Skagway issue

[lmintzer]

Hi. My family just booked an Alaskan cruise for this July (R/T out of Seattle). I am in the beginning stages of planning excursions. Unfortunately, one person traveling in our group has a DUI (I do not know any details about how long ago or the circumstances). I have read the threads on problems entering Canada, and this person knows not to exit the ship in Victoria.

 

We hadn't realized that a lot of the neat Skagway adventures cross into Canada and require a passport. It does seem like some of the rail tours do a more cursory look at a passport than when entering a Canadian port. Do you think this person would be okay on a Chilkoot Charters tour (van up/train down or visa-vera)? These seem like a much better option than the busy cruise-booked trains both ways.

 

Also, I personally wonder how much documentation I will have to carry (divorced mom traveling with a teen an a tween--I planned on having our passports and a notarized letter from dad saying he knows we are traveling out of the country). Now I am reading that I might have to have some kind of custody paperwork?!? Really?

 

TIA for any helpful feedback.

[jamminlion]

Check Canadian border patrol, and U.S. State department websites. Also smart traveler app has links for travel requirements.

[sherryf]

I can't help you with the DUI situation, but I do have experience traveling with kids as a divorced parent. I have done it twice, with passports and notarized letter, and that was enough. I was never questioned, but better to be safe.

 

I'm really looking forward to my next trip with the "kids" in 2017, when they will finally ALL be over 18!

[Kamloops50]

Hi. My family just booked an Alaskan cruise for this July (R/T out of Seattle). I am in the beginning stages of planning excursions. Unfortunately, one person traveling in our group has a DUI (I do not know any details about how long ago or the circumstances). I have read the threads on problems entering Canada, and this person knows not to exit the ship in Victoria. Skagway I can answer. In Victoria the ship collects Canada Customs forms and gives it the Canadian authorities.

 

We hadn't realized that a lot of the neat Skagway adventures cross into Canada and require a passport. It does seem like some of the rail tours do a more cursory look at a passport than when entering a Canadian port. Do you think this person would be okay on a Chilkoot Charters tour (van up/train down or visa-vera)? These seem like a much better option than the busy cruise-booked trains both ways. If you do an up across the border and back without cross the US border he'll be fine. The US and Canada border entries are about 20-30 miles apart . The train to the summit doesn't require a passport.

 

Also, I personally wonder how much documentation I will have to carry (divorced mom traveling with a teen an a tween--I planned on having our passports and a notarized letter from dad saying he knows we are traveling out of the country). Now I am reading that I might have to have some kind of custody paperwork?!? Really? Better to have a letter from the Ex . If you have solo custody you'll be OK.

 

TIA for any helpful feedback.

 

Does he have time to have the DUI removed from the record ? I he could that would be the best for him now and in the future.

[lmintzer]

I have no idea if said person has time to get DUI removed from record. I am in the odd position of not really being able to ask about it--I hadn't been told this was officially the reason for no travel into Canada, but I figured it out.

Edited April 3, 2016 by lmintzer

[DougH]

If you drive out of Skagway after you pass the summit you stop at Canadian Customs to enter Canada and they will ask to see your passport. How much checking they do varies.

Driving back to Skagway you stop at US Customs (only a couple miles from the Canadian checkpoint, no where near 20-30)) Again they will ask for passport and some questions.

 

How detailed a check they do probably varies by how busy they are and how suspicious you look. To be honest I've forgotten how they dealt with it on the train or Chilkoot tours, I think it never got much past "everyone hold up your passports" for them to see you had one.

[mapleleaves]

The Canada site provides info on travel documents needed, as well as the DUI situation and travel with minors:

http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-voyage/ivc-rnc-eng.html

 

You must also be concerned about getting back into the US after being "out of the country", so you need to follow the US documentation requirements as well.

https://www.dhs.gov/western-hemisphere-travel-initiative-basics

 

In the end it comes down to the agent you end up with that day; some are real sticklers and others not so much. I've been waved thru with a cursory look at my passport but twice I've been asked to go inside the Immigration Office and talk to an officer. You just never know so you have to be prepared.

[CCJack]

I have traveled with my kids alone on cruises many times. I always had the notarized letter from the non custodial parent. I was never asked for it by the cruise lines. Interestingly, however, I was watching one of these documentary TV shows about cruise ships (it might have been on RCCL Oasis of the Seas on Discovery Channel - not sure). Anyway, they spent a good amount of time discussing this issue on the show. They interviewed RCCL employees who said on average they have to resolve this issue at the last minute for at least one family per cruise and sometimes deny boarding. They were showing an example of RCCL staff trying to help the parent get a fax back from the other parent frantically before the ship sailed. It looked like a horrible way to start a vacation !

 

I would expect you don't need any custodial paperwork unless you do not have the letter. I would think even if you have physical sole custody you still need a letter if the other parent has joint legal. Ask your attorney if you are unsure. A call to the cruise line probably wouldn't hurt either.

 

Not sure about he DUI situation.

[peety3]

We did a train-up/bus-back tour in 2012. On the train, the border agent walked the center aisle after asking everyone to open their passport to the picture page and holding it near their head. One quick stroll through and we were on our way. On the return, the bus driver collected our passports ahead of time, and said the border agents usually only look at his passport but sometimes they look at more...for our trip, they looked at all of them. I couldn't tell from aboard the bus, but they may have swiped all of them through a reader, so who knows what would happen. Granted, that'd be US Immigration, so not Canada.

 

I don't think it's going to matter what vendor you use, whether it be the ship itself or private. The trains are all the same; I'm pretty sure the first car on our particular train ride was a private vendor, while the others were ship-sponsored.

 

Regardless of all of that, I encourage you to accept the reality that the law is the law, and if it's not legal for the person to go into Canada, either they need to stay behind or you need to change your plans. Perhaps there's something to do in Haines, which is a 45-minute ferry ride from Skagway. We did a fantastic private photo tour there, and the vendor offers something similar in Skagway; as a private tour, you could easily say "no adventures into Canada today".

[lmintzer]

Thanks for all the info. It is helpful. I think you are right in that his person will stay in the US. We will decide whether to stay in the country also or break up into 2 groups.

 

If we do stay in US--maybe just the train ride up and back? It sounds like it might be worthwhile in itself plus another excursion after.

[martincath]

The train up to the summit and back that does NOT enter Canada is the ONLY excursion that will work unless he has a passport (which he may not be eligible for depending on what his conviction actually was).

 

Buses that cross out of the USA - even if they turn around before the Canadian border post - still have to recross the US border post on the road. Whether or not they went into Canada, they have to stop and show ID etc. just in case that vehicle did come all the way from Canada.

 

A passport is NOT required to get into Canada, it is required to get BACK IN to the USA! His DUI obviously won't stop him getting back in, but he will need appropriate documentation (WHTI compliant proof of both citizenship and identity, so an EDL would work instead of a passport).

 

All-in-all, I think it's best to assume this person is not going to leave Skagway or leave the ship in Victoria - but since you are assuming it's a DUI, and it might actually be something additional/worse, there's a possibility he will not even be allowed on the cruise at all depending when the passenger manifest is sent to CBSA (he might even be arrested at the port or in any of the Alaskan ports if it's an outstanding warrant rather than a prior conviction).

 

On your custodial issue - if you have sole custody, the paperwork for that is enough on its own. If you don't, a notarized letter from the ex is required, ESPECIALLY if you're going to cross into Canada. As long as the kids share your surname you won't need joint custody papers unless the kids think it would be hilarious to tell the border guys that you're not their real mom!

 

I know multiple people who have been turned back in both directions with their own children because they were asked for the paperwork and did not have all that was required on them. Even widow(er)s need to carry the death cert of their spouse to be safe! If you have paperwork of any kind related to the custody of the kids, bring it (or certified copies). It's like an umbrella - if you have it you probably won't need it, but if you don't...

[Quilting_Cruiser]

Five years ago I took my daughter on an Alaska cruise. Her father and I had been divorced only a couple months. I did the research at the time, and Canada required a letter from the non-traveling parent for children under the age of 16. Fortunately, my daughter had turned 16 a couple months before. The Canadian border agent looked at our passports, and I did ask him about the age limit. He indicated that if she'd been under 16, we would not have been able to cross the border. This has to do with International child abduction law. Be sure to check what Canada's current requirements are as this was five years ago.

 

As far as the one person who won't be able to enter Canada due to the DUI on his or her record, can you not split up in this port? If you really want to take an excursion that goes into Canada, then some of your party could do that and others could do something else. It's not as if you all need to miss out because of one person's past transgression. :)

[hapster85]

The train up to the summit and back that does NOT enter Canada is the ONLY excursion that will work unless he has a passport (which he may not be eligible for depending on what his conviction actually was).

 

The White Pass Summit train actually does enter Canada, however it does not stop, so you never leave the train. The guide will point out when you cross the border. You're correct that no passport is needed there.

 

As to the OP, the person with the DUI will still have to clear customs upon return to Seattle. Doesn't matter which excursions he took or if he got off the ship in Victoria. That will likely consist of nothing more than handing the agent your declaration form and showing your ID, though. We barely had to slow down for this.

 

Good luck. Hope these issues don't hinder your fun. Alaska is amazing.

Edited April 3, 2016 by hapster85

[sassycruiser]

My sister lives in Seattle, is divorced and has custody of her child. We have been asked for the notarized letter crossing over by land to go to Victoria and Vancouver and coming back into the U.S. We were grilled going on the Washington State ferry to Victoria and also on the Victoria Clipper. Don't try to go without the notarized letter. We have also been asked on Caribbean cruises leaving Miami by the cruise personnel I am sure like a lot of things it depends on the day, etc. but to have a vacation ruined for paperwork is no fun.

[CruiseLoris]

"Five years ago I took my daughter on an Alaska cruise. Her father and I had been divorced only a couple months. I did the research at the time, and Canada required a letter from the non-traveling parent for children under the age of 16. Fortunately, my daughter had turned 16 a couple months before. The Canadian border agent looked at our passports, and I did ask him about the age limit. He indicated that if she'd been under 16, we would not have been able to cross the border. This has to do with International child abduction law. Be sure to check what Canada's current requirements are as this was five years ago."

 

Guess - I have not done the hilight and reply yet....but regarding above quote.

I am glad I ran across this info. I will have to do some research - I had not even thought about this. I am divorced and will be taking my 3 kids on Alaskan cruise in July. But only one is under 16. In fact I chose a RT out of Seattle just so I wouldn't have to bother with obtaining a passport for him. But after reading this, it may be an issue? I took my kids on a Mexican cruise when they were all underage and never gave a second thought to having paperwork along and it never came up.

Guess I will look for other threads containing this info or start one- I am getting off track of the OP.

 

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

Edited April 6, 2016 by CruiseLoris

[Quilting_Cruiser]

 

Guess - I have not done the hilight and reply yet....but regarding above quote.

I am glad I ran across this info. I will have to do some research - I had not even thought about this. I am divorced and will be taking my 3 kids on Alaskan cruise in July. But only one is under 16. In fact I chose a RT out of Seattle just so I wouldn't have to bother with obtaining a passport for him. But after reading this, it may be an issue? I took my kids on a Mexican cruise when they were all underage and never gave a second thought to having paperwork along and it never came up.

Guess I will look for other threads containing this info or start one- I am getting off track of the OP.

 

 

 

Definitely do the research. I think you'll find that you'll need passports and a letter for the youngest if you go into Canada. Even if you don't go into Canada, it's always good to travel with a letter unless you have sole custody of the children. You don't often needed it, but a much-anticipated vacation can be ruined if you're asked for it and can't produce it. Better safe than sorry.

[K.T.B.]

Having a DUI does NOT prevent someone from getting a passport. If it was a felony, then it might. But here's the info you need for them to enter Canada: https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/402/~/entering-the-u.s.-and-canada-with-dui-offenses

 

It really is not an issue if it's one DUI and not a felony. Anything more can complicate things.