Passport Needed for St. Maarten?

[TrekkerPA]

Do we need to take our passports along with us when we disembark in St. Maarten?

 

If one of the people in my group doesn't have a passport, should they have a birth certificate on hand?

[Cruiser 4 Life 66]

Do we need to take our passports along with us when we disembark in St. Maarten?

 

If one of the people in my group doesn't have a passport, should they have a birth certificate on hand?

 

Your cruise card should be enough. I never take my passport ashore in ports. Too easy to get lost/stolen/damaged/etc.

[tpadul]

No you do not.. St. Maarten does not require foreign visitors to carry their passport while visiting in country. Very few countries require this. You should just have a photo ID on you in the event you are hurt/injured and they need to know who you are and contact info for back home, so a State ID should be fine or your Drivers License and your ID from the cruise ship identifies you in the event you are needing the cruise ship to be notified you are hurt/injured and they need to let the ship know a passenger has been in an accident.

 

If you feel the need to carry proof of your citizenship you should just make a copy of the biometric page of your passport but should never really carry the actual passport around with you. Passports are the highest theft item abroad and they rake in thousands of dollars on the black market. This advice is coming as an Immigration Officer and we see just how many people get their passports stolen abroad every year because they are just walking around with them in their possession when they are not required to.

 

There are only a very small list of countries that have a legal requirement that visitors to their country have their passports on them at all time in the event a government official will stop them and ask them for evidence of their status while visiting in that country. None of the Carribean Islands have such a requirement. Keep it locked up in your cabin in the safe. It is such a headache to get a replacement if you loose it.

 

Your passport is your proof of citizenship to get into a particular country at the port/border and gets you back home into your own country it should not be just carried around with you while exploring a town as a visitor it is very dangerous to do this unless you are required by foreign law.

[smilz]

I have never carried my passport ashore though some islands require "government issued id" You can use your drivers license. I was quite surprised when St Thomas required ID in June but St M did not. Nassau has for years.

[OCruisers]

When on a cruise and have a port stop in St. Maarten, all you will need will be your cruise card and a government issued ID (like a drivers license).

LuLu

[Karysa]

We carry government issued photo ID just incase. If DH is driving he carries his drivers licence but if not we usually just carry photocopies of our passports.

[gtaylor]

We carry government issued photo ID just incase. If DH is driving he carries his drivers licence but if not we usually just carry photocopies of our passports.

 

Ditto re Gov't ID, but we both carry Driver's License, and I have scans of our passports up in the Cloud if we need them.

 

gary

[Lsimon]

I've never seen any requirement for carrying a passport at any Caribbean port of call. We just take our seapass card and photo ID.

 

I can only think of two reasons you'd need a passport:

 

1) if you were on an excursion that went to another island that was not part of the same government. Like going from St. Thomas (USVI) to Jost Van Dyke (BVI) or something like that.

 

2) If you miss the ship and need to fly to next island or back home.

[nowornever]

your passport, another photo ID & a credit card....just in case you need to get home or the ship leaves you or you need medical attention....blah blah. One can't be too cautious in this day & age. Some cruise ships keep your passports for ease in clearing customs in each port. Probably harder to do on a very large cruise ship but ... CYA.

[Karysa]

your passport, another photo ID & a credit card....just in case you need to get home or the ship leaves you or you need medical attention....blah blah. One can't be too cautious in this day & age. Some cruise ships keep your passports for ease in clearing customs in each port. Probably harder to do on a very large cruise ship but ... CYA.

 

If you miss the ship then your passport will be removed from the ship and given to the port authorities. This is not from personal experience but just what I have read here on cc over the years. I just can't imagine why anyone would ever cruise to another country without a passport. Having the ability to get home if needed is an absolute must for me.