Yes...another passport question

Do we need to take our original passports w/ us onshore or a copy of it? Thanks, SKM

No, to both questions. :)

We usually take a copy of the id pages from our passports along just in case. You really need your photo id and sign and sail card though. (Photo id is more for entrance to the pier area rather than boarding ship)

Most of the ports that are not US the photo ID is not really needed.

Is it true you can just bring a certified birth certificate, marriage certificate and driver's license instead of passports? Passports cost around $95.00 each and we're on a tight budget...plus they'll be 4 of us...2 adukts & 2 kids!

Is it true you can just bring a certified birth certificate, marriage certificate and driver's license instead of passports? Passports cost around $95.00 each and we're on a tight budget...plus they'll be 4 of us...2 adukts & 2 kids!

They have changed their minds, and you do not have to have passports till the end of this year. You will need the raised seal birth certificates issued by the government (not the ones with the cute little footprints) and driver's licenses (government issues photo ID) for those 16 years and older.

You will now have $180 to use on excursions!

They have changed their minds, and you do not have to have passports till the end of this year.

Great...THANKS!

You should always travel (ANYWHERE) with a passport. They make life easy. In port you shoud always take a photocopy of the data pages of your passport. And some ports do required you to have a gov issue photo ID to return to the cruise terminal area where the ship is docked.

dhcoaster is correct. We just returned from the Grand Princess yesterday and for one port in particular, Cozumel, we were reminded in our daily newsletter that we would need to take a photo ID to shore with us. My MIL forgot hers and although they did let her back on the ship, they gave her a hard time, which made her a little nervous! ;) Each port must be a little different as this was the only one on our Western Caribbean cruise that required this.

Still on the same topic, but I have a different question. My friends and I will be leaving out of the port of Galveston on the Carnival Elation at the end of March. I know in LA there were two lines when you got off the ship (one for passports & one for birth certs) Three out of the four of us have passports... do you think they will allow the one person to stay with us in the passport line? or do you think the three of us will have to wait for him on the "other side?"

Well, its the passport line. Not the line for 3 out of 4 have passports. Maybe you can smile nice, or maybe the immigration/customs guy won't care. But its likely the BC person will have to go in the BC line.

I figured so much... I just wouldn't want him to wait with us and then have to wait all over again. Our flight doesn't leave until the evening... I guess we should just play it safe and have him wait in the long line...

Thanks

~K

I must admit that this post makes me a little nervous. Being a Canadian Citizen, our passports are taken away at embarkation. It is a little nervewracking being in a foriegn country without ones passport.

In most cases passports are not required when going ashore in countries outside of the US when on a cruise ship. Kootenaydream, when we cruise to countries outside of the US our passport is also taken when we check-in with the cruise line and held until the day before we disembark the ship. We did have an exception on a recent cruise where one of the countries we visited required that we have a passport with us so we had to pick up our passport at the pursers office so that we could have it with us when we visited the country.

But, in almost all cases that is the exception rather than a rule.

On a related note, be sure to make copies of your passport before you travel and if you are traveling with a spouse be sure that whoever is holding the original passports that the other person is holding the copies. If per chance you lose your passports, having the copies will help to facilitate getting replacements.

Keith