Is having a passport an advantage.......

[TweedleDee]

Is having a passport an advantage when you board or get off the ship?:)

[camreesmom]

Our first cruise, we did the birth certificate and marriage license thing. For our second cruise, we invested in passports. We found boarding to go MUCH quicker with passports!

 

Julie

[plyman69]

Passports are much easier... especially on cruises where passports are required to embark...

[dolfan1949]

Yes passports are the way to go...No hassle or worry about other documents.;)

[It'sRC4ME]

If for some reason you are left behind by the ship (car accidents, medical emgergencies, Carlos & Charlie's) you will have a much easier time of sorting things out if you have proper identification, and nothing is more proper than a passport. Even if you aren't left behind, but wind up involved with the police, they may not consider your cruise boarding card and a driver's license to constitute proper ID, and may give you trouble. Remember, cruise ports are for the most part FOREIGN COUNTRIES, not Disneyland, and being in that country without a passport once your ship has left can land you in a world of trouble. A passport will prove to the local American embassy or consulate that you are a US citizen (if you're from a different country the same will be true for your embassy too), and they will be more likely to try to help you out of the situation. As the child of former consular office, I NEVER, EVER get off the ship without my passport - I can't imagine the hassle if something happened and I was stranded in a foreign country without it. That said, you may be more comfortable leaving the passport on the ship and bringing a copy with you, as well as other ID, such as a drivers license.

[Grayce]

I heard somewhere on the boards that cruise lines take your passport and keep them when you board. Do they give them back when you get off at the various ports?

[GranysT]

I heard somewhere on the boards that cruise lines take your passport and keep them when you board. Do they give them back when you get off at the various ports?

They do not take the passport's of American citizen's,only non US citizen's have to turn in their passport's. They do return them prior to debarkation.

[lauren0309]

So, if you bring your passport you do not need to bring your birth certificate then?

[LibertyBelle]

If for some reason you are left behind by the ship (car accidents' date=' medical emgergencies, Carlos & Charlie's) [/quote']

 

 

LOL!!! I am still laughing... Carlos and Charlies.... that made my day :)

 

Anyway, yes passports are just easier. If you have one you don't have to worry about losing papers (or ruining papers, wrinkles, etc.) It is definetly a good investment for the reasons that "it'sRC4ME" stated. Obviously it is not required to sail but it does make it easier.

 

Lauren0309 If you have your passport you do not need any other identification, no birth certificate is necessary.

 

Grayce... They do take away passports for foreign guests that are sailing. I believe (though I could be wrong) that only US citizens and Canadian Citizens actually get thier's back at check in. Foreign passports are held until the cruise is over, you get them back when you check in with customs the morning of disembarkation. Not sure how that would work in a situation like "it'sRC4ME" brought up, if they held it. ( Icould be wrong on the Canadian part but I seem to remember my friends getting theirs back)

[wingnutphl]

I was just about to say no but I realized you are from Canada. I do believe they take foreign passports. Most of the time you only need your seapass card to reenter the pier. Key West requires photo ID when reentering the pier. I would email RCI and inquire.

 

Dawn

[GranysT]

One other thing. Yes, I have found passport's to be the easiest and most convenient way to travel. Even at airport's,they are much less hassle. For the people who always carry their passport's when they get off the ship in foreign ports. I also have read about copying the passport and carrying the copy on land. If you are left behind,or get into some kind of problem on shore,a copy of a passport is just not going to do the trick.You may as well just have a driver's license,the copy will be worth about that much. If you are carrying one ashore,for that reason,it's best to leave the copy on the ship,and keep your original passport with you. Just something to think about and be aware of.

[TweedleDee]

I guess it's passports for us. Thanks to all responders.

[TBRay]

My daughter flew to LA to visit relatives this summer. At 14 she doesn't have a driver's license yet, so we let her use her Passport as a primary ID. Worked extremely well even within the US. (Lanyard, tickets, passport) :D

 

Yes, I know kids can get ID cards (made at DMV). But with a valid passport it makes the ID card a moot point.

[Beffy1167]

If you've got time before you cruise, definitely get the passport! It really does save a lot of time! And I'm with the person who said to carry the ORIGINAL with you when you leave the ship. A copy (even if it's certified/notarized) will NOT serve you as well as the original if you get stuck/caught/ill and need proof of citizenship.

[jannygranny]

My husband is a naturalized citizen so we carry those papers and my birth/ marriage certificate. In April when we went through immigration in Florida, the immigration officer told us that we should get passports because it would take a long time to obtain a duplicate naturalization certificate. So we are getting passports.

[Murphy]

We we got off the ship in Ft Lauderdale last year, the "people with passports" line flew and the birth cert/DL line dragged on. Also the immigration agent said in the next year passports would be required. I don't think that's really happened yet, but get one if you can. I use my whenever I fly too.

[kimanjo]

Just returned from a Carbibean cruise last week....passports made embarkation easier (we noticed that those parties in line who had "paper" moved much more slowly than those with passports)

 

Even at disembarkation--and going through the customs terminal where you lug all your souvenirs--there were 2 lines: those with passports (short and sweet) and those with "papers"--longer and more tedious.

[dcookies]

I'm curious -

 

I just got my docs today (8/30 sailing), and it said that expired passports were ok. Has anyone used an expired passport to board? Both mine and my DH's expired a few years ago.

 

Also - is there a separate line at embarkation for people with passports? If we bring our expired ones, our kids will still only have birth certificates/driver's license. If there is a separate line, I'm guessing we'd still need to wait in the "paper" line.

[hstrybuf]

According to the sites I've read, you can board with expired passports. The only drawback is that US Customs is not obligated to let you BACK into the country. Yikes! Seriously, I don't think it will be a problem.

[ripleysmom]

I read a post a few years ago about a woman whose husband had gotten sick on a cruise. They had to disembark to take him to the hospital and her DH passed away.

 

Since it was not necessary for the cruise, she did not have a passport. When she tried to return to the US after his death, she could not because she did not have the correct documentation. It took several days and she had to wind up going to the embassy because she did not have a passport. Eventually she was issued an emergency passport and was able to return to the US but her story really illustrated for me just why you should travel with a passport.

[gemcat]

I have travelled quite a bit overseas; as military, on land vacations, and cruising, and passports are the way to go. As others have posted, nothing is better for proving identity and citizenship and that can be critical in some situations.

The cost for a passport isn't that much ($85 or so) and definitely worth the piece of mind. When you consider how much you are paying already for the cruise itself, tips, insurance, airline flights, etc., the cost of the passport may well be the best bargain of them all.