for US citizens on closed loop cruises will continue to be optional.

 

But one thing to conceder is the fact that cruise port officials on loop cruises may not be quite as vigilant as other ports of entry/exit into USA like airports.

 

I have only done one loop cruise in USA so far. I am from Australia.

 

My entry into USA required an entry stamp at LAX including fingerprints my exit from USA required a departure card to be handed in. I also left USA on a loop cruise and re entered USA on the same cruise and all that was needed was a passport sight from port officials with no exit or entry recorded.

[dadroy]

I could care less about someone else having a passport, but the whole BC thing is a joke. There is NO WAY the cruise representative or the border control officers have any idea of what is a real birth certificate and which is a fake. Not all states use the same formats, paper, water marks or raised seals. And I would guess all states have changed the appearance of the certificates over the the last 50 years.

 

I know I thought I had lost my BC about 15 years ago and sent away for a new one. Got it, then when moving, found the old one. There are completely different. In reality, the people at the pier are taking our word for the fact the BC is legit.

 

Why not eliminate the requirement completely? Same for taking a child out of the country when both parents are not present. The cruise lines tell you on their websites to bring a notarized letter, etc, but when I took my ex wifes daughter on a cruise, they never asked for it. We don't even have the same address or last name.

 

The same with a photo ID. Why is it needed? As a previous poster said NO terrorist has ever entered the country via a cruise ship! Just let people state their name, show their ticket and board the ship.

 

Yes, I have a passport and would never leave the country without it but I do it by choice plus it's required for most travel out of the country unless I am on a cruise.

[cruzinlisa]

Our family- DH, me and DD (almost 3) have passports. DH and I had them due to going to Mexico. We got one for DD before her first cruise since DH and I already had them. We would not have gotten her one if we did not already have one, nor would we have gotten them strictly for cruising. DH and I will have gotten 5 uses out of our passports in the past six years, so its worth it. DD will probably use hers 2 (maybe 3) times before it expires. But her passport photo (from when she was one) is super cute. :D

[Lerin]

What is nominal to you might be a lot to others.

 

Mom,dad,and 4 kids is over $1000.

 

Doesn't sound nominal to me.

 

 

Sent from Iphone 4S using Cruise Critic App

Adult Passports are $135

Childrens are $105

 

Not over a grand, but still quite a fee if not really needed.

Passport Cards are much cheaper($30 for adults, $15 for kids), though I have no knowledge of what they are for or how they work.

 

We have Passports and feel it is easiest, however understand why others choose not to get one.

[Out to sea!]

Do they give you a coupon book for each $15 payment or does it get automatically charged to your credit card each time a payment is due?

 

Bill

 

How silly. $150 payment averaged out over a 10 year life span equals $15/year. Go ahead an keep trying though. I enjoy silly posts. :rolleyes:

[Out to sea!]

I don't disagree....I love my passport.

 

But

 

no member of CC that I have ever read has enough horsepower to overcome the powerful lobbies of cruise lines, tourism industries and local governments who foresee reduced revenues if anything is put in place that will make it more difficult for people to visit, as tourists, the ports included in the WHTI.

 

A family faced with a $1000. bill for passports could well decide on a different venue for their vacation.

 

Right? Wrong? Irrelevant. It is what it is and without a major shift in policy, passports for US citizens on closed loop cruises will continue to be optional.

 

Prior to 2001 there was no TSA and yet air travel has not decreased, even with all the new restrictions. I would expect there would be no decrease in cruise travel either if passports became required for all travel outside the US (especially since the only segment that is excused is small compared to the entire vacation market). Granted, this is just an opinion that cannot be verified unless the policy is instituted but in my opinion, there would be little to no change in the number of people cruising.

Edited December 28, 2013 by Out to sea!

[Out to sea!]

I seriously doubt that walking into my local post office and applying for a passport makes me any lower risk than those who choose to use BC's and State ID's. People all around the world have passports and can get into and out of the US without being a US citizen, so what does a US citizen on a closed loop cruise need one for? I doubt any of the terrorist attacks in the recent year on the US where from US citizens coming back on a closed loop cruises. Really?:rolleyes:

 

More checks are done on a person that is applying for a passport than one who is just simply born. :rolleyes:

 

As you said, people around the world have passports that are required to enter and leave the US. Why should it not be the same for us? Unless the closed loop cruise is a CTN, a US citizen is entering a foreign country. That should require a passport, period. Same as for foreign citizens entering the US.

[cccer]

DH and I sailed for the first time with passports in August with our kids still with BC and DL and then again in October without kids with just us and our passports after 10 cruises of sailing with only BC and DL. There was no difference in going through the lines with or with out passports. It was NOT less of hassle at all with our passports. DH and I got passports for ourselves and not the kids because our personal risk level had changed and their did not. A personal choice for us as it is for anyone else when they decide what to do on a closed loop cruise.

 

What are you going to leave your kids while you flee the country?

[S.S.Oceanlover]

How silly. $150 payment averaged out over a 10 year life span equals $15/year. Go ahead an keep trying though. I enjoy silly posts. :rolleyes:

 

Yes it is silly. Just as silly as saying its $15 a year.

 

While it may average out to that you still have to pay the whole fee upfront so how much it cost per year is irrelevent.

 

Bill

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Prior to 2001 there was no TSA and yet air travel has not decreased, even with all the new restrictions. I would expect there would be no decrease in cruise travel either if passports became required for all travel outside the US (especially since the only segment that is excused is small compared to the entire vacation market). Granted, this is just an opinion that cannot be verified unless the policy is instituted but in my opinion, there would be little to no change in the number of people cruising.

 

There is something we can agree on. If it was mandatory people would find a way to budget the cost of purchasing passports.

 

Bill

[DebJ14]

For any of you who are single parents and don't have passports for you or your kids, you better stick with Carnival. Princess would require you to have a passport. The stated reason makes sense.

 

PASSPORT REQUIREMENT WHEN MINORS TRAVEL WITH ONE ADULT ON VOYAGES GOVERNED BY THE U.S. WESTERN HEMISPHERE TRAVEL INITIATIVE (includes travel within BERMUDA, CANADA, CARIBBEAN, HAWAII, MEXICO, PANAMA CANAL, UNITED STATES) When minors are traveling with only one adult 21 years of age or older, Princess requires that all passengers must be in possession of a valid passport. We have implemented this requirement because we want to ensure that your party remains together should an emergency arise that requires one or more in your party to be disembarked in a non-U.S. port. We cannot guarantee that all members of your party will be allowed to disembark with just a WHTI-compliant document or birth certificate. Failure to present a valid passport for all passengers traveling together will result in denial of boarding without refund of the of the cruise or cruisetour fare.

[cruise_gal21]

More checks are done on a person that is applying for a passport than one who is just simply born. :rolleyes:

 

As you said, people around the world have passports that are required to enter and leave the US. Why should it not be the same for us? Unless the closed loop cruise is a CTN, a US citizen is entering a foreign country. That should require a passport, period. Same as for foreign citizens entering the US.

 

Your main concern seems to be security, however I do not see a big security risk to America with US citizens on closed loop cruises. There is security at ports for a reason, to check for guns, bombs, etc. If it's not getting on the ship I don't see the point in the extra checks that a passport provides. People with passports can be just as diabolical as those without. This is a proven fact in today's society. So why the extra expense when it's not necessary? The countries that allow the WHTI want our American dollars and that's why the act is in place. My family and I do not plan on traveling outside of the US on anything other than a closed loop cruise to countries that use the WHTI in the next 5 years, so why waste the money on passports that won't get used? When we broaden our horizons in the foreseeable future we will make the investment. Until then, we're not wasting the time or money on something that is not required.

[Warm Breezes]

What are you going to leave your kids while you flee the country?

 

We did not get our passports for cruising with our kids. If our October cruise had been with our kids we still would not have them. We got our passports for when we were cruising without them. Leaving 2 teens at home alone put me outside of my comfort zone of being out of the country without a quicker way home to them. Of course I would never leave my kids in a foreign country...but if I am with them I now the risks they are taking and know the risk is a lot smaller with me with them in a foreign country than it is for them to be home alone. That is a personal decision that we took and then government gave us the ability to make that choice with the WHTI passport exception. Yours choice may differ and that is your right....

[TruckinMama]

DH and I obtained our passports when we went on our first cruise. There is NO way we are leaving the country without a passport, ever. We did them one at a time a couple months apart, to split the cost up. Our adult kids are going on our next cruise, they are all getting passports, because mom said so. Ha!

[sparks1093]

I could care less about someone else having a passport, but the whole BC thing is a joke. There is NO WAY the cruise representative or the border control officers have any idea of what is a real birth certificate and which is a fake. Not all states use the same formats, paper, water marks or raised seals. And I would guess all states have changed the appearance of the certificates over the the last 50 years.

 

I know I thought I had lost my BC about 15 years ago and sent away for a new one. Got it, then when moving, found the old one. There are completely different. In reality, the people at the pier are taking our word for the fact the BC is legit.

 

Why not eliminate the requirement completely? Same for taking a child out of the country when both parents are not present. The cruise lines tell you on their websites to bring a notarized letter, etc, but when I took my ex wifes daughter on a cruise, they never asked for it. We don't even have the same address or last name.

 

The same with a photo ID. Why is it needed? As a previous poster said NO terrorist has ever entered the country via a cruise ship! Just let people state their name, show their ticket and board the ship.

 

Yes, I have a passport and would never leave the country without it but I do it by choice plus it's required for most travel out of the country unless I am on a cruise.

 

They actually discuss that point in the DHS regulations and because there is time to run every passenger through the multitude of databases they have available everything can be verified before the cruise returns to the US.

[sparks1093]

More checks are done on a person that is applying for a passport than one who is just simply born. :rolleyes:

 

As you said, people around the world have passports that are required to enter and leave the US. Why should it not be the same for us? Unless the closed loop cruise is a CTN, a US citizen is entering a foreign country. That should require a passport, period. Same as for foreign citizens entering the US.

 

As I stated in my previous post database checks are performed on those cruising with BC and ID while they are on the cruise, probably the same ones that are performed for someone getting a passport. If those checks show something amiss then that passenger will probably be sent to secondary inspection upon return to the US (or denied boarding completely). I have read many stories on Cruise Critic about people who have outstanding warrants being met by a welcoming committee upon their return.

[dread_pirate]

My passport story:

A week before I was scheduled to fly (within the US, so no passport required), I was in a store purchasing some wine and was asked for ID (they check everyone, even though I am clearly over 21!). I handed them my driver's license. The clerk looked at it and said, "You know this is expired, right?" (Our state no longer sends out notices.) I didn't.

 

The next day I went to the DMV and asked to renew my license. They took my money and handed me a printout of a license, with large letters stamped across the top: NOT VALID FOR TRAVEL IDENTIFICATION. It was valid only for driving. I asked when I could get one since I was flying and needed it. Could I get one expedited? No. Four weeks minimum.

 

I took my passport to the airport and boarded without difficulty.

 

I am forever grateful to the clerk who looked, since I would have gotten to the airport without valid ID! (Yes, I know that there are checks that TSA could do, but it was nice to avoid an unexpected surprise and hassle!)

[donaldsc]

What is nominal to you might be a lot to others.

 

Mom,dad,and 4 kids is over $1000.

 

Doesn't sound nominal to me.

 

29 cruises and haven't needed a passport to fly home yet.

 

Bill

 

 

 

 

Sent from Iphone 4S using Cruise Critic App

 

If you can afford the 29 cruises, you could afford the $1000. Assuming that you averaged $2000 for each cruise with everything, that is $59,000 spent for cruising. Just take 1 less excursion per every several cruises and you have your $1000.

 

They should just abolish this whole totally ridiculous closed loop idea and require passports for all cruises. After all, you do not need a passport for a closed loop cruise but you do need federal identification if you take a 1 hour driving trip to Canada or Mexico.

 

I wonder how much the cruise industry has bribed your senator or Representative with free cruises to keep it on.

 

DON

Edited December 28, 2013 by donaldsc

[sparks1093]

If you can afford the 29 cruises, you could afford the $1000. Assuming that you averaged $2000 for each cruise with everything, that is $59,000 spent for cruising. Just take 1 less excursion per every several cruises and you have your $1000.

 

They should just abolish this whole totally ridiculous closed loop idea and require passports for all cruises. After all, you do not need a passport for a closed loop cruise but you do need federal identification if you take a 1 hour driving trip to Canada or Mexico.

 

I wonder how much the cruise industry has bribed your senator or Representative with free cruises to keep it on.

 

DON

 

The regulations were written by DHS and the State Department, not Congress. Unlike Congress I don't like wasting my money so I will wait to obtain a passport until 1) my risk level on a closed loop cruise goes up or 2) it is actually required for a trip that I am taking.

[Warm Breezes]

If you can afford the 29 cruises, you could afford the $1000. Assuming that you averaged $2000 for each cruise with everything, that is $59,000 spent for cruising. Just take 1 less excursion per every several cruises and you have your $1000.

 

They should just abolish this whole totally ridiculous closed loop idea and require passports for all cruises. After all, you do not need a passport for a closed loop cruise but you do need federal identification if you take a 1 hour driving trip to Canada or Mexico.

 

I wonder how much the cruise industry has bribed your senator or Representative with free cruises to keep it on.

 

DON

 

Many people won't spend $1000 if they don't have to....whether they can afford to or not. That is their choice as the law now stands....whether you like it or not.

[njhorseman]

For us to cruise we have to fly to a port in the US except Alaska . Even then if you want to go from Skagway across the Canada/US border you'll still need a passport. The US under the WHTI program requires that returning from Canada or Mexico a passport is required.

 

The cruise issue aside, if all you were doing was driving between the US and Canada or Mexico you could use an enhanced drivers license...and your province, British Columbia, is one of four that issues them (as do four US states).

[S.S.Oceanlover]

If you can afford the 29 cruises, you could afford the $1000. Assuming that you averaged $2000 for each cruise with everything, that is $59,000 spent for cruising. Just take 1 less excursion per every several cruises and you have your $1000.

 

They should just abolish this whole totally ridiculous closed loop idea and require passports for all cruises. After all, you do not need a passport for a closed loop cruise but you do need federal identification if you take a 1 hour driving trip to Canada or Mexico.

 

I wonder how much the cruise industry has bribed your senator or Representative with free cruises to keep it on.

 

DON

 

I would imagine that the cruise industry bribed my senators the same as they bribed yours if indeed they were bribed at all.

 

What does it matter if I can afford it or not if I am in compliance with the law?

 

Bill

[Out to sea!]

Yes it is silly. Just as silly as saying its $15 a year.

 

While it may average out to that you still have to pay the whole fee upfront so how much it cost per year is irrelevent.

 

Bill

 

So the person said it costs $15 a year instead of saying it averages $15 a year and you get to ridicule the person? What a load of horse manure. If someone can't afford (understand the difference between affording and just being to cheap to buy it) a passport, they can't afford to go cruising either. Those same passengers that can't afford a passport but are cruising anyway are most likely the one to take their tips off on the last night as well. :mad:

Edited December 29, 2013 by Out to sea!

[Out to sea!]

Your main concern seems to be security, however I do not see a big security risk to America with US citizens on closed loop cruises. There is security at ports for a reason, to check for guns, bombs, etc. If it's not getting on the ship I don't see the point in the extra checks that a passport provides. People with passports can be just as diabolical as those without. This is a proven fact in today's society. So why the extra expense when it's not necessary? The countries that allow the WHTI want our American dollars and that's why the act is in place. My family and I do not plan on traveling outside of the US on anything other than a closed loop cruise to countries that use the WHTI in the next 5 years, so why waste the money on passports that won't get used? When we broaden our horizons in the foreseeable future we will make the investment. Until then, we're not wasting the time or money on something that is not required.

 

And since you don't see a risk then there must not be one? :rolleyes:

[Out to sea!]

As I stated in my previous post database checks are performed on those cruising with BC and ID while they are on the cruise, probably the same ones that are performed for someone getting a passport. If those checks show something amiss then that passenger will probably be sent to secondary inspection upon return to the US (or denied boarding completely). I have read many stories on Cruise Critic about people who have outstanding warrants being met by a welcoming committee upon their return.

 

Which just goes to prove the security aspect I have been speaking of. Do you think I want someone who has a warrant out for their arrest on my cruise with my family on board? You couldn't have provided better proof for my argument if you had tried.