Do you bring your passport into ports?

I've seen all the passport threads and DH & I both have passports which we of course bring on the cruise but have never carried into the ports. Guess we're usually doing beach/water activities in places where there don't seem to be easy ways to secure them and I didn't want to worry about them getting stolen. But that does seem to defeat the purpose of having them in an emergency (missing the ship). Would making a copy and carrying that help at all? Or should we carry them in any case? Thanks!

We carry ours every time we get off the boat. That and a credit card. You just never know if you might need it.

We never carry passports ashore. They are securely locked up in our cabin safe. The only thing needed for entry back into the port areas is a picture ID and ship card, so we just carry our drivers licenses. We do sometimes carry copies of our passports. In case of an emergency, the ship can be contacted and they will remove passports from the safe for you. I seem to recall reports about passengers who don't show up back at the dock for boarding and their passports are given to the port manager ( not sure of the title. ).

I've seen all the passport threads and DH & I both have passports which we of course bring on the cruise but have never carried into the ports. Guess we're usually doing beach/water activities in places where there don't seem to be easy ways to secure them and I didn't want to worry about them getting stolen. But that does seem to defeat the purpose of having them in an emergency (missing the ship). Would making a copy and carrying that help at all? Or should we carry them in any case? Thanks!

A copy won't really help, the Consulate can find your records with the information that you already know (having a copy or passport number might speed the search by a few seconds). Many feel that the risk of taking the passport ashore is greater than possibly needing it and if something does happen the ship will, according to conventional wisdom, retrieve your passports from your safe and turn it in to the port agent. Of course if you know that you will be/might be late and miss the ship you can call ahead to make sure that this gets done. So, just like making the decision to obtain a passport or not this boils down to what each person feels comfortable doing and there is no one answer for everyone.

This is a never ending debate around here. As a regular international traveler (not just cruises), I never go anywhere without my passport. If I'm in a city in Europe, my passport is literally always with me. If I so much as leave my hotel room to go to the lobby, I carry my passport.

There are two both unlikely concerns: Those of us who carry it, are avoiding the possibility of needing it, and not having it. Those who lock it up, are avoiding the possibility of losing it.

Personally, while both eventualities are incredibly unlikely, I would much rather find myself stuck at the port in Florida or New York, having lost my passport, than to be sitting in some island of foreign city somewhere without it.

I respect people's anxiety about losing it. But I suspect they have never gotten comfortable carrying it. To me, it's second nature.

We leave our passports in the safe in our cabin on the ship.

We do carry a photocopy. In case of some emergency it is better than nothing and safer than carrying a passport.

We also carry the port agent's info with us for each port. It is in the ship newsletter the night before each port. In case of emergency he's the one to contact. He is also the one that ship security will give your passport to if you miss the ship. They will open the safe to see if there's a passport.

I don't. I carry the ship card and picture ID. The only time I carried my passport while in a cruise port was when I was in Alexandria / Cairo. Egypt was still a bit up in the air at that time and I thought that if I needed it, it might be hard to get it to the port representative. It was also an overnight stop, so I thought it better to have it on me.

I feel that statistics show that I'll be more likely to lose it or have it stolen than need it ashore. If the data changes, I'll change what I do. However this policy has served me well so far.

With land vacations, it's a toss up. It depends on the type of safe in the room, the stability of the country I'm in and where I'll be traveling while there.

I don't. I carry the ship card and picture ID.

I feel that statistics show that I'll be more likely to lose it or have it stolen than need it ashore. If the data changes, I'll change what I do. However this policy has served me well so far.

 

With land vacations, it's a toss up. It depends on the type of safe in the room, the stability of the country I'm in and where I'll be traveling while there.

Lol, are we related? :D

This is exactly me!!

Lol, are we related? :D

 

This is exactly me!!

LOL Great minds!

For those that insist on carrying your passports with you in port: be aware that certain itineraries require that you give your passport to the ship. They hold it and return it later.

We had this occur in January 2014 when we visited Tunisia. The ship held onto our passports for about 24 hours. Again in December 2014 on a repositioning cruise that included Ecuador, Peru and Chile. In that case, they held our passports for 4-5 days.

Two different cruise lines, BTW.

In any event, we always leave passports safely locked up in the safe - whether we are on a ship or in a hotel or at home. We carry copies. The risk of losing my bag or DH being pick pocketed or being held up are MUCH higher than our risk of missing the ship!

 

We had this occur in January 2014 when we visited Tunisia. The ship held onto our passports for about 24 hours. Again in December 2014 on a repositioning cruise that included Ecuador, Peru and Chile. In that case, they held our passports for 4-5 days.

Two different cruise lines, BTW.

Wow! That's quite a long time. I've had it held a day or so (Egypt, maybe Turkey), never longer. Was that because those stops were that far into the cruise?

This is a never ending debate around here. As a regular international traveler (not just cruises), I never go anywhere without my passport. If I'm in a city in Europe, my passport is literally always with me. If I so much as leave my hotel room to go to the lobby, I carry my passport.

 

There are two both unlikely concerns: Those of us who carry it, are avoiding the possibility of needing it, and not having it. Those who lock it up, are avoiding the possibility of losing it.

 

Personally, while both eventualities are incredibly unlikely, I would much rather find myself stuck at the port in Florida or New York, having lost my passport, than to be sitting in some island of foreign city somewhere without it.

 

I respect people's anxiety about losing it. But I suspect they have never gotten comfortable carrying it. To me, it's second nature.

Devils Advocate here.....what if you go ashore, lose your passport/have it stolen, AND you are late to the ship? Then you are in a wooooorld of hurt I assume?

This is kind of how I think. I'm so used to having it when I travel, that I can't imagine not having it. I cannot imagine walking around a foreign country without my passport on me. Most people who regularly travel overseas feel the same way, and the State Department recommends always keeping it on you.

Hmmm I think that's probably personality dependent, and perhaps where one travels. I've traveled regularly for 20 years, alone, with others, some nice countries, some iffy, but carrying my passport is never a constant. Many of my friends are regularl travelers too, for business and pleasure, but it's the same, it depends on the variables stated above.

It probably has to do with personality type. Oh well...Different strokes! :)

Devils Advocate here.....what if you go ashore, lose your passport/have it stolen, AND you are late to the ship? Then you are in a wooooorld of hurt I assume?

It is my understanding that the Consulate can issue an emergency passport from the information in the system. Might be delayed a little but you would make it home.

Hmmm I think that's probably personality dependent, and perhaps where one travels. I've traveled regularly for 20 years, alone, with others, some nice countries, some iffy, but carrying my passport is never a constant. Many of my friends are regularl travelers too, for business and pleasure, but it's the same, it depends on the variables stated above.

 

It probably has to do with personality type. Oh well...Different strokes! :)

I agree that it's possibly personality driven. It also probably has to do with nationality. People from USA have hangups about passports that people from other countries don't share.

Personally, I'd rather have my passport stolen than my driver's license. A driver's license is more valuable to most thieves because it is more common and contains more information (such as home address, which makes it easier for an average thief to steal identity). Also, if stolen they are easier to alter than passports.

But I absolutely agree that it is personal preference. Personally, I feel safer following the advice of the state department, since they are the ones I expect to take care of me in the unlikely even something bad happens when I'm overseas.

I agree that it's possibly personality driven. It also probably has to do with nationality. People from USA have hangups about passports that people from other countries don't share.

 

Personally, I'd rather have my passport stolen than my driver's license. A driver's license is more valuable to most thieves because it is more common and contains more information (such as home address, which makes it easier for an average thief to steal identity). Also, if stolen they are easier to alter than passports.

 

But I absolutely agree that it is personal preference. Personally, I feel safer following the advice of the state department, since they are the ones I expect to take care of me in the unlikely even something bad happens when I'm overseas.

A US passport is worth thousands on the blackmarket. As for what State advises the last written advice that I saw on their website was for travelers to keep the passport in a safe place and not to carry it unless you needed it. That language was taken down and the last I looked had not been replaced with any other language.

On our Escape cruise, we will be sure to have our passports at St. Thomas, because if we miss the ship, we can simply take the 45 minute ferry from Charlotte Amalie to Tortola and catch up with it the next day, getting extra time on the islands. HAHA! I've ridden that ferry before, but you do need a passport to go from the USVI to BVI by ferry.

It never leaves the ship. It is never on me when sightseeing on a land vacation. Many hotels in Europe will actually hold the passport until check-out. I have needed it to exchange money at banks in Germany, but I was living there at the time and it was before ATM kiosks.

It is a lot safer off you than on you. Why tempt fate or pickpockets?

A US passport is worth thousands on the blackmarket. As for what State advises the last written advice that I saw on their website was for travelers to keep the passport in a safe place and not to carry it unless you needed it. That language was taken down and the last I looked had not been replaced with any other language.

Oh, I agree that it is worth thousands. That's not what I mean. The pickpockets don't know who has passports and who doesn't. You are not more or less likely to be targeted depending on whether or not you are carrying it. How much the person selling it makes has nothing to do with me as a victim. I can be harmed from having my driver's license stolen, as well.

A US passport is worth thousands on the blackmarket.

It's not like it would be the hottest item on the market.. ;) ;)

http://www.ibtimes.com/best-passports-have-unrestricted-travel-around-world-1422038

EDIT: And just like leisuretraveller223, "As a regular international traveler (not just cruises), I never go anywhere without my passport."

I've seen all the passport threads and DH & I both have passports which we of course bring on the cruise but have never carried into the ports. Guess we're usually doing beach/water activities in places where there don't seem to be easy ways to secure them and I didn't want to worry about them getting stolen. But that does seem to defeat the purpose of having them in an emergency (missing the ship). Would making a copy and carrying that help at all? Or should we carry them in any case? Thanks!

Everyone has his/her own opinion about this, but we never take our PP on shore. We used to years ago, now we think we are safer leaving them in the cabin safe. We just take a picture ID and our cabin card.

You have to ask yourself what has the greater odds of happening?

Something happening onshore like a medical emergency that would leave you behind or just plain missing the ship.

Or having your purse/wallet stolen, pick pocketed, accidentally leaving a bag somewhere (cab, bus, restroom, restaurant etc.) or it dropping out when looking or digging for something else.

To us it is a no-brainer -- the odds of the later (losing the passport in someway) is so far and above higher than the odds of the former (actually needing the passport in port) that we would never carry our passport off the ship.

The decision is yours. You will get a fifty - fifty split on taking it ashore.

Just know this in making your decision - Most of the luxury lines take your passport at boarding and hold it for the duration of the cruise, so those passengers do not take their passports ashore.

We cruise a variety of lines and on over 50% of my cruises the passports have been held and I think nothing of it.

We take our passports on shore in Bermuda once each visit (non-beach day) to have it stamped in St. George with the Bermuda stamp. Our kids like to see the stamps add up. :D