? about passport requirements on Spirit

[Slidell Mom]

Just go to the main Post Office in Old Town, knock on the window and tell them what you need, No problems. They even take your picture.(Ours[pictures] did not turn out so good, but who cares.

 

Still doing research on cruises during Mardi Gras week, but the NCL Spirt looks really good cost wise.

JimmyJames

 

We did this several years ago, when it appeared that passports would be required.

 

 

We're going tomorrow...lol..wish us luck!

[Kathyh1313]

We're going tomorrow...lol..wish us luck!

 

Good luck to you! May the passport gods smile upon you! :D

[flashdog_1]

We're going tomorrow...lol..wish us luck!

 

That is definitely the smart thing to do.

 

The difficulty with all the arguments we've heard is that government bureaus change the rules sometimes a couple of times a year. They think they're doing you a favor by telling you a year ahead of time that you're going to need a passport by a certain date. Then they change the rules. Unfortunately, the old information is still out there, and what was true last year may or may not be true this year.

 

If someone were injured during a cruise and needed to be airlifted out, he'd need his passport (and travel insurance that would cover the staggering cost of an airlift).

 

and BTW, Belize and Guatemala are NOT islands. They are south of Mexico in North America, in what is commonly called Central America. Other countries that fall into that designation would be Nicaragua, Honduras, Panama, Costa Rica. And it becomes even more complicated knowing that there are islands off the coast of Honduras and Panama where cruises stop.

[Shocker4]

Ok, this is my first and probably last post on this board as it's proven to be quite a hostile environment, but wouldn't be so if people would stick to facts and present proof. I was eagerly watching this thread because we are considering this Feb. cruise as well and also a few others. With a large family, passport fees may end up being a deciding factor. My problem was that as I poured over the cruise line and state department websites (yes, I know better than to trust public forums...at least to confirm what's being said) it seemed that for every location I found stating we didn't need one, I found another equally compelling arguement for needing one. I even went so far as to print and highlight documentation that we DIDN'T need one. Then (at the request of Norwegian's website) I checked for the passport requirements of the countries the ship will be visiting, in this case Belize. The link is here for your review: http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1055.html#entry_requirements

 

you can scroll down to entry/exit requirements and I've scoured that page for any exceptions to arriving by sea and cannot find it. I think I've now found documented proof that a passport IS required to sail from New Orleans. It was unfortunate that previous posters could not do so in a mannerly fashion, which only heightened the confusion. As others have posted, we also ran into birth certificate issues with my husband (no raised seal) and are currently awaiting the arrival of a certified original.

 

Hopefully this will help others also pondering their cruise destinations and whether to obtain a passport or choose a cruise that doesn't require it.

[cherylandtk]

Then (at the request of Norwegian's website) I checked for the passport requirements of the countries the ship will be visiting, in this case Belize. The link is here for your review: http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1055.html#entry_requirements

 

you can scroll down to entry/exit requirements and I've scoured that page for any exceptions to arriving by sea and cannot find it.

The problem with using the information provided by the State Dept. is that according to them, you also need a passport to cruise round trip to Antigua, Aruba, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Dominica, St. Maarten and St. Lucia. All of which are part of the Caribbean and fall completely within the US closed loop cruise passport exception. It is a sad, sad situation, because the cruise lines refer you to State, and State gets the information wrong. Until and unless the goverment gets better at this, you can only protect yourself by going with the best possible documentation, which is a passport.

[sparks1093]

The problem with using the information provided by the State Dept. is that according to them, you also need a passport to cruise round trip to Antigua, Aruba, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Dominica, St. Maarten and St. Lucia. All of which are part of the Caribbean and fall completely within the US closed loop cruise passport exception. It is a sad, sad situation, because the cruise lines refer you to State, and State gets the information wrong. Until and unless the goverment gets better at this, you can only protect yourself by going with the best possible documentation, which is a passport.

 

And to muddy the waters further it is DHS that writes and enforces the regulations regarding the whole thing.