Passport vs Birth Certificate: LA, Cabo, Ensenada, LA

[New2cruise2022]

I’m traveling on a 5-night NCL out of LA in January. I have kids, 17-year-old and 15-year-old, both US citizens traveling with me. Neither have passports, both have birth certificates and govt issued ID. 
 

Will there be any issues if I don’t get passports? Any thoughts, comments or suggestions are welcome. 
 

Thanks!

[phillygwm]

7 minutes ago, New2cruise2022 said:

I’m traveling on a 5-night NCL out of LA in January. I have kids, 17-year-old and 15-year-old, both US citizens traveling with me. Neither have passports, both have birth certificates and govt issued ID. 
 

Will there be any issues if I don’t get passports? Any thoughts, comments or suggestions are welcome. 
 

Thanks!

From the NCL website:

 

For Cruises Leaving From a U.S. Port to the Caribbean, Bahamas & Florida, Bermuda, Alaska, Mexican Riviera, Canada & New England, Pacific Coastal

You’re required to carry:

A Valid Passport

OR

Proof of Citizenship (see below) AND Government-issued photo ID

(Baptismal paper, hospital certificates of birth, and Puerto Rico birth certificates issued prior to 7/1/10 are not acceptable.)

• State certified U.S. birth certificate
• Original certificate of U.S. naturalization
• Original certificate of U.S. citizenship
• U.S. Consular report of your birth abroad

OR

WHTI (Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative)-compliant documents (click here to for more information.)

*A U.S. citizen under the age of 16 does not require a government-issued photo ID.

Norwegian Cruise Line strongly recommends all guests to obtain a passport for their cruise vacation for the following reasons:

• If you miss your ship at its scheduled U.S. departure port and need to travel outside the U.S. to meet your ship.
• You unexpectedly need to depart the ship from a foreign port prior to the end of sailing, a passport would be required to leave or re-enter the U.S. by air.

If you need to obtain a passport quickly, please contact VisaCentral at 844-834-5702 and reference account 75006 for discounted VisaCentral service fees. VisaCentral can obtain a passport in as little as 48 hours.

[Liljo22]

17 minutes ago, New2cruise2022 said:

I’m traveling on a 5-night NCL out of LA in January. I have kids, 17-year-old and 15-year-old, both US citizens traveling with me. Neither have passports, both have birth certificates and govt issued ID. 
 

Will there be any issues if I don’t get passports? Any thoughts, comments or suggestions are welcome. 
 

Thanks!

No problem with boarding or getting off and on the ship while in port.  The issue with having a passport vs the birth certificate is if for some reason you need to make it back to the US by other means.  

[New2cruise2022]

This is absolutely the kind of advice I needed. It’s a Christmas gift so I have been trying to avoid, “Let’s go get some passports!” 
“”Why?”

”No reason …”

BUT 

I am fairly risk averse. I feel like I would be comfortable knowing they could travel with me easily in the event of an emergency. 
Thanks! 🙏🏼 

[BirdTravels]

3 hours ago, New2cruise2022 said:

I’m traveling on a 5-night NCL out of LA in January. I have kids, 17-year-old and 15-year-old, both US citizens traveling with me. Neither have passports, both have birth certificates and govt issued ID. 
 

Will there be any issues if I don’t get passports? Any thoughts, comments or suggestions are welcome. 
 

Thanks!

No issues with not having passports. They have to be official Birth Certificates (embossed). (Don't listen to the fear mongers, people travel on closed-loop cruises with BC all the time). 

 

However, if both parents are not traveling with the kids, you will may need to get a consent form.

https://www.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise/cruise-travel-documents#documentation-resources

[phillygwm]

48 minutes ago, New2cruise2022 said:

I am fairly risk averse. I feel like I would be comfortable knowing they could travel with me easily in the event of an emergency. 
Thanks! 🙏🏼 

You mentioned that your cruise is in January.  Depending on WHEN in January, you might be able to get passports after the Christmas surprise.  There's an extra charge ($60 each) for the service but if it gives you peace of mind it's probably worth it.  The catch is you need to call to set the appointment and not every office will have slots available.  So maybe better to schedule ASAP.   https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/get-fast.html

 

[New2cruise2022]

I came to the right place. Thank you to all for sharing with me. All of your advice was very helpful. 

[Sea Monster 2]

I am a former consular officer, the person charged with assisting you at the embassy in case of an emergency. Everything is easier with a passport, especially in an emergency, when you don’t want to deal with extra bureaucracy or delays. Even if you lose your passport, there will be an electronic record of your passport, enabling a new one to be issued; in the absence of such a record, it can be difficult and time-consuming for a person already in a crisis to also prove their identity and/or citizenship— I have seen it take weeks for someone stranded abroad. Thousands of emergencies happen to Americans around the world, every single day, including lost or damaged passports, medical emergencies, death, arrest (sometimes for things that would never result in arrest in the US), etc.  Get the passports and then enroll at Smart Traveller Enrollment Program (STEP) at the State Department’s website. You will have peace of mind and the embassy will be empowered to assist you all immediately in the event of an emergency. 

[New2cruise2022]

25 minutes ago, Sea Monster 2 said:

I am a former consular officer, the person charged with assisting you at the embassy in case of an emergency. Everything is easier with a passport, especially in an emergency, when you don’t want to deal with extra bureaucracy or delays. Even if you lose your passport, there will be an electronic record of your passport, enabling a new one to be issued; in the absence of such a record, it can be difficult and time-consuming for a person already in a crisis to also prove their identity and/or citizenship— I have seen it take weeks for someone stranded abroad. Thousands of emergencies happen to Americans around the world, every single day, including lost or damaged passports, medical emergencies, death, arrest (sometimes for things that would never result in arrest in the US), etc.  Get the passports and then enroll at Smart Traveller Enrollment Program (STEP) at the State Department’s website. You will have peace of mind and the embassy will be empowered to assist you all immediately in the event of an emergency. 

Thank you. Is STEP free or another fee?

[Sea Monster 2]

10 minutes ago, New2cruise2022 said:

Thank you. Is STEP free or another fee?

It is free, you should use it whenever you travel— that way the embassy has a record that you will be in a country, where you will be staying, who to contact in an emergency, etc., and also positions the embassy to reach out to you directly in case of a major public emergency. Just takes a few minutes to put in the details for the trip.

[New2cruise2022]

1 minute ago, Sea Monster 2 said:

It is free, you should use it whenever you travel— that way the embassy has a record that you will be in a country, where you will be staying, who to contact in an emergency, etc., and also positions the embassy to reach out to you directly in case of a major public emergency. Just takes a few minutes to put in the details for the trip.

I have no idea how I never knew this in all of my travels. Thanks!