How much easier is a passport, really?

[ddean52]

We are kicking around the idea of getting our passports since we'll be traveling to Jamaica in October :D

 

But since we're also going on the cruise in May, we thought it might be useful for both trips.

 

What are the benefits of using the passport instead of just an I.D. and birth certificate? Do they really only ask you for your passport? Is it that much easier?

 

Thanks for any questions you can answer!

passports are/will be the only way to go in the future WE ARE POST 9/11 in a new world, new times,---go through the trouble now and be done with it for the next ten years!

have a great cruise

dean & alice

[Christina1003]

So we finally went and applied for a passport this morning. I made sure we had all of the documents and we went to the same place Merion Mom did (thanks Merion Mom!).

 

I chose not to get it expedited based on Merion Mom's experience of getting in 8 days. If it doesn't come by the week before our trip in October, I'll get rush certified birth certificates again. (The rush copies of the bc's will cost me $40 total, the expedited service for passports is $120 for the two of us :eek: ) I'd rather chance not having to pay and then pay at the last minute then pay upfront for something not needed.

 

I'll let you all know when it comes!

 

Thanks for making me feel better and helping me out!

[ddean52]

glad to hear you did it. its a bit of a pain but in the long run will prove its value...if only in terms of peace of mind. have a great time!

 

dean & alice

[TheWog]

We got ours back in exactly 10 days. You should be fine. Good luck and have a great trip.

[Cruise Miriam]

What happens if you happen to lose your passport before you get to the ship ? Or if you lose it while you are on your cruise ? I know you could have the other forms of ID

(Birth Certificate,Drivers License) but, what if you lost your passport and did not have any other proper form of ID ? I would assume that you cannot obtain another copy in nearly enough time to really help out getting on the ship. Does anyone know what you could do in this instance ?

First I want to say that I highly recommend getting a passport. I use it frequently for trips within the United States and it makes getting through airport lines much easier, especially security.

 

One thing you should do is make a copy of the front of the passport and the page with your photo and all your information. I usually carry two copies of each -- one I keep in my safe on the ship, one I carry with me on land excursions (leaving the passport itself in the safe). While I'm traveling to and from the ship, I keep one copy in my suitcase and I carry one copy and my passport, in case I should lose the passport.

[skigirl]

D4 and Mrs.Pete thank you for the advise. I planned on bringing birth certificates and and picture ID's as well as our passports. I was not aware that you could get by with copies of your passports. I will be sure to make copies for everyone in our home that will be traveling on the cruise.

 

Just a quick note - copies of passports may be helpful in getting them replaced, but a copy serves no real function for boarding or returning through immigration - you need the real thing.

[sunshinegal]

Here goes my extra change (2 cents). And something no one has mentioned. My son had to get a Passport to fly to Barbados a few weeks ago, on medical business, and he needed it quickly. He went through all the paperwork and the Post Office and then took his paperwork to his local Congressman's Office, they couriered it up to Washington, DC, and he had it back that same week. They also did this for my daughter several years ago when she was going to Europe on a school trip. Different Congressman but the same idea. They were very nice both times and glad to do it. Just a thought, if someone ever needs the info.:)

[anjan]

All depends. If you travel alot, it is a wise longterm investment over 10 years. It is easier than cerrying around two ID's. And after 4+ decades of living, my birth certificate is looking a little ratty too! We copied and laminated the passport ID page to carry off and on the ship and left the real one in the room safe.

 

If you won't be traveling much in the next few years, then don't get it, not worth the cost.

Excellent idea about laminating the passport page to take off the ship. Thanks. I am going to do that today since we leave for a Panama Canal cruise next Weds.

[smoothdancer]

This is a logical question....I thought the same thing, and did not bother for years to obtain a passport.

 

When we went on a Panama Canal cruise, my husband was a little(no a lot) nervous and wanted to obtain passports...I agreed just so I could provide for him the comfort he needed.

 

Now I do feel differntly about this whole passport issue. It really is so much easier to carry one document. I do travel often within the US, and I have seen that just getting through airport security even in the US is easier. They do not seem to examine the passport to the extent that they do a drivers linc. and birth certificate. The whole check in and security process does go easier... I am very glad we went ahead and did this.

 

Janet

[MGoBlue2]

whats MGOBLUE referring to,,, he is definitely incorrect...... never encountered what he stated on ANY of my cruises,,,, and i always travel with BC'S...... :confused: what the other postee stated is CORRECT....

NinaB,

 

I am absolutely, positively correct as far as what happened when I disembarked from the cruise I was on.

 

And I don't care what color or how big you make it, unless you were there You Don't Know.

 

And since you don't list that as being one you were on, I'd suggest you temper your remarks.

[pltag]

Get a passport, and get it in advance....it's worth it! Much easier to carry around, and much easier at debarkation!! How many folks are looking at this website that aren't going to cruise at least 2-3 times in the next 10 years??

 

By the way........MGoBlue2........I, also have no idea what you are talking about. I have disembarked at Miami, San Juan, Port Canaveral and I HAVE seen and heard of different lines / areas for folks holding passports from countries other than the USA, but never seen or heard of any disticnction between US citizens holding passports or BC's!!

[MGoBlue2]

pltag,

 

I only know what happened when I disembarked on that cruise, how many other times it happened that way I have no idea.

 

One of the problems with this board is that people believe because something happened (or didn't) on the one, or two, or three cruises they've been on recently (out of the what? thousand+ RCI sails every year), they believe it must be a fleetwide practice on every sailing.

[Brandis]

Also not from the US, so I'm always amused when I read one of those passport pro/con threads..

 

When reading arguments that it is so expensive, I imagined it must cost $200 or so and was even more amazed when I learned it is only $85. As some other posters said here, for 10 years lifetime, that's really nothing.

 

Marc

[Christina1003]

Yay! Our passports are here in time for our trip to Jamaica!:D

 

They came today in the mail, I was so excited!

 

We applied on Sept. 22nd, and so it took 13 days total. Whew!

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

Yay! Our passports are here in time for our trip to Jamaica!:D

 

They came today in the mail, I was so excited!

 

We applied on Sept. 22nd, and so it took 13 days total. Whew!

 

 

 

Wooohoooo.....glad it all worked out.....:cool: enjoy Jamica and your upcoming honeymoon cruise!

 

 

***

[mohavemommy]

When we cruised out of Long Beach, the US Passport line moved 10 times faster than the birth certificate line. After standing in the birth certificate line, I'm a believer.

[Lauri32]

We were on the Mariner out of Port Canaveral. My mom and her husband were way behind us in the line before it split to BC & Passports. We only had BCs and they had passports. They ended up finishing way before us.

[Merion_Mom]

Christina:

 

I am SO happy for you. Weren't they NICE at the Ardmore Post Office?

 

Have a fantastic cruise, and be sure to post a review when you return.

 

Carol

[gc]

WOW thats the first time I have heard of a service that is more expensive in the States than in Canada!!! Its $35 for kids in Canada!!!undefined :p