B2B and Jones Act

Exactly right. And, Jones Act = cargo version of the PVSA. Protectionist rules that really no longer apply as there is little to none USA passenger (or cargo) shipping. Just another bureaucratic bungle. I would advise people with these questions to approach Princess as they ultimately know best and are responsible for your cruise.:D

There still is plenty of cargo between Hawaii , West Coast and Alaska. All oil carried has to be in US Flagged ships ,this also includes gasoline , diesel and other similar products.

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It's really easy to tell a "near" foreign port from a "far" foreign port. A "near" foreign port is on the North American continent. A "far" foreign port must not be on the North American continent.

It's really easy to tell a "near" foreign port from a "far" foreign port. A "near" foreign port is on the North American continent. A "far" foreign port must not be on the North American continent.

DH and I will be in Pacific northwest in September and wanted to take advantage of a couple of cruises. Checked with my TA today and was told we'd be in violation to do a 1-day Seattle to Vancouver immediately followed by a 3-day Vancouver to Los Angeles. Said that Princess would not book us on those 2 cruises even if we disembarked the first and re-boarded (as if new pax) the next one. Both are on the same ship.

 

That is exactly what the PVSA prohibits as it would be in effect a cruise from Seattle to Los Angeles.

If you change ships it does not violate the PVSA I did it last year with one ship from Seattle to Vancouver switching the same day to a ship from Vancouver to San Francisco

If you change ships it does not violate the PVSA I did it last year with one ship from Seattle to Vancouver switching the same day to a ship from Vancouver to San Francisco

Did you also change cruise lines? Or just cruise ships (sticking with the same cruise line for both sailings)???

Did you also change cruise lines? Or just cruise ships (sticking with the same cruise line for both sailings)???

Just Princess. Golden to Vancouver, Island to San Francisco. It was possible to take three cruises in four days if you flew back from Vancouver to Seattle and a lot of people were doing it to get Elite

We are really confused and unsure if this Act affects our cruise plans at all. We are in Australia and planning a cruise on Princess. 3 back to back cruises. Anchorage to Vancouver. Vancouver to LA. LA to Ft Lauderdale. Are we going to be able to book that? If not, could we just leave out the 5 day Vancouver to LA cruise and just do the Alaska and Panama Canal cruises?

Not trying to be snotty here, and I have to admit I didn't read all the posts because I wanted to respond....but the vast majority of you have told Natmix that it is legal because he hits a foreign port (South America & Panama). Did you guys all miss that he is booking THREE separate cruises. Not one. So my question is, can this be booked as one or is it only sold as three separate cruises because it seems the answer might be different. I really am curious.

Not trying to be snotty here, and I have to admit I didn't read all the posts because I wanted to respond....but the vast majority of you have told Natmix that it is legal because he hits a foreign port (South America & Panama). Did you guys all miss that he is booking THREE separate cruises. Not one. So my question is, can this be booked as one or is it only sold as three separate cruises because it seems the answer might be different. I really am curious.

We didn't miss it at all. One, three, six, it doesn't matter. It's where you board and where you disembark that matters. In this case it's anchorage to Ft Lauderdale with a foreign distant cruise in there. Totally legal

If you change ships it does not violate the PVSA I did it last year with one ship from Seattle to Vancouver switching the same day to a ship from Vancouver to San Francisco

Correct. If you change ships, it's not a violation. But the voyages in question here are on the same ship... the poster wanted to know if they could disembark and embark to get around the regulation. While that might have worked in the days before everything was computerized, Princess's computer system will flag it now.

If you booked multiple segments like that be very careful as you book them that the cruises you've booked so far do not constitute a PVSA violation. I had the future cruise consultant on the Ocean Princess book me on the Pacific Princess next May LA to Vancouver Vancouver to Anchorage Anchorage to Vancouver and after the second segment it popped up a PVSA violation. The shame is she had no idea why although cruisers on this board were more savvy and called her a lot of names as a result of which she is still ignoring my presence. Rather unprofessional of her if you ask me!

If you booked multiple segments like that be very careful as you book them that the cruises you've booked so far do not constitute a PVSA violation. I had the future cruise consultant on the Ocean Princess book me on the Pacific Princess next May LA to Vancouver Vancouver to Anchorage Anchorage to Vancouver and after the second segment it popped up a PVSA violation. The shame is she had no idea why although cruisers on this board were more savvy and called her a lot of names as a result of which she is still ignoring my presence. Rather unprofessional of her if you ask me!

And that was my point. This PP is booking three separate cruises on the same ship. He is not booking one long one.

That it is multiple segments shouldn't matter - what matters is the port of embarkation and the port of disembarkation. We all know that this is the case when the overall itinerary violates the PVSA - but there's nothing in the law that makes it any different if the two end ports to do not constitute a violation.

It may be beyond the abilities of some TAs to book it, since booking it segment by segment does cause the incomplete booking to appear to be in violation. I'd guess that someone at Princess corporate should be able to push the right buttons and book the total itinerary legally (perhaps it's as simple as booking the second segment last). If the complete itinerary can be booked under a single voyage number it will be much simpler but maybe not priced as well.

We are planning a b2 b, Seattle to Vancouver (Alaska) and Vancouver to Hawaii , ending there. If the answer is no- may we pay the $300 a person penalty and then do it. A Carnival rep says yes! Please help...........

If that's on the same ship, yes, Seattle to Hawaii is a violation. The cruise line will not allow you to book it even if you're willing to pay the penalty, because they cannot knowingly violate the law.

If that's on the same ship, yes, Seattle to Hawaii is a violation. The cruise line will not allow you to book it even if you're willing to pay the penalty, because they cannot knowingly violate the law.

It is not Seattle to Hawaii, It's Seattle to Vancouver -7 nights-then the next leg is Vancouver to Hawaii- 10 nights.

Right, but if you stay on the same ship, it's considered one big cruise. One that is not allowed, because it's a PVSA violation.

If you're changing ships in Vancouver then there's no problem.

It is not Seattle to Hawaii, It's Seattle to Vancouver -7 nights-then the next leg is Vancouver to Hawaii- 10 nights.

For the sake of the PVSA and in the eyes of the Customs/Border Protection agency, it's Seattle to Hawaii.

When we ran into this scenario, the cruise line offered to pay the $300 per person fine on our behalf (they had originally allowed us to BOOK the B2B), however Customs/Border Protection said "no".

If you can book the first leg on a different ship and then board the other ship to Hawaii, you'll be fine. But you can't stay on that same ship as the agency that oversees the PVSA will view it as a Seattle to Hawaii cruise, not as two separate ones whether you book it as two or not. And even if some TA attempts to book this combo or someone at the cruise line accidentally does, you will be notified that you need to cancel one of the legs. No cruise line will want to risk getting into deep doo-doo deliberately booking this arrangement, whether or not you offer to pay the fine.

The cruise line can be hit with serious penalties for willful violations. The most severe is losing the right to call on US ports.

We are planning a b2 b, Seattle to Vancouver (Alaska) and Vancouver to Hawaii , ending there. If the answer is no- may we pay the $300 a person penalty and then do it. A Carnival rep says yes! Please help...........

I would ask another rep. In this B2B (Seattle-Vancouver -Hawaii) isn't valid. Vancouver isn't considered a foreign port in this B2B.

I would ask another rep. In this B2B (Seattle-Vancouver -Hawaii) isn't valid. Vancouver isn't considered a foreign port in this B2B.

It is a foreign port, which is why those two particular open-loop itineraries can each be booked although they can't be combined.

Vancouver is a foreign port, but for the Seattle to Hawaii itinerary to be legal, the ship must visit a "Distant" foreign port. South America and Fanning Island are the closest that could fill the requirement