Passports Being Held By NCL

[steamboats]

2 hours ago, classy_cruiser said:

Does anyone know why they are having a technical stop in Turkey? Sure seems to add a lot of complexity. There was already an email about people from other countries  needing special visas because of it. 

 

As I said before... the reason might be to avoid the EU VAT regulations. You need to have a non EU port otherwise the VAT of the starting point will be added on everything. I think Greece has a 24% VAT - so add this to all packages or single drinks, all spa treatments or all purchases in the shops. Plus it´s a lot of work for the cruise line to pay this VAT. 

 

steamboats

Edited July 27, 2021 by steamboats

[KeithJenner]

I know that there are a variety of itineraries, but I would certainly not describe the Turkish ports that we are visiting on the Jae next Easter (Kusadasi and Istanbul) as technical stops.

 

Istanbul speaks for itself, and Kusadasi has access to Ephesus which is a highlight on the Eastern Med.

 

There may be reasons, such as the VAT, for including a non Greek port, but a stop at Kusadasi adds a lot to a cruise.

[HowardK]

Is this just for Europe? I am OCD and carry mine with me when getting off the boat in Bermuda or Caribbean- however I did get the passport card so used that the last few cruises and left the passport in the safe. 

Wonderful, something else to be worried about in addition to testing and not being able to get on the boat.

GSC here I come!!

[Laszlo]

9 minutes ago, HowardK said:

Is this just for Europe? I am OCD and carry mine with me when getting off the boat in Bermuda or Caribbean- however I did get the passport card so used that the last few cruises and left the passport in the safe. 

Wonderful, something else to be worried about in addition to testing and not being able to get on the boat.

GSC here I come!!

I would never carry a passport off ship unless it is called for or unless you don't have a drivers. At the very most color copies or a photo. Put your passport in your cabins safe until its needed

[classy_cruiser]

8 hours ago, steamboats said:

 

As I said before... the reason might be to avoid the EU VAT regulations. You need to have a non EU port otherwise the VAT of the starting point will be added on everything. I think Greece has a 24% VAT - so add this to all packages or single drinks, all spa treatments or all purchases in the shops. Plus it´s a lot of work for the cruise line to pay this VAT. 

 

steamboats

Thanks for explaining

[steamboats]

The Norwegian Jade is currently in the bay near Marmaris, Turkey, for the technical stop. And it was confirmed that this is to avoid the EU VAT. BTW, passports were not collected.

 

steamboats

[classy_cruiser]

14 minutes ago, steamboats said:

The Norwegian Jade is currently in the bay near Marmaris, Turkey, for the technical stop. And it was confirmed that this is to avoid the EU VAT. BTW, passports were not collected.

 

steamboats

That is great news about the passports!

[MeHeartCruising]

On 7/23/2021 at 12:34 PM, steamboats said:

....I bet that´s a great job - border patrol officer on a cruise ship ;-)!

 

steamboats

 

Yep!  They always get a nice free meal in the buffet from my experience.

[Sue Do-Over]

Interesting that some countries want to see the 'actual' passports.  Maybe they view/scan each one and stamp them, but that seems like a lot of work when the check-in process includes scanning our passports.

Maybe the border agent chooses a random sample?  I just can't imagine that agent or small group of agents having to review each one individually.  It's not like they have a printed list of known terrorists to compare each one against!

 

Our Baltic cruise a few years ago included Russia.  Pax either had to get an individual Visa (at a fee, took weeks) to explore on their own, or stay with an approved tour group, but it didn't have to be booked through NCL. Those were your only options.

[KeithJenner]

20 minutes ago, Sue Do-Over said:

Interesting that some countries want to see the 'actual' passports.  Maybe they view/scan each one and stamp them, but that seems like a lot of work when the check-in process includes scanning our passports.

Maybe the border agent chooses a random sample?  I just can't imagine that agent or small group of agents having to review each one individually.  It's not like they have a printed list of known terrorists to compare each one against!

 

Our Baltic cruise a few years ago included Russia.  Pax either had to get an individual Visa (at a fee, took weeks) to explore on their own, or stay with an approved tour group, but it didn't have to be booked through NCL. Those were your only options.

It is basically immigration, so yes some countries want to see every passport as they would if you arrived by plane.

 

There are various ways of doing it. Sometimes they just want to see the passports when the ship arrives. Sometimes someone will board earlier to spend time going through them. On a couple of occasions we have had immigration board at the previous port and then every passenger has to go through the immigration process on the ship, showing their passport to immigration staff. A pain, but it does mean that you can just disembark in the morning rather than queueing there.

[steamboats]

23 minutes ago, Sue Do-Over said:

I just can't imagine that agent or small group of agents having to review each one individually. 

 

I´ve been on a couple of Canal "crossings" to Southampton and here the officers are onboard already and check everyone in person. So you have to walk up with your passport in hand.

 

As for Russia you can now apply for a free online visa for St. Petersburg and leave the ship on your own.

 

steamboats

[Nola26]

Just received a letter by email this morning from NCL. Jade August 29th cruise will have passports collected at embarkation. They state that Greek authorities require them to collect them. They will be returned prior to disembarking. They recommend a photo copy of our passports on our phone while traveling. I already have this, but will make sure it's really easy to find/pull up.

 

The letter also indicated a technical stop in Turkey and suggest we look at Visa requirements. From what I have read for US passport holders arriving in Turkey for the day via cruise ship the cruise ship makes any visa arrangements. I will call NCL to confirm no further action required on my part.

[gud2seau]

50 minutes ago, Nola26 said:

Just received a letter by email this morning from NCL. Jade August 29th cruise will have passports collected at embarkation. They state that Greek authorities require them to collect them. They will be returned prior to disembarking. They recommend a photo copy of our passports on our phone while traveling. I already have this, but will make sure it's really easy to find/pull up.

 

The letter also indicated a technical stop in Turkey and suggest we look at Visa requirements. From what I have read for US passport holders arriving in Turkey for the day via cruise ship the cruise ship makes any visa arrangements. I will call NCL to confirm no further action required on my part.

 

I received the same letter today.  Could you please let me know if you find that we have to have a Turkey visa based on your findings?  I was surprised to see that since many of the stops to disembark were in Greece and not Turkey.

 

Athens (Piraeus), Greece	---	11:00 PM	0
Mon	Heraklion (Crete), Greece	10:00 AM	---	1
Tue	Rhodes, Greece	8:00 AM	---	0
Wed	Mykonos, Greece	7:00 AM	---	0
Thu	Olympia (Katakolon), Greece	8:00 AM	---	1
Fri	Corfu, Greece	7:00 AM	---	0
Sat	Santorini, Greece	12:00 PM	---	0
Sun	Athens (Piraeus), Greece (Flight Departure)

[Nola26]

5 minutes ago, gud2seau said:

 

I received the same letter today.  Could you please let me know if you find that we have to have a Turkey visa based on your findings?  I was surprised to see that since many of the stops to disembark were in Greece and not Turkey.

 

Athens (Piraeus), Greece	---	11:00 PM	0
Mon	Heraklion (Crete), Greece	10:00 AM	---	1
Tue	Rhodes, Greece	8:00 AM	---	0
Wed	Mykonos, Greece	7:00 AM	---	0
Thu	Olympia (Katakolon), Greece	8:00 AM	---	1
Fri	Corfu, Greece	7:00 AM	---	0
Sat	Santorini, Greece	12:00 PM	---	0
Sun	Athens (Piraeus), Greece (Flight Departure)

It sounds like the ship is stopping in Turkey for maintenance, refueling, certification requirement inspection or something like that, not a typical port stop.

[gud2seau]

35 minutes ago, Nola26 said:

It sounds like the ship is stopping in Turkey for maintenance, refueling, certification requirement inspection or something like that, not a typical port stop.

Agreed.  What is unknown is the verbiage from their letter about a visa:

 

Dear Valued Guest,

Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) has important information regarding sailings departing from Piraeus (Athens) aboard Norwegian Jade.

 

Travel partners should share the below information with guests who may be affected.
Please note, visas may be required for some or all of the ports on this itinerary. During this cruise, the ship will make a technical stop in Turkey. While not all guests require these visas, guests that do require them must obtain them prior to embarkation. Failure to comply with
these requirements will result in denial of embarkation.

 

NCL has partnered with VisaCentral to provide our guests with comprehensive, accurate information regarding travel visas. If you need assistance with acquiring a visa, please contact VisaCentral at https://ncl.visacentral.com. For further information on required travel
documentation, click here.

On this itinerary, Greek authorities require our shipboard team to collect all guest passports due to immigration protocols. Your passport will be collected in the terminal upon embarkation and kept safely until it is returned to you onboard before disembarking. We recommend all guests to bring a photocopy of have a photo of their passport on their mobile phone while traveling.

 

As government regulations evolve, our health and safety protocols will evolve as needed to ensure compliance. This may mean different protocols from ship to ship based on local requirements. Policies and procedures are subject to change at any time.

For additional information on all you need to know to prepare for an amazing vacation ahead, click here.  Thank you for your attention, and we look forward to welcoming you aboard!

Sincerely,
Katty Byrd
Vice President, Guest Services

[DCGuy64]

Thanks for that link. There's a list on the first page of countries that are exempt from the visa requirement. Just for kicks I tried several other countries (Italy, Greece, Cyprus) and only Cyprus came up as needing an (electronic) visa. I highly doubt the average cruiser is going to run into trouble. But it's still a good resource, just the same.

[steamboats]

Once again... on the current (first) cruise the passports have not been collected although announced via email.

 

The technical stop in Turkey is just for avoiding the EU VAT on all purchases onboard (including drinks, internet, spa services, shops onboard). No visa needed for this technical stop. The ship is only in the Marmaris bay and does not dock in port.

 

steamboats

[Nola26]

4 hours ago, steamboats said:

Once again... on the current (first) cruise the passports have not been collected although announced via email.

 

The technical stop in Turkey is just for avoiding the EU VAT on all purchases onboard (including drinks, internet, spa services, shops onboard). No visa needed for this technical stop. The ship is only in the Marmaris bay and does not dock in port.

 

steamboats

Very helpful, thanks. 

[gud2seau]

 

19 hours ago, steamboats said:

Once again... on the current (first) cruise the passports have not been collected although announced via email.

 

The technical stop in Turkey is just for avoiding the EU VAT on all purchases onboard (including drinks, internet, spa services, shops onboard). No visa needed for this technical stop. The ship is only in the Marmaris bay and does not dock in port.

 

steamboats

 

Thank you.  It would have been helpful if NCL had presented it that way.  I could see some getting the visa based on the way the letter was worded.

[swafly5909]

We were on the first full sailing last week.  They said they'd collect our passports; they did not.  Our "technical stop" was sailing thru Turkish waters and pausing for a boat to come meet us.  We never actually stopped on land; no passengers disembarked.  The area was actually gorgeous and we enjoyed the bonus views very much.  Had it not been for the letter pre-cruise, we would have have no idea anything was even happening.