Charles4515

There are boards here for both topics. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/378-freighter-and-other-non-traditional-cruise-travel/ https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/2474-transatlantic-transpacific-repositioning-trans-ocean-cruises/

Frequent travelers probably have a second passport. US citizens have a second passport with different dates.

When an online renewal was submitted the old passport was canceled. It could not be used for travel.

Most likely Bermuda.

No. The fee and Covid testing were ended last November.

It does not say they found it outside the ship. I know they routinely search cabins. I have seen them coming through. What I found interesting is they detected THC in an edible. First time I saw them mention THC in an edible.

I don’t know about Bermuda but Royal Caribbean prohibits CBD oils. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/prohibited-items-onboard-policy

When you are docked in Bermuda you are in their country.

They have been doing it for many years. I don’t post all the times they fine people. I only post about it now and then when they do to make people aware.

Bermuda has sniffer dogs that inspect cabins for drugs.on ships docked in Bermuda. https://www.royalgazette.com/court/news/article/20230607/cruise-passenger-fined-1000-for-cannabis-aboard-ship/

As I have posted over the years does have sniffer dogs inspect cabins for drugs.on ships docked in Bermuda. https://www.royalgazette.com/court/news/article/20230607/cruise-passenger-fined-1000-for-cannabis-aboard-ship/

If a cruise has New York listed on the itinerary it should not be docking in Bayonne. That would be deceptive. If this is really true, I find it rather odd that Bayonne would be a port stop, then the cruise line should provide passengers a free shuttle to New York.

I have cruised to Bermuda 18 times. I did 4 on Zenith and the roughest sailing I was on in over 60 cruises was on one leg of a July sailing on Zenith. Passenger were falling and the ship smelled like vomit. It was only one of the days and nights on the leg. There was a northeaster that caused it. We really liked the Zenith but it didn’t seem to handle rough seas very well compared to other ships. Definitely being smaller didn’t help but I have done 3 smaller ships to Bermuda that handled better.

A port “stop” at Bayonne is pretty unusual. Usually Bayonne is only used for embarkations and debarkations by Celebrity or Royal Caribbean. I was surprised once to see the QM2 docked there when embarking on a Celebrity cruise but it was an embark/debark that happened because there was no room in Brooklyn. What cruise line and what itinerary?

My first passport was in 1973 to visit the UK and I always renewed it since but I did not use it when visiting Canada or Mexico until it was required sometime after 2000. It is understandable that things are different now than before 2001. I do think that anyone traveling internationally would be wise to have a passport but there are so many sanctimonious posts when someone asks a question about not having one or if they can use a birth certificate. Also sanctimonius posts about Americans from non Americans about Americans not having passports. Some people seem to think people get stranded in an emergency and never can come home. A temporary or emergency passport can be obtained if out of the US in the very rare circumstance it is needed. We have not always needed passports for travel out of the US to places in North America and we still have the ability to travel on most closed loop cruises without a passport. We can also use WHTI documents, not passport books for some land border and sea crossings in North America too. Someone with an EDL or passport card can cross into Canada by land. I think cost is a valid reason, it adds up for a large family and should not be poo, pooed. For some families it is a trip of a lifetime, they don't take a cruise every year. Also the process to get the first one or renew takes time and some effort. This year some have been caught flat flooted by long delays in getting their passports after applying. Really it is savvy to renew a year in advance of expiration and when mine needs to renew I will attempt to renew taht early but last time I had so many interantional trips booked that the only window I had was five months before it expired. That was in 2016 and it renewed in 3 weeks. Our government is failing us with renewals taking 2 or 3 months but it is what it is.

I am an American and I have traveled to Canada and Mexico a bunch of times without a passport both by land and by air. Flew to Montreal in 1967 did not have or need a passport. Flew to Toronto. Drove across the border to Montreal without a passport several times. Also to Toronto and Niagara Falls. Often decided at the spur of the moment to drive across the border to Canada. Never even crossed our minds to travel to Canada and Mexico with a passport even when we had them. The border agents often waved us through without asking for any ID. Usually they just asked why we were crossing.

Americans do get passports.

What happens is they get an emergency passport and get home. Certainly having to get an emergency passport is not ideal but there emergency and temporary passports are a real thing.

I think their concern is that they have a forward cabin. It never bothered me but I don’t get motion sickness. I have friend who always gets it even when the seas are calm. So he takes as you say precautions. He starts taking the Bonine pills in the morning before the ship sails.

We received one for sailing in to Venice and it would have been great if it had been a sunny morning. Unfortunately it was foggy and overcast. We did have a sunny day for the the sail away which we did from the outside decks and that was fine. What I really prefer are bridge tours about every five years. The engine room tour was really interesting although it really was only the engine control room.

They do. The meeting place is probably the Island Tour Centre which is a few minutes walk from the ship berth. The ship should clear by 9:00 or earlier so you will have plenty of time to make it.

It would be helpful if you said who the excursion is booked with but most likely a catamaran excursion is leaving from the Dockyard. In that case you will have plenty of time to make it.

OP had a smiley after their comment about NCL which you left off so I assumed they knew that and were joking but their comment about paying extra did make me wonder if they did understand that.

A lot of people are in the same situation and asking on Cruise Critic. They did not anticipate the current backed up renewal situation.

Captain’s Club host.