Is passport needed?

[epcopres]

Thanks for all the info

[Clarea]

I must not get around much. What ports require a passport

I believe there is an excursion to British Tortola on one of the itineraries that requires a passport. I also seem to recall a railroad excursion to the Yukon on an Alaskan cruise that croses the Canadian boarder that requires a passport. That one might be OK with the new passport card.

[nimbex1970]

If I recall correclly San Juan & One of the ports in Mexico

 

 

 

Very possible for Non US citizens.

[John&LaLa]

I believe Belize does.

 

Not when I went, but it's been a few years I guess

[John&LaLa]

San Juan doesn't.

 

You can even fly there without a passport

[Desert Cruizers]

We always travel with our passports, The real issue comes from the emergencies we don't want to happen and we now find ourselves having to fly home. Cruising a closed loop your fine with a Certified Birth Certificate however one needs to be prepared for those unforseen emergecies. I would not want to be stuck in a foreign Port without my Passport.

[John&LaLa]

We always travel with our passports, The real issue comes from the emergencies we don't want to happen and we now find ourselves having to fly home. Cruising a closed loop your fine with a Certified Birth Certificate however one needs to be prepared for those unforseen emergecies. I would not want to be stuck in a foreign Port without my Passport.

 

But, like others have said, if boat leaves they will open safe and leave passport with local agent

[Desert Cruizers]

John, that is good, I have always taken ours with us. We were traveling thru NZ last year on our cruise and took ours with us on every Port.

 

Gay

[Sitzmark]

You can even fly there without a passport

 

Probably because it's a U.S. territory. If your arriving from somewhere other than the U.S. I suspect you will be subject to the same entry requirements as any other U.S. Port. Which means fly there from a country other than the U.S. And you'll need a passport.

[John&LaLa]

Probably because it's a U.S. territory. If your arriving from somewhere other than the U.S. I suspect you will be subject to the same entry requirements as any other U.S. Port. Which means fly there from a country other than the U.S. And you'll need a passport.

 

My bad, once again only thinking of myself. :eek:

[pms4104]

But, like others have said, if boat leaves they will open safe and leave passport with local agent

But if you are traveling with DL and BC rather than with a passport, you'll not be leaving til you jump thru hoops and secure emergency travel docs.

[John&LaLa]

But if you are traveling with DL and BC rather than with a passport, you'll not be leaving til you jump thru hoops and secure emergency travel docs.

 

I believe the term is SOL

 

I never said not to take a passport on cruise, just leave it in safe

Edited May 28, 2015 by John&LaLa

[Flatbush Flyer]

So often here, folks forget that, while a government agency does not require a passport for certain cruises, the cruise line itself may require one.

 

Most premium and luxury lines require ALL passengers on ALL itineraries to have a passport. And very often the ship requires that you surrender it to the purser at embarkation (much easier on passengers if certain ports require passport clearance- you sleep in) or if you miss the ship (no one has to look for it in order to give it to the land agent).

[sail7seas]

St. Barth's requires passport now thought they did not a few years ago. St. Maarten also announced they will be requiring passport.

 

No passport needed to fly to Puerto Rico as it is U.S. Territory.

St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix also are U.S.

 

Edited May 28, 2015 by sail7seas

[cherylandtk]

St. Maarten has not changed their passport requirements.

[sparks1093]

I just looked and my passport is expired. I have time to get a new one, but what would of happened if I didn't notice it was expired??

 

The port would have asked if someone could fax your birth certificate (or if you had a copy with you), in which case you would have boarded with everyone else. Otherwise it is likely you would have been denied boarding.

[Jane2357]

But, like others have said, if boat leaves they will open safe and leave passport with local agent

 

Read the thread in the Tips for Saving Money - Cruise Topic about the guy the missed the boat in Nassau. How he had to spend a sleepless night in a hotel, in a questionable part of town, and get himself to the place for passport photos BEFORE getting to the American Embassy to get a passport. There is nobody holding your hand during this.

 

The ship waits for you until the very last minute that they can - they are not up in your room drilling your safe 15 minutes prior to the time they have to pull out - think about it, those last minute people running to make the ship - have their safes already been drilled? NO. Only until they pull the gang plank up does the ship KNOW you aren't getting onboard. I think the passport being retrieved is a cruising urban legend designed to make people feel better.

 

Travel with a Passport! Take your passport or at the least color copies with you when off the ship.

Edited May 28, 2015 by Jane2357

[sail7seas]

HAL Security Officer and perhaps Hotel Manager or other responsible position go to cabins of guests who have not returned to the ship. They do not need to drill the safe like at a bank vault but have a tool with which to enter the safe. (People forget their combinations all the time. :D) They will remove any passports and give them to the Port Agent. Port Agent will provide late arriving guests with their passport.

 

Never leave the ship without contact information how to reach Port Agent. On HAL ships, name, address, telephone are listed on the port information sheet handed out each day. Even if you don't want the rest of the info, be sure to take Port Agent info. (S)he is your friend in town should you need any sort of assistance.

 

[BruceMuzz]

Read the thread in the Tips for Saving Money - Cruise Topic about the guy the missed the boat in Nassau. How he had to spend a sleepless night in a hotel, in a questionable part of town, and get himself to the place for passport photos BEFORE getting to the American Embassy to get a passport. There is nobody holding your hand during this.

 

The ship waits for you until the very last minute that they can - they are not up in your room drilling your safe 15 minutes prior to the time they have to pull out - think about it, those last minute people running to make the ship - have their safes already been drilled? NO. Only until they pull the gang plank up does the ship KNOW you aren't getting onboard. I think the passport being retrieved is a cruising urban legend designed to make people feel better.

 

Travel with a Passport! Take your passport or at the least color copies with you when off the ship.

 

A growing number of countries will not allow a ship to leave passengers behind unless every effort has been made to locate and off-load their passports.

That explains why more and more cruise lines are holding guest passports during the cruise.

 

As far as opening a stateroom safe - we automatically do it if you have not returned to the ship 15 minutes before departure time. We have an electronic safecracker device that opens the safe in just a few seconds (with a Ship Officer and Security present).

[BruceMuzz]

Even though many countries will allow Americans to enter - via a cruise ship - without passports on a closed loop cruise, a growing number of cruise lines are requiring passports anyway.

 

A closed loop cruise from the USA receives a lower level of scrutiny from US CBP. This allows them to assign fewer Officers for the inspection. That saves money from their operating budget.

But if that closed loop cruise carries a high number of people without passports, CBP treats it as an open jaw cruise and assigns more officers to perform a more thorough inspection. This not only takes more time, but costs more money.

 

CBP is putting pressure on the cruise lines to require passports even though they are not legally required by the countries visited. This speeds up the clearance process and saves money for CBP.

 

Several cruise lines have already complied with this pressure; more will be joining in. So even though the couuntries you plan to visit on your cruise may not require a passport, the cruise line may require you to have a passport to sail on the ship. No passport = no cruise.

 

It is a very good idea to enquire with the cruise company - rather than with the "experts" on Cruise Critic - as to what EXACTLY is required by the cruise line for you to board their ships.

[zqvol]

For trips leaving from US and going to Caribbean and returning to US, is a passport needed?

 

 

I think it is needed but instead of saying needed let's say that it is recommended, BUT it is NOT required.

[zqvol]

What about with when traveling with a toddler? Do they need a passport?

 

 

The situation is the same without regard to age.

[SantaFeFan]

For trips leaving from US and going to Caribbean and returning to US, is a passport needed?

 

Technically, no you don't need one. But just like when driving a car you can probably drive all your life without having auto insurance, but if you have an accident without it, your life will have suddenly become very complicated.

Edited May 28, 2015 by SantaFeFan

[njhorseman]

Even though many countries will allow Americans to enter - via a cruise ship - without passports on a closed loop cruise, a growing number of cruise lines are requiring passports anyway.

 

A closed loop cruise from the USA receives a lower level of scrutiny from US CBP. This allows them to assign fewer Officers for the inspection. That saves money from their operating budget.

But if that closed loop cruise carries a high number of people without passports, CBP treats it as an open jaw cruise and assigns more officers to perform a more thorough inspection. This not only takes more time, but costs more money.

 

CBP is putting pressure on the cruise lines to require passports even though they are not legally required by the countries visited. This speeds up the clearance process and saves money for CBP.

 

Several cruise lines have already complied with this pressure; more will be joining in. So even though the couuntries you plan to visit on your cruise may not require a passport, the cruise line may require you to have a passport to sail on the ship. No passport = no cruise.

 

It is a very good idea to enquire with the cruise company - rather than with the "experts" on Cruise Critic - as to what EXACTLY is required by the cruise line for you to board their ships.

 

While I agree that one should always check with their cruise line for specific requirements that go beyond government regulations, not one mass market or even upscale mass market line has made a general change to require passports of US citizens on closed loop cruises. Not Carnival, not Celebrity, not Cunard, not Holland America, not MSC, not NCL, not Princess, not Royal Caribbean. Nor are they likely to change unless the government forces a change because they don't want to turn away potential customers who don't hold passports and don't wish to pay for something they don't absolutely need.

 

The only lines requiring passports of all cruisers are in the luxury light and luxury classes such as Regent Seven Seas, and these cruise lines have few ships, smaller ships, and offer relatively few closed loop Western Hemisphere itineraries to begin with. Further the nature of their clientele is such that it's very unlikely that many passengers booking these lines don't already hold passports, so their requiring passports for everyone effects virtually no one.

Edited May 28, 2015 by njhorseman

[BruceMuzz]

While I agree that one should always check with their cruise line for specific requirements that go beyond government regulations, not one mass market or even upscale mass market line has made a general change to require passports of US citizens on closed loop cruises. Not Carnival, not Celebrity, not Cunard, not Holland America, not MSC, not NCL, not Princess, not Royal Caribbean. Nor are they likely to change unless the government forces a change because they don't want to turn away potential customers who don't hold passports and don't wish to pay for something they don't absolutely need.

 

The only lines requiring passports of all cruisers are in the luxury light and luxury classes such as Regent Seven Seas, and these cruise lines have few ships, smaller ships, and offer relatively few closed loop Western Hemisphere itineraries to begin with. Further the nature of their clientele is such that it's very unlikely that many passengers booking these lines don't already hold passports, so their requiring passports for everyone effects virtually no one.

 

Not quite correct.

I work for 2 of the mass market lines you listed.

One recently started requiring passports on most closed loop cruises.

The other is about to do so.

 

Things sometimes change rapidly in the cruise industry.

Although difficult - It pays to keep up with them.