what to take off ship- excursions

[stellarose]

When we get off the ship what ID do we need besides our Sign Sail card? Driver's license for son, hubby and myself? what about 15 year old daughter? school ID?  I really feel weird taking passports off the post. 

 

1. Cozumel 

2 .Belize 

 

(both Carnival booked excursions )

 

 

[Out of Iowa]

This question will set off a vigorous discussion here.   By rights, it seems you ought to have your passport with you. 

 

In practice, your Carnival Sail n Sign card along with your state-issued US driver's license will get you back on the ship in all Caribbean ports I've visited (although two less-common ones now insist you carry your passport and the cruise line that goes there informs their passengers, per a news article in the past week).  They do not always ask to see your driver's license, either.  Mine floated out of my possession and into the sea and I didn't realize.  I got back on the ship with my Sail n Sign.  Some kids found my license in the water, gave it to their parents who stuffed it in their beach bag....and I got a call from Guest Services the next day that it had been turned in.  Lucky!  Or I'd have been driving 14+ hours home without a license.

 

If you miss your ship's departure and your passport is locked in your cabin safe, that's a BIG problem.

 

 

[LPYRCRUISER]

I leave my passport in my safe. I bring copies off the ship with my ID.  if something should happen in port, you at least have your passport copies.

[stellarose]

so I will bring photo copy. Drivers license and 15 year old school ID. 

[SRF]

You NEED your cruise card and Government issued photo ID.

 

If you do not have your photo ID, you will be able to get back on the ship, but you may experience a delay and have enhanced security screening (from experience).

[stellarose]

what about a 15 year old? School id

[K32682]

Cruise card

Passport

One credit card

Couple hundred dollars equivalent in local currency or USD in small bills.

Smart phone

[SRF]

3 hours ago, stellarose said:

what about a 15 year old? School id

 

AFAIK 16 and under (or maybe under 16) only need their cruise card.

[MicCanberra]

Depending on the port, we bring our passports, would not want to be stuck without them and need flights somewhere.

[Floridiana]

The ship has always let us know when we needed our passports or just a government issued other id (drivers license) to go ashore. I don't remember taking our passports in Cozumel and Belize. Since you are on a ship's  excursion, you will not be stuck on land. Even if the excursion is late, the ship will wait. Ask on the ship whether the school id is sufficient.

 

[Hlitner]

No controversy, only advice based on 40+ years of extensive cruising and travel.  Passports?  Forget about it!  In fact, most cruisers to those ports do not even have Passports.  What you need is your cruise card (or Medallion if on Princess) and a government issued picture ID.  It is also a good idea to have some cash and 1 major credit card.  Also make sure to carry the phone number of the ship's local agent (this will be on the Port info or on your daily schedule).  If you happen to be on MSC, they have a better idea since they include an emergency phone number (to the ship) on every cruise card.   So you have your ID, some money, emergency phone number.  Beyond that it is just a matter of carrying what you need for your own port activities (or lack thereof).

 

As to the Passport issue (for those that even have Passports on closed-loop cruises), I would offer a simple piece of advice.  Your Passport is one of your more valuable documents.  If you do carry it, keep it in a very secure place and make sure to keep it dry (a wet Passport is a useless Passport).   Personally, we never carry our Passports unless it is absolutely necessary (which means NEVER when it comes to the Caribbean).  When DW and I go to a beach and spend a couple of hours in the water swimming, snorkeling, or diving, we do not want to leave any valuables on the beach (we do leave a backpack with towels and a few other near worthless items).   I do have a decent waterproof (to about 200 feet in depth) fanny pack and it has managed to leak a few times over the years.  Inside that "waterproof" thing I do carry our cash, credit card and ID...all of which are waterproof.  If you do insist on carrying your Passport and some other valuables you might want to consider investing in some type of Pacsafe (or similar) item that can  be secured (with a lock) to something solid.  

 

The other item that causes some issues are cell phones.  Even as an ole guy, we do carry a phone when we go ashore.  Our phones are on a T-Moble plan that means they work just about everywhere in the world (with no extra fees other then 25 cents a minute for phone calls).  What to do with the phone when you go into the water is a tough question.  We do have a waterproof cell phone covering that also allows us to use it in the water for photos.  If there is anywhere I can leave it safely out of the water I prefer not to carry the darn thing...but we understand that many folks consider their phones more important then their teeth :).

 

Hank

[Donald]

21 hours ago, Out of Iowa said:

This question will set off a vigorous discussion here.   By rights, it seems you ought to have your passport with you. 

 

In practice, your Carnival Sail n Sign card along with your state-issued US driver's license will get you back on the ship in all Caribbean ports I've visited (although two less-common ones now insist you carry your passport and the cruise line that goes there informs their passengers, per a news article in the past week).  They do not always ask to see your driver's license, either.  Mine floated out of my possession and into the sea and I didn't realize.  I got back on the ship with my Sail n Sign.  Some kids found my license in the water, gave it to their parents who stuffed it in their beach bag....and I got a call from Guest Services the next day that it had been turned in.  Lucky!  Or I'd have been driving 14+ hours home without a license.

 

If you miss your ship's departure and your passport is locked in your cabin safe, that's a BIG problem.

 

 

 

[SRF]

13 hours ago, Floridiana said:

The ship has always let us know when we needed our passports or just a government issued other id (drivers license) to go ashore. I don't remember taking our passports in Cozumel and Belize. Since you are on a ship's  excursion, you will not be stuck on land. Even if the excursion is late, the ship will wait. Ask on the ship whether the school id is sufficient.

 

 

That is not true.

 

The cruise line IS RESPONSIBLE to get you back on the ship, but there is no guarantee that the ship will wait.  There may be reasons it cannot.

 

They may need to fly or drive you to the next port.  And which, if another country, may require you to get an emergency passport.

 

Hopefully, but still not guaranteed, if your passport is in the room safe, they will go into the safe and get your passport (and those of all on the tour) and give them to the port agent.

 

It is unlikely the tour will be late.  It is unlikely that the ship will not wait.  And it is unlikely that then will not leave passports (if they can find them) with the port agent. BUT NOT GUARANTEED

Edited December 19, 2019 by SRF

[Floridiana]

20 minutes ago, SRF said:

Hopefully, but still not guaranteed, if your passport is in the room safe, they will go into the safe and get your passport (and those of all on the tour) and give them to the port agent.

 

I  would rather leave the passport in the safe than take it with me and expose it to water or theft. But it's true, don't leave the passport just anywhere in your cabin, put it in the safe. On many international cruises, the ship stores the passports for the passengers.

 

On all our far-flung travel and cruises, we were handed our passports by the ship or took them out of the safe only when it was necessary due to local regulations. 

[K32682]

14 hours ago, Hlitner said:

The other item that causes some issues are cell phones.  Even as an ole guy, we do carry a phone when we go ashore.  Our phones are on a T-Moble plan that means they work just about everywhere in the world (with no extra fees other then 25 cents a minute for phone calls).  What to do with the phone when you go into the water is a tough question.  We do have a waterproof cell phone covering that also allows us to use it in the water for photos.  If there is anywhere I can leave it safely out of the water I prefer not to carry the darn thing...but we understand that many folks consider their phones more important then their teeth :).

 

I have a Pelican case that offers better water protection for smart phones although it is a bit bulky.  It would be possible to double up with it and a waterproof bag for even better water protection but I've not found it necessary.

 

https://www.pelican.com/us/en/product/cases/go-case/personal-utility/g40 

 

The smart phone has become an essential for us because of the phone and GPS/mapping features.  And should someone wish not to carry their passport they can store a picture/PDF of it on their phone. 

[Joebucks]

You do not need to bring your passport (unless told to). No amount of fear and best practice stories will change that. It should be left in your safe. If you miss the ship or something happens, the ship's crew know where to find it, and will bring it to a safe location. If you feel safer bringing a copy, do that.

 

The worst thing you can do is bring it with you and lose all of your documentation. Then you're really SOL. I always travel with multiple forms of ID, but not all are always on me at all times.

[K32682]

24 minutes ago, Joebucks said:

You do not need to bring your passport (unless told to). No amount of fear and best practice stories will change that. It should be left in your safe. If you miss the ship or something happens, the ship's crew know where to find it, and will bring it to a safe location. If you feel safer bringing a copy, do that.

 

The worst thing you can do is bring it with you and lose all of your documentation. Then you're really SOL. I always travel with multiple forms of ID, but not all are always on me at all times.

 

The ship's crew promise to leave it but there is no guarantee.  There is also no guarantee you can get to the "safe location" even if they do.   Having examined the worst case scenarios of carrying vs. not carrying my passport in a foreign country I choose to carry it.  I do keep passport copies and supplementary ID in my cabin. 

[cb at sea]

You should always have ID on you..wherever you go.  You will need that, and your ships card...the 15 year old doesn't need a photo ID...so just their ship's card is all they need.  Your DL will be just fine.

[SRF]

I travel a lot internationally for work.  Most of the time I am on such travel, I carry my passport on my person.

 

So far, have not lost one or had one stolen.

 

Also, the thieves are not after your passport, they are after your money.  So carry them separately.

 

 

[JMorris271]

On 12/18/2019 at 5:45 PM, MicCanberra said:

Depending on the port, we bring our passports, would not want to be stuck without them and need flights somewhere.

I would not want to not have my PP and miss the ship!

[Doug R.]

On 12/19/2019 at 2:16 PM, SRF said:

I travel a lot internationally for work.  Most of the time I am on such travel, I carry my passport on my person.

 

So far, have not lost one or had one stolen.

 

Also, the thieves are not after your passport, they are after your money.  So carry them separately.

 

 

You are mistaken, passports are a very valuable commodity on the black market and thieves know that and how to cash in.

[mom says]

16 minutes ago, Doug R. said:

You are mistaken, passports are a very valuable commodity on the black market and thieves know that and how to cash in.

I would be very surprised if this was still the case, now that most countries have implemented chipped passports, and other modern technology into their systems.

[SRF]

On 12/20/2019 at 7:28 PM, Doug R. said:

You are mistaken, passports are a very valuable commodity on the black market and thieves know that and how to cash in.

 

Maybe in the past, but today, with all your data in a database, they are less valuable.

 

You cannot just change the photo any longer.  There are also electronic chips in them, and many other methods to make them harder to change.

 

Blank ones would be a saleable commodity.

 

If they were worth so much, why would people not "lose" their passport, get a replacement, and have their cruise paid for??????????

 

Every case I can think of, where I know of a passport having been stolen, it was in the same pocket or bag with the CASH and credit cards.

 

 

Edited December 24, 2019 by SRF

[flyingron]

I take my wallet which has a US passport card in it (not a substitute but I figure it's better than just my driver's license).   If I'm "in country" on a tour, I'll have a small amount of local currency (euros or whatever), otherwise US money works fine for tips.   Credit cards work for everything else.

The cruise ships usually offer umbrellas (if needed) and water (when that makes sense) as you're exiting.

[dogs4fun]

On 12/19/2019 at 6:04 AM, SRF said:

It is unlikely the tour will be late.  It is unlikely that the ship will not wait.  And it is unlikely that then will not leave passports (if they can find them) with the port agent. BUT NOT GUARANTEED

True - we were on a cruise about 8 years ago wherein the ship did not wait for some passengers on a cruise ship tour. Since the cruise line was responsible for getting those passengers back to the ship, they flew (at cruise line's expense) to the next port of call to meet-up with the ship.