Passport question traveling to Greece & Israel ?

Have been on 20 cruises and never have had the ship hold our passports - reading about cruising to Israel & Greece on the Celebrity Silhouette in September 2016 and it sounds like the ship holds your passport except when going to Israel - could someone explain? We usually keep our passports in the room safe and always carry copies when getting off the ship -except in Russia where they stamp your passport getting on and off ship.

Have been on 20 cruises and never have had the ship hold our passports - reading about cruising to Israel & Greece on the Celebrity Silhouette in September 2016 and it sounds like the ship holds your passport except when going to Israel - could someone explain? We usually keep our passports in the room safe and always carry copies when getting off the ship -except in Russia where they stamp your passport getting on and off ship.

We cruised on the Thomson Spirit last March, visiting Greek Islands, Turkey and Israel. The ship held our passports and gave them back for Israel. It wasn't a problem. The ship used them to apply for our Turkish Visas and to apply for clearance for Israel. It wasn't a problem!

As regards stamping of passports, this doesn't usually happen in the Eastern Med because there are a number of countries that would not allow you in if you have certain stamps in your passport!

Many cruise lines hold your passports all the time but some that don't hold it for certain itineraries.

It's no big deal.

We never recommend carrying it in port unless you are required to do so.

When you arrive to Israel each passenger will need to be seen by an official from Israel before the ship is cleared and you can get off the ship and you will need to carry your passports with you.

Keith

Also if you do a multi day stop in Israel and like us will stay overnight in Jerusalem you will need a form of identity (ie Passport) for check-in.

Depending on the countries visited, the cruise ship often needs to present all the passports for immigration/visa control. You'll have a few new stamps in it when you get it back!

The Caribbean countries seem to be less interested in this activity, possibly because of the sheer volume of transit passengers, or maybe they tailor their immigration laws to cater to the cruise lines.

As for Israel, the country requires you to carry your passport at all times, and also require a face-to-face immigration check. But if Celebrity is like others, they will collect it from you again when you board at the end of the day.