Self inflicted bad experience

[marchie1053]

I'm so anal about everything in my life that I always know where my credit cards are (in my wallet, and ALWAYS in the same slots), and where our passports live when we aren't traveling. Those passports get put in an inner section of my purse, or in our carry on bag, when I pack for the trip.

 

Me too! And if something is not in its normal place, there's a major panic until the 'missing' item is found and restored to its rightful abode ... Drives my wife to distraction :) - 'Now, after x minutes of fretting unnecessarily, finally, ARE YOU HAPPY???' is the usual enquiry.

 

Being an anal retentive, I don't understand this question - because I know that my wife doesn't want an answer ...

[Cruisin' Chick]

A concise check list - maintained during the period leading up to any operation - and periodically checked enough in advance of kick-off to insure completion of required items, and given final check just before "lowering the landing craft" --- learned from training in amphibious warfare operations.

 

Both my hubby and I will have checklists we refer to for every vacation. As far as the mandatory stuff like passports, it's the let's see 'em rule.

This became apparent back for my fourth cruise (the first with our kid, while I was trying to condense her and mine items when hubby pointedly said there's too many bags). My hubby said our stuff was in the car, including coats, but he failed to include mine. Was on a Baja cruise for three days freezing with just my sweater.

[jagsfan]

A coworker drove a 200 mile round trip in 2 1/2 hours to get their passports off the dining room table. They made it into the ship because originally they were boarding as early as possible to get to their vacation fast.

It was a TA, so no question at all of going without their passports.

He was so stressed he was sick the first few days.

Hopefully people only make that kind of mistake once.

 

 

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[WanderingRN84]

Tense ride home.... I think that if I had been the wife I would have boarded and told him to pick me up in a week! :D

 

Yes this. Not my problem. Especially since she asked him.

[CoasterGuy]

If I were the husband I'd be so disgusted with myself and just want to die.

Edited January 15, 2018 by CoasterGuy
...

[kctwinmommy]

We heard about this happening in Seattle, at our hotel, for our cruise to Alaska. A large family was going, including grandparents. Apparently the grandpa had no idea about needing a passport, he hadn't traveled in many years and things were very different back then. I think they said someone stayed back with him, the rest of the family went though.

 

And yes, regarding surrendering your passport, we had to do this in Europe last summer. We sailed out of Southampton to Norway, Germany, Belgium, and France. About 2-3 days into the cruise though we were allowed to come to the dining room and take them back.

[KamiKake]

As soon as we book any kind of trip, everything goes into a binder for cruises, or a folder for short trips. The name of what we're doing, dates and name of our cruise line and ship goes on the outside of the binder, then everything else goes into plastic sleeves inside. Confirmations, any log in information or phone numbers, airline reservations, hotel, rental car confirmations, tour info, etc goes inside that binder or folder. As we get closer, passports and luggage tags go inside the front flap. It always sits on our computer desk so as someone prints something, or we think of absolutes, it goes straight into it.That then goes into my travel bag and never leaves again unless I need to get at it for something!

[Roz]

You're too organized. ;p

 

Roz

[kctwinmommy]

As soon as we book any kind of trip, everything goes into a binder for cruises, or a folder for short trips. The name of what we're doing, dates and name of our cruise line and ship goes on the outside of the binder, then everything else goes into plastic sleeves inside. Confirmations, any log in information or phone numbers, airline reservations, hotel, rental car confirmations, tour info, etc goes inside that binder or folder. As we get closer, passports and luggage tags go inside the front flap. It always sits on our computer desk so as someone prints something, or we think of absolutes, it goes straight into it.That then goes into my travel bag and never leaves again unless I need to get at it for something!

 

I did a similar thing for our European trip this past summer. There were several different confirmation numbers and things we needed. Plus I had everyone's checklist in there too. A regular cruise/small trip I don't do that. But with going to Europe, there was so much I needed to keep track of and it was going to be just over 2 weeks.

[KamiKake]

You're too organized. ;p

 

Roz

I might be a little bit OCD when we travel, but my husband is even more so, so I have to head him off at the pass! lol :')

[Herfnerd]

Mechanical Engineer here so I am anal to begin with!

 

I always plan everything down to the second and make a spreadsheet checklist of everything I plan to bring and check it off as I pack it in its rightful place

 

As the OP stated well over a year ago that he gave them the name of his Carnival PVP, and Carnival accepts clean photocopies of BC's, whenever we sail with them, I make several copies and have them in a couple of places - our travel folder, my carry on bag and a set for my wife in her purse.

[sparks1093]

Mechanical Engineer here so I am anal to begin with!

 

I always plan everything down to the second and make a spreadsheet checklist of everything I plan to bring and check it off as I pack it in its rightful place

 

As the OP stated well over a year ago that he gave them the name of his Carnival PVP, and Carnival accepts clean photocopies of BC's, whenever we sail with them, I make several copies and have them in a couple of places - our travel folder, my carry on bag and a set for my wife in her purse.

 

Unfortunately that backup plan would work only for me, DW has a naturalization certificate which has to be the original. But in 2014 we obtained EDL's for our cruise, mostly because I found out how much it would cost to replace the naturalization certificate, so we have that backup should we leave the passports at home for a cruise.

[traveler279]

Like several others, I have a portable file that has all the paperwork, confirmations, luggage tags, and passports. All the paperwork is sorted by the order in which it will be needed. Works great. Fits in a Swiss Gear vertical boarding bag that is my "everything bag" and is always with me.

 

In theory.

 

Last year, we took the shuttle from the hotel to the ship. I set the bag down to help retrieve our luggage from the shuttle trailer. Passed the luggage to the porters and headed into the terminal.

 

And discovered the "always with me" bag was NOT with me.

 

A frantic fifteen panic ensued. Absolutely sure I'd left it on the shuttle, I was trying to figure out how to call the hotel.

 

And then a porter came by and told the guy I was talking to he'd just found a bag. My bag. I grabbed the bag, thanked the porter profusely, gave him a large tip and ran back to rejoin DW in the boarding line.

 

Moral of the story: All the planning in the world can be instantly nullified by one massive brain fart.

 

And yes, DW still teases me about this.

 

 

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[naxie nee!]

A tip I got from my dad who was in the military for nearly 30 years. It works for me.

 

 

 

My final packing check for the last 30 years is very small.

 

 

 

Passport, tickets, documentation, credit cards, cash.

 

 

 

Anything I've forgotten I don't worry about because if it's vital I can buy it. Yes, I forget things. No, it's never been a real problem.

 

 

 

VP

 

 

 

Similar to your final check list- my “out the door” mantra is: passport, credit/atm cards, cell phone. Check. Everything else is just “baggage.” Even the cruise docs are retrievable from the cell phone.

 

 

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[relic2]

Knock on wood, in all my years of travelling I have not left anything vitally important at home.

 

When I send my wife off somewhere I stick a big note on the inside of the door. PASSPORT- CREDIT CARD- INSURANCE CARD- MEDS...

 

 

 

In hotels , where I tend to put valuables in the safe, I put one shoe in the safe as well.

 

That's a trick I teach my flight attendant colleagues. It's just too easy to leave a passport or id card on the safe when pick up is a 3.30 am from some unfamiliar hotel....

 

 

 

Great idea!

 

 

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[lizp]

Like several others, I have a portable file that has all the paperwork, confirmations, luggage tags, and passports. All the paperwork is sorted by the order in which it will be needed. Works great. Fits in a Swiss Gear vertical boarding bag that is my "everything bag" and is always with me.

 

In theory.

 

Last year, we took the shuttle from the hotel to the ship. I set the bag down to help retrieve our luggage from the shuttle trailer. Passed the luggage to the porters and headed into the terminal.

 

And discovered the "always with me" bag was NOT with me.

 

A frantic fifteen panic ensued. Absolutely sure I'd left it on the shuttle, I was trying to figure out how to call the hotel.

 

And then a porter came by and told the guy I was talking to he'd just found a bag. My bag. I grabbed the bag, thanked the porter profusely, gave him a large tip and ran back to rejoin DW in the boarding line.

 

Moral of the story: All the planning in the world can be instantly nullified by one massive brain fart.

 

And yes, DW still teases me about this.

 

 

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I had a similar brain fart leaving Florida for a TA a few years ago. I'd packed my ID (not passport), health insurance cards, a couple of credit cards and my bank card (just the essentials!) in a small pouch rather than bring my big wallet. We'd embarked the ship, our room was ready, and we unpacked our carry-ons, put the iPad and passports in the safe, and headed out to the bar for a drink. Then I realized I couldn't find my small wallet pouch. We go back to the cabin and looked EVERYWHERE! Panic sets in, I think it must have fallen out of my purse when we were handing over our bags to the porter. We hadn't sailed yet, so we leave the ship, check the area where we dropped our bags, ask a million people if they've seen this little purple sparkly pouch... nada. Whip out the cell phone and start calling to cancel the credit cards (which cost us a fortune in roaming fees, being Canadians in Florida back in the day).

 

 

Back on the ship, resigned that it's gone, we start getting ready for lunch, and I pull out my jewelery case, which I'd stowed in this neat little drawer in the vanity which had a sliding lid thing to separate your items.....

 

Under it, lo and behold, is my little sparkly purple pouch.

 

Not recognizing it as my wallet, I'd unloaded it into the drawer with some toiletries and my jewelery case. Ugh. My takeaway was to always use a familiar wallet from there on! I actually bought a proper tiny wallet that I refer to as "my travel wallet" and use it whenever I don't need the full-sized one.

[Oshawapilot]

I have a big red zippered folder that everything important goes into, from passports, to boarding passes, to excursion information printouts..and everything in between.

 

It's one step away from being chained to my wrist from the moment we get in the car in the driveway until the moment it goes into the safe in our stateroom. It pretty much doesn't leave our sight - seeing as how we are from outside the USA, losing (or forgetting) our passports would be the end of our vacation.

[relic2]

Because I am the travel planner for a group, I also have a divided folder. It has copies of all booking info, reservations, flight tickets for several couples, even though they also have copies. I also have everyone's passport copies, not their originals.

The wife of one couple has severe dementia, so I do all of their bookings to take a little of the load off her husband. I also research which cruise we want and shore excursions, etc. I enjoy the planning and her husband pretty much gives me carte Blanche. As for my passport, I use a travel document pouch, into which I put my passport, flight documents and tip money before the flight. After I arrive, I remove the airplane info and replace that with my hotel and cruise docs. That way I don't have to keep my folder in hand...it goes in my carry-on. I like to say I have travel CDO...It is like ocd, but the letters are in the right order. [emoji6]

 

 

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[Oshawapilot]

A very wise idea is also to take photos of all your important documents and keep them on your phone. The iPhone for that matter (I suspect Android has a similar option) can "lock" things in the notepad app so things like photos of passports remains secure in the case of theft or loss....but, having a photo of everyones passport as a last ditch emergency option may be the difference between boarding a ship (or being able to get home afterwards), or not.

[sparks1093]

A very wise idea is also to take photos of all your important documents and keep them on your phone. The iPhone for that matter (I suspect Android has a similar option) can "lock" things in the notepad app so things like photos of passports remains secure in the case of theft or loss....but, having a photo of everyones passport as a last ditch emergency option may be the difference between boarding a ship (or being able to get home afterwards), or not.

 

It can't hurt, but only pictures (copies) of certain documents will actually work to get one onboard the ship versus having the original. A boarding pass, yes, a photo will likely work in place of an original. A photo of a US birth certificate will also likely work (although it would need to be printed out). A photo of a passport won't work to get you onboard. Nor will a photo of a Naturalization Certificate or a Consular Report of Birth Abroad. Having photos of the last three documents might have some benefit if a passport gets lost and one needs to get assistance from a Consulate and of course having the photos doesn't increase the weight of the phone:D. For US citizens having a photo of their birth certificate is probably the best thing to have a photo of. There is a thread on the Ask a Cruise Question forum where two people in the OP's party forgot their passports and it took some effort to get someone at home to fax the birth certificates to the port.

[Oshawapilot]

It can't hurt, but only pictures (copies) of certain documents will actually work to get one onboard the ship versus having the original.

 

Indeed, there are limitations, but once *on* the ship, if your passports were lost of stolen at some point...having copies is going to be better than nothing. At least once back on land and the cruise is over it will make getting replacements (or probably, just getting home) easier, at least for those like myself that have different levels of US customs plus a border crossing to deal with after it's all over.

[sparks1093]

Indeed, there are limitations, but once *on* the ship, if your passports were lost of stolen at some point...having copies is going to be better than nothing. At least once back on land and the cruise is over it will make getting replacements (or probably, just getting home) easier, at least for those like myself that have different levels of US customs plus a border crossing to deal with after it's all over.

 

I believe I said that but here's the thing to remember- if you lose your passport mid-cruise the cruise line is obligated to put you ashore since you must have proof of citizenship with you throughout your trip. I read one thread where this happened to a passenger and as soon as they reported the loss to the ship they were put ashore. Fortunately they were on a European voyage so getting their replacement passports was easier since their Consulate was close by and they were able to re-board the ship within a day or two. I do not know how CBP would handle a non-US citizen at the end of the cruise if they lost their passport during the cruise, but a US citizen would likely be sent to secondary inspection and then allowed to proceed once some checks were done. This is why many passengers choose to leave their passports in the safe rather than taking them ashore.

[broberts]

I literally have nightmares about forgetting my passport.

 

No matter how careful one is, a passport can be lost or misplaced at any time. Careful people who have extensive travel experience can still lose their passport. All one can really do is always keep the document with you and frequently check that it is still there.

[kc58ab]

I keep copies of bc and or passports, but it was more to help expedite the process if we lost them after being on board. I wouldn’t have expected a copy of birth certificate would work to board. Seems when official bc is requested they want the raised seal present which isn’t on a picture on your phone. Won’t accept a record of birth, but will a picture of birth certificate?Interesting...

I took my brother on his first cruise a few years ago. I had mine, DH, and kids documents in folder separate from the luggage. Get to port, hand off bags to porters, as they are walking away I asked my brother you have your birth certificate on you right? He didn’t, forgot it in luggage. Luckily we easily stopped the porter and got it out.

 

 

 

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[sparks1093]

I keep copies of bc and or passports, but it was more to help expedite the process if we lost them after being on board. I wouldn’t have expected a copy of birth certificate would work to board. Seems when official bc is requested they want the raised seal present which isn’t on a picture on your phone. Won’t accept a record of birth, but will a picture of birth certificate?Interesting...

I took my brother on his first cruise a few years ago. I had mine, DH, and kids documents in folder separate from the luggage. Get to port, hand off bags to porters, as they are walking away I asked my brother you have your birth certificate on you right? He didn’t, forgot it in luggage. Luckily we easily stopped the porter and got it out.

 

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Yes, the DHS regulations allow a copy of a birth certificate and yes, people have used them in a pinch to board (passport forgotten, expired passport brought instead of the current one, passport lost on the way to the port are three instances that I've read about where a faxed copy of the birth certificate saved the day). DHS vets everyone through a multitude of databases during the cruise and that includes a check of the birth records.