10 day journey cruise question

[64funwhisper]

this cruise goes to costa rica to get off the boat is a passport needed ? tried calling carnival wait time on phone 25min thought maybe someone had gone there on a cruise and could let me know     thanks

[chipmaster]

17 minutes ago, 64funwhisper said:

this cruise goes to costa rica to get off the boat is a passport needed ? tried calling carnival wait time on phone 25min thought maybe someone had gone there on a cruise and could let me know     thanks

 

Just bring the passport, crazy to take any trip out of the country and not have a passport.

[Turtles06]

A tip for the future: it’s a good idea to give your thread a title that is as specific as possible to the subject matter.  

 

Whether or not you need a passport depends on your country of citizenship and possibly whether you are on a closed loop cruise, neither of which bit of information you have stated. But I agree with the poster above; I think the best practice when traveling abroad is to take your passport.

[64funwhisper]

this is a closed loop cruise and Iam a us citizen I was asking a question never had one on 15 cruises but I sure didnt expect to get a snarky remark but thanks for your opinion anyway 

[clo]

21 minutes ago, 64funwhisper said:

this is a closed loop cruise and Iam a us citizen I was asking a question never had one on 15 cruises but I sure didnt expect to get a snarky remark but thanks for your opinion anyway 

Guess I missed the snark.  I read about these closed loop/no passport things here and it's made me wonder.  If for any reason, sickness, arrest!, missing the ship, whatever, if you don't make it back onto the ship does that create a problem?

[LHT28]

No need to take your passport ashore 

you can if you want  but not required for CR

 The cruise line will usually tell you if you are required to carry your passport  when going ashore

 

[JimnKaren]

However...you might consider making copies of your passport. You carry someone else's and that person carries yours. It is not a big deal, it is one of those just in case situations.

I have a copy of Karen's and she has a copy of mine.

Jim

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, 64funwhisper said:

this is a closed loop cruise and Iam a us citizen I was asking a question never had one on 15 cruises but I sure didnt expect to get a snarky remark but thanks for your opinion anyway 

 

Not being snarky but wondering why with your stated cruise experience and not having one in the past, and your knowledge of the rules regarding a US based closed loop cruises with US citizens, why would you question the need for one now?  Is the cruise in question not a US based closed loop cruise?  Costa Rica is no different in that regard than any other foreign port of call on that type of itinerary.

 

BTW, as another source, the Carnival website could probably also provide that answer if the phone wait time is too long.

Edited August 20, 2019 by leaveitallbehind

[msmayor]

Don't always assume that just because it is a closed-loop cruise that a passport is not necessary.

 

If you go to travel.gov and look up the requirements for visiting Costa Rica you will see that a passport is required with at least one day of validity for a US citizen to enter the country.  When we did a cruise a few years ago with a Costa Rica stop, we made sure to carry it with us in case we were challenged as I had learned during our planning phase that having a passport to enter the country was required.

 

 

[donaldsc]

Try typing "Costa Rica passport requirements" into Google.

 

DON

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, msmayor said:

Don't always assume that just because it is a closed-loop cruise that a passport is not necessary.

 

If you go to travel.gov and look up the requirements for visiting Costa Rica you will see that a passport is required with at least one day of validity for a US citizen to enter the country.  When we did a cruise a few years ago with a Costa Rica stop, we made sure to carry it with us in case we were challenged as I had learned during our planning phase that having a passport to enter the country was required.

 

 

 

I agree that with any travel outside of the US it is wise to carry a Passport even if one is not needed.  I also would suggest that one should check with the cruise line planned for travel as different lines require a Passport even when it is not mandated, whereas others don't.

 

However the requirement you reference is for air travel into Costa Rica.  Please note the following, in particular that in bold:

 

CRUISE TRAVEL

The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) Passport Requirements became effective June 1, 2009, for land and sea borders. While the WHTI requires a valid passport for land and sea travel, a final ruling was issued allowing leniency for "closed-loop" cruises, i.e., sailings that both originate and terminate in the same U.S. port.

 

Recent guidance received from the Department of Homeland Security indicates the documentary requirements under WHTI for "closed loop" cruises are not limited to cruises that travel only to contiguous territories or adjacent islands. This means U.S. citizens calling on ports in Honduras, Panama, Costa Rica and Belize will also be exempt from the passport requirement.

 

U.S. citizens taking "closed-loop" cruises are not required to have a passport, but will need proof of citizenship such as an original or certified copy of a birth certificate, a certificate of naturalization, a passport card, an enhanced driver's license (EDL) as well as a government-issued photo ID. Children are also required to bring proof of citizenship, and if 16 and over, a photo ID is also required. Canadian and Bermudian citizens are required to have a passport for air, land and sea travel, including all cruises. Although a passport is not required for U.S. citizens taking "closed loop" cruises, we strongly recommend all guests travel with a passport (valid for at least six months beyond completion of travel). Having a passport will enable guests to fly from the U.S. to a foreign port in the event they miss their scheduled embarkation or to fly back to the U.S. if they need to disembark the ship mid-cruise due to an emergency.

 

 

Edited August 21, 2019 by leaveitallbehind

[SRF]

On 8/20/2019 at 8:25 PM, msmayor said:

Don't always assume that just because it is a closed-loop cruise that a passport is not necessary.

 

If you go to travel.gov and look up the requirements for visiting Costa Rica you will see that a passport is required with at least one day of validity for a US citizen to enter the country.  When we did a cruise a few years ago with a Costa Rica stop, we made sure to carry it with us in case we were challenged as I had learned during our planning phase that having a passport to enter the country was required.

 

 

Cruise travel may, and frequently DOES have different requirements.

 

AFAIK the only Gulf/Caribbean/etc cruise destination that ever required a passport was Cuba.

[LHT28]

9 hours ago, SRF said:

 

Cruise travel may, and frequently DOES have different requirements.

 

AFAIK the only Gulf/Caribbean/etc cruise destination that ever required a passport was Cuba.

Some cruise lines  also require passports now even for closed loop cruises

 

[SRF]

11 hours ago, LHT28 said:

Some cruise lines  also require passports now even for closed loop cruises

 

 

Yes, the CRUISE LINE does.

 

The countries do not.

[thinfool]

As a general rule, for WHTI countries, cruise passengers do not 'enter' the country where the ship stops for a day.  Passengers are 'in transit', not visiting the country as a tourist.

It is confusing that some cruise companies have made statements about passport requirements for Costa Rica and other ports that apply to tourist visits rather than 'in transit' port calls. 

Personally I believe that CC would be full of threads about being refused boarding for itineraries that include the few Caribbean/Central American countries that seem to have anomalous passport requirements.  Such threads are not apparent.

Edited August 23, 2019 by thinfool

[Greg4502]

I was just there in May. Passport was not needed, to go into port. Just cruise card, to get back on the ship. I do carry a copy of my passport with me and a second ID, if it is needed.

[cb at sea]

NONE of the Caribbean cruise ports require passports from Americans (or others) on a cruise.  If this is a "closed loop" cruise, you do not need a passport at all, if you are an American citizen cruising from and to the same American port.

[ReneeFLL]

On 8/21/2019 at 6:05 AM, 64funwhisper said:

this is a closed loop cruise and Iam a us citizen I was asking a question never had one on 15 cruises but I sure didnt expect to get a snarky remark but thanks for your opinion anyway 

That wasn't a snarky remark at all. He/she was just telling you that you needed to give more info. How do you expect a correct answer without giving the correct info to get one? If anything your comment was a bit snarky. I'm just saying.

[SRF]

5 hours ago, cb at sea said:

NONE of the Caribbean cruise ports require passports from Americans (or others) on a cruise.  If this is a "closed loop" cruise, you do not need a passport at all, if you are an American citizen cruising from and to the same American port.

 

Also, many of them that normally require a visa for citizens of other countries do not require them for cruise passengers.

[SRF]

5 hours ago, cb at sea said:

NONE of the Caribbean cruise ports require passports from Americans (or others) on a cruise.  If this is a "closed loop" cruise, you do not need a passport at all, if you are an American citizen cruising from and to the same American port.

 

Cuba did.