All we need is passports for kids?

[amarvel]

I am cruising with myself, husband and our two kids on sunday. All four have passports. We didn't bring any other documents and am now worried....would we need the birth certificate to prove they are our children? The passports would be enough right?

[triptolemus]

Valid passports are the only thing you will need.

 

Relax!

 

https://www.ncl.com/about/required-travel-documentation

Edited February 5, 2016 by triptolemus

[cb at sea]

If you have a passport, that's all anyone needs...However,, in ports, your DL is MUCH easier to carry as ID than your passport...just saying!

[amarvel]

Thanks! I just had a moment where I realized their passports dont list parents like birth certificates do and got to thinking I might have missed something. I'll stop overthinking everything :)

[broberts]

Thanks! I just had a moment where I realized their passports dont list parents like birth certificates do and got to thinking I might have missed something. I'll stop overthinking everything :)

 

As others have said, not a problem. The only time it might be an issue is if the children had different surnames and/or were from previous unions.

[Sizzlechest]

You should also bring your driver's licenses for yourself and husband, but kids are fine with passports.

[amarvel]

Thanks. We have our licenses since we are driving :)

[Jenjer]

relax have a great time.....We copy our passports. Leave one copy at home and bring one copy with us.

[Sizzlechest]

relax have a great time.....We copy our passports. Leave one copy at home and bring one copy with us.

 

I keep scans of them on our cell phones, too.

[Vyhanek]

Does anyone know how much extra time you need on the passport to cruise?

 

Say you are cruising in April and the passport expires in September.......some countries require several extra months on the passport to visit before it expires. I learned that the hard way trying to get to Paris with only 2 months before my passport expired.

 

I'm wondering to cruise the Caribbean, do you need 3 extra months, 6 extra months.

 

It's such a pain in the neck! You would think the passport expiration date means the passport is good up until that point. Not so.

[Flatbush Flyer]

Thanks! I just had a moment where I realized their passports dont list parents like birth certificates do and got to thinking I might have missed something. I'll stop overthinking everything :)

 

 

Don't you remember that you submitted birth certificates to get the passports?

[thinfool]

Does anyone know how much extra time you need on the passport to cruise?

 

It's such a pain in the neck! You would think the passport expiration date means the passport is good up until that point. Not so.

 

In the Caribbean, if your cruise ends on April 10 and your passport expires April 30 (same year), you are good.

[mrobstad]

just went to six ports in caribbean. they barely looked at ID, and i used my drivers license. ill bet kids could use school id, if needed at all.

[sparks1093]

Does anyone know how much extra time you need on the passport to cruise?

 

Say you are cruising in April and the passport expires in September.......some countries require several extra months on the passport to visit before it expires. I learned that the hard way trying to get to Paris with only 2 months before my passport expired.

 

I'm wondering to cruise the Caribbean, do you need 3 extra months, 6 extra months.

 

It's such a pain in the neck! You would think the passport expiration date means the passport is good up until that point. Not so.

 

It is good for re-entry up until the day it expires and whether or not it's good for travel to other countries depends on the laws and regulations of the country you are visiting. Some countries do add the remaining time onto a passport when it's renewed but the US isn't one of them. Unfortunately.

[vicocala]

In the Caribbean, if your cruise ends on April 10 and your passport expires April 30 (same year), you are good.

 

Most cruise lines to my knowledge require or recommend that you have six months remaining on your passport to insure foreign requirements are met. It pays to renew about 9-10 months before expiration to allow for processing.

[sparks1093]

Most cruise lines to my knowledge require or recommend that you have six months remaining on your passport to insure foreign requirements are met. It pays to renew about 9-10 months before expiration to allow for processing.

 

A recommendation is just that and to my knowledge the only cruise lines that might require it are the premium and luxury lines. It doesn't pay to renew a passport early since you get no credit for the remaining time. I will let my travel plans dicatate when I renew my passport, so if I have no travel planned I won't be renewing until I do.

[vicocala]

I would still recommend most people renew long enough before the cruise to meet the six month criteria. Once you leave the country you never know where you may need to be diverted and whether you may need a flight instead of a cruise.

 

If you aren't going to travel you obviously don't need a passport, I thought that goes without saying.:rolleyes:

[zqvol]

I am cruising with myself, husband and our two kids on sunday. All four have passports. We didn't bring any other documents and am now worried....would we need the birth certificate to prove they are our children? The passports would be enough right?

 

 

You are good to go, nothing else needed. Don't be surprised when you come back if Immigration asks the kids some questions about who you and your husband are and how you are related, but it is not a big deal.

 

Someone mentioned about drivers licenses. When you go ashore you should take a photo ID for everyone 16 and over. I assume OP and husband will take their DLs with them. The children do not need any ID when going ashore.

Edited February 5, 2016 by zqvol

[zqvol]

Does anyone know how much extra time you need on the passport to cruise?

 

Say you are cruising in April and the passport expires in September.......some countries require several extra months on the passport to visit before it expires. I learned that the hard way trying to get to Paris with only 2 months before my passport expired.

 

I'm wondering to cruise the Caribbean, do you need 3 extra months, 6 extra months.

 

It's such a pain in the neck! You would think the passport expiration date means the passport is good up until that point. Not so.

 

On a closed loop cruise for a US citizen leaving from the US and returning to the same port, it needs to be valid on the day you return. It does not need any extra time. If anyone suggests otherwise they are wrong. Remember that you do not even need a passport for this type of cruise.

[zqvol]

Most cruise lines to my knowledge require or recommend that you have six months remaining on your passport to insure foreign requirements are met. It pays to renew about 9-10 months before expiration to allow for processing.

 

 

This is simply incorrect for US citizens on closed loop cruises. You do not even need a passport for that type of voyage. As long as it is valid on the day you return it is fine.

[sparks1093]

I would still recommend most people renew long enough before the cruise to meet the six month criteria. Once you leave the country you never know where you may need to be diverted and whether you may need a flight instead of a cruise.

 

If you aren't going to travel you obviously don't need a passport, I thought that goes without saying.:rolleyes:

 

It all depends on where one is cruising, cruising within the Western Hemisphere on a closed loop cruise doesn't have a 6 month requirement so why would you impose it on yourself? Where could one possibly be diverted on a Caribbean cruise that would take 6 months or more to make it home? If the whole ship is being divereted then there is a very good liklihood that at least 50% of the passengers (if not more) don't have passports to begin with and they will need to catch flights home, too (the last time this happened, to a CCL ship in St Maarten IIRC, CBP issued letters to those without passports authorizing them to fly without one. Seems a stretch that those folks will make it home with no hitch while you are made to cool your heels in a foreign port because you only have 3 months left on your passport).

 

Certainly is someone has a flight to Europe shortly after disembarking their cruise it might behoove them to get their passport renewed but for everyone else it's really a non-issue.

[turtleclanscott]

Someone recommended keeping a scan of their passport on their phone. Instead, keep a scan or picture of your Birth Certificate on your phone.

 

From experience, if you lose your passport on the way to a cruise, they will still let you board a Caribbean Cruise if you have a copy of your birth certificate and not your passport.

 

(Fortunately, I had a neighbor who was able to take a picture of my birth certificate and send it. So, I didn't miss the boat!)

[hansolosmom]

Someone recommended keeping a scan of their passport on their phone. Instead, keep a scan or picture of your Birth Certificate on your phone.

 

From experience, if you lose your passport on the way to a cruise, they will still let you board a Caribbean Cruise if you have a copy of your birth certificate and not your passport.

 

(Fortunately, I had a neighbor who was able to take a picture of my birth certificate and send it. So, I didn't miss the boat!)

 

Thanks for that tidbit. I'm sailing with my mom & sister but they're coming from another city & I'm so afraid they'll forget their passports. I'll have them scan the birth certificates and email me copies so I have them

[amarvel]

Don't you remember that you submitted birth certificates to get the passports?

Yes lol but I had a moment where I thought how could tell if they were our kids or our nephews with the same last name. :)

[thinfool]

For US citizens, the reason you need a passport or birth certificate is so that you can enter the US at the end of your Caribbean cruise.

 

As for the Caribbean ports, they look upon cruise passengers as "passengers in transit". Hence the rather relaxed ID requirement to show a photo ID and ship card.

 

Non-US passengers need a passport (and possibly a visa) to enter the US at the end of their Caribbean cruise. Again, in a Caribbean port, they are "in transit" as far as the port is concerned.