Denied boarding

[Fourseventeen]

If you travel ANYWHERE I feel you should have a passport. No reason why any legal resident shouldnt have a passport for ANY type of travel to other countries. Just my .02 cents

[JLC@SD]

...........get a passport.....then if you have one ........you can participate in the threads about whether you should take it ashore....:D;)

[QTPieRye]

A "certificate of live birth" is the same thing as a birth certificate. The OP said her dh had a "certified birth record" which is a statement that says a birth certificate had been filed for her dh but it is not a legal birth certificate. When my children were born in Maryland that is what we received as well. I had to request and pay for the actual birth certificate. You will be fine.

 

I was not quoting what ther OP quoted, but rather the individual that said that a certificate of live birth was not a legal document........

[TahoeBob]

Getting a passport is cheap and easy. $13.50/year for your first time.

This is simply not true. How far do you think would get if you applied for a passport and only sent in $13.50 and told them you would sent your next payment of 413.50 next year.

 

There is a difference between $135.00 for a PP that is good for 10 years and its only $13.50 a year

[Fourseventeen]

135.00 is a small price to pay to have not been denied boarding right? Birth certificates are easily forged....passports are not. Get a passport and not have the worry of being denied. I carry a passport card in my wallet and I take my passport book in my carry on luggage. Better safe then sorry. Well worth the 135.00 for the piece of mind.

[Chigirlcruzin]

There have been no rule changes. The DH was just lucky before. Sorry DH was denied boarding.

[USA_Cruiser]

ok, let me try to explain again what I was asking, why the shoot from the hip response? The OP said there were multiple families denied boarding within a 20 minute period and I simply wanted to know if any of the party cruised and the person without a passport stayed behind, but...oh well, forget the question, even something as innocent as this get a snarky response. Go figure!!

 

If one was denied the rest of the family didn't board. They could have but decided to stay together as a family. The rest of our party boarded but I stayed with DH. Hope this helps answer your question and I know about snarky responses.

[catzcrazy]

we have cruised twice and each time the cruise line took our Canadian passports"for safe keeping". We could not get them back until the end of the cruise. Everyone should get the passport! Its like insurance-you may need it someday! I realize the fee is high, but look at the advantages it gets you..Dona

 

I agree about the passport, if you have it and then need to leave the country in a hurry for whatever reason, then you are prepared.

[Cruisin 4 Ever]

Why is it Carnival's fault that the OP didn't know what type of documentation they had? The OP thought they had a Birth Certificate. Turns out they didn't. Not Carnival's fault, and certainly an unfortunate mishap for the OP, but the onus for proper documentation is still on the cruiser and not on the cruiseline.

She never said she didn't know what type of documentation she had or that she thought she had a birth ceritficate. She said she had a birth registration and it was sufficient for every other cruise. If Carnival accepted it before then why would the poster think it wouldn't be accepted now? Do you work for Carnival? Mellow out- it sucks for these people to have lost their vacation, and Carnival should notify previous passengers their birth records are no longer sufficient - ti's just good business

[salty dingo]

Carnival should notify previous passengers their birth records are no longer sufficient - ti's just good business

I'm not sure how they could do that. They probably maintain a record of the type if ID used for a past cruise, but probably don't record whether a BC was certified or not. No place for that on the Fun Pass that I recall.

 

Best thing Carnival can do it put the requirements prominently on their website. I believe they do. There will always be people who do not think to look, but you can't do much about that.

[salty dingo]

I agree about the passport, if you have it and then need to leave the country in a hurry for whatever reason, then you are prepared.

Here's an example that should make it crystal clear why NO ONE should cruise without a passport.

 

You are in the middle of the cruise and you get the call everyone dreads. Someone very close to you had an accident, maybe a parent or a child, is in the hospital and they may not survive. You are asked to return immediately.

 

But guess what? You can't get back into the USA until the ship returns. Meanwhile your family suffers without you and you ring up huge phone bills doing what you should be doing in person.

[shoefly1960]

Before you start flaming. I don’t have a passport and don’t travel enough to have one. We cruise maybe every other year and we don’t go out of the country any other time. Now for what happened we were suppose to cruise on the Dream today but when we got to the port we were denied boarding. The Documents we had was my birth cert. and my driver’s license. DH had his driver’s license and a certified birth record which he have used on the other 3 cruises we have been on with Carnival and there was no issue BUT as a 2 weeks ago they no longer except that document. And we weren’t the only ones there were families with children that were refused boarding. I called Carnival and spoke to 3 different people regarding this and was told if we didn’t take the insurance out that Carnival offered we were SOOL this just FYI if you have a certified birth record and have used it before you can’t use it now. You need a birth certificate. We thought since we used it in the past we could still use it. And regular insurance won’t cover them denying you boarding.

 

Wow, that would be so very devastating. Invest in the passport. It is really a small price to pay and I am certain eventually will be the only document accepted for any kind of travel, domestic or foreign. We only had my husband's certificate of live birth and had a difficult time obtaining the actual birth certificate and it actually cost more for that through the state of NY than the passport cost but it was worth it for the peace of mind.

[jimbo5544]

wow, that would be so very devastating. Invest in the passport. It is really a small price to pay and i am certain eventually will be the only document accepted for any kind of travel, domestic or foreign. We only had my husband's certificate of live birth and had a difficult time obtaining the actual birth certificate and it actually cost more for that through the state of ny than the passport cost but it was worth it for the peace of mind.

amen

[hubofhockey]

I think the original post in this thread says it all.

 

don’t have a passport and don’t travel enough to have one.

 

My question is the definition of ENOUGH. If you leave the country every other year, isn't that ENOUGH? There are risks, as others have pointed out, even if you go out of the country just one time. In the OP's case, one of those risks hit home and missed a cruise that was paid for in an effort to save a hundred bucks. Sure an official birth certificate would have sufficed. But something else could have come up along the way. It simply is not worth the aggravation of not having one.

[elcuchio24]

I never understand the arguments for NOT having a passport except the 4 year old child "They don't MAKE me have one so I'm not going to have one and YOU can't make me!"

 

Just invest the $100 whatever dollars and get the damn thing. It's good for what, 10 years? So you're talking about 10 bucks a year, you never have to worry about not getting on the ship, you never have to worry about being stuck in Belize with no identification at the embassy gates, you don't have to keep coming on this board and defending your reasons for NOT having a passport.

 

Of all the money you spend on a ship--casino, upgrades to your room, alcohol, BV, or even buying Rum Runners, shore excursions, spa, calling home, bingo, giftshop, pictures of your loved ones with men in pirate outfits.........Of all that money you spend, you can't dig up 10 bones a year to pay for a passport? Please.

[valandemmy]

we are leaving in 3 1/2 weeks for our cruise to mexico, and were very worried when we saw this post. all of our birth certificates say "certificate of live birth". i called carnival this morning, and the customer service representative asked where the birth certificates came from. i told her they came from the department of vital statistics. she told me that we would be perfectly fine to board. she said that the people that were getting turned away were the people that went to the hospital and got something that just stated they were born in that hospital...which is also called a certificate of live birth for whatever reason. ;)

[jimbo5544]

we are leaving in 3 1/2 weeks for our cruise to mexico, and were very worried when we saw this post. all of our birth certificates say "certificate of live birth". i called carnival this morning, and the customer service representative asked where the birth certificates came from. i told her they came from the department of vital statistics. she told me that we would be perfectly fine to board. she said that the people that were getting turned away were the people that went to the hospital and got something that just stated they were born in that hospital...which is also called a certificate of live birth for whatever reason. ;)

I would hate to be turned away for this reason, there are enough things to be worried about. Let us know how you make out.

[gone_cruisin]

Why is this thread such a grand debate?

 

Simply put - go get one. They are not that expensive!

If people had gotten them done when this initiative first came out, the price was even cheaper.

 

I've had mine for 15 years and only have one stamp in it - and I have never regretted spending the money.

[StevieG]

Well he just better not try to cruise.

 

Obviously their standards are much higher.

[elcuchio24]

Why is this thread such a grand debate?

 

Simply put - go get one. They are not that expensive!

If people had gotten them done when this initiative forst came out, the price was even cheaper.

 

I've had mine for 15 years and only have one stamp in it - and I have never regretted spending the money.

 

Some people, for some reason, just refuse to get one. Just will not change their mind until they are physically turned away somewhere or get in trouble. I live in Maine. We need our passports even when we cross the border into canada for the weekend. Just get one, keep it, and then all the other drama is a non issue.

[gone_cruisin]

Some people, for some reason, just refuse to get one. Just will not change their mind until they are physically turned away somewhere or get in trouble. I live in Maine. We need our passports even when we cross the border into canada for the weekend. Just get one, keep it, and then all the other drama is a non issue.

 

I agree - some people are just bullheaded!

 

If you are at the point where you are traveling in the next few weeks, then just go with the birth certificate and make sure you have the right copy.

 

But for pete sakes......when you get back, get the ball rolling immediately upon your return so you're not going through this for your next vacation.

 

After living with her father, my daughter finally moved out with me over last summer. He refused to do the leg work to get the passport. I only had one certified copy of her birth certificate and I was deathly afraid of letting it out of my hands before the cruise and not getting it back in time. Everything went well and upon our return, I immediately got her passport going.

 

Please, for everyone's sanity/security - just get a passport.

[valandemmy]

personally, as a family of 5, it is much cheaper to get birth certificates for all of us, and they dont have a 10 year expiration....they are good for the rest of your life. our birth certificates were $12 each, as opposed to over $100 each for a passport. as long as we are allowed to board without a passport, why would it make sense for us to have one??? i'm not sure why some of you are taking such offense to not having a passport.:confused: if homeland security doesn't mind, why should you ;) lol

[elcuchio24]

personally, as a family of 5, it is much cheaper to get birth certificates for all of us, and they dont have a 10 year expiration....they are good for the rest of your life. our birth certificates were $12 each, as opposed to over $100 each for a passport. as long as we are allowed to board without a passport, why would it make sense for us to have one??? i'm not sure why some of you are taking such offense to not having a passport.:confused: if homeland security doesn't mind, why should you ;) lol

 

It's much cheaper? Yes, that's true. It would be even cheaper to not go on the cruise at all. But somethings are worth the cost. It's like insurance. If you or a family member misses the ship, or war breaks out in a country you're in, or you get in an accident or sick while in a port and need to fly home, you'll be glad you have it. I have had to leave countries abruptly for political reasons. The difference with a passport is a smile and an open gate from a Marine at an embassy, or a blank stare. In all likelyhood you will never be in a bad situation overseas, but you should cover yourself and your family in the event that you are.

 

It is (for now) optional to have a passport on a cruise. But when you read a story like the OP's, isn't it worth it to not have to worry about your vacation getting ruined?

[gone_cruisin]

personally, as a family of 5, it is much cheaper to get birth certificates for all of us, and they dont have a 10 year expiration....they are good for the rest of your life. our birth certificates were $12 each, as opposed to over $100 each for a passport. as long as we are allowed to board without a passport, why would it make sense for us to have one??? i'm not sure why some of you are taking such offense to not having a passport.:confused: if homeland security doesn't mind, why should you ;) lol

 

That is one way to look at - but how much longer do you think you are going to be allowed to just use the birth certificate?

 

The day will come where you will need a passport. So now you've spent, $12 on a birth certificate and will have to pay whatever grand price they have raised it to, to get your first passport. Plus I'm sure there will be another mad rush and back log in the processing time. Renewals are cheaper and easier.

 

To each his own, but problems can and will arise with the birth certificate. Very few problems arise with a passport.

[valandemmy]

i agree with all of your reasons to have a passport...i really do. but, some people are getting on here and telling these people that it serves them right not to have got to board the ship because they didn't have one. as of right now, it isn't REQUIRED. and when it is, there will probably be a mad dash for people to get one. but, it still doesn't make it right to be rude to these people that already missed their cruise because of a document mix up. remember what your mamas told you...if you can't say anything nice, dont say anything at all :D