Closed loop cruise on Anthem in 7 weeks - Passport vs. Birth Certificate question

[jojo412]

Hi all!

 

Going on Anthem in about 7 weeks for a closed loop cruise. Since it was a last minute booking I'm sort of scrambling and realizing that I'm the only one of my group that has a current passport!

 

My two minor children and husband all have certified copies of their birth certificates. Along with a driver's license for my husband, this should be enough for them to take the cruise, right?

 

Are passports needed to get on and off at port stops? Obviously won't need one for Port Canaveral.. but what about CocoCay and Nassau (also assuming no for Cococay since it's private island but just want to check)? For those without passports, do they bring their actual birth certificates off the ship and carry them around at the beach? I've seen older posts from people who say they leave their passports on the ship either way and just bring ID and ship card. We won't be venturing far in Nassau and might even stay on the ship given the recent rise in crime/violence (also just read the recent story about the 2 women from the Carnival cruise).

 

Any insight is appreciated!

Thank you!

 

 

[firefly333]

Sounds like none required, though I'm assuming you dont visit Panama or columbia. Bahamas and most Caribbean cruises I can think of passport not required. 

 

PS though I have a passport, I just being my plastic coated drivers license off the ship in my coin purse. Its waterproof.

 

Only cozumel ever asked to see a ID

Edited February 14 by firefly333

[jojo412]

1 hour ago, firefly333 said:

Sounds like none required, though I'm assuming you dont visit Panama or columbia. Bahamas and most Caribbean cruises I can think of passport not required. 

 

PS though I have a passport, I just being my plastic coated drivers license off the ship in my coin purse. Its waterproof.

 

Only cozumel ever asked to see a ID

Thank you for the reply!

[Mum2Mercury]

If you're cruising in 7 weeks, you're cruising with whatever you have now.  Fortunately, yes, what you have will get you on /off a closed loop cruise.  

 

All you'll need for Coco Cay is your Ship ID.  

 

Nassau did want a picture ID in addition to the Ship ID.  Personally, I would consider staying on the ship in Nassau.  We felt genuinely unsafe leaving the ship /entering the city.  We weren't so afraid of crime -- we had our cash and ID on our persons /hidden under clothing, and we were on populated streets mid-morning.  What scared us was the crush of people crammed together in a bottleneck between the dock and the city.  If anyone had fallen, or if someone had started pushing, people could've fallen and been trampled.  And we didn't really enjoy Nassau.  We agreed that we're not going into Nassau again; we might take an excursion that leaves from the docks /doesn't require entering the city.  

 

We've also been to Cozumel recently, but they did not require a picture ID.  They did require us to hold our backpacks down for the drug dogs to sniff.  We were on the International Pier -- could that make a difference?

 

 

Edited February 14 by Mum2Mercury

[reallyitsmema]

2 hours ago, jojo412 said:

Hi all!

 

Going on Anthem in about 7 weeks for a closed loop cruise. Since it was a last minute booking I'm sort of scrambling and realizing that I'm the only one of my group that has a current passport!

 

My two minor children and husband all have certified copies of their birth certificates. Along with a driver's license for my husband, this should be enough for them to take the cruise, right?

 

Are passports needed to get on and off at port stops? Obviously won't need one for Port Canaveral.. but what about CocoCay and Nassau (also assuming no for Cococay since it's private island but just want to check)? For those without passports, do they bring their actual birth certificates off the ship and carry them around at the beach? I've seen older posts from people who say they leave their passports on the ship either way and just bring ID and ship card. We won't be venturing far in Nassau and might even stay on the ship given the recent rise in crime/violence (also just read the recent story about the 2 women from the Carnival cruise).

 

Any insight is appreciated!

Thank you!

 

 

 

Birth certificate and government issued picture ID is all that is needed on a closed loop cruise for those 16 years old and up.  If you kids are under 16 years old, they are fine with their birth certificates.  You will need your picture ID as well as your sea pass in Nassau as they check both.  The port area in Nassau was just rebuilt, not sure when the prior poster was there but obviously not recently.

 

Passports are coming back much faster than in recent years.  I saw a post today that it only took three weeks, which is amazing.  It would depend on the kids ages and whether you have more plans to travel in the near future if I were to try to get passports.  If the kids are almost 16, I would wait as once they are 16, they get a 10 year passport, not the 5 year for younger kids.

[PhillyFan33579]

26 minutes ago, Mum2Mercury said:

If you're cruising in 7 weeks, you're cruising with whatever you have now.  Fortunately, yes, what you have will get you on /off a closed loop cruise.  

It took less than 4 weeks to get my passport renewed last summer. I would assume the time is less these days, even for a new passport. Personally I would never leave the country without a passport, but I am not much of a risk taker. 

[Mum2Mercury]

11 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

It took less than 4 weeks to get my passport renewed last summer. I would assume the time is less these days, even for a new passport. Personally I would never leave the country without a passport, but I am not much of a risk taker. 

I think you were lucky.  I just checked the website, and it says 8-11 weeks.  That'd be IF you had pictures in hand and the application filled out.  Then there's the appointment:  my daughter's getting an adult passport for the first time right now, and she's frustrated at the lack of appointment-spots.  

 

I'm not saying a passport isn't a good choice -- just that it's not something you can count on getting quickly.  The risk of traveling on a cruise with a birth certificate isn't zero, but it's quite low.  Consider, too, that even with a passport, the possibility of you being able to fly home is small -- you'd have to wait until you reach an island, hope they have a flight for you today or tomorrow, and pay a large price for that last-minute ticket.  

[reallyitsmema]

1 hour ago, Mum2Mercury said:

I think you were lucky.  I just checked the website, and it says 8-11 weeks.  That'd be IF you had pictures in hand and the application filled out.  Then there's the appointment:  my daughter's getting an adult passport for the first time right now, and she's frustrated at the lack of appointment-spots.  

 

I'm not saying a passport isn't a good choice -- just that it's not something you can count on getting quickly.  The risk of traveling on a cruise with a birth certificate isn't zero, but it's quite low.  Consider, too, that even with a passport, the possibility of you being able to fly home is small -- you'd have to wait until you reach an island, hope they have a flight for you today or tomorrow, and pay a large price for that last-minute ticket.  

 

What website are you checking?  The official passport website says 6-8 weeks.  

[HappyTexan44]

12 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

It took less than 4 weeks to get my passport renewed last summer. I would assume the time is less these days, even for a new passport. Personally I would never leave the country without a passport, but I am not much of a risk taker. 

I was genuinely shocked at how quick it was.  The appointment was easy to get and the post office we went to had a day where they took walk-ins.  I got an appointment anyway.   We went just before Thanksgiving and got them on Dec 7th.   DH had the passport from when he was 8.   I had my passport from 2000, but I'd married since then with a name change.  Daughter was getting her first.  So, it wasn't like we were all renewing unexpired passports.  
I'd thought about just not getting passports.  But I wanted ID for daughter, and I wanted a married name passport for me.  So, now I can stop digging out my marriage license.   

 

[Mum2Mercury]

Unsure what I clicked, as I didn't save it -- just the first thing that popped up.  

[reallyitsmema]

1 minute ago, Mum2Mercury said:

Unsure what I clicked, as I didn't save it -- just the first thing that popped up.  

 

LOL  The "first thing that popped up" is likely a company that you have to pay to file your passport, otherwise known as click bait.  Hopefully, that isn't where you are sending your daughter for information too.

 

The official site states 6-8 weeks processing time.  It also has information on Special Passport Acceptance Fairs that are happening all over the country.

 

For the OP, here is the link that will help you apply for their passports.  Much easier to fill out the form online and print it than doing it by hand.

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports.html

 

 

[jojo412]

10 hours ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

LOL  The "first thing that popped up" is likely a company that you have to pay to file your passport, otherwise known as click bait.  Hopefully, that isn't where you are sending your daughter for information too.

 

The official site states 6-8 weeks processing time.  It also has information on Special Passport Acceptance Fairs that are happening all over the country.

 

For the OP, here is the link that will help you apply for their passports.  Much easier to fill out the form online and print it than doing it by hand.

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports.html

 

 

Thank you! We made it to our appointment today and they even helped with my husband's renewal too. Much appreciated!

[HappyTexan44]

One thing that almost got me was the photos.   There are places that will convert your random photo into a passport photo, for a fee.   Then there are other free places that you just upload the photo and center and zoom it yourself, and then it has a software test for passport-worthiness.  Photos went through without a problem, and the guy at the post office seemed surprised that our photos were fine.  

[mjkacmom]

40 minutes ago, HappyTexan44 said:

One thing that almost got me was the photos.   There are places that will convert your random photo into a passport photo, for a fee.   Then there are other free places that you just upload the photo and center and zoom it yourself, and then it has a software test for passport-worthiness.  Photos went through without a problem, and the guy at the post office seemed surprised that our photos were fine.  

My daughter went to Walgreens, mailed in her passport renewal, 6 weeks later received notification that she needed new photos.