A different question about Passports

Hey folks Happy Thanksgiving,

Just a short question about our passports.

My husband & I will be on the NOS this Sunday... when we get off the ship for excursions, do we take a copy of our passports or the actual passports?

Any assistance would greatly appreciated... Thank you !!

jean

Hi Jean -- we took copies of the photo page which has all of your info on it when we left ship in port for excursions. Leave your original passports locked in your cabin safe. You never have to worry about where they are the entire cruise. Just don't forget and leave them in the safe when you are finished your cruise.. Haha..

Have a great Thanksgiving..

:D: you for the info!!

What ports are you visiting? And have a wonderful time too..

You will get wide range of opinions on here from not travelling with a passport to keeping it in the safe and carrying a copy with you to taking it with you.

If something happened that you missed the ship you would need your passport to board a plane. A copy won't do that. A copy would help expedite getting a new passport issued.

We take ours with us.

Hi,

that is a question that does not have the correct or wrong answer.

If on a cruise in Europe ( especially visiting Russia) or a cruise to China - I would have the passport with me.

The islands in the caribbean, especially if we might go swimming ..... we take the copy ( a good copy with the picture well shown - for ID).

I am aware that copy will not let me get on a plane..... if there was a problrm and I missed the ship ...... but I am hopping that the cruise ship will empty my safe ( where I left the passport) and give my document to their agent in port.

In the Caribbean, my passport goes in the safe when I board and comes out at the end of the cruise.

In the Caribbean, my passport goes in the safe when I board and comes out at the end of the cruise.

This is what I do everywhere, unless I am required by the local authorities to carry it ashore, or I want to do something where it will be needed, like changing money. The ships daily newsletter should advise if passports are required to be taken ashore.

We had eight people miss the ship when we left Aruba on Carnival so I asked the question out of curiosity. I was informed that security will open your safe and if there are passports inside, they will leave them with the port agent for retrieval when you arrive. While I don't know how true this is, thankfully, you might want to check with guests services when you get onboard.

Cruisers fall into one of two camps... take it with you or leave it in the safe on the ship. Which is best for you is the one you feel more comfortable with. Sometimes what you are doing while you are ashore maybe a factor whether you take the PP with you, such as what to do with it while you are engaged in water activities? Are you going on a tour far from the port that is not ship sponsored? No single answer fits all situations.

Mine stays safe in the safe unless you are required to have it on you or there some other extenuating circumstances. Nowadays your passport could very well be the most valuable item you carry. In my travels I have been robbed while soaking up the local culture (and they got the passport too), but I have not even come close to missing the ship!

We often take ours with us.

This is what I do everywhere, unless I am required by the local authorities to carry it ashore, or I want to do something where it will be needed, like changing money. The ships daily newsletter should advise if passports are required to be taken ashore.

This.

I usually do not take my passport ashore, but it depends on the port. Most ports appreciate the cruise line business and are not looking to make life difficult for the cruise line passengers. Normally I will take a copy of my passport and a drivers license as a picture ID. I am not aware of any place in the Caribbean that requires passports. Sometimes they look for a picture ID re-board the ship in Nassau. There are some places in Europe that required a passport, but that was to leave the ship not re-board. So if you get off the ship there won't be a problem. Don't worry about the ship sailing away with your passports, if you happen to miss the ship, RCL will get them from your safe and leave them with the port agent.

We had eight people miss the ship when we left Aruba on Carnival so I asked the question out of curiosity. I was informed that security will open your safe and if there are passports inside, they will leave them with the port agent for retrieval when you arrive. While I don't know how true this is, thankfully, you might want to check with guests services when you get onboard.

We saw a ship officer hand a couple passports to someone on the pier from our balcony a couple years ago. Ship moved out, two people came running and missed it. At least they had their passports, so I guess they do indeed look for them in your cabin and leave them with the port authorities.

We leave ours in the safe. As others have said, opinions vary:)

I never leave the country, and rarely leave the ship, without my passport. In fact, I never fly anywhere without it, even domestically. It is a great form of ID in airports. Some people are so worried about their passports getting stolen I am surprised that they ever take them out of their houses.

It was funny to read the title of the thread "a new question about passports" and find the same question that has been asked around here for years.

We take our passports with us. As others have said, if you miss the ship, a copy won't get you on a plane to catch up with the ship. The excuse that most people use for not taking their passport with them is that they don't want to risk losing it. I carry my wallet with me everywhere. My wife carries a purse. Neither one of us has EVER lost our wallet or purse. I figure if I am responsible enough to hang onto my wallet then I am responsible enough to also hang onto my passport.

Passport doesn't do much good for you if it's not on your person when you need it, and even in a best-case scenario it can take days to get a replacement one issued.

I say carry it off the ship with you.

:p

Passport doesn't do much good for you if it's not on your person when you need it, and even in a best-case scenario it can take days to get a replacement one issued.

 

I say carry it off the ship with you.

I totally agree with you that your passport is not much good if you don't have it. But since I have had my pocket picked once, my handbag stolen from my desk at work once and my house burgled twice, I think everything is safer in the safe than in my pocket.

I know that if I am injured ashore and taken to the hospital, a passport would be a good idea. But with my record, someone would pick my pocket while I was lying unconscious in the street! :p Much better to pin my hopes on the ship taking my passport out of the safe and giving it to the port agent.

If, for some reason, you don't make it back to the ship, they will get into your safe, and put your stuff ashore...so if you have a passport, it will be there for you. Leave it in your safe, unless you're in a country that requires it. Caribbean countries do NOT require passports from cruisers.