Do they stamp/ check your passport in Victoria?

[utseabee]

We are sailing in 3 weeks, round trip from San francisco. This is our first cruise. I wondered how the passport thing will work in Victoria. Will they stamp my passport in Victoria? Also, DH decided not to get a passport, just take his birth certificate and ID. We assume this means that he can't get off the ship in Victoria. correct?

(and i already know the risk of no passport re:what if there is an emergency back home)

[Yukon]

When we arrived at Victoria a month ago passports were not checked (we never went within 50 feet of the Canadian border agent who was sitting in the terminal reading a newspaper), so your hubby could have gotten off. The worst that could happen is that they'd send him back to the ship, but I very much doubt that anyone at the Victoria dock cares.

[PlanoDebbie]

We are sailing in 3 weeks, round trip from San francisco. This is our first cruise. I wondered how the passport thing will work in Victoria. Will they stamp my passport in Victoria? Also, DH decided not to get a passport, just take his birth certificate and ID. We assume this means that he can't get off the ship in Victoria. correct?

(and i already know the risk of no passport re:what if there is an emergency back home)

 

Have you checked with your cruise line to see if he'll even be allowed on the ship in San Francisco? I couldn't even book our cruise without having my passport number.

[Putterdude]

No they do not check passports in Victoria but then again a US citizen does not presently require a passport to enter Canada. If you want to have your passport stamped, I am sure that if customs officers have a stamp with them they will be happy to oblige.

[utseabee]

Have you checked with your cruise line to see if he'll even be allowed on the ship in San Francisco? I couldn't even book our cruise without having my passport number.

yes, i asked my Travel Agent when we booked, and checked with Princess.

US citizens traveling on U.S. roundtrip or “closed-loop” voyages may also travel with an original certified birth certificate presented together with a valid government-issued photo identification. These voyages include:

 

• Alaska roundtrip from San Francisco or Seattle (roundtrip Seattle cruisetours excluded)
  

[trophy_23]

They didn't even look at us twice as we walked through the building in Victoria. They were all just standing around chatting. Maybe they do some kind of random checks or something, but we didn't notice.

[scottbee]

We are sailing in 3 weeks, round trip from San francisco. This is our first cruise. I wondered how the passport thing will work in Victoria. Will they stamp my passport in Victoria? Also, DH decided not to get a passport, just take his birth certificate and ID. We assume this means that he can't get off the ship in Victoria. correct?

(and i already know the risk of no passport re:what if there is an emergency back home)

 

A Passport is not a requirement for a US Citizen to enter Canada, you require three things;

 

1. proof of citizenship
   
2. government photo id
   
3. correct paperwork to return home
   

However, given that the United States require a US Citizen be in possession of a valid passport to re-enter the United States, that's why you'd normally need it to enter Canada (rule #3). There is one exception; closed loop cruises where you return to your point of departure, which is your case; so your husband should be fine.

 

As for getting off the ship, and Immigrations and Customs being disinterested, that's because the entire passenger manifest would have been pre-transmitted to Canadian authorities prior to arrivial, and they're not going to let you off, or if they do, they'll call a Canadian Immigration officer for a chat.

[chipmaster]

No passport = NO visit to Victoria for DH! My father sent his passport in a few weeks ago before our cruise. No issue with getting on the ship with a stop in Victoria. Princess said all he needed was naturalizaton paper or US birth certificate and other photo idea. But no disembarkation in Victoria.

 

As for all my recent cruises that disembarkation in a foreign country all that is required was cruise card as the passport info and other requirements were completed at checkin.

 

We are sailing in 3 weeks, round trip from San francisco. This is our first cruise. I wondered how the passport thing will work in Victoria. Will they stamp my passport in Victoria? Also, DH decided not to get a passport, just take his birth certificate and ID. We assume this means that he can't get off the ship in Victoria. correct?

(and i already know the risk of no passport re:what if there is an emergency back home)

[Putterdude]

The only issue for a US citizen sailing anywhere without a passport is the fact, that heaven forbid, you had to fly home unexpectedly from outside the US you do need a passport...just grist for the mill.

[MFJune]

The potential problem is getting back on the ship. You can't enter the USA without a passport. Consequently companies that do cross border transfers usually will not carry a passenger without a passport. They don't want to be responsible when the passenger is refused entry to the USA.

 

As noted before, Canada is very welcoming.

[fleckle]

In Victoria we have never been asked to show a passport, or any other form of citizenship ID, either getting off a cruise ship or getting back on. It was just like getting off and on at any of the Alaska ports.

The only thing we needed was our ship seapass (sign and sail) card.

[MFJune]

Does this mean I, an alien, can go to Alaskan ports without a passport? I don't think so. I had to give the Cruise line my passport # when I checked in on-line. If it's not recorded on my sea card, the ship has it on their register.

 

How long ago did you sail? There was a phase in period after the USA decided to make passports mandatory. The US passport offices couldn't deal with the volume of applications.

[fleckle]

Does this mean I, an alien, can go to Alaskan ports without a passport? I don't think so. I had to give the Cruise line my passport # when I checked in on-line. If it's not recorded on my sea card, the ship has it on their register.

 

How long ago did you sail? There was a phase in period after the USA decided to make passports mandatory. The US passport offices couldn't deal with the volume of applications.

We last sailed to Alaska in May of this year. We are US citizens so our situation is somewhat different from yours. The phase in period you mention did not affect us at all and we really paid no attention to it because we have had our passports for many years and always routinely bring them along whenever we travel anywhere outside the USA.

 

Like you, we had to enter our passport numbers and expiration dates when we checked in on-line. Then we needed to show our passports on the day of embarkation. But once we boarded the ship, we locked our passports in the cabin safe and did not take them out again until the final day of the cruise.

 

Definitely bring your passport along. Once you are on board, the ship personnel should be able to tell you when and where you will need to show it again. They routinely deal with passengers of many nationalities and should be quite familiar with the appropriate procedures for each port.

[ysr_racer]

Do yourself a favor and get him a passport.

[utseabee]

Do yourself a favor and get him a passport.

Thats kind of impossible, we leave in less than 2 weeks.

[RickEk]

No passport = NO visit to Victoria for DH! My father sent his passport in a few weeks ago before our cruise. No issue with getting on the ship with a stop in Victoria. Princess said all he needed was naturalizaton paper or US birth certificate and other photo idea. But no disembarkation in Victoria.

 

As for all my recent cruises that disembarkation in a foreign country all that is required was cruise card as the passport info and other requirements were completed at checkin.

 

This is wrong! If Princess is allowing you to board with just a birth certificate and government ID, you will absolutely be allowed to disembark in Victoria. No questions asked. Be advised that this is only allowed on the Seattle and San Francisco roundtrips. You wouldn't be allowed to book the cruise if one of the endpoints was in Canada and all you had was a BC/DL.

 

Thats kind of impossible, we leave in less than 2 weeks.

 

No worries. I board in two days with just a BC/DL for a cruise from San Francisco. No problems expected nor anticipated. :)

[EnglandHolidayGirl]

Nobody asked to see our passports in Victoria. We had left them on the ship so just as well. Never even occured to me that they might be needed.!

[iceman2a]

We got off and back on the ship without ANYTHING being checked in Victoria! Had passports out but customs waved us by saying "we don't need to see them" !

[ysr_racer]

Thats kind of impossible, we leave in less than 2 weeks.

 

He'll use it in the future, trust me.

[Putterdude]

In Victoria we have never been asked to show a passport, or any other form of citizenship ID, either getting off a cruise ship or getting back on. It was just like getting off and on at any of the Alaska ports.

The only thing we needed was our ship seapass (sign and sail) card.

 

I had the same experience but have also had the experience of having to show some form of ID such as a DL.