I don't know what to title this but hard lesson learned by 1st time cruiser

[ray98]

On 7/29/2019 at 4:52 AM, RWolver672 said:

 

 

From what I've read on here, the women that take them have never been asked for them. 

 

 

There is a Customs Officer who worked in Jacksonville in May who has a different opinion.

[Doggielover68]

1 hour ago, sparks1093 said:

It took him an hour and a half at the Embassy to get his passport and it didn't sound like an ordeal to me at all other than being separated from his family. I don't recall that he said how much his passport cost but I doubt it was much more than normal, possibly they added an expedite fee. I've read two other stories on here where the passengers had to leave the ship at a port where there was no State Department presence. They didn't have passports and arrangements were made for them to go to the airport and board a flight directly back to the US where they were cleared in secondary inspection. The regulations that allow the use of something other than a passport also allow the passport requirement to be waived for emergencies or humanitarian reasons. (And having to spend extra money for accommodations, etc. is a better argument for good travel insurance.)

How is any of this better than just having a passport?

[leight]

My sister and I are going on a cruise in feb 2020. She wanted to save $$ by not getting her passport. I pushed the issue because she has 5 kids (6 if you count her hubby) and just in case of emergency I'd rather we have passports. Glad I insisted because she looked at her birth certificate to get the passport and the birth certificate wasn't accepted- issued date was beyond a year after her birth and it didn't show date filed. Make sure that if you use the birth certificate that it also conforms to the federal requirements that changed in 2011- must be filed/issued within a year of birth and include parents names.

 

[sparks1093]

29 minutes ago, Doggielover68 said:

How is any of this better than just having a passport?

It's a realistic look at what happens in the event you have to leave the cruise, nothing more, nothing less. Yes, the passport is the king of the travel documents, but not everyone needs or wants one for any number of reasons. I live 8 miles from the Canadian border and many folks in my village travel to Canada regularly. Most of them have a passport card or Enhanced Drivers License and would absolutely scoff at the idea that they should have a passport just because they are leaving the country. Some people can only travel via closed loop cruise every year or two and they may decide that foregoing a passport is what works for them. 

[sparks1093]

26 minutes ago, leight said:

My sister and I are going on a cruise in feb 2020. She wanted to save $$ by not getting her passport. I pushed the issue because she has 5 kids (6 if you count her hubby) and just in case of emergency I'd rather we have passports. Glad I insisted because she looked at her birth certificate to get the passport and the birth certificate wasn't accepted- issued date was beyond a year after her birth and it didn't show date filed. Make sure that if you use the birth certificate that it also conforms to the federal requirements that changed in 2011- must be filed/issued within a year of birth and include parents names.

 

The regulations for a birth certificate to get a passport are different from the regulations for a birth certificate to use on a closed loop cruise. For instance, to get a passport the birth certificate needs the names of both parents on it so short form birth certificates are not usable, but short form birth certificates are usable to board a closed loop cruise.

[Doggielover68]

4 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

It's a realistic look at what happens in the event you have to leave the cruise, nothing more, nothing less. Yes, the passport is the king of the travel documents, but not everyone needs or wants one for any number of reasons. I live 8 miles from the Canadian border and many folks in my village travel to Canada regularly. Most of them have a passport card or Enhanced Drivers License and would absolutely scoff at the idea that they should have a passport just because they are leaving the country. Some people can only travel via closed loop cruise every year or two and they may decide that foregoing a passport is what works for them. 

My family lives near the canadian border too and Canada doesn't require a passport. The islands in the Caribbean are not as simple. 

 

If one can't afford travel documents, should they even be going on vacation? God forbid a traveling mishap cause someone to spiral into financial distress. Compared to the cost of the vacation, the one time passport fee is extremely small. $14 per year (valid for 10 years) is the cost of less than 2 drinks on the ship. 

[sparks1093]

16 minutes ago, Doggielover68 said:

My family lives near the canadian border too and Canada doesn't require a passport. The islands in the Caribbean are not as simple. 

 

If one can't afford travel documents, should they even be going on vacation? God forbid a traveling mishap cause someone to spiral into financial distress. Compared to the cost of the vacation, the one time passport fee is extremely small. $14 per year (valid for 10 years) is the cost of less than 2 drinks on the ship. 

Our first cruise was 4 days to the Bahamas (no passport required, either, and for people on a closed loop cruise the islands in the Caribbean are that simple). Passports would have set us back $850 and most of those would have only been valid for 5 years. We probably could have afforded that, but didn't see the sense in spending it given the low risk involved (for us) and the uncertainty of any future travel. A traveling mishap may occur to cause someone to spiral into financial distress even if they have a passport, so once again you are making a stronger case for good travel insurance. Millions of people cruise on closed loop cruises every year without any issues so we aren't talking about a high risk proposition.

Edited July 31, 2019 by sparks1093

[leight]

7 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

The regulations for a birth certificate to get a passport are different from the regulations for a birth certificate to use on a closed loop cruise. For instance, to get a passport the birth certificate needs the names of both parents on it so short form birth certificates are not usable, but short form birth certificates are usable to board a closed loop cruise.

Depends on the port, or maybe official. I knew a woman who was denied boarding her son's wedding cruise because it showed date issued when she was adopted not when it was filed. And every state/jurisdiction has a different version of what their short form includes- mine is from NYC and it had date filed, issued and parents names so would be acceptable.

 

 

[Doggielover68]

4 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

Our first cruise was 4 days to the Bahamas (no passport required, either, and for people on a closed loop cruise the islands in the Caribbean are that simple). Passports would have set us back $850 and most of those would have only been valid for 5 years. We probably could have afforded that, but didn't see the sense in spending it given the low risk involved (for us) and the uncertainty of any future travel. A traveling mishap may occur to cause someone to spiral into financial distress even if they have a passport, so once again you are making a stronger case for good travel insurance. Millions of people cruise on closed loop cruises every year without any issues so we aren't talking about a high risk proposition.

Millions? I doubt that. 

 

Just thinking about the time an employee at the car dealership accidentally checked the wrong box on a dmv form, saying that my husband was not a US citizen, which went to the DMV and then to the county who then revoked his voter's registration. He needed his passport to prove his citizenship to get it all straightened out, which took months all because of one idiot. Shi(p) happens!

 

Just saying, if you are leaving the country, I think the adults at least should have a passport. I understand not getting it for the kids. 

 

We didn't have much money for our first cruise either, so we got our passports in lieu of buying excursions or drinks. Still had an amazing time though. 

[sparks1093]

6 minutes ago, leight said:

Depends on the port, or maybe official. I knew a woman who was denied boarding her son's wedding cruise because it showed date issued when she was adopted not when it was filed. And every state/jurisdiction has a different version of what their short form includes- mine is from NYC and it had date filed, issued and parents names so would be acceptable.

 

 

My short form NY birth certificate only has my name, date of birth and place of birth. The only time date of issue is pertinent is if the birth certificate was issued by Puerto Rican and they need to be issued after 2010 in order to be valid under Puerto Rican law.

[sparks1093]

5 minutes ago, Doggielover68 said:

Millions? I doubt that. 

 

Just thinking about the time an employee at the car dealership accidentally checked the wrong box on a dmv form, saying that my husband was not a US citizen, which went to the DMV and then to the county who then revoked his voter's registration. He needed his passport to prove his citizenship to get it all straightened out, which took months all because of one idiot. Shi(p) happens!

 

Just saying, if you are leaving the country, I think the adults at least should have a passport. I understand not getting it for the kids. 

 

We didn't have much money for our first cruise either, so we got our passports in lieu of buying excursions or drinks. Still had an amazing time though. 

Doubt all you want to, count up the number of cruise ships on the east coast alone and multiply that by the number of passengers and then by the number of weeks. Most articles that I've read have said that 40% to 60% of passengers on a closed loop cruise are using something other than a passport. The most conservative number I've come up with is about 2.5 million passengers traveling on closed loop cruises every year with something other than a passport and it's most likely higher than that. What happened to your husband was certainly a mistake but that type of thing doesn't happen to everyone. We didn't spend much on excursions and very little on drinks and had an awesome time. 

[leight]

1 minute ago, sparks1093 said:

My short form NY birth certificate only has my name, date of birth and place of birth. The only time date of issue is pertinent is if the birth certificate was issued by Puerto Rican and they need to be issued after 2010 in order to be valid under Puerto Rican law.

From NYS or NYC? They do them differently. My oldest from NYC stated date filed and was handwritten. I know many people who still have that and are being denied passport , DL renewals etc . The date filed is what is important, but some jurisdictions only put date issued not date filed. And since this is now a federal law it can be an issue for anyone who has an older birth certificate

[BeachChik]

1 hour ago, Doggielover68 said:

My family lives near the canadian border too and Canada doesn't require a passport. The islands in the Caribbean are not as simple. 

 

If one can't afford travel documents, should they even be going on vacation? God forbid a traveling mishap cause someone to spiral into financial distress. Compared to the cost of the vacation, the one time passport fee is extremely small. $14 per year (valid for 10 years) is the cost of less than 2 drinks on the ship. 

 

The point is that you don’t need to be able to afford a passport because it isn’t required. So yes someone sailing on a bc can afford to cruise because they meet the standard that is required to board the ship. 

 

[Silent Penguin]

On 7/28/2019 at 7:33 PM, cynt said:

 

 

Fast forward to Thanksgiving 2030....You remember that time we were all supposed to go on a cruise together and GG  "The Know It All" got left behind..... 

[Cafedumonde]

Although it is a tough stance to take, I think CC did the right thing.  It is important for people to grow up and take responsibility for themselves at some point.  We are working through this with our young adult.  And it is hard to step back and watch them fall on their faces, but it is so important to let it happen.   We won’t always be there.  So better now than never.  A cruise is a relatively minor thing to miss in the grand scheme of life.  And what a great lesson learned.

Edited July 31, 2019 by Cafedumonde

[motheroftwocats814]

13 hours ago, suzycruiser2 said:

We have passports, but once I had a dream that I forgot them at home.  Now I keep a copy of our birth certificates in my glove box in my car so I always have a fall back plan.

 

You mean a copy, as in from a copy machine?

[motheroftwocats814]

I have had a passport since I was a baby. I don't get why people balk at it. 

[SFCanuck]

13 hours ago, Doggielover68 said:

My family lives near the canadian border too and Canada doesn't require a passport. The islands in the Caribbean are not as simple. 

 

This is only true when crossing into Canada by land.

[sparks1093]

14 hours ago, leight said:

From NYS or NYC? They do them differently. My oldest from NYC stated date filed and was handwritten. I know many people who still have that and are being denied passport , DL renewals etc . The date filed is what is important, but some jurisdictions only put date issued not date filed. And since this is now a federal law it can be an issue for anyone who has an older birth certificate

NYS and I suppose they might do them differently. Yes, for passports and DL renewals the rules are different then they are for cruises but as long as it shows birth in a US state, is issued by a government agency and isn't a hospital birth certificate it should be accepted to demonstrate citizenship for a closed loop cruise. Of course if you have a birth certificate that would be acceptable for obtaining a passport it would also be accepted for a closed loop cruise. Several years before I obtained my passport I ordered a full birth certificate from NYS because I knew that I would need it when I applied for a passport.

[sparks1093]

1 hour ago, SFCanuck said:

This is only true when crossing into Canada by land.

Or arriving by ship.

[sparks1093]

8 hours ago, motheroftwocats814 said:

You mean a copy, as in from a copy machine?

Yes, copies are acceptable under the DHS regulations which says an original or copy may be used. While it is best to bring the original knowing that a copy is acceptable has saved many cruises. (When we boarded Pride in 2012 I presented a copy of my birth certificate and no one batted an eye at it.)

[sparks1093]

8 hours ago, motheroftwocats814 said:

I have had a passport since I was a baby. I don't get why people balk at it. 

Can't speak for everyone but I don't like buying things that I don't need, especially when they come with an expiration date. We knew that we wanted to travel internationally by air at some point when we started cruising but we weren't sure when that would be so we decided to wait until that day actually came to get passports because it very well could have been 10 years or more. I'm sure that other people have other reasons for not having a passport since everyone's travel patterns are different.

[Purvis1231]

16 hours ago, Doggielover68 said:

. My family lives near the canadian border too and Canada doesn't require a passport. The islands in the Caribbean are not as simple. 

 

If one can't afford travel documents, should they even be going on vacation? God forbid a traveling mishap cause someone to spiral into financial distress. Compared to the cost of the vacation, the one time passport fee is extremely small. $14 per year (valid for 10 years) is the cost of less than 2 drinks on the ship. 

We cruise with passports since we  occasionally do other international travel but most people who cruise do not use a passport. For most is not that they cannot afford it but they do not want to pay the expense for a one time trip. I do wish people would buy new birth certificates before their cruises. I have notice some people present BC that are falling apart. Others who have to have their mother fax a copy of the BC to the port on the day of departure. 

Edited August 1, 2019 by Purvis1231
typo

[Joebucks]

Typical 2019 victimhood. It's not my fault. It's the TA. It's Carnival. Just not me! Sure the policies are posted, and I didn't care to read them. Someone else should know what I don't know, then at that point, I'll listen!

[Countrygurl]

Just get a passport!  Problem solved!