Passport stamps

[snowskier]

Don’t be scared by all these stories of passports being invalidated and/or filled up. Most Americans don’t even have a passport much less even come close to filling one up. If you want to get your passport stamped during your Caribbean cruise then don’t let all these worry warts here spoil your parade. Worst case scenario is you find yourself doing a bunch of international travel (a really good thing) in the future then you may have to prematurely get a new passport which is a small price to pay if it happens. Enjoy your trip.

 

Wow - didn’t know I was a “worry wart”. I had to get a new passport two years early when traveling through Africa because I did not have 4 consecutive blank pages. Mine were valid stamps as I travel a lot - cruising is not my primary vacation choice as traveling by cruise ship limits one to a very small glimpse of the world. Unfortunately I learned an expensive lesson many years ago. Now I ask to have stamps on specific pages so I don’t run into that problem again.

 

If we have to resort to labels, I prefer to be labeled an informed traveler not a “worry wart” but if it makes you feel better I will go with your label. I believe the info in this thread will help others be informed travelers that make the best decision for them.

[jagsfan]

Someone asked why anyone would particularly want stamps in their passport.

Well, I can go back through my expired ones and see where I went in a certain year. Until I counted entry stamps I didn’t know I’d been to London 13 times. It’s fun, for me, at least, to look at all of those stamps and think how lucky I am.

I don’t think if it as getting autographs, I think if it as a memory jogger.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[nolatravelgirl]

Wow - didn’t know I was a “worry wart”. I had to get a new passport two years early when traveling through Africa because I did not have 4 consecutive blank pages. Mine were valid stamps as I travel a lot - cruising is not my primary vacation choice as traveling by cruise ship limits one to a very small glimpse of the world. Unfortunately I learned an expensive lesson many years ago. Now I ask to have stamps on specific pages so I don’t run into that problem again.

 

If we have to resort to labels, I prefer to be labeled an informed traveler not a “worry wart” but if it makes you feel better I will go with your label. I believe the info in this thread will help others be informed travelers that make the best decision for them.

Well, I have traveled to over 40 countries and have worked overseas so I needed to be cautious about not filling up my passport too quickly so I do consider myself a very informed international traveler. If you read through many of the posts here on CC everyone lays out all the worst case scenarios. Scaring someone into not getting stamps is neither helpful and basically rains on their parade. I was so excited when I got my first stamp and others are as well. If you go back and read the original post they are taking a family member who has never traveled anywhere international and is taking a pretty standard Caribbean cruise. It doesn't sound like the relative is going to have much chance other than this cruise to visit foreign ports so requiring 4 blank pages for Africa travel is probably not high on their list and if they do happen to catch the travel bug and do somehow start having a passport busting at the seams with stamps I don't consider it a "costly mistake" to have to apply for a new one because they are traveling so much. In my passport that I had to renew in 2013 I had to get additional pages sewn in when it was still allowed but before I had the pages sewn in and realized it was getting full I simply carried around a sticky note with an arrow on it directing the agent on where I would prefer they stamp my pages so I could maximize empty pages. Most agents were happy to oblige.

 

Most people after a few trips get bored with "stamp collecting" and focus on other things I don't think getting three stamps while on a Carribean cruise should be deemed a worst case doomsday prepper status warning. Perhaps the OP could shine some light on the situation. Do you think your relative is likely to go on a huge travel binge that would make you think you should warn them about potentially running out of room to accommodate this scenario?

[samshltn]

There seem to be two schools of thinking in this thread:

 

1.

I thought the point of all those pages was to collect stamps as kind of a souvenir...

 

and

 

2.

No, passports are not stamped for souvenir purposes... and it can be invalidated by non-official stamps.

 

...and I'm afraid those two ways of thinking are entirely irreconcilable.

[Crazy4Camping]

Well, I have traveled to over 40 countries and have worked overseas so I needed to be cautious about not filling up my passport too quickly so I do consider myself a very informed international traveler. If you read through many of the posts here on CC everyone lays out all the worst case scenarios. Scaring someone into not getting stamps is neither helpful and basically rains on their parade. I was so excited when I got my first stamp and others are as well. If you go back and read the original post they are taking a family member who has never traveled anywhere international and is taking a pretty standard Caribbean cruise. It doesn't sound like the relative is going to have much chance other than this cruise to visit foreign ports so requiring 4 blank pages for Africa travel is probably not high on their list and if they do happen to catch the travel bug and do somehow start having a passport busting at the seams with stamps I don't consider it a "costly mistake" to have to apply for a new one because they are traveling so much. In my passport that I had to renew in 2013 I had to get additional pages sewn in when it was still allowed but before I had the pages sewn in and realized it was getting full I simply carried around a sticky note with an arrow on it directing the agent on where I would prefer they stamp my pages so I could maximize empty pages. Most agents were happy to oblige.

 

Most people after a few trips get bored with "stamp collecting" and focus on other things I don't think getting three stamps while on a Carribean cruise should be deemed a worst case doomsday prepper status warning. Perhaps the OP could shine some light on the situation. Do you think your relative is likely to go on a huge travel binge that would make you think you should warn them about potentially running out of room to accommodate this scenario?

 

I had posted this originally not knowing all these facts. It has been enlightening to say the least, but as this is my first cruise and I don't ever travel anywhere, I'm sure my passport will expire prior to filling it with stamps. I just wanted to know if I would have the opportunity to get it stamped. Guess it would feel good to get a stamp or two!

[Flatbush Flyer]

I had posted this originally not knowing all these facts. It has been enlightening to say the least, but as this is my first cruise and I don't ever travel anywhere, I'm sure my passport will expire prior to filling it with stamps. I just wanted to know if I would have the opportunity to get it stamped. Guess it would feel good to get a stamp or two!

 

 

 

See my post #25 above. Travel to countries that still require paper visas. They are fast becoming extinct. Brazil just dumped theirs and Americans can now get ETAs.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[nolatravelgirl]

See my post #25 above. Travel to countries that still require paper visas. They are fast becoming extinct. Brazil just dumped theirs and Americans can now get ETAs.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

What does collecting entrance Visas have to do with the original poster's question? They are going on a closed loop cruise out of a US Territory to pretty common Caribbean ports. The OP has mentioned no future plans for exotic locales. They only wanted to see if they could get a coveted LEGAL stamp in their book. Nobody here said a passport is an "autograph" book nor talked about defacing it. There is nothing wrong with wanting to get a perfectly legal stamp while doing a border crossing.

 

To the OP, you are not breaking any laws by getting a stamp in your passport but you may want to take into consideration your limited time in port to track down the appropriate place/counter/person to get that stamp. You will find that hordes of people are all getting off at the same time and all trying to get to their excursions/private tours/taxis, etc that tracking down the locale for the stamp will likely become way less important.

[Crazy4Camping]

What does collecting entrance Visas have to do with the original poster's question? They are going on a closed loop cruise out of a US Territory to pretty common Caribbean ports. The OP has mentioned no future plans for exotic locales. They only wanted to see if they could get a coveted LEGAL stamp in their book. Nobody here said a passport is an "autograph" book nor talked about defacing it. There is nothing wrong with wanting to get a perfectly legal stamp while doing a border crossing.

 

To the OP, you are not breaking any laws by getting a stamp in your passport but you may want to take into consideration your limited time in port to track down the appropriate place/counter/person to get that stamp. You will find that hordes of people are all getting off at the same time and all trying to get to their excursions/private tours/taxis, etc that tracking down the locale for the stamp will likely become way less important.

 

Thank you for pointing that out. Hoping that someone knows where to go once we leave the ship at a port. If I don't get any, it's not the end of the world. Thanks!

[taglovestocruise]

Flies in the face of all the advice on this forum to never take your passport off the ship..

[biker@sea]

Thank you for pointing that out. Hoping that someone knows where to go once we leave the ship at a port. If I don't get any, it's not the end of the world. Thanks!

 

 

When returning to the ship, ask the customs officer if they can stamp for you.

 

You could bring out your passport if it is a Yes.

 

.