NCL Hell - Beware

Dear fellow cruisers, i am writing this post to highlight a very distressing and alarming incident that happened to us while cruising the Med on the NCL Jade.

On the 30th May while sightseeing on our first full day in Barcelona my husband had his wallet stolen by pickpockets, we were waiting in the 'City tour bus' queue line at the 'blue line' connection point near Las Ramblas.

We noticed two dark skinned men with white t shirts and baseball caps racing down the side of the waiting bus, my husband instantly felt his knee length pocket on his shorts and realised what had happened. By the time he and our elder son ran to the front of the bus they had removed their caps and were lost in the crowds (it was a very busy Sunday).

After reporting the incident to the local police we returned to the ship and went straight to reception to inform them. They showed us the outside phone line and we were able to contact our bank to block his bank and credit cards.

But worse was still to come, we informed the receptionist his passport was also stolen and she went to fetch a security officer who told us my husband could not stay onboard without a passport.

Astounded we asked why he could not get it sorted next day in Monte Carlo, only to be told by the security officer Bianca "we would all be in a lot of trouble if he sailed without one". This was with only 20 minutes before we were due to set sail.

We explained all the resources to get any other money were taken along with his stolen wallet and asked how he was to get another passport etc but she shrugged her shoulders and stated it was not her problem. It beggared belief this was the reaction and it only compounded our anxiety and distress even more. My husband was being thrown off the ship without a bean for all anyone knew. No one cared he was being abandoned in Barcelona. My husband had transferred money from his bank account into mine earlier whilst on the phone but as far as they knew he had nothing and at no point enquired to his health, his ability to cope, absolutely nothing at all.

I gave him my bank card and raced to get an overnight bag together, meeting him on the exit gangway with our family, elder son, teenage daughter and her young friend, plus our young foster son. Becuase of them we made no fuss and went along with what was asked of us.

It cost my husband 800 euros in taxis, overnight hotel stay, replacement 7 day passport and flight from Barcelona to Nice where he met us the next day back on board in Monte Carlo. Had it not been for the fact my husband had the access to that money i dont kn ow what would have happened.

It still shocks me immensly that a multi-billion dollar company like NCL has not got a procedure already in place to help their guests when this type of thing happens. I cannot believe all cruise lines act the same way either. I believe, like the Cost Victoria who we sailed with two years ago, NCL could inform their guests in the daily onboard newsletter we all receive, the dangers of pickpockets in certain ports of call.

I still have no understanding as to why my husband could not have stayed onboard and sorted out his passport the next day. Everyones passports were scanned into the ships system at registration on embarkation day. Reception had a copy, i asked for his passport number to expedite the process in the British Embassy, so what was the problem, perhaps someone could enlighten me.

I used a search engine and input 'Barcelona pickpockets' whereby i learnt Barcelona is the number one pickpocket capital in the world. Reported thefts numbered 6000 from May to September 2009, horrendous statistics which largely go unknown to tourists.

This was such an unnecessary act from NCL but I hope my post highlights to everyone the need to assess from time to time how safe and secure our personal belonging are carried. Also i have since learnt that we should make copies of all our passports which can be taken ashore (except in Dubrovnik - advice from other cruisers), leaving the originals in the cabins safe.

Shame on you NCL

I appreciate your post, and I don't want to flame you too much, but it wasn't NCLs fault that your husbands passport got stolen. I'm a bit shocked to learn that they kicked him off of the ship though.

 

When I am on shore at ports, I keep my passport in my cabin safe and bring a photocopy with me.

Probably someone who has read but not posted before. Story has the ring of truth to me.

I appreciate your post, and I don't want to flame you too much, but it wasn't NCLs fault that your husbands passport got stolen. I'm a bit shocked to learn that they kicked him off of the ship though.

 

It makes sense to me. It's like trying to catch an international flight without a passport. Even though the ship may have a scanned copy that's worth nothing to the arriving authorities (in this case Monaco) in the same way that giving a photocopy to the airline for a flight from Spain to the US won't impress the US authorities.

 

The ship know who you are, but the country you're going to don't. There is nothing the ship can do without breaking the law and risking major fines themselves by bringing you to a foreign country without sufficient/appropriate id.

I just want to say that I am so sorry that this happened to you.

It makes sense to me. It's like trying to catch an international flight without a passport. Even though the ship may have a scanned copy that's worth nothing to the arriving authorities (in this case Monaco) in the same way that giving a photocopy to the airline for a flight from Spain to the US won't impress the US authorities.

 

The ship know who you are, but the country you're going to don't. There is nothing the ship can do without breaking the law and risking major fines themselves by bringing you to a foreign country without sufficient/appropriate id.

 

That sucks. I've only been to the Caribbean, so the rules may be a bit different (the ports really need the ships to arrive so they may be more lax). Is is "safe" to only bring a photocopy to shore?

 

Is there any way for NCL to do anything in this situation? Could they allow the person on-board while a temporary passport is obtained? Could they allow him on-board but not let them get off at the next stop? I'm sure that it would be easy to flag his room key and not let him off when he tries to scan out in Morocco.

It makes sense to me. It's like trying to catch an international flight without a passport. Even though the ship may have a scanned copy that's worth nothing to the arriving authorities (in this case Monaco) in the same way that giving a photocopy to the airline for a flight from Spain to the US won't impress the US authorities.

 

The ship know who you are, but the country you're going to don't. There is nothing the ship can do without breaking the law and risking major fines themselves by bringing you to a foreign country without sufficient/appropriate id.

 

If hubby stayed ON the ship until passport mess was fixed then I would think it wouldn't be a problem, right? What a TERRIBLE experience this was!

If hubby stayed ON the ship until passport mess was fixed then I would think it wouldn't be a problem, right? What a TERRIBLE experience this was!

 

Agreed. Based on the reputation of Barcelona, the hubby wasn't the first person to ever have his passport stolen while in port. There must be a better solution than to leave him at the pier.

In all fairness, the husband would have to leave the ship to resolve the passport issue. I think the only thing NCL could have done was to offer some guidance on what the husband needed to do...

I appreciate your post, and I don't want to flame you too much, but it wasn't NCLs fault that your husbands passport got stolen. I'm a bit shocked to learn that they kicked him off of the ship though.

 

When I am on shore at ports, I keep my passport in my cabin safe and bring a photocopy with me.

 

 

Im new to cruising, can you enter ports with just a photocopied passport?

Im new to cruising, can you enter ports with just a photocopied passport?

 

That is what I have always done, I have never brought my actual passport on shore. However, I have only been in the Caribbean and Bahamas. Rules may be different in the Mediteranean.

What a horrible nightmare for all of you! Fortunately we had been warned by my sister and her husband to wear the neck walletsunder our shirts.Sure enough DH had his front pocket entered by a nicely dressed middle age man carrying a raincoat over his arm on Las Ranbles. He got 0. I'm wondering, if you had not told NCL that his passport was taken along with his wallet, would your husband have been ok staying on the ship, getting off in the next port using his ship card and getting a temp. passport there? We were warned by posts on CC to keep passports in the safe, take a copy with us and we also keep a copy of each other's passports.

It makes sense to me. It's like trying to catch an international flight without a passport. Even though the ship may have a scanned copy that's worth nothing to the arriving authorities (in this case Monaco) in the same way that giving a photocopy to the airline for a flight from Spain to the US won't impress the US authorities.

However, a trip from Barcelona to Nice or Monaco is "domestic" so far as passports are concerned. There is no immigration border between the two; so far as immigration is concerned it would be like flying or cruising from New York to Miami. (Security requirements for ID when flying may pose a different problem, though, in both cases.)

 

That's what makes NCL's reaction on this occasion seem a little strange to me. There may be technical reasons of which I'm not aware why they couldn't allow it, but the individual concerned could have travelled overland from Barcelona to Nice/Monaco without a passport.

Also, I ALWAYS take my passport in port. I want it with me. What if I have a life-threatening accident?

If your passport has been stolen from you whilst ashore - and you should remember that no location on your person is safe from thieves, however secure you may like to think it is - it has gone for good.

 

If you have left your passport in your safe in your cabin on board the ship, and you have a life-threatening accident whilst ashore or need your passport for some other reason, the ship can get it. It is not lost, everyone knows exactly where it is, and the ship can vouch for the fact that it is holding the original document.

 

That's the difference.

When my sister and I went to Barcelona, Silversea made a special announcement regarding pickpockets. We had guys toting tour books and maps 'join' our walking tour group. What they didn't realize was that we all knew each other and that they stood out like sore thumbs. They quickly moved on as we all clutched our bags and gave them the hairy eyeball.

 

When my parents went to Prague, they were massed by kids and they got my Dad's wallet, even though he moved it from his back pocket to his front pocket. My mom, acted crazy and started flailing her arms and screaming. Luckily, they got no money from my dad, but they had a hassle cancelling their credit cards.

 

My mom got her wallet lifted in a supermarket in Copenhage. My sister got her wallet lifted in a supermarket in San Francisco. My friend got her wallet and passport lifted on the Metro in Paris. I got my wallet lifted on the bus in San Francisco. I got my wallet lifted at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta.

 

My point is that you can take precautions and still get pickpocketed.

 

Here's what I've learned:

 

1. Don't carry everything in one place. They might get my bank card, but they won't get my checkbook and license. They might get my Amex, but they won't get my bank card.

 

2. Keep your passport separate from your other stuff. Have copies. Give someone at home your passport info so they can advocate for you if something happens.

 

3. Don't take your whole financial life ashore with you. Take your room key, and 1 credit card. Do you really need all that other stuff?

 

4. No matter how prepared you are, at some point in your life, you'll probably be pickpocketed. Make it an inconvenience instead of a disasater.

Globaliser -

 

I remember when we were in the port of Skagway. We caught the White Pass railroad. It took us into Fraser, BC. The officials asked for our passports. My mother only had a photocopy. She was publicly harassed. It was awful.

 

How could pickpockets get my pp when it is inside my pants and undies for "emergency use" only?

That is what I have always done, I have never brought my actual passport on shore. However, I have only been in the Caribbean and Bahamas. Rules may be different in the Mediteranean.

 

On some Mediterranean itineraries the ship actually holds all passsenger passports as they have to be made available to local officials upon docking. If the ship did not hold them, you would be required to get up at 5am or so to present your passport to the officials who must clear you to go ashore.

Sorry for the comments about first postings. To explain - over the years people show up from time to time and their one and only post is a rough one. Hence, regulars here roll their eyes sometimes and wonder.

 

That aside, in this case, NCL was put into a rough position. Since they KNEW the person did not have the required papers, they could not legally transport you. When they arrive in various ports, they declare to local authorities that everyone is properly documented, and then the local folks take their word and never ask anyone for their passports, etc. etc.

 

If the passenger did not inform NCL of he missing passport, he could have traveled just fine. (illegal, but nobody would know). There are very few ports where somebody has to show their passport.

 

Should NCL been a bit more helpful? Probably, but what people do ashore is not their problem. Since this does happen often, having a sheet of paper with phone numbers, etc would be a reasonable expectation.

However, a trip from Barcelona to Nice or Monaco is "domestic" so far as passports are concerned. There is no immigration border between the two; so far as immigration is concerned it would be like flying or cruising from New York to Miami. (Security requirements for ID when flying may pose a different problem, though, in both cases.)

 

That's what makes NCL's reaction on this occasion seem a little strange to me. There may be technical reasons of which I'm not aware why they couldn't allow it, but the individual concerned could have travelled overland from Barcelona to Nice/Monaco without a passport.If your passport has been stolen from you whilst ashore - and you should remember that no location on your person is safe from thieves, however secure you may like to think it is - it has gone for good.

 

If you have left your passport in your safe in your cabin on board the ship, and you have a life-threatening accident whilst ashore or need your passport for some other reason, the ship can get it. It is not lost, everyone knows exactly where it is, and the ship can vouch for the fact that it is holding the original document.

 

That's the difference.

 

Spain and France are both parties to the Schengen Agreement, so as you say a trip from one to the other by land or air is considered "domestic" and requires no passport, but because a cruise ship no doubt travels in international waters on its passage between the two countries, is it not possible that a passport is required for a cruise? You've technically left the Schengen area once you're in international waters. I'm no expert in the details of the Schengen Agreement, but this seems to be at least a possible explanation.

I remember when we were in the port of Skagway. We caught the White Pass railroad. It took us into Fraser, BC. The officials asked for our passports. My mother only had a photocopy. She was publicly harassed. It was awful.

There are always going to be some situations in which you will need to have your passport with you. For myself, that's most often the case if I'm renting a car in the port. I think that carrying a passport is a specifically-stated requirement for the White Pass trips. So your only choices are either to carry it, with all the risks that entails, or not to go.

 

But that doesn't change the position in the places where you genuinely have a choice as to whether you are going to carry your passport with you, or whether you are going to leave it in the safe on board the ship.

How could pickpockets get my pp when it is inside my pants and undies for "emergency use" only?

You might be surprised to find what razor blades can do, when wielded by skilled hands. (Remember, some of these pickpocket gangs are trained on clothing that has razor blades sewn into the pockets, to make sure that their skills are up to snuff.)

 

And what if you're robbed, rather than just pickpocketed?

Spain and France are both parties to the Schengen Agreement, so as you say a trip from one to the other by land or air is considered "domestic" and requires no passport, but because a cruise ship no doubt travels in international waters on its passage between the two countries, is it not possible that a passport is required for a cruise? You've technically left the Schengen area once you're in international waters. I'm no expert in the details of the Schengen Agreement, but this seems to be at least a possible explanation.

It's certainly possible that there's some technical reason like this why NCL had no option, which is why I don't think I'm in a position to criticise NCL for what they did. However, many intra-Schengen flights also travel over international waters and through international airspace, so this isn't necessarily the explanation, either.

Have you ever heard of "two wrongs don't make a right"?

 

3 lefts do though ;)

Seriously, This thread has me thinking---Is it possible to get 2 passports (that way one is available as a 'backup')?

 

But-I leave my original in the cabin safe & carry a photo copy. I know the photo copy isn't really 'valid' but if I'm stranded it can make it 'easier' to get a replacement and onto a plane. And it seems there can be more serious problems if the one & only original is lost

I have scanned my passports and emailed the copy to myself on a secured server. Anywhere in the world where there is internet access - there is a copy of my passport available to only me.

 

I hope this might be a helful tip.

There are always going to be some situations in which you will need to have your passport with you. For myself, that's most often the case if I'm renting a car in the port. I think that carrying a passport is a specifically-stated requirement for the White Pass trips. So your only choices are either to carry it, with all the risks that entails, or not to go.

 

But that doesn't change the position in the places where you genuinely have a choice as to whether you are going to carry your passport with you, or whether you are going to leave it in the safe on board the ship.You might be surprised to find what razor blades can do, when wielded by skilled hands. (Remember, some of these pickpocket gangs are trained on clothing that has razor blades sewn into the pockets, to make sure that their skills are up to snuff.)

 

And what if you're robbed, rather than just pickpocketed?It's certainly possible that there's some technical reason like this why NCL had no option, which is why I don't think I'm in a position to criticise NCL for what they did. However, many intra-Schengen flights also travel over international waters and through international airspace, so this isn't necessarily the explanation, either.

 

No one is getting on an airplane in mid flight (we hope). It would be quite possible for someone to board a ship from a boat in the Mediterranean in mid cruise however...so there is a difference between air and sea travel in international waters.

It's a bit more complex than some people has stated.

 

Monaco is not a member of the EU , or a member of the Schengen agreement.

 

However it does share an open land border with France , so no passport is required by land.

 

I am not sure what the requirements are on a ship arriving from a Schengen country.

No one is getting on an airplane in mid flight (we hope). It would be quite possible for someone to board a ship from a boat in the Mediterranean in mid cruise however...so there is a difference between air and sea travel in international waters.

True, but immigration authorities at mid-cruise ports of call usually trust cruise ships enough to apply "transit passenger" rules (eg no need to clear immigration personally before proceeding ashore, no need to hold visit/tourist visas, no need to prove funds, etc), which they wouldn't if there was any real risk of individuals boarding between ports of call. Cruise ships actually have more incentive to prevent this occurring than immigration authorities do, hence the trust placed in cruise ship security.

Maybe if NCL let him travel without a passport he would not be able to get off at the next port - or any other port. It would be like Charlie and the MTA. He would ride forever on the Norwegian Jade but never return. Poor old Charlie.