Oy...I'm Feeling Guilty (Alaska Question)

[MsTabbyKats]

I have a friend who is an extremely unseasoned traveler of any sorts.  I doubt she has a passport, even less likely she has an enhanced driver's license...and even more remote she has a raised seal of her birth certificate.

 

She's been talking about "Alaska" for years.  Last week she said "my travel agents said there are no more cruises to Alaska this year (all booked up)".  I looked on the NCL site...and there was loads of availability.  I told her....gave her the number of a PCC I used once....and 5 minutes later she called me back with the news "I'm going to Alaska in August".  I really and absolutely never thought she was going to book a cruise that fast.

 

Now the  guilt part....the cruises all leave from or stop in Canada.  I assume she needs proof of American citizenship....and would need one of the 3 forms I mentioned.   Am I correct?  I want to inform her of such....but only if I'm 100% sure she will need the proof.

[BunnyHutt]

When my friend and I booked our 2023 cruise last year, I believe our TA said a birth certificate was acceptable in lieu of a passport (friend’s was long expired). That has since been rectified so I cannot confirm. 
 

Are you asking so that you can give her a heads up? Otherwise, why is it your concern? Maybe she’s had a passport sitting in her underwear drawer for years because she’s been waiting for the opportunity to travel. 

[shof515]

if you do not have a passport,  then yes you will need a birth certificate and a government issue photo id. not all states have birth certificates with a raised seal. that type of seal is not required 

[MsTabbyKats]

3 minutes ago, shof515 said:

if you do not have a passport,  then yes you will need a birth certificate and a government issue photo id. not all states have birth certificates with a raised seal. that type of seal is not required 

It's NY.  She can get an enhanced drivres license.  Then again...it's NYC...I'm not even sure she has a regular dirver's license.

[MsTabbyKats]

4 minutes ago, BunnyHutt said:

When my friend and I booked our 2023 cruise last year, I believe our TA said a birth certificate was acceptable in lieu of a passport (friend’s was long expired). That has since been rectified so I cannot confirm. 
 

Are you asking so that you can give her a heads up? Otherwise, why is it your concern? Maybe she’s had a passport sitting in her underwear drawer for years because she’s been waiting for the opportunity to travel. 

I want to give her a head's up.  I don't think she's ever been out of the country....certainly not in the past 8 years that I know her...and passports do expire.

 

LOL...my concern because I told her to call NCL...knowing that she's a helpless person.

[www3traveler]

1 minute ago, MsTabbyKats said:

It's NY.  She can get an enhanced drivres license.  Then again...it's NYC...I'm not even sure she has a regular dirver's license.

Does she have a State ID card with her picture on it, if she does not have a driver's license?  If not, that should be fairly simple to get.  That would work.

[MsTabbyKats]

@shof515So are you saying that a regular NYC birth certificate would be ok?  She may have that!

[MsTabbyKats]

2 minutes ago, www3traveler said:

Does she have a State ID card with her picture on it, if she does not have a driver's license?  If not, that should be fairly simple to get.  That would work.

IDK....but I guess I should tell her and direct her to the DMV to get whatever it is that she needs.

[1025cruise]

Assuming your friend is on a Seattle Round Trip, just DL and BC should suffice. If your friend is cruising from Vancouver, then a passport is required,

[cruiseny4life]

Instead of assuming, why don't you meet with your friend to talk all about her exciting upcoming cruise! Share various information with her about your experiences, answer her questions, and bring up documentation. Ask her what documentation she has. Then, have the required list of documents and compare to see if what she has is adequate.

Here's the page to reference:

 

https://www.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise/cruise-travel-documents

 

If she truly wants a passport and doesn't have one, there's still time. She'll just have to call within 14 days of travel to get an appointment. Of course NYC may not have appointments, so she might need to travel. My husband wanted to go to NYC so he could go shopping in Brighton Beach, but there were no appointments, so he wandered to Buffalo instead. 

[Red-Sol]

11 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

so he wandered to Buffalo instead

and I will never miss an opportunity to say: "Go Bills" 😉

 

[njkate]

1 hour ago, MsTabbyKats said:

I have a friend who is an extremely unseasoned traveler of any sorts.  I doubt she has a passport, even less likely she has an enhanced driver's license...and even more remote she has a raised seal of her birth certificate.

 

She's been talking about "Alaska" for years.  Last week she said "my travel agents said there are no more cruises to Alaska this year (all booked up)".  I looked on the NCL site...and there was loads of availability.  I told her....gave her the number of a PCC I used once....and 5 minutes later she called me back with the news "I'm going to Alaska in August".  I really and absolutely never thought she was going to book a cruise that fast.

 

Now the  guilt part....the cruises all leave from or stop in Canada.  I assume she needs proof of American citizenship....and would need one of the 3 forms I mentioned.   Am I correct?  I want to inform her of such....but only if I'm 100% sure she will need the proof.

She needs a passport and the odds are not in her favor to receive it back in time for an August cruise unless it's august 2024 or she is leaving and returning from Seattle then no passport needed

 

Edited July 19, 2023 by njkate

[LadyZolt]

There are some "passport fairs" this month still coming up in New Jersey -- here's a link and it also mentions what to do if you need a passport quickly:

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/News/passports/special-passport-acceptance-fairs.html?fbclid=IwAR24WimoljHCJAC4jUoh1YTv2OOEQ-0nm7T9IT86D3Ek3hA8uAJe84fRMgI

 

[zqvol]

4 hours ago, njkate said:

She needs a passport and the odds are not in her favor to receive it back in time for an August cruise unless it's august 2024 or she is leaving and returning from Seattle then no passport needed

 

She doesn’t need a passport. A state issued ID and a state issued birth certificate will be fine unless she is doing a one way out of Vancouver. 

[sanger727]

It really depends on which cruise she booked. She can't embark or debark in Canada without one. She won't be able to get across the border. If she embarking and debarking in Seattle then she just needs photo ID and a birth certificate. I wouldn't give her any more advise without getting more information. And really, the PCC should have gone over all this with her when she booked. 

Edited July 19, 2023 by sanger727

[RB9643]

1 hour ago, zqvol said:

She doesn’t need a passport. A state issued ID and a state issued birth certificate will be fine unless she is doing a one way out of Vancouver. 

 

One way or roundtrip, she's not getting to Vancouver without a passport. But OP hasn't told us that yet.

 

 

Edited July 19, 2023 by RB9643

[MsTabbyKats]

Well, guess what.....

I got an e-mail from her....she wants to cancel! (I told DH she probably would).

I told her the $$$ is not refundable at this late date.

She said she had insurance.

I asked her if it's "cancel for any reason"...she doesn't know.

I am going to assume it's NCL insurance....I think you get a FCC of 75% (or something like that).

 

Oh well....

[RB9643]

17 minutes ago, MsTabbyKats said:

Well, guess what.....

 

 

Oh boy.  When I read your first post I thought, "This is not going to end well."  Her best hope is that she used a credit card with generous trip cancellation coverage. Otherwise, if the PCC did upsell her to buy insurance, that's great, but she's going to have to take a cruise eventually.  At least that would give her time to get her ducks in a row.

 

Worst case, she learned an expensive lesson.  Just don't allow yourself to feel any guilt over it. She made her bed. I hope it works out for her.

 

 

[MsTabbyKats]

5 minutes ago, RB9643 said:

 

Oh boy.  When I read your first post I thought, "This is not going to end well."  Her best hope is that she used a credit card with generous trip cancellation coverage. Otherwise, if the PCC did upsell her to buy insurance, that's great, but she's going to have to take a cruise eventually.  At least that would give her time to get her ducks in a row.

 

Worst case, she learned an expensive lesson.  Just don't allow yourself to feel any guilt over it. She made her bed. I hope it works out for her.

 

 

When she told me she booked the cruise...I told my husband this isn't going to end well.

[laudergayle]

45 minutes ago, MsTabbyKats said:

Well, guess what.....

I got an e-mail from her....she wants to cancel! (I told DH she probably would).

I told her the $$$ is not refundable at this late date.

She said she had insurance.

I asked her if it's "cancel for any reason"...she doesn't know.

I am going to assume it's NCL insurance....I think you get a FCC of 75% (or something like that).

 

Oh well....

Oh my!!  I hope she has money to burn 🔥🔥.  Now I’m curious…did she happen to mention why she was cancelling?

[MsTabbyKats]

1 minute ago, laudergayle said:

Oh my!!  I hope she has money to burn 🔥🔥.  Now I’m curious…did she happen to mention why she was cancelling?

Well ... ultimately her ex husband will be paying.  She's 99 percent dependant on him.  

 

She cancelled because she's nervous about doing anything on her own.

[www3traveler]

3 minutes ago, MsTabbyKats said:

Well ... ultimately her ex husband will be paying.  She's 99 percent dependant on him.  

 

She cancelled because she's nervous about doing anything on her own.

OH WOW!!!  How very sad for him and for her.

[laudergayle]

1 hour ago, MsTabbyKats said:

Well ... ultimately her ex husband will be paying.  She's 99 percent dependant on him.  

 

She cancelled because she's nervous about doing anything on her own.

Thanks for sharing.   That’s sad in so many ways.  

[Seas2mountains]

If she cancels within 24 hours of making the reservation, it is all refundable. 

[ngrund]

58 minutes ago, Seas2mountains said:

If she cancels within 24 hours of making the reservation, it is all refundable. 

Is that still true if booking is made after final payment date?