passport question

[jules316]

Please help...I am sailing in february and was planning on sailing without a passport. I am starting to get very nervous about this. I understand I can not fly home from Bahamas, or St thomas, st maarten. But, do I HAVE to have a passport or not? Do I need one to get on/off in Bahamas? I keep seeing different answers. Can someone please clarify? I don't think I can afford expedited passport for 4 ppl! Will I be okay?

[riffatsea]

IF you are sailing from a USA port and returning to a USA port like in Florida you do NOT need a passport.

It is always good to have one in case of emergencies and the need to go home but you do not NEED one to board the ship(assuming you are a USA citizen!)

[*Mach*]

No, you do not.

On a closed loop cruise, one the returns to the same port in the US that it originated from, all you need is a state issued birth certificate, or certified copy, and a state issued photo ID such as a driver's license.

:)

[ChiMimi69]

I say call the cruise line to confirm to give you piece of mind. I just booked for April and was told the passport was recommended (in the event you have to fly home from one of the islands). However, you only need your room key/sail card (and I would carry a picture ID or DL just in case) to get on and off the ship while in port. To sail, a Birth Certificate (or certified copy) and a valid picture ID will be enough to check in. :)

[negc]

And if you, for whatever reason, end up having to fly home from one of those foreign ports, it will be more difficult but NOT IMPOSSIBLE to do so if you don't have a passport. It will be something of a hassle but the US government has alternative ways in which you can prove your citizenship. While it is a best practice to have and carry your passport when traveling, going on a closed loop cruise is still possible without one.:)

[kkestone]

also sailing in Feburary without a passport. If an emergency were to happen and I'm on a closed loop cruise and used a BC to board wouldn't the US government see that A: Im a US citizen and B: by verifying my emergency grant me passage home?

[zqvol]

Please help...I am sailing in february and was planning on sailing without a passport. I am starting to get very nervous about this. I understand I can not fly home from Bahamas, or St thomas, st maarten. But, do I HAVE to have a passport or not? Do I need one to get on/off in Bahamas? I keep seeing different answers. Can someone please clarify? I don't think I can afford expedited passport for 4 ppl! Will I be okay?

 

 

First - a passport is NOT required. Recommended yes, but not required.

 

Second - you can get off the ship at all the ports in the Caribbean without a passport.

 

Third - you can fly home from St. Thomas without a passport it is a US territory.

 

Make sure that you have certified state issued birth certificates for everyone and valid photo IDs for everyone 16 and over.

[jules316]

Thanks everyone! What about Bahamas?

[beach410]

I say call the cruise line to confirm to give you piece of mind. I just booked for April and was told the passport was recommended (in the event you have to fly home from one of the islands). However, you only need your room key/sail card (and I would carry a picture ID or DL just in case) to get on and off the ship while in port. To sail, a Birth Certificate (or certified copy) and a valid picture ID will be enough to check in. :)

 

 

DO NOT CALL THE CRUISE LINE, I REPEAT DO NOT, Carnival's customer service has no clue, one person will tell you one thing and another will tell you something totally different. When I called to ask this to inquire for my brother (I have a passport) they gave me the run around, it was very very frustrating, long and short of it is NO.

 

You do not need one to cruise, the answer is NO. But you do need a valid BC with a raised seal and remember to carry it on you, do not pack it in your luggage. If would carry a copy (you dont want to risk losing or ruining your original) of your BC to take off the ships at port, just in case of an emergency.

[nrdsb4]

You do not need one to cruise, the answer is NO. But you do need a valid BC with a raised seal and remember to carry it on you, do not pack it in your luggage. If would carry a copy (you dont want to risk losing or ruining your original) of your BC to take off the ships at port, just in case of an emergency.

 

Not all states issues BC's with a raised seal. Some have watermarks instead. Bottom line is it needs to be an official certified copy.

[cherylandtk]

also sailing in Feburary without a passport. If an emergency were to happen and I'm on a closed loop cruise and used a BC to board wouldn't the US government see that A: Im a US citizen and B: by verifying my emergency grant me passage home?

Depends on the nature of the emergency. In most cases, your BC will allow you to apply for a passport which can be issued overseas and THEN you can fly home. The only exceptions I know of were true life and death situations back home. Unless death is expected and imminent, it's not really an emergency.

[cherylandtk]

DO NOT CALL THE CRUISE LINE, I REPEAT DO NOT, Carnival's customer service has no clue, one person will tell you one thing and another will tell you something totally different. When I called to ask this to inquire for my brother (I have a passport) they gave me the run around, it was very very frustrating, long and short of it is NO.

 

You do not need one to cruise, the answer is NO. But you do need a valid BC with a raised seal and remember to carry it on you, do not pack it in your luggage. If would carry a copy (you dont want to risk losing or ruining your original) of your BC to take off the ships at port, just in case of an emergency.

Sorry you got such a run-around; if anyone is still reading, here is the link to the government website:

 

http://www.getyouhome.gov/html/lang_eng/eng_sa.html

[Onearmbandit]

Just make sure you have the proper birth certs and you will be fine.

[cherylandtk]

Not all states issues BC's with a raised seal. Some have watermarks instead. Bottom line is it needs to be an official certified copy.

Agreed, some also use holographic paper. My pet peeve with the term 'raised seal' is that it causes many people to grab the hospital souvenir with the pretty gold embossed/raised seal sticker instead of the boring old certified copy. I wish that term could be outlawed.:p

[jules316]

First - a passport is NOT required. Recommended yes, but not required.

 

Second - you can get off the ship at all the ports in the Caribbean without a passport.

 

Third - you can fly home from St. Thomas without a passport it is a US territory.

 

Make sure that you have certified state issued birth certificates for everyone and valid photo IDs for everyone 16 and over.

 

Can you get off in Bahamas w/o passport?

And can you fly home from St. Maarten? Is this also US territory? Thanks!

[travelntreats]

Can you get off in Bahamas w/o passport? NO PASSPORT REQUIRED

And can you fly home from St. Maarten? PASSPORT REQUIRED Is this also US territory? NO Thanks!

 

...........

[CruzVinnieCruz]

St. Maarten is not a U.S. territory. One side of the island is Dutch and the other side is French but there are no true borders that separate the island.