Cruising without a passport?

[cmar143]

Can you still take a cruise without having a passport? I cant remember the date that the new law goes into effect.

[SMA9497]

Can you still take a cruise without having a passport? I cant remember the date that the new law goes into effect.

Yes you can still cruise without a passport. Just back from Legend and my husband didn't have his and they didn't even blink. According to http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cbpmc/cbpmc_2223.html the sea regulations will go into effect June 1, 2009.

[cmar143]

Did he have his original birth certificate or a copy?

[beachbum6264]

You CAN cruise without a passport... but what if there is some kind of emergency and you have to fly back to the US? You will NEED a passport for that. I wouldn't take the chance, you never know.... don't leave the country without one

[beachbum6264]

Did he have his original birth certificate or a copy?

 

A copy will not be enough... must have either raised seal or watermark.

[6rugrats]

There must be hundreds of threads on this board about passports. I just don't understand why it is so difficult to just get a passport. As stated, you may not need one for the cruise, but if there is some sort of emergency, and you need to fly back to the US, you will need a passport.

[cmar143]

There must be hundreds of threads on this board about passports. I just don't understand why it is so difficult to just get a passport. As stated, you may not need one for the cruise, but if there is some sort of emergency, and you need to fly back to the US, you will need a passport.

 

I'm sure it's not difficult to get a passport but I just have never needed one before. I just booked a cruise and it sails on June 14th so I just don't think there is enough time to get it.

[itchin2cruz]

don't worry, you don't need a passport. You can get a certified copy from your local health department. I paid $7 for mine and cruised last month just fine without a passport. There are reasons why some people do not get passports and it is their personal choice. I don't see why everyone makes this such a heated topic. I'm sure the op knows that there could be a slight chance that they could have an emergency and have to fly. It is a gamble we are willing to take and it is our problem, not yours. I'm pretty sure we'd get home eventually.:)

[NCTribeFan]

I'm sure it's not difficult to get a passport but I just have never needed one before. I just booked a cruise and it sails on June 14th so I just don't think there is enough time to get it.

 

Turnaround time is very quick these days. I got mine in about 4 weeks and that was last summer when it was much slower.

[beachbum6264]

don't worry, you don't need a passport. You can get a certified copy from your local health department. I paid $7 for mine and cruised last month just fine without a passport. There are reasons why some people do not get passports and it is their personal choice. I don't see why everyone makes this such a heated topic. I'm sure the op knows that there could be a slight chance that they could have an emergency and have to fly. It is a gamble we are willing to take and it is our problem, not yours. I'm pretty sure we'd get home eventually.:)

 

Yes, you would get home, eventually, and with a lot less $$$ in your bank account. Who wants that hassle and stress? Not me. If you do, then more power to you. We never know when something might call us home, and if it's an emergency, I'll be stressed enough, thank you very much :eek: I surely won't need the added aggravation not having a passport would cause.

Turn around time is much quicker now, you can get one in a couple of weeks with expidited service. Personally, I don't think it's worth the risk. If you are planning on cruising often, go ahead and get one now, you'll need one soon enough.

[itchin2cruz]

Like I said my problem. I had a valid reason for not getting my passport. It was my personal choice.

[cb at sea]

Why pay for something that isn't yet required??!! Not having a passport isn't a hassle at all--and you CAN get home, if an emergency arises--it's not that big of a deal!

[itchin2cruz]

What about a family of six going on a short 5 day cruise to Mexico? $600 is alot of cash to shell out on a very small chance that you may need to fly home. Some people save for years to go on a cruise. What if you never plan to go on another cruise or out of the country again? That is a waste of money to me.

[linda_22003]

I can't imagine "planning" to never leave the country again! I've had a valid passport since I was 14 and I can't wait to see where it's going to take me next!

[itchin2cruz]

Some people can afford that and there are people that can't and also people that can afford it that choose to just vacation in the states. I have a huge family and most of them vacation all the time but have never left the country. A passport is not a necessity to everyone. If I planned on cruising at least once a year, yes, I would get one but until that becomes a requirement I will not. I may or may not ever cruise again.

[linda_22003]

Where you vacation is of course your choice, but I have found that many Americans simply don't have any curiosity about other places, which is astonishing. And it's more and more likely you'll need a passport as time goes on; Mexico and Canada are hardly exotic locales, but what used to be "nodding acquaintance" borders are now passport borders. This will only increase.

[sk8teacher]

Why pay for something that isn't yet required??!! Not having a passport isn't a hassle at all--and you CAN get home, if an emergency arises--it's not that big of a deal!

 

Actually it can be a big deal. If you read THIS article you will see that a family that was stuck with no passports had to find the US Embassy, then get emergency passports issued (because they cannot fly back to the states without one) at a cost of $455, and pay for airfare back to the states.

 

You never know what might happen on a cruise. Yes right now you can cruise to certain ports without a passport, but if something should happen and you need to return to the states from a foreign country, it can be difficult at best.

 

If someone wishes to acknowledge that risk and cruise anyway, that is their perogative.

 

Cheers,

[sk8teacher]

What about a family of six going on a short 5 day cruise to Mexico? $600 is alot of cash to shell out on a very small chance that you may need to fly home. Some people save for years to go on a cruise. What if you never plan to go on another cruise or out of the country again? That is a waste of money to me.

 

The average one way ticket per person between Mexico City and Los Angeles is $260 or $1560 for a family of 6. Seems to me that $600 is a lot cheaper.

 

Cheers,

[itchin2cruz]

cheers to you too.:)

[evem587]

You should get your passport in time. I got mine in 8 days and my boyfriend got his in 7 days.

[cmar143]

Wow I didn't think that simple question would stir up so many emotions! Needless to say I talked to the passport people and they said the turnaround is real quick now so I am going tomorrow to get the wife and mine going. Thanks for the responses.

[AllieInMD]

Passports aren't taking as long as they were in that big crunch - they hired/borrowed tons of personnel to work through the backlog. I got my passport back in 2004. I know three personal friends who just got passports - took around 2 weeks for each of them. It's good for 10 years - and soon enough you'll need one regardless. And - if bad luck befalls you - and you have to depart the ship or miss the ship in a port -you'll have to get an emergency one - very very expensive.

 

I'm sure it's not difficult to get a passport but I just have never needed one before. I just booked a cruise and it sails on June 14th so I just don't think there is enough time to get it.

[AllieInMD]

well - and it's not even just that.

 

Say you have to get off the boat in some third world country - where the police and authorities aren't quite as stringent about about adhering to laws and such ;) They may decide that a US birth certificate is not a valid identity document in their country. I don't think it is - that's the point of passports - you can use this one document in any country.

 

And, just because you were born in X country, doesn't mean that you are still a citizen of X country, you might have had dual citizenship at one time, or renounced your citizenship and become a citizen of another country. If I'm dumped off in a foreign country - I wanna be able to prove without a doubt I'm a US citizen, I hold a US passport, and I wanna see the consular officer of the US embassy.

 

Actually it can be a big deal. If you read THIS article you will see that a family that was stuck with no passports had to find the US Embassy, then get emergency passports issued (because they cannot fly back to the states without one) at a cost of $455, and pay for airfare back to the states.

 

You never know what might happen on a cruise. Yes right now you can cruise to certain ports without a passport, but if something should happen and you need to return to the states from a foreign country, it can be difficult at best.

 

If someone wishes to acknowledge that risk and cruise anyway, that is their perogative.

 

Cheers,

[AllieInMD]

I think the reason it stirs so much emotion is because posters here have read too many posts from people who had disaster strike and lament that they didn't have a passport and/or trip insurance.

 

It's like my homeowners insurance - I pay it every month - it's money I could use for something else - and I've made one claim in 23 years - but if my house burns down - it was well worth it - it's one of those things you don't get a 'do over' on it and it can destroy you.

 

Wow I didn't think that simple question would stir up so many emotions! Needless to say I talked to the passport people and they said the turnaround is real quick now so I am going tomorrow to get the wife and mine going. Thanks for the responses.

[Chacooe]

You should get your passport in time. I got mine in 8 days and my boyfriend got his in 7 days.

 

And how much did that ending up costing you? I heard that when you express them like that, it is very costly.