Passports????

[4realrod]

Seems that lately lots of people are worried about having the right documentation to cruise. I have have a passport for years and am curious as to why one would choose not to get documentation that is valid for 10yrs. The cost is nominal and then it eliminates the worry of having a BC and Govt issued id. Plus if something were to happen and one needed to fly you would have all that you need to return to the US. So please those that don't have a passport shed some light as to your reasoning.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Seems that lately lots of people are worried about having the right documentation to cruise. I have have a passport for years and am curious as to why one would choose not to get documentation that is valid for 10yrs. The cost is nominal and then it eliminates the worry of having a BC and Govt issued id. Plus if something were to happen and one needed to fly you would have all that you need to return to the US. So please those that don't have a passport shed some light as to your reasoning.

 

What is nominal to you might be a lot to others.

 

Mom,dad,and 4 kids is over $1000.

 

Doesn't sound nominal to me.

 

29 cruises and haven't needed a passport to fly home yet.

 

Bill

 

 

 

 

Sent from Iphone 4S using Cruise Critic App

[beachbum53]

Seems that lately lots of people are worried about having the right documentation to cruise. I have have a passport for years and am curious as to why one would choose not to get documentation that is valid for 10yrs. The cost is nominal and then it eliminates the worry of having a BC and Govt issued id. Plus if something were to happen and one needed to fly you would have all that you need to return to the US. So please those that don't have a passport shed some light as to your reasoning.

 

My guess would the cost, especially if you have children. Passports aren't cheap, and although they're good for ten years, I'm guessing that those families that want to cruise but are on a limited budget, may find it a bit of a financial strain after paying for a cruise plus airline tickets. And if a family can only afford to cruise once a year, or once every two or three years, and they don't travel outside of their home country (U.S., Canada, or wherever) for other vacations, they may have a hard time justifying the additional cost of passports, especially when a birth certificate and valid photo i.d. will suffice.

[BubMunkeyBles]

I agree. But lots of people find them a waste of money though it seems with cruising. And kids passports are only good for 5 years. I have to renew my almost 5 year olds when we get back from our February cruise (which makes sense because her picture is a little funny considering she was 4 weeks old in it).

 

We're a traveling military family so we just all stay up to date. Makes it easy to go where we want and when we want without worry. Very much worth the money for our lifestyle and I like not having to worry.

[Out to sea!]

What is nominal to you might be a lot to others.

 

Mom,dad,and 4 kids is over $1000.

 

Doesn't sound nominal to me.

 

29 cruises and haven't needed a passport to fly home yet.

 

Bill

 

 

 

 

Sent from Iphone 4S using Cruise Critic App

 

First, how many families have 4 kids? Not many at all these days and of those that do, a very small percentage of them cruise because if they could afford to cruise with 6 people, the passports would be a minimal expense. But in reality, you want to talk about people not having the money to buy passports but have the money to go cruising. Personally, I hope they change the rules to make people who leave the US for any reason (cruise, flight, driving, walking) be required to have a passport. If someone is so strapped that they can't afford a $150 passport that's good for 10 years, they really can't afford to go cruising either.

[Kamloops50]

For us to cruise we have to fly to a port in the US except Alaska . Even then if you want to go from Skagway across the Canada/US border you'll still need a passport. The US under the WHTI program requires that returning from Canada or Mexico a passport is required.

[TravelE]

I like the security of a passport and we went through the time consuming process of getting passports for our two children. I believe their passports are only good for 5 years.

[Stacy_C]

First, how many families have 4 kids? Not many at all these days and of those that do, a very small percentage of them cruise because if they could afford to cruise with 6 people, the passports would be a minimal expense. But in reality, you want to talk about people not having the money to buy passports but have the money to go cruising. Personally, I hope they change the rules to make people who leave the US for any reason (cruise, flight, driving, walking) be required to have a passport. If someone is so strapped that they can't afford a $150 passport that's good for 10 years, they really can't afford to go cruising either.

 

Why would you hope they would change the rules? What bearing would it have on you?

 

I have 3 kids. $150 for a family of 5, is a huge hit financially. That doesn't mean I don't have the funds for the passports and it certainly doesn't mean that I can't afford the cruise in the first place. But, if I don't have to do it, I'm not going to, especially if it saves me $750. Plain and simple.

Edited December 27, 2013 by Stacy_C

[BubMunkeyBles]

For us to cruise we have to fly to a port in the US except Alaska . Even then if you want to go from Skagway across the Canada/US border you'll still need a passport. The US under the WHTI program requires that returning from Canada or Mexico a passport is required.

 

And lots of people complain on the Alaskan cruises when they can't do the rail into the Yukon (an amazing experience). I will never understand why other countries don't require US citizens to have passports to enter though (such as those on cruise ships). Seems like an immigration nightmare. I'm sure the US wouldn't want cruise ships from other countries just stopping in the US as a port of call without passports.

[sparks1093]

Seems that lately lots of people are worried about having the right documentation to cruise. I have have a passport for years and am curious as to why one would choose not to get documentation that is valid for 10yrs. The cost is nominal and then it eliminates the worry of having a BC and Govt issued id. Plus if something were to happen and one needed to fly you would have all that you need to return to the US. So please those that don't have a passport shed some light as to your reasoning.

 

I can only speak for myself. The only types of travel that we can do right now is via closed loop cruises. The risk to us is very low- we drive to the port, usually the day before, there is no one at home that we would need to get back to in an emergency, we are in good health and participate in very low risk activities in port and take ship's sponsored excursions or make sure we are back to the ship in plenty of time. We do have travel insurance to cover the unforeseen emergencies. I have read the DHS regulations extensively and know that exceptions may be made to the travel documentation requirements in the case of a medical emergency or for humanitarian reasons, so we know that we aren't going to be stranded in a port.

 

With all of that said it doesn't make sense to buy something that isn't required and let half of it's validity disappear before we actually need it because it will be several years before we will be able to travel internationally in a way that requires a passport. (And when we first started cruising with our 5 boys the sticker shock was, well, shocking but if I had determined that we needed the passports we either would have gotten them or chosen a different vacation.)

[rolaur]

I am 52 and have had a passport since birth. So have my kids. I am American born but my parents were European and I think that in most countries other than the US, it is common that you have a passport as others travel internationally a lot more often than Americans do (think a weekend drive in Europe). That was my parents belief and they made sure that when they got their US passport, they carried it around the world with pride!

I can see no reason NOT to have a passport. It is the ultimate proof of your American citizenship and, you really never know when you might need one at the last minute (maybe you win a grand prize around the world trip on a game show that leaves tomorrow....LOL)! At $15 a year, is it really a stretch? Two less drinks on your cruise.

[Jimmy Geegitz]

Sure is alot less hassle to have a passport.

[fishtaco]

Its all a bit of a curiosity to me!

 

I cant leave my country or re enter my country without a passport let alone other countries.

 

Last carnival cruise out of USA the person checking my passport may just as well have been reading it upside down and back to front:D

 

If it wasnt for the Jones Act thing you have then those who could not afford passports to cruise overseas would possibly quite happily cruise from one US port to another along the coast.

 

I suppose with the high tech facial recognition cruise lines use then it would be almost impossible for a passenger to switch places in an overseas port for an undesirable one anyway:)

 

When we cruise to Bali Indonesia and Vietnam we have to leave our passports onboard with immigration officials that board in each country then they are given back once we leave that countries waters, so even if I missed the ship in Bali etc or encountered trouble I wouldnt have my passport anyway :eek:

[Out to sea!]

Why would you hope they would change the rules? What bearing would it have on you?

 

I have 3 kids. $150 for a family of 5, is a huge hit financially. That doesn't mean I don't have the funds for the passports and it certainly doesn't mean that I can't afford the cruise in the first place. But, if I don't have to do it, I'm not going to, especially if it saves me $750. Plain and simple.

 

Better security for this country and hence, me and my family. Plain and simple.

 

I have two kids. They had passports from 3 months on. As a military member who traveled overseas with my family, I didn't have an option. I don't think it should be an option for anyone else either, again due to security. You can agree with me or not, that is your choice.

[sparks1093]

Better security for this country and hence, me and my family. Plain and simple.

 

I have two kids. They had passports from 3 months on. As a military member who traveled overseas with my family, I didn't have an option. I don't think it should be an option for anyone else either, again due to security. You can agree with me or not, that is your choice.

 

Understandable, but DHS determined that a US citizen on a closed loop cruise represents a low risk to the National Security and hence the closed loop exception.

[Out to sea!]

Understandable, but DHS determined that a US citizen on a closed loop cruise represents a low risk to the National Security and hence the closed loop exception.

 

That may be but a US citizen who has gone through the effort of getting a passport is an even lower risk.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

I am 52 and have had a passport since birth. So have my kids. I am American born but my parents were European and I think that in most countries other than the US, it is common that you have a passport as others travel internationally a lot more often than Americans do (think a weekend drive in Europe). That was my parents belief and they made sure that when they got their US passport, they carried it around the world with pride!

I can see no reason NOT to have a passport. It is the ultimate proof of your American citizenship and, you really never know when you might need one at the last minute (maybe you win a grand prize around the world trip on a game show that leaves tomorrow....LOL)! At $15 a year, is it really a stretch? Two less drinks on your cruise.

 

Do they give you a coupon book for each $15 payment or does it get automatically charged to your credit card each time a payment is due?

 

Bill

[irishnyc]

Seems that lately lots of people are worried about having the right documentation to cruise. I have have a passport for years and am curious as to why one would choose not to get documentation that is valid for 10yrs. The cost is nominal and then it eliminates the worry of having a BC and Govt issued id. Plus if something were to happen and one needed to fly you would have all that you need to return to the US. So please those that don't have a passport shed some light as to your reasoning.

 

You do you and don't worry about what everyone else does. Does John Doe not having his passport have any affect on your cruise? No. He's following the law that allows him to cruise without a passport. So why do you care?

[Warm Breezes]

Seems that lately lots of people are worried about having the right documentation to cruise. I have have a passport for years and am curious as to why one would choose not to get documentation that is valid for 10yrs. The cost is nominal and then it eliminates the worry of having a BC and Govt issued id. Plus if something were to happen and one needed to fly you would have all that you need to return to the US. So please those that don't have a passport shed some light as to your reasoning.

 

1. Why spend money for something that is not required for a vacation you are planning?

2. It may be valid for 10 years but if you only vacation1 time in that period the whole cost goes to that trip. It should not be amortized by year but by vacations requiring it during those 10 years. I don't plan my vacations 10 years out so that cost to me is added to the vacation I purchased it for. I may not use it again for the next 10 years.

3. For a family the expense can add up to be a huge part of the vacation budget...that again is not required for a closed loop cruise.

4. The odds of something happening that would require a passport are extremely small and it is not an insurmountable problem...you will not be left stranded on foreign soil.

5. Everyone's risks are different. If you having ailing relatives, a medical condition, etc. your risks of needing to get home quickly may be higher than someone else who doesn't. For people with higher risks it may be more prudent for them to get passports. For others not so much.

6. Everyone's level of comfort in risk taking is different. I have no trouble sailing on a closed loop cruise with my kids with BC and DL. We have done it on 10 cruises. I don't worry about having the proper documentation and I don't worry about small risks that may happen. Other's can't do that without having a nervous breakdown.

7. Why do you care?

Edited December 28, 2013 by Warm Breezes

[thinfool]

That may be but a US citizen who has gone through the effort of getting a passport is an even lower risk.

 

I don't disagree....I love my passport.

 

But

 

no member of CC that I have ever read has enough horsepower to overcome the powerful lobbies of cruise lines, tourism industries and local governments who foresee reduced revenues if anything is put in place that will make it more difficult for people to visit, as tourists, the ports included in the WHTI.

 

A family faced with a $1000. bill for passports could well decide on a different venue for their vacation.

 

Right? Wrong? Irrelevant. It is what it is and without a major shift in policy, passports for US citizens on closed loop cruises will continue to be optional.

[cruise_gal21]

That may be but a US citizen who has gone through the effort of getting a passport is an even lower risk.

 

I seriously doubt that walking into my local post office and applying for a passport makes me any lower risk than those who choose to use BC's and State ID's. People all around the world have passports and can get into and out of the US without being a US citizen, so what does a US citizen on a closed loop cruise need one for? I doubt any of the terrorist attacks in the recent year on the US where from US citizens coming back on a closed loop cruises. Really?:rolleyes:

[Warm Breezes]

Sure is alot less hassle to have a passport.

 

DH and I sailed for the first time with passports in August with our kids still with BC and DL and then again in October without kids with just us and our passports after 10 cruises of sailing with only BC and DL. There was no difference in going through the lines with or with out passports. It was NOT less of hassle at all with our passports. DH and I got passports for ourselves and not the kids because our personal risk level had changed and their did not. A personal choice for us as it is for anyone else when they decide what to do on a closed loop cruise.

[CookieShip]

I have a passport, but half my family doesn't. It pretty much comes down to costs. They haven't left the US in the last 10 years and don't plan on leaving the US in the next 10 years. If there is a free alternative, why not take that?

[Mamatothree]

You do you and don't worry about what everyone else does. Does John Doe not having his passport have any affect on your cruise? No. He's following the law that allows him to cruise without a passport. So why do you care?

 

Exactly.

 

We have 3 kids. DH and I have passports because we've needed them. The kids will have birth certificates on them. Carnival specifically told me they ARE NOT necessary for our next cruise. Hey! There's $450 we can use on an excision that wouldn't otherwise fit in the budget for this trip!

 

But why does anyone care what we choose to do or not do??

[Colorado Kat]

Something else to consider. My husband had his wallet stolen last year. Drivers license gone. This happened Wed, and he had to fly on Friday. It was hell get a new driver's license quickly. What other photo id with date of birth do people have? He had a passport, but it had expired several years ago.

 

Very very difficult.......