Passports and St Petersburg Russia

[Jane1614]

So if you port in St Petersburg Russia, does HAL give you your passport to take on a tour? I am told this is required. Wondering.

[jmps]

So if you port in St Petersburg Russia, does HAL give you your passport to take on a tour? I am told this is required. Wondering.

 

Yes, HAL will give you back your passport if they took it. You will need it along with the Visa or an escorted tour ticket for port security passage.

[sayaguru]

There are strict immigration procedures. You MUST have your passport AND your tour details otherwise you will be denied entry.

[Krazy Kruizers]

HAL and Princess always gave us back our passports when we got to Russia.

And I always made certain that we had all excursion tickets and other documents for getting off the ship.

[Jane1614]

Ok, we booked a tour (outside HAL) (ALLA tours) and we have printed tickets .

So with that and the passport we should be ok? They say we are covered with the tour for the visa.

[sapper1]

Ok, we booked a tour (outside HAL) (ALLA tours) and we have printed tickets .

So with that and the passport we should be ok? They say we are covered with the tour for the visa.

 

You will be good to go. We had private tours arranged with Alla in St. Petersburg in 2013 and our passports and tour tickets were all we needed.

In St. Petersburg it is not announced when the ship is cleared. The private tour people just gather near the gangway when the ship docks and suddenly the line will start moving.

The passengers taking ship tours gather in the showroom and are escorted off. The cruise lines try to discourage people from taking private tours in Russia so they will hint that you will not be allowed off the ship without a ship's tour. This is not true and the cruiseline cannot prevent you from leaving the ship.

[chevreuil]

Does that mean the HAL will take your passport and keep it somewhere for the entire cruise?

Why?

Do other lines to that as well?

 

In the ports of the other countries that you will visit, will you not require your passport?

 

I am going on a baltic sea cruise (including SPB) as well, this year.

 

Thank you for any information!

 

KR,

chevreuil

[sapper1]

Does that mean the HAL will take your passport and keep it somewhere for the entire cruise?

Why?

Do other lines to that as well?

 

In the ports of the other countries that you will visit, will you not require your passport?

 

I am going on a baltic sea cruise (including SPB) as well, this year.

 

Thank you for any information!

 

KR,

chevreuil

 

Ours was a 31 day TA and Baltic cruise in 2013 and we held onto our passports for the most part. I do seem to recall that they were taken for a rew days prior to arrival in one country and then returned.

Generally we were advised to carry our passports while ashore but the only places where we actually passed through passport control onshore were St. Petersburg and Tilbury, UK.

 

When we did the Baltic in 2009 I don't remember our passports being held by HAL at all.

I have seen so many different responses to this question that I have come to the conclusion that the answer varies from cruise to cruise. Bottom line is not to worry. You will have your passport when you need it.

When we were advised to carry passports onshore at all times, we kept them in money belts under our clothing so we didn't have to worry about them.

[chevreuil]

Many thanks for your reply, sapper1 :)

Very helpful!

[jtl513]

Does that mean the HAL will take your passport and keep it somewhere for the entire cruise?

Why?

Do other lines to that as well?

 

In the ports of the other countries that you will visit, will you not require your passport?

 

I am going on a baltic sea cruise (including SPB) as well, this year.

 

Thank you for any information!

 

KR,

chevreuil

Yes, all cruise lines do this.

 

Whether HAL takes your passport, and for how long, depends on the requirements of the countries you are visiting ... and those requirements can change over time. IIRC on our Baltic cruise sometime after we left Estonia HAL required everyone to turn in their passports so that Russian officials could pre-check everyone before arriving in St Petersburg. We were given them back in order to carry them ashore, and I don't remember if we had to turn them in again after that. I think we kept them for the rest of the cruise.

 

On our East Med cruise HAL took the passports when we boarded in Venice and held them until after our last Greek port ... which was our last port. I still don't know if it was Greece or Turkey that required the ship to hold them.

 

Most countries do not require you to carry your passports ashore. The only two that we have visited which do were Russia and Tunisia. There are ongoing arguments on this board from time to time whether you should leave your passports in your safe (in countries that don't require you to carry them) so that you won't lose them have them stolen, or always carry them. I am of the persuasion that always carries them in a money belt. If the ship leaves without us for any reason I want to have them with us! Yes, when leaving passengers behind, IF there is time the ship security will open their cabin safe and turn their passports over to the shore agent for the port, but I am just more comfortable with having it with me. :)

.

Edited January 7, 2016 by jtl513

[3rdGenCunarder]

We did our Baltic cruise 10 years ago--yikes, time flies! I can't remember if our passports were held by the ship at any point on that cruise, but I know it has happened a few times in our travels. As others have said, the rules change, which drives the cruise lines crazy. Just go with the flow on that, as you have no choice in the matter.

 

One thing I do remember is that we had to go through passport control EVERY time we left the ship in St Petersburg. We were there for 2 days and took multiple tours, so we had our passports looked at several times, but stamped only the first time (I think). It was pretty quick, but even so you should allow plenty of time to meet your tour.

Edited January 7, 2016 by 3rdGenCunarder

[dakrewser]

There are ongoing arguments on this board from time to time whether you should leave your passports in your safe (in countries that don't require you to carry them) so that you won't lose them have them stolen, or always carry them. I am of the persuasion that always carries them in a money belt. If the ship leaves without us for any reason I want to have them with us! Yes, when leaving passengers behind, IF there is time the ship security will open their cabin safe and turn their passports over to the shore agent for the port, but I am just more comfortable with having it with me. :)

.

 

Couldn't agree more.

 

If the ship leaves without you, if you're carry a copy of your passport, that will make it easier to get a new one from the US embassy (a couple of days). If you carry your actual passport, you can just get on a plane and leave (a couple of hours). I know my choice.

[jtl513]

Couldn't agree more.

If the ship sails away with your passport aren't you an illegal alien? Certainly you're an undocumented one. :D I don't quite understand why so many people think that a passport is primarily for re-entering their home country. It actually is your only legal identification and proof of citizenship in most countries.

[kazu]

I guess DH and I are the opposite as I abhor carrying our passports in port.

 

A Canadian passport is worth a lot on the black market and I don't want to take the risk no matter how careful I am.

 

If the passport is not required, then we leave it in the safe and take our colour copies of our passports in the ports.

 

Long ago, I asked the Government agency and they said as long as we had a colour copy, it could be replaced quickly. Much faster than if it was "stolen" as then security procedures come into play.

 

 

There is probably no right answer to this.

[jtl513]

Long ago, I asked the Government agency and they said as long as we had a colour copy, it could be replaced quickly.

And what did they suggest you do if you're stuck on an island with no Canadian Embassy or legation?

.

Edited January 7, 2016 by jtl513

[kazu]

And what did they suggest you do if you're stuck on an island with no Canadian Embassy or legation?

.

 

I didn't know you were Canadian ;) :p

 

Seriously, liaisons, etc. all on their website. We don't do a lot "islands" typically but I also do the notification of travel which is very helpful as well. When I have to carry the passports, I will. I just prefer not to when it's not necessary.

[Cruising-along]

...

In St. Petersburg it is not announced when the ship is cleared. The private tour people just gather near the gangway when the ship docks and suddenly the line will start moving. ...

 

We learned that the hard way. We came too close for comfort to missing our private tour the first morning because we were waiting for the announcement. Later someone told me it was announced the night before during the evening show. :rolleyes: We didn't go to the show the night before. I always read all information that comes to our cabin, nothing was said about this. :(

 

Thankfully everything turned out fine, but it was the first and only time we've come so close to being late for an excursion.

[jtl513]

I didn't know you were Canadian ;) :p

No, but my ancestors just 3 generations back were: a little town near the VT/Quebec border by the name of St Armand. It doesn't even show on a lot of maps today. :)

I just prefer not to when it's not necessary.

To each his own! I'm just not at ease without a passport, even when I'm in a city with a US Embassy. I'm a little more comfortable without a passport (as on our East Med when HAL held them almost the whole cruise) if we're on a HAL excursion, but we don't do a lot of those.

.

Edited January 7, 2016 by jtl513

[kazu]

No, but my ancestors just 3 generations back were: a little town near the VT/Quebec border by the name of St Armand. It doesn't even show on a lot of maps today. :)

To each his own! I'm just not at ease without a passport, even when I'm in a city with a US Embassy.

.

 

cool that your ancestors are from there :)

 

And absolutely - each to his/her own :)

[Jane1614]

Thanks for the information. Sapper1, that was good to know.

[sapper1]

Thanks for the information. Sapper1, that was good to know.

 

You're most welcome. I have received so much valuable information here on Cruise Critic myself that I don't know how we ever managed our first cruise without it. It is such a great resource.

I know you will have a wonderful cruise.