Suez Canal Passport Problems

[Lookyboy]

I feel it only fair to comment on Quest's recent transit of the Suez CanaI. Both the Israeli and Egyptian passport authorities made our transit 'less than easy', and changed the rules overnight a couple of times. On one occasion, all passengers and crew had to have a face to face at 8.00am.....a decision shared with the ship only the night before. 

Announcements in staterooms were, unfortunately, as a result..... crucial.

[beagle 24]

Hi doing this cruise on Journey 2023 

Question did the ship provide the visa's for Egypt, Israeli and Jordan

Thanks

[crzrr]

We were on this cruise.  All visas were handled by the ship.  

[Keeria]

1 hour ago, crzrr said:

We were on this cruise.  All visas were handled by the ship.  

Thank you. We will also be on this cruise on Journey  in October 2023.

[Twiga]

We were on this cruise, too.

On 12/1/2022 at 1:47 PM, Lookyboy said:

I feel it only fair to comment on Quest's recent transit of the Suez CanaI. Both the Israeli and Egyptian passport authorities made our transit 'less than easy', and changed the rules overnight a couple of times. On one occasion, all passengers and crew had to have a face to face at 8.00am.....a decision shared with the ship only the night before. 

Announcements in staterooms were, unfortunately, as a result..... crucial.

We were on this cruise, too. I had no problem with the Egyptian authorities or any other countries. I do not understand what Lookyboy is referring to.  Azamara handled all passport controls very well.  Several times we had to turn in our passports to Guest Relations, then retrieve them later.  Not a problem.  In Israel we went ashore about 10:00 a.m. for the face to face immigration meeting, not 8:00 a.m.  At no time did we need to have a face to face meeting at 8:00 a.m.   The only glitch was Dubai, where we had arrived at 5:00 p.m. and at 5:45 p.m. were told that we had to go into the terminal by 6:30 p.m. for a face to face meeting.  It was not a problem.  I was at Prime C at 6:30 p.m. for dinner.  I spoke with the Hotel Director and Captain, who told me that the new owners, Sycamore Partners, had worked feverishly with the governments on this cruise to make it as easy as possible for the passengers.  I think they succeeded.

[Grandma Cruising]

4 hours ago, Twiga said:

We were on this cruise, too.

We were on this cruise, too. I had no problem with the Egyptian authorities or any other countries. I do not understand what Lookyboy is referring to.  Azamara handled all passport controls very well.  Several times we had to turn in our passports to Guest Relations, then retrieve them later.  Not a problem.  In Israel we went ashore about 10:00 a.m. for the face to face immigration meeting, not 8:00 a.m.  At no time did we need to have a face to face meeting at 8:00 a.m.   The only glitch was Dubai, where we had arrived at 5:00 p.m. and at 5:45 p.m. were told that we had to go into the terminal by 6:30 p.m. for a face to face meeting.  It was not a problem.  I was at Prime C at 6:30 p.m. for dinner.  I spoke with the Hotel Director and Captain, who told me that the new owners, Sycamore Partners, had worked feverishly with the governments on this cruise to make it as easy as possible for the passengers.  I think they succeeded.

Having done this route 3 times we found this time to be very different from previously, (although I can’t comment about Israel as it wasn’t included previously). Never had to have any face-to-face interviews before, even when disembarking in the Dubai the evening before the normal disembarkation. I also don’t remember the to and fro of passports so often before, or immigration officers waiting at the bottom of the gang-plank so often.

[Lookyboy]

2 hours ago, Grandma Cruising said:

Having done this route 3 times we found this time to be very different from previously, (although I can’t comment about Israel as it wasn’t included previously). Never had to have any face-to-face interviews before, even when disembarking in the Dubai the evening before the normal disembarkation. I also don’t remember the to and fro of passports so often before, or immigration officers waiting at the bottom of the gang-plank so often.

That's what I was meaning, Denise.the last times we cruised this route were very different from most recently. It wasn't a problem for us, except that morning at 08.00, when Ryszard and the Captain helped us out. My husband was very poorly and in the medical facility, so a passport official had to be cleared to board the ship to go to the medical facility for that particular face to face. They insisted that it had to happen at 08.00 (having told the Senior Staff something different the previous evening. Apparently this had been the pattern for a few of the passport checks....the authorities kept changing their instructions to the ship.)

It was a very different passage this time  but still one if our favourites. 😁

 

[beagle 24]

Thanks Everyone looking forward to the cruise.