Travel to Haiti for non-US resident

[dst]

We need help from the experienced travelers.....we have cruised for many years and yes I know we should all have passports, so please don't make this thread about getting a passport.

 

My husband and I wanted to give our daughter and her boyfriend a cruise for Christmas to travel with us on the Freedom on January 3rd - He is a citizen of the Philippines but has a permanent resident card and lives/works in the US - the Freedom is a closed loop cruise leaving and returning to Port Canaveral

 

One call we made the agent said it was not a problem, we called this morning to book the cruise after talking with our daughter last night and the agent said that he would be denied boarding due to visit to Haiti.....

 

Can anyone confirm or deny the information - the last thing we want to do is book a trip, fly them to Florida and have them denied at boarding. Its to close to the date of the cruise for him to get a passport (because it would be from the Philippines)

 

Any help or advice would be appreciated........

[Who Cares?]

We have been to Haiti (Labadee) and my wife is a German citizen with a green card. No problem at all. I will add, she does have a German passport that she takes as well as her green card but they usually only look at the green card when we board.

 

You can also check to see if Miami has a Philippine's consulate. If so, they may be able to expedite a Philippine passport to go with his green card.

Edited November 8, 2015 by Who Cares?

[dst]

We have been to Haiti (Labadee) and my wife is a German citizen with a green card. No problem at all. I will add, she does have a German passport that she takes as well as her green card but they usually only look at the green card when we board.

 

 

Thank you - can I ask when you cruised last - yes we are going to Labadee......Did they look at her passport when you boarded initially?

 

We've been to Labadee before (as recent as January) and we were on and off ship with nothing but the our cabin card......so I know it will be fine once we are on the ship

[Ourusualbeach]

Since you are only going to Labadee and there is no way to go anywhere else on Haiti do the normal Visa requirements apply or are they waived as part of the agreement that Royal has with Haiti and their lease of Labadee?

 

I would call Royal to find out.

[dst]

Since you are only going to Labadee and there is no way to go anywhere else on Haiti do the normal Visa requirements apply or are they waived as part of the agreement that Royal has with Haiti and their lease of Labadee?

 

I would call Royal to find out.

 

 

That's the problem, I've called Royal twice....two different answers :(

[Ourusualbeach]

That's the problem, I've called Royal twice....two different answers :(

 

Best 3 out of 5.:D:eek::D

Edited November 8, 2015 by Ourusualbeach

[novicetraveller]

I have been to Labadee a few times with RCCL. I have a British Passport, and as of yet, rightly or wrongly, I haven't been denied boarding. Unless you plan to find a way of getting past the boundary, you should be ok.

[uksimonusa]

We need help from the experienced travelers.....we have cruised for many years and yes I know we should all have passports, so please don't make this thread about getting a passport.

 

My husband and I wanted to give our daughter and her boyfriend a cruise for Christmas to travel with us on the Freedom on January 3rd - He is a citizen of the Philippines but has a permanent resident card and lives/works in the US - the Freedom is a closed loop cruise leaving and returning to Port Canaveral

 

One call we made the agent said it was not a problem, we called this morning to book the cruise after talking with our daughter last night and the agent said that he would be denied boarding due to visit to Haiti.....

 

Can anyone confirm or deny the information - the last thing we want to do is book a trip, fly them to Florida and have them denied at boarding. Its to close to the date of the cruise for him to get a passport (because it would be from the Philippines)

 

Any help or advice would be appreciated........

 

Your post is confusing, the titles reads non US resident, but the posts states he has a permanent residence card. Also why are you only concerned about Haiti, what about the other stops on the cruise.

 

As a former LPR, the only ID I needed was my LPR (Green) card, but I was a British Citizen. The rules may vary for different nationalities, has his Philipine passport expired? I would check the websites of the countries being visited to be sure.

[SheehanDJ]

British, German, or US passports don't matter as all those countries would have potentially different relationships with Haiti.

 

What you need to find out is Haiti's relationship with the Philippines specifically. Per Touring Buddy:

 

"Filipino citizens, who intend to travel to Haiti, are not required to get a visa prior to departure. They are permitted to stay in Haiti for a period of three months without a visa, whether for tourism or business.

However, Filipinos traveling to Haiti must possess a valid passport with six months remaining validity beyond the duration of the trip. They must also have round-trip or onward tickets to be shown to the immigration officer.

If the traveler is coming from an infected area, a yellow fever vaccination is required."

 

Don't know if it would be different in regards to a cruise.

 

Your best bet may be contacting the Haiti consulate and or the Philippines one close to where you live.

[cb at sea]

A cruise is a bit different than land travel....he'll be fine going to Labadee (which is ON Haiti, but is leased by RCI)....

[Who Cares?]

Thank you - can I ask when you cruised last - yes we are going to Labadee......Did they look at her passport when you boarded initially?

 

We've been to Labadee before (as recent as January) and we were on and off ship with nothing but the our cabin card......so I know it will be fine once we are on the ship

 

Our last trip to Labadee was in 2008 but we are heading there again in 3 weeks. I expect no difference in boarding back then and now.

 

They only scanned her green card. She had her German passport in her hand but they did not ask for it.

[dst]

Your post is confusing, the titles reads non US resident, but the posts states he has a permanent residence card. Also why are you only concerned about Haiti, what about the other stops on the cruise.

 

As a former LPR, the only ID I needed was my LPR (Green) card, but I was a British Citizen. The rules may vary for different nationalities, has his Philipine passport expired? I would check the websites of the countries being visited to be sure.

 

 

Sorry - don't mean to be confusing- he is still a Philippines citizen however, his parents relocated to the States when he was a teenager - he now is in his early 20's and has a resident card (green card) works in the US and pays taxes........

 

I am only concerned about Haiti because the person on the phone this morning stated that he was fine with his green card for Cozumel, Jamaica and Grand Cayman but not for Haiti......

[dst]

Our last trip to Labadee was in 2008 but we are heading there again in 3 weeks. I expect no difference in boarding back then and now.

 

They only scanned her green card. She had her German passport in her hand but they did not ask for it.

 

 

 

Thanks - I appreciate the response; I think I will call the CA line and see if I can get an experienced supervisor.

[Who Cares?]

Your post is confusing, the titles reads non US resident, but the posts states he has a permanent residence card. Also why are you only concerned about Haiti, what about the other stops on the cruise.

 

As a former LPR, the only ID I needed was my LPR (Green) card, but I was a British Citizen. The rules may vary for different nationalities, has his Philipine passport expired? I would check the websites of the countries being visited to be sure.

 

I'm sure the OP meant "non-US citizen" meaning that he does not (and cannot get) a US passport.

[dst]

I have been to Labadee a few times with RCCL. I have a British Passport, and as of yet, rightly or wrongly, I haven't been denied boarding. Unless you plan to find a way of getting past the boundary, you should be ok.

 

 

 

That's the catch you have a passport, this young man does not - he has his Resident card - green card.

 

Even in the worse case, he would stay on the ship - but I don't want him to be denied boarding at Port Canaveral

[dst]

I'm sure the OP meant "non-US citizen" meaning that he does not (and cannot get) a US passport.

 

 

 

Correct - thank you for clarifying; Im just a bundle of nerves; we really want to take them on the trip, but not being allowed to board would not be a pleasant thing considering the amount of money we are spending for them to come and not to mention the cost we are spending for our cabin.

 

Its frustrating getting information from Royal - or the website, which does not state any restrictions

[Who Cares?]

Correct - thank you for clarifying; Im just a bundle of nerves; we really want to take them on the trip, but not being allowed to board would not be a pleasant thing considering the amount of money we are spending for them to come and not to mention the cost we are spending for our cabin.

 

Its frustrating getting information from Royal - or the website, which does not state any restrictions

 

I would suggest you email customer service at Royal. Then, if the answer is that his green card is good enough you have a response from corporate in writing you can take with you when boarding.

[dst]

I would suggest you email customer service at Royal. Then, if the answer is that his green card is good enough you have a response from corporate in writing you can take with you when boarding.

 

 

 

Great idea - I am on the phone with a CA representative and he read the rules and states that Labadee is an exception to needing passport. I am trying to see if he can send me something via email to say the same....

 

I like your idea as well -

[dst]

Best 3 out of 5.:D:eek::D

 

 

 

Ken - I like the way you think :)

 

The young man this morning on the phone did not sound very informed, I am on the phone with CA person who is much more educated and read the information clearly which stated that Labadee is an exception to the Haiti requirements.

[Fouremco]

That's the catch you have a passport, this young man does not - he has his Resident card - green card.

 

Even in the worse case, he would stay on the ship - but I don't want him to be denied boarding at Port Canaveral

Staying on the ship isn't an option. He must either meet the entry requirements for all ports of call or he'll be denied boarding.

[Ourusualbeach]

Ken - I like the way you think :)

 

The young man this morning on the phone did not sound very informed, I am on the phone with CA person who is much more educated and read the information clearly which stated that Labadee is an exception to the Haiti requirements.

 

Usually you get a pretty good idea of when you get someone on the phone that actually knows what they are talking about. Glad to see things worked out for you. I thought that would be the case with Labadee but now we know for sure.

[Fouremco]

A cruise is a bit different than land travel....he'll be fine going to Labadee (which is ON Haiti, but is leased by RCI)....

The fact that RCI might lease Labadee has absolutely no bearing on passengers' admissibility. Haiti still sets the entry requirements, not RCI.

Edited November 8, 2015 by Fouremco

[papaflamingo]

As most have said it shouldn't be a problem. I have never heard of anyone being denied boarding because they can't go to Labadee. Labadee is different. It is in Haiti, but it's considered for all practical purposes a private island. If he has his Green Card and a Passport he should be fine. Royal Caribbean caters to passengers all over the world. I can't imagine he would be the first citizen of the Philippines to cruise to Labadee.

Just for info, we did a Greek Isle cruise in Sep. We had a stop in Turkey. Turkey requires a Visa. However for cruise passengers the Visa requirement is waived (just don't miss the ship). However we had friends who needed a Visa for a South American cruise (I think it was going to Brazil). The cruise line didn't make that clear, so they couldn't board. The cruise line helped them expedite the Visa, and provided transportation to the first port stop the next day. Not applicable to this situation, but I thought it was an interesting story.

[Ourusualbeach]

Great idea - I am on the phone with a CA representative and he read the rules and states that Labadee is an exception to needing passport. I am trying to see if he can send me something via email to say the same....

 

I like your idea as well -

 

The fact that RCI might lease Labadee has absolutely no bearing on passengers' admissibility. Haiti still sets the entry requirements, not RCI.

 

Apparently it does.

[dst]

As most have said it shouldn't be a problem. I have never heard of anyone being denied boarding because they can't go to Labadee. Labadee is different. It is in Haiti, but it's considered for all practical purposes a private island. If he has his Green Card and a Passport he should be fine. Royal Caribbean caters to passengers all over the world. I can't imagine he would be the first citizen of the Philippines to cruise to Labadee.

Just for info, we did a Greek Isle cruise in Sep. We had a stop in Turkey. Turkey requires a Visa. However for cruise passengers the Visa requirement is waived (just don't miss the ship). However we had friends who needed a Visa for a South American cruise (I think it was going to Brazil). The cruise line didn't make that clear, so they couldn't board. The cruise line helped them expedite the Visa, and provided transportation to the first port stop the next day. Not applicable to this situation, but I thought it was an interesting story.

 

Wow - interesting story.....I would panic