on Dream -no passports

[mochaspresso]

Passports ARE NOT REQUIRED! Period! No matter what you personally feel, that someone should get a passport, if you are a US citizen on a closed loop cruise, passports ARE NOT REQUIRED! Period! End of discussion. It is no one's business what anyone else does, if you want a passport, get a passport. If you cruise without a passport, cruise without a passport. End of the discussion.

 

God, this forum is like a bunch of old ladies who won't let a topic go. According to the UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT OF AMERICA, closed loop cruises for US CITIZENS YOU DO NEED A PASSPORT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I think everyone understands that you don't need a passport on a closed loop cruise. However, it is not wise to travel to a foreign country without one. That is all that people seem to be saying. Saying "if you cruise without a passport, cruise without a passport." is bad advice for a person traveling to a foreign country. You can do it and people have done it without a problem....but that doesn't mean that it is a good idea to do so.

 

....now, it can be the end of the discussion if you want.:D

[darrengs]

If I remember correctly, Triumph was technically closer to Mexico when the fire hit, but Carnival choose to slow drag it 3-4 days back to the US for whatever reason with a boat load full of passengers.

 

The truth if the matter was that the Triumph had drifted further North and by the time the tug boats could get to them and with the currents and winds, it was easier to tow to Alabama. The Passport Pushers here on CC have come up with the conspiracy theory that people were stranded longer due to the passengers who did not have a passport, in an attempt to prove there agenda.

 

Can you imagine the cain people would raise if they were stuck in another country unable to leave due to no fault of their own? Especially if they weren't able to wait it on on the beach

 

People would not be stuck in another country unable to go home. This is another fear tactic to try to scare people into getting a passport that is not required for closed loop cruises.

[Snowmeo]

I wasn't talking about just abandoning a planned vacation for no reason. I was really speaking in terms of an emergency situation. Ship emergency, weather emergency, health emergency, family emergency, political unrest emergency, captain abandons the sinking ship emergency....

 

Ship emergency? We have seen 2 in a few weeks time and all passengers made it home the same. Passport or no.

 

Weather emergency? Cruise ships avoid bad weather including skipping ports. Happens all the time. Is a cruise ship just going to dump you on an island about to be hit by a hurricane and say "see ya! good luck!"? Not if they want to stay in business!

 

Health emergency. I still have yet to get a clear answer on this. If you are elderly and may have a serious health problem like a heart attack or stroke, etc, perhaps you should travel with a passport and a doctor? Otherwise, what health issues would stop me from just taking the ship back? If I am laid up in a hospital somewhere in a foreign country I have plenty of time to apply for an emergency passport. I could also be struck by lightning while on the deck, perhaps I should wear a thick rubber suit, you know, because you never know...

 

Captain abandons a sinking ship. This shows how much you are having to stretch reality and try to create an instance. Sad really.

 

In such a situation, you are in a foreign country with no passport. Therefore, you are essentially depending on all of the powers that be to actually be in place ready to help you. Those people weren't just allowed to fly home freely with no red tape. Carnival stepped up and made that arrangement for it's passengers and insulated them from all of the red tape. Very nice of them, but had they not done that AND had that foreign entity not agreed to it, those people would indeed have been stuck. Carnival has been doing the right thing for its customers in the past, but there is no real guarantee that any cruise line will ALWAYS do that.

 

People say they can't afford a passport. That may be so, but I can't afford to be stuck someplace for any longer than I want or intended to be over something so trivial that it could have been avoided by investing approx. $150 on a passport.

 

Stuck in the Bahamas or St Maarten?? I am sure the "foreign entity" couldn't care less how you left. Most Caribbean islands and Mexico accept the newer state IDs and Passport card as sufficient proof of identity. Since you can't get on a cruise without those, that isnt an issue. You will not get "stuck" in a foreign country. Even after you get back in the US of A, while you might be held up for a bit, the TSA, State Dept and Homeland Security are not in the business or detaining people for the pleasure of it, they are here to protect the US and it's citizens.

 

Perhaps you should wrap yourself in bubble wrap 24 hours a day.. cause.. you never know...

[Snowmeo]

I don't know if it was but I do not fly. Haven't for years. Carnival would have to let me stay or put me on the next ship. Would like to know the answer.

 

In the case of the Carnival Dream, Carnival posted in a statement yesterday that they were working with the passengers that wanted to take the ship back and not fly. Obviously this is an usual case, but once the Dream is repaired, it is coming back to the US anyway for it's next voyage.

[Snowmeo]

If I remember correctly, Triumph was technically closer to Mexico when the fire hit, but Carnival choose to slow drag it 3-4 days back to the US for whatever reason with a boat load full of passengers.

 

Actually the Triumph was in a current and drifting steadily north away from Mexico. Trying to fight the current while being towed would have taken longer than the 3-4 days it took to get to the US while being towed *with* the current. Passports or lack thereof was not a factor in the destination of the Triumph.

[cruiselvr1]

Ship emergency? We have seen 2 in a few weeks time and all passengers made it home the same. Passport or no.

 

Weather emergency? Cruise ships avoid bad weather including skipping ports. Happens all the time. Is a cruise ship just going to dump you on an island about to be hit by a hurricane and say "see ya! good luck!"? Not if they want to stay in business!

 

Health emergency. I still have yet to get a clear answer on this. If you are elderly and may have a serious health problem like a heart attack or stroke, etc, perhaps you should travel with a passport and a doctor? Otherwise, what health issues would stop me from just taking the ship back? If I am laid up in a hospital somewhere in a foreign country I have plenty of time to apply for an emergency passport. I could also be struck by lightning while on the deck, perhaps I should wear a thick rubber suit, you know, because you never know...

 

Captain abandons a sinking ship. This shows how much you are having to stretch reality and try to create an instance. Sad really.

 

 

 

Stuck in the Bahamas or St Maarten?? I am sure the "foreign entity" couldn't care less how you left. Most Caribbean islands and Mexico accept the newer state IDs and Passport card as sufficient proof of identity. Since you can't get on a cruise without those, that isnt an issue. You will not get "stuck" in a foreign country. Even after you get back in the US of A, while you might be held up for a bit, the TSA, State Dept and Homeland Security are not in the business or detaining people for the pleasure of it, they are here to protect the US and it's citizens.

 

Perhaps you should wrap yourself in bubble wrap 24 hours a day.. cause.. you never know...

My wife and I use a passport, because it's more convenient than carrying our birth certificates. I could care less what other people carry. How many of us carry the passport when we leave the ship at a stop. Those who I have seen miss a ship, I doubt if they are carrying anything but a DL. I know normially it is a bunch of idiots who can't tell time, but it happens.

[e150club]

Back in 05' they said you would need a PP even for closed loop cruises as of Jan. 1, 2006. We got three new PP's and one renewal. Here we are seven years later and still don't need one.

[mochaspresso]

Ship emergency? We have seen 2 in a few weeks time and all passengers made it home the same. Passport or no.

 

Weather emergency? Cruise ships avoid bad weather including skipping ports. Happens all the time. Is a cruise ship just going to dump you on an island about to be hit by a hurricane and say "see ya! good luck!"? Not if they want to stay in business!

 

Health emergency. I still have yet to get a clear answer on this. If you are elderly and may have a serious health problem like a heart attack or stroke, etc, perhaps you should travel with a passport and a doctor? Otherwise, what health issues would stop me from just taking the ship back? If I am laid up in a hospital somewhere in a foreign country I have plenty of time to apply for an emergency passport. I could also be struck by lightning while on the deck, perhaps I should wear a thick rubber suit, you know, because you never know...

 

Captain abandons a sinking ship. This shows how much you are having to stretch reality and try to create an instance. Sad really.

 

 

 

Stuck in the Bahamas or St Maarten?? I am sure the "foreign entity" couldn't care less how you left. Most Caribbean islands and Mexico accept the newer state IDs and Passport card as sufficient proof of identity. Since you can't get on a cruise without those, that isnt an issue. You will not get "stuck" in a foreign country. Even after you get back in the US of A, while you might be held up for a bit, the TSA, State Dept and Homeland Security are not in the business or detaining people for the pleasure of it, they are here to protect the US and it's citizens.

 

Perhaps you should wrap yourself in bubble wrap 24 hours a day.. cause.. you never know...

 

Wow. The "pedantic semantics" on this board are at insane levels it seems. I am not referring to the possibility of anyone being detained indefinitely and never suggested that. When I said stuck, I wasn't referring to being detained by authorities and gunpoint and thrown in jail. I just meant finding yourself in a situation where you need an alternative means of travel besides the cruise ship for whatever reason. You can't FLY home from any of those destinations with those types of ID that you mentioned. That is exactly what I mean by poor advice. "Stuck" meaning that if there is an instance where you need or want to fly home from a cruise, then you do need to have a passport. You've never had the desire or need to do this. That's wonderful. Lucky you.

Those of us who have been in this situation, we know that having a passport does make it much easier and are merely advising people of it. A passport isn't required....but it isn't wise to travel without one.

[Snowmeo]

You've never had the desire or need to do this. That's wonderful. Lucky you.

T

 

There ya go. You see the light. That's just it. It isnt needed and some of us have no desire to do it. See? That wasn't so hard was it?

 

Have a great weekend! :)

[Arrow Fan]

Wow. What a snorefest:rolleyes:

[toberman]

Wow. What a snorefest:rolleyes:

 

Fun isn't it!! ;)

[mochaspresso]

There ya go. You see the light. That's just it. It isnt needed and some of us have no desire to do it. See? That wasn't so hard was it?

 

Have a great weekend! :)

 

 

Thanks. Hope everything ALWAYS works out for you when you travel, too. May every trip be perfect and if it isn't...may every cruise line be honorable and may every destination be equally as hospitable and allow you to sit back and sip cocktails and relax on their lovely beaches while other people work to sort out any issue that arises. You have a great weekend and happy sailings as well.

[blindrid]

Back in 05' they said you would need a PP even for closed loop cruises as of Jan. 1, 2006. We got three new PP's and one renewal. Here we are seven years later and still don't need one.

 

Funny that you mention that as that was the reason we got ours. If it wasn't for that, I doubt I would have one.....

 

My buddy's thought was to get a deal on a cheap cruise when a lot of people would not have a PP when the rules went into effect. As most of our beer-stupor plans, it didn't work :rolleyes:.

[Gdawgs]

The worst that would happen is that they will be delayed getting through customs a little bit. I would hope that they have a line for those with passports and without so that those with passports will not be delayed, but knowing how our government works that probably won't happen. These will be charter flights that they know are coming and the circumstances so my guess is it will go pretty smoothly.

 

When it would be more of an issue not to have a passport would be if you were the only passenger coming in because of a personal issue. But when it is a large group like this I doubt it will be a problem.

 

Won't it be fun when the Dream pax get back and start posting what REALLY happened so we can stop our suppositions?

 

Well, here's how it worked for us. Our group had 8 people. Four had passports, our three kids only had birth certificates, and 1 person only had a passport card. Most of the people on the dream took charter flights back to Orlando, but we were booked on a direct commercial flight back to Minneapolis. When we got to the airport in St. Maarten, I told the agent we were on the Dream and that we didn't all have passports. She was a bit confused at first, but she made a quick phone call, then sent a couple texts to Minneapolis, letting them know we were coming. After she processed us(which took only slightly longer than normal) she had us wait a few minutes while she waited to hear back from Minneapolis. After about 5-10 minutes she told us that we were good to go. But when we get to customs in MN, they were going to detain us for a bit to prove that those who didn't have passports could prove their citizenship.

 

When we got back to Minneapolis we went through the customs line just like everyone else. When it was our turn I explained that we were on the Dream and that the kids did not have passports, only birth certificates. He looked at me and asked "and they let you on the plane?" and I said "yep". He seemed very surprised and mentioned that the airline could be fined $3,000/person for doing that. But he did his thing and let us go through without any problems.

[dwjoe]

Though true, they would still need a passport to do a closed-loop cruise, as the government-issued ID is only for US citizens; non-citizens must present a passport.

This is incorrect, though it may be an academic argument.

 

A Canadian EDL is a WHTI-compliant document. Using it, Canadian citizens can travel on any cruise to/from the US, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. The cruise can be open-loop or closed-loop. A Canadian passport will not be required for the cruise, unless your cruise line makes it a requirement.

 

In practice, if you need to fly to the US port of embarkation from Canada, a passport will be required, so the EDL may be moot. It will be useful if you drive to the US, or if the cruise originates in Canada.

 

See www.getyouhome.gov.

[dwjoe]

Well, here's how it worked for us. Our group had 8 people. Four had passports, our three kids only had birth certificates, and 1 person only had a passport card. Most of the people on the dream took charter flights back to Orlando, but we were booked on a direct commercial flight back to Minneapolis. When we got to the airport in St. Maarten, I told the agent we were on the Dream and that we didn't all have passports. She was a bit confused at first, but she made a quick phone call, then sent a couple texts to Minneapolis, letting them know we were coming. After she processed us(which took only slightly longer than normal) she had us wait a few minutes while she waited to hear back from Minneapolis. After about 5-10 minutes she told us that we were good to go. But when we get to customs in MN, they were going to detain us for a bit to prove that those who didn't have passports could prove their citizenship.

 

When we got back to Minneapolis we went through the customs line just like everyone else. When it was our turn I explained that we were on the Dream and that the kids did not have passports, only birth certificates. He looked at me and asked "and they let you on the plane?" and I said "yep". He seemed very surprised and mentioned that the airline could be fined $3,000/person for doing that. But he did his thing and let us go through without any problems.

Thanks for the first hand account.

 

I am surprised to hear that folks without passports were allowed on regular comercial flights to the US. I heard that they would have to go on charter flights to Orlando. Maybe the airline decided to let you board anyway and CBP decided not to call them out for it. In any case, glad you made it home without hassles.

[FloridaGram]

First off, not having a passport does NOT slow down debarkation. I breeze through every time with my birth certificate and ID. Secondly, It's not a matter of passport cost for everyone.

 

I personally, and many others (believe it or not), simply CAN'T GET A PASSPORT! There are certain restrictions that that can keep an individual from being able to get a passport. The one such restriction that I have, relates to Child Support. Now, this is none of your business, but I'm very tired of the self-righteous on this board forcing their opinions on this issue. There are many of us travelers that simply CAN'T GET ONE. This isn't because I don't pay support, because I do, but there are OTHER ISSUES related to this that keep me from getting one.

 

Does this mean I can't cruise? Not at all. It simply means that I HAVE to use a birth certificate and ID to travel. Am I concerned about emergencies? Not at all. I would much rather travel without one, and have the backing of CCL behind me, than travel with one, and be on my own.

 

So just remember, what works for you may not work for another, and only the cruiseline has the right to say what is REQUIRED, and what is SUGGESTED.

 

I have not posted anything nasty here, but have been reading along. So I am not judging anyones reasons, we cruised for years without passports. But then when we got one of course we use it and keep it renewed. Our grandkids and kids sail with birth certificates.

 

But I honestly did not have any idea that some people could not get them for the reason you stated, or some other reasons. I may have guessed that someone on probation could not get one but was not aware of this reason. So thank you for educating us and happy sailing on your next cruise.

[dwjoe]

Well, here's how it worked for us. Our group had 8 people. Four had passports, our three kids only had birth certificates, and 1 person only had a passport card. Most of the people on the dream took charter flights back to Orlando, but we were booked on a direct commercial flight back to Minneapolis. When we got to the airport in St. Maarten, I told the agent we were on the Dream and that we didn't all have passports. She was a bit confused at first, but she made a quick phone call, then sent a couple texts to Minneapolis, letting them know we were coming. After she processed us(which took only slightly longer than normal) she had us wait a few minutes while she waited to hear back from Minneapolis. After about 5-10 minutes she told us that we were good to go. But when we get to customs in MN, they were going to detain us for a bit to prove that those who didn't have passports could prove their citizenship.

 

When we got back to Minneapolis we went through the customs line just like everyone else. When it was our turn I explained that we were on the Dream and that the kids did not have passports, only birth certificates. He looked at me and asked "and they let you on the plane?" and I said "yep". He seemed very surprised and mentioned that the airline could be fined $3,000/person for doing that. But he did his thing and let us go through without any problems.

Gdawgs, were the folks in your party without passports given a letter from the Dept of State authorizing travel?

[Gdawgs]

Gdawgs, were the folks in your party without passports given a letter from the Dept of State authorizing travel?

 

 

 

We all received a copy of this letter with our flight assignments. But I didn't even realize it was in there until after the fact. So none of us in my group showed it to the ticket agent at the airport. But I would have assumed they should have received it ahead of time.

 

[sparks1093]

We all received a copy of this letter with our flight assignments. But I didn't even realize it was in there until after the fact. So none of us in my group showed it to the ticket agent at the airport. But I would have assumed they should have received it ahead of time.

 

 

That would have eased the CBP officer's concerns also. Thanks for sharing!

[MrPete]

We all received a copy of this letter with our flight assignments. But I didn't even realize it was in there until after the fact. So none of us in my group showed it to the ticket agent at the airport. But I would have assumed they should have received it ahead of time.

 

 

Are you saying they didn't tell you to present this do ument in lieu of your passport?

[Gdawgs]

I don't recall them telling us that. But I may have missed that part.

[dwjoe]

Thanks for this info, Gdawgs. :)

[smeyer418]

Are you saying they didn't tell you to present this do ument in lieu of your passport?

this is called an authorization to travel without a passport. They issue them from time to time in specific cases. Note that it includes both scheduled and charter airplanes and was sent to the airlines who need it for their records. Note it was issued on March 14. I would bet that a similar letter exists for the Triumph. Are they routinely issued? No but they are issued from time to time. You will also note from the reports that like in any large organizations not every body received(or read) the notice.

[MrPete]

this is called an authorization to travel without a passport. They issue them from time to time in specific cases. Note that it includes both scheduled and charter airplanes and was sent to the airlines who need it for their records. Note it was issued on March 14. I would bet that a similar letter exists for the Triumph. Are they routinely issued? No but they are issued from time to time. You will also note from the reports that like in any large organizations not every body received(or read) the notice.

 

Maybe they could send a copy to all those posters claiming doom and gloom, at times seemingly subliminally wishing it, on all those passengers without a passport.