Stolen passport - could Princess have done more to help?

[Oh2B@C]

BTW I should add one more thing to my original post:

 

The lawyer the TV show reached out to did mention that the passport requirements are mentioned in the passage contract. They show the lawyer accessing the Princess website to find it. I looked at my passage contract for my upcoming April 21 cruise, and here is the section:

 

2. GUEST'S OBLIGATIONS.

• (A) Before You board the ship, You must
  
  • (i) Pay Your Cruise Fare.
    
  • (ii) Familiarize yourself with the terms of the Passage Contract.
    
  • (iii) Bring all necessary travel documents such as passports, visas, proof of citizenship, re-entry permits, minor's permissions, medical certificates showing all necessary vaccinations, and all other documents necessary for ports of call in the countries to which You will travel.
     
    It is the Guest's sole responsibility to obtain and have available when necessary the appropriate valid travel documents. All Guests are advised to check with their travel agent or the appropriate government authority to determine the necessary documents. You will be refused boarding or disembarked without liability for refund, payment, compensation, or credit of any kind if You do not have proper documentation, and You will be subject to any fine or other costs incurred by Carrier which result from improper documentation or noncompliance with applicable regulations, which amount may be charged to Your stateroom account and/or credit card.
    

Ignorance of the passage contract terms, sadly, is no excuse... Orincess was actually generous in offering the 3 day refund.

And on a personal note: When I was cruising the Greek Isles in 2012, on our way to Athens the Greek government requested that all passengers hand in their passports for inspection. We had to do this on the sea day before arriving at Athens. Cabin stewarts went to every state room to collect the passports, and they were returned later that evening. I cannot imagine what trouble someone would be in if they said "oops, my passport got stolen/went missing etc..." So getting back on the ship without telling anyone your passport got stolen might get you in some hot water if found out before the end of the cruise. Maybe even at the end of the cruise when you have to clear customs at final arrival.

[land lover]

NO

 

A few years back,on a Russian river cruise, stayed at hotel prior which held our passports for 3 days until the morn of embarkation.

 

So that day we carried them while touring in St. Pete's.....a couple in our group were approached by a uniformed man who said he just saw a man lift their passports.....the guy checked his cargo pants pocket and indeed the passports were missing.

 

The "cop" told them to follow him and if they gave him 11,000 rubles or $200.USD he could get them back for the couple....They refused..

 

Long story short when they arrived at the US Consulate....they were told they should have just paid the money as it would have been a lot less hassle. They did have to catch up with the river boat, the next day, by taxi at their own expense.

 

On that trip several people had things go missing when we were touring major attractions, truly a place where you need a money belt. My DH was standing near our transport in Moscow and a little boy just came up to him and reached in his pocket......lucky for us no mishaps....

 

 

Kotor is beautiful.&.quaint......so I can see why ones guard is down......

Edited March 21, 2018 by land lover

[TheRabbit]

Here are some links I put up on a CC roll call website last year.

Info on Barcelona Pickpockets

18 Most Common Scams in Spain

Rick Steves' Outsmarting Pickpockets

US State Dept Alerts and Warnings

Cruise Critic: Staying Safe in Port

Link to the purse option mentioned by ??: These are slash proof construction with RFID reader blocking card slots.

Travelon Purse

[land lover]

Since Montenegro is not in the Schengen Zone, when the ship entered the next port, probably in the Schengen Zone, immigrations would probably have wanted to see the passports, and at that time they would have been required to leave the vessel. Depending on the immigrations officials, and how well they understood the story, etc., the cruise line may have been fined, or may not.

 

and if a fine, I am sure it would have been passed on to the passenger...

[CruiseGal999]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075MVRR6V/ref=s9_acsd_topr_hd_bw_bjYOe3_c_x_w?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-6&pf_rd_r=CH0BFY3BF584NHWNZV2G&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=953befae-7fd4-5d7f-9c79-630225c41740&pf_rd_i=673133011

 

This is what I wear UNDER my shirt/blouse/top. Is it bulky? Yes. I believe it's safe, tho.

[Keith1010]

It is the persons responsibility and why we never carry our passport in port unless in the few cases required by local authorities.

 

I believe the chance of losing or having your passport stolen is far greater then any benefits of having it with you.

 

Keith

[caribill]

I have seen the blurb on a Princess excursion something to the effect," You may need your passport upon leaving/returning to the ship"

 

I have never seen this.

 

What I have seen is a blurb saying you may need a photo ID. Of course a passport meets that, but most people use a driver's license instead.

 

Some countries (Russia and Egypt for example) do require you to have your passport with you when on shore, but for everywhere else your passport is better off in your cabin safe than with you on shore. This couple's story proves that is true.

[caribill]

Princess followed the law and chose to not incur costs for a late departure.

 

Not sure what a later departure would have accomplished. The couple had to travel to another city to reach an appropriate embassy and took more than a day to get the replacement.

 

If the ship waited for them, it would have been for three days and the couple would have had to travel from the embassy city back to the port. They the ship would have had to skip several ports to get back on schedule. You can imagine how happy 3500 other passengers would have been if that had happened.

[CruiseGal999]

I have never seen this.

 

What I have seen is a blurb saying you may need a photo ID. Of course a passport meets that, but most people use a driver's license instead.

 

Some countries (Russia and Egypt for example) do require you to have your passport with you when on shore, but for everywhere else your passport is better off in your cabin safe than with you on shore. This couple's story proves that is true.

 

You need to have your passport in Cuba, also.

[Cairn Mom]

Agree with the other posters. Passports stay in the safe. Unless absolutely necessary, I only carry copies. I have hard copies and pictures on my phone. For US citizens, there is an app called “smart traveler”. I have that on my phone as well. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best. We’ve all heard the stories.

In general, be very careful with your valuables in the airport. I recently had two friends become victims of theft at the airport. One had her credit cards stolen and another had his passport removed from a bin. Scary stuff!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Keith1010]

There are very few places around the world where you have to take the passport off the ship.

 

Keith

[Coral]

NO

 

A few years back,on a Russian river cruise, stayed at hotel prior which held our passports for 3 days until the morn of embarkation.

 

So that day we carried them while touring in St. Pete's.....a couple in our group were approached by a uniformed man who said he just saw a man lift their passports.....the guy checked his cargo pants pocket and indeed the passports were missing.

 

The "cop" told them to follow him and if they gave him 11,000 rubles or $200.USD he could get them back for the couple....They refused..

.

 

 

I remember when we were in Russia on a river cruise and on a land trip - the hotels kept our passports. When on the river cruise, they told us to keep them on the ship (they had a safe if we wanted to keep them there) unless we were going to the bank. In that situation, we would need our passport. Pickpocketing is so bad there, I am glad we didn't have to carry them there.

[jefa]

I didn't have to carry my passport in Cuba, just my cruise card to get back into the ferry building.

[Expat Cruise]

If you take a Asian South Pacific, Australia and most Europe cruise you will have no choice, the line collects passports at the start of the cruise and holds until the end.

[patinho]

Well, as a someone with intimate knowledge of ship’s clearance procedures, having been to Kotor numerous times and being on quite friendly terms with numerous port agents in the Med, I can say that no, Princess as a company could not have done more. The crew of that particular ship though, especially the Administration Officer under whose responsibility these cases should come, could have done more. But I’m not sure how buried under work that position is these days, he might have had too much on his plate to be able to deal with this efficiently.

 

Also, if this couple only reported their case shortly before sailing the crew would have quickly run out of options. What kind of amuses me though is the complaint that the ship wouldn’t wait. Royal carries thousands of people who all managed to come back with their valuables and on time. Sorry to say, but their issue, as inconvenient and stressful it is on a personal level, isn’t worth delaying the other 4 - 5000 people.

 

Additionally, Montenegro doesn’t require you to carry your passport when going ashore. Admittedly that’s not always 100% clear to pax and asking guest services might yield conflicting information. Nevertheless a quick internet search or inquiry in Kotor’s really nice cruise terminal would have cleared that up.

 

I don’t know the itinerary the ship was on but it looks like an Athens to Athens round trip; so likely they stopped at Corfu on the way back, or any other Greek port, it doesn’t matter. What does matter here is that the Greeks stamp every single non EU passport back into Schengen if the ship arrives from outside the Schengen area and, as someone already pointed out, Montenegro is not part of it. The ship would have brought a non EU citizen without proper ID; none of the Mediterranean border forces are a big fan of that.

However, a simple phone call to the next port agent, explaining the situation and asking if the ship could bring them if they do nothing else than going straight to the consulate or embassy could have worked under certain circumstances. Especially the Greek agents are well connected with their respective Immigration Officers and can make things happen.

I also know for a fact that it is possible to go to Podgorica, obtain an emergency passport and return to the ship but obviously time is of the essence here; if it was already late in the day that wouldn’t have been an option.

I take an issue though with the statement that the agent was some 20 year old kid; he / she surely wasn’t working a ship that size alone and he / she would have had an entire office in the background to work for him / her and help the couple. The port agency I know there is super efficient and friendly. Obviously the couple has to work with them though. Passports just don’t magically appear (although they sometimes magically disappear...)

 

Long story short: when going ashore make sure you find out what you need to bring in terms of ID. If it isn’t clear, ask for the Administration Officer, Clearance Officer or the like (they go by different titles on different lines) but each ship has one and that person will know the right answer. Whenever possible do not carry your original passport. Many people don’t seem to grasp how valuable and important this document is.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[land lover]

If you take a Asian South Pacific, Australia and most Europe cruise you will have no choice, the line collects passports at the start of the cruise and holds until the end.

 

 

Actually this depends on the itineraries....sometimes they are returned to you after boarding, sometimes several times during the cruise...sometimes your attendant picks them up..so many options, which can change from visit to visit. But when on a cruise me must follow their instructions otherwise we will not be cruising.

Edited March 22, 2018 by land lover

[land lover]

This past July when Majestic was being dropped off in China, we were "stranded" by Princess in Shanghai due to a Princess error and there was no agent at the port to aide us.

 

At first we worked with the excursions supervisor, but he was buried under due to total chaos at disembarkation,

and many promises he made to us did not materialize so we determined we had to rectify the situation ourselves and deal with home based Princess on our return. Lucky for us we had traveled in China.

 

Stuff happens when you travel, you just make the best of it...better to lose(spend) cash and time than life or limb.

Edited March 22, 2018 by land lover

[Go-Bucks!]

Like others, I leave the ship with drivers license and a copy of my passport, but I put them into a money belt. Real passport is in the ship's safe.

 

In Cuba recently, we had to take our actual passport off the ship with us so I put it into my money belt along with my visa and most of my money. Any experienced traveler knows that a money belt is your best friend.....but you have to use it (unlike this woman). ;)

[TheRabbit]

Like others, I leave the ship with drivers license and a copy of my passport, but I put them into a money belt. Real passport is in the ship's safe.

 

In Cuba recently, we had to take our actual passport off the ship with us so I put it into my money belt along with my visa and most of my money. Any experienced traveler knows that a money belt is your best friend.....but you have to use it (unlike this woman). ;)

Some of us have the passport card. Did Cuba accept those?

[jlp20]

It's not that the cruise line could not help, they probably could. How ever in doing so they would expose themselves to civil litigation from disgruntled pax. By being hands off, and following the cruise contract, the pax has no standing to litigate. NOTE: All pax should read that cruise contract that is found on the cruise web sight.

[CruiseGal999]

Actually this depends on the itineraries....sometimes they are returned to you after boarding, sometimes several times during the cruise...sometimes your attendant picks them up..so many options, which can change from visit to visit. But when on a cruise me must follow their instructions otherwise we will not be cruising.

 

The Med. cruise DH and I took in 2013, NCL took our passports and returned them on last day of cruise. DH was SO upset. He wanted stamps from all of the countries we visited. I did too ... oh well ...

[caribill]

The Med. cruise DH and I took in 2013, NCL took our passports and returned them on last day of cruise. DH was SO upset. He wanted stamps from all of the countries we visited. I did too ... oh well ...

 

He likely would have been disappointed even if he had the passport.

 

Your passport is stamped when you enter the EU. It is stamped when you exit the EU. No matter how many other EU countries you visit, there will be no additional stamps.

[Sillyjilly]

Thieves are smart. They know you have very little time to do anything about a theft while in port on a cruise. I usually see warnings in the Patters to be careful.

This isn't a simple thing to fix. Princess has time constraints. People, pay attention to your surroundings and your valuables!

[Reina del Mar]

Fortunately, we have not needed the help of port agents.

(Touch wood we won't in the future)

 

However, when staying in post cruise hotels; we have spoken with other passengers who had needed help, but sadly had not been supported in the most difficult of circumstances !

[Sillyjilly]

Fortunately, we have not needed the help of port agents.

(Touch wood we won't in the future)

 

However, when staying in post cruise hotels; we have spoken with other passengers who had needed help, but sadly had not been supported in the most difficult of circumstances !

 

If you take into account how many passengers each day they are dealing with, not to mention those who make mountains out of mole hills, it is quite a feat.