Passport question

[Waimea'sMom]

I'm currently sailing on the 11/3 Hawaii cruise which has a stopover in Ensenada, Mexico. I was planning on taking my passport for my ID (even though it isn't required for sea sailings until January but just for convenience sake). I am, however, also going to go on a Caribbean sailing in early or mid March. Do you think if I apply for my passport renewal when I return from Hawaii (the mid/end November time) I will get my new passport in time for the Caribbean sailing? I've heard horror stories of people having to wait up to 4 or 5 months to get a passport right now.

 

Or does anyone know if a passport expiring in July 08 would still be valid for a March sailing date? I know some places require you to have at least 6 months still available on a passport for entry -- is the Caribbean one of these?

 

So what would you do? 1) Would you turn in your passport application prior to the Nov. sailing since it is not REQUIRED for this trip and just bring a birth certifcate with you, 2) would you risk turning it in after I come home in the hopes that I get it in time for the March sailing, or 3) would you just keep the one you have even though it expires in July? Sorry but expedited service is not an option. I really don't want to pay $127 instead of $67 just because the govt. is running really slowly on passport renewals.

 

P.S. If you just did your own passport renewal, how long did it take?

 

Thanks for any info. BTW this is posted in both the Caribbean and Princess boards.:)

[Penguinlo]

We just renewed ours. Got them back in 10 days. Mine had an error, birthdate was incorrect. Sent it back and it was returned in approx. 2 weeks. I don't know if we were just lucky, or if this is the norm.

 

I used the purple renewal form from the post office. It was sent to Washington or Philly, I can't remember which. The woman at the post office told me to send it priority mail, delivery confirmation, so I did.

 

You can check the delivery confirmation on the post office web site, but in reality, I think it is confirmed delivered when it hits the PO Box.

 

After 10 days, since I didn't show up on the passport website as being received, I emailed them and I got a response that it had been processed and was being sent out. I received it two days later.

 

As I said, I don't know if this is normal. I have read other threads here that say people are waiting a while for renewals. I didn't not pay to rush ours, nor did I put in a phony travel date.

 

Hope this helps.

[m steve]

After reading all the horror stories about passport delays, you shopuld have sent your application in 4 weeks ago.

[beachchick]

Passport processing is, as predicted, pretty darned slow these days. As you don't need your passport for your Hawaii cruise, but will (as far as I know) be required to have one for your Caribbean cruise, I suggest you apply for your renewal now. Although it would have been prudent for the passport agency to have staffed up for the increased demand, they didn't, and we all have to live with the delays. It can take several weeks to several months to get a new passport. The worst that might happen if you renew now is that you won't have it for your Hawaii cruise; OTOH, it is 3 months away, so you might. This is, of course, JMO.

 

No one can answer the question of whether "the Caribbean" has a 6 month validity requirement because so many countries have islands in the Caribbean. Each island has to be addressed separately, so your best bet is going to be checking the government websites for the specific islands you are visiting. They will have the most up to date and valid information, more so than any of us can provide. (My "gut instinct" is that you'll be fine with your current passport, but that and $2 will get you a cup of coffee at the coffee house of your choice. I have absolutely no idea how each country handles it. The real change, the reason we must have passports, is for the new US immigration laws, which are unrelated to the regulations of the Caribbean countries.)

 

Enjoy your cruises!

 

beachchick