Passports for minors-

[jamesr3939]

Not to hijack the topic but it's sort of related. I happened to be at SFO today for work and talked with a CBP agent in the international terminal. Since, I am in the process of getting my SENTRI/GLOBAL ENTRY pass I asked her how it worked.

 

Her answer was pretty much as shown on their www site. EXCEPT, she suggested also having the paper form handy as so many people are getting GE that the lines for GE can be as long as the regular clearance lines and you can still get pulled for a random check.

 

Not sure if this relates to cruise ports with GE, but I am guessing it's close or could be a sign of the future.

[waterbug123]

We are traveling on harmony of the sea from Fort Lauderdale to Puerto Rico, Haiti, and Saint Maarten. From what I've read it appears my minor children ( age 11) do not require a passport, their birth certificate will suffice.

 

For US citizens on a closed loop cruise, departing and returning to the same US city, even adults do not need a passport; they do however need a govt issued photo ID in addition to their BC, while young children need only the BC. I just wanted to clarify that for you since the way you worded it it sounded like maybe you were under the impression that there are situations in which the parent needs a passport but not their young child and that's not true. If a passport is required for a particular situation, then generally even a 6 month old baby must have his/her own passport. They don't get to piggyback on the parent's passport. (Might be some exceptions to that elsewhere in the world, but not for citizens re-entering the US after an international flight, for example, where everyone must show a valid passport.)

[Lizcourt]

The same argument applies to insurance ...

 

As for whether you need insurance - it's one of those situations where you very likely will never need it. But when you do need it, you'll be glad you had it. And if you need it and you don't have it, well you can guess how that goes. It's a matter of deciding whether you are willing to take the very small risk that could have very real consequences.

 

 

 

I have been cruising for 20 years now and always buy the insurance. I have on occasion questioned the expense, but never again. In February I wound up in the emergency room with internal bleeding the night before I was supposed to depart with my mother on a cruise in an upper- level suite on Oasis of the Seas. Thankfully I have fully recovered -- and, thanks to the decision to keep buying cruise insurance, just cashed a check for the @ $14,000 I would otherwise have lost on the fare for both of us. Basically insurance is only a waste of money until you need it -- and a passport is only a nuisance until you're stuck out of the country without one.

 

 

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