Birth certificate okay for cruises out of Galveston?

[swdke]

Birth certificate okay for cruises out of Galveston?  Or are passports now needed for all cruises?  It's for a Western Caribbean cruise, depart and return Galveston.n thanks.

[tcdcruiser]

Depends on which countries will be visited

[NownZen]

You could show up with one and see if they let you board. Passports always work. Read the Princess requirements very carefully. Opinions here are worth what they cost. They are refusing boarding to people who do not have sufficient documentation.

[Lady Arwen]

Please, just get a passport.  Having one gives you so much freedom and so little stress when travelling.

[tcdcruiser]

Agree. Countless bad stories about people traveling and cruising without a passport. 

[jeromep]

I also vote that you go get a passport.  The sooner the better.  They last for 10 years, I suspect you'll do a number of cruises in that time period.

 

For those of us on the left coast, our drivers licenses are no longer REAL ID compliant (unless you pay your state a lot of money for an "enhanced" drivers license), so a lot of us are having to get passports and/or passport cards just to fly domestically.

[Rick&Jeannie]

If by some terrible chance that you had to be medically evacuated while in a foreign port you will be faced with a really steep hurdle trying to get back home.  As others have said, it's the absolute BEST plan to get a passport.  It's not hard...just takes some pre-planning to make sure you can get it in time.

[minabruuke]

I don't know the official answer but it would be risky to travel without a passport. What if you need to leave the ship early for some sort of emergency and thus need to fly home from a foreign port? You need a passport to do that! You just never know what might happen...

 

[Charles4515]

27 minutes ago, swdke said:

Birth certificate okay for cruises out of Galveston?  Or are passports now needed for all cruises?  It's for a Western Caribbean cruise, depart and return Galveston.n thanks.

That is called a closed loop cruise. If the cruise does not call at Martinique a birth certificate is okay and a passport is not required. A passport is recommended in case there is a situation where you would have to fly back. 

[Charles4515]

3 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

If by some terrible chance that you had to be medically evacuated while in a foreign port you will be faced with a really steep hurdle trying to get back home.  As others have said, it's the absolute BEST plan to get a passport.  It's not hard...just takes some pre-planning to make sure you can get it in time.

In that unlikely situation it will be a hassle but it is not a steep hurdle. Temporary passports are obtained in those situations. Probably about 50% of cruise passengers on closed loop cruises travel with a birth certificate. The doomsday scenario is rare.

[Colorado Coasty]

30 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

In that unlikely situation it will be a hassle but it is not a steep hurdle. Temporary passports are obtained in those situations. Probably about 50% of cruise passengers on closed loop cruises travel with a birth certificate. The doomsday scenario is rare.

The doomsday scenario may be rare but it can and does happen. The cost of a passport ( spread out over 10 years) is cheap insurance.

I would never leave the country without my passport book.

[Rick&Jeannie]

2 minutes ago, Colorado Coasty said:

I would never leave the country without my passport book.

Amen!

[skynight]

Basically get a passport. I would never travel internationally without a passport and I would not rely on anything said on these boards without checking details myself on official sites. 

Below is a quote from the DHS website regarding WHTI rules. I would go to that site and review the rules. There are certain rules for youth. Certainly if you have to disembark and fly home you will require a passport. Princess also has special rules in their Passage Contract regarding youth traveling with only one adult. You also need to check the requirements for each country you will be visiting.

"U.S. citizens on closed-loop cruises (cruises that begin and end at the same U.S. port) are able to enter the United States with a birth certificate and government-issued photo ID. Please be aware that you may still be required to present a passport to enter the countries your cruise ship is visiting. Check with your cruise line to ensure you have the appropriate documents."

 

[Potstech]

Get a passport to be sure rather than sorry.  Want to know what a last minute flight will cost for you and your companions?  Just take a birth certificate, go to check in and find out you were wrong. Do not, repeat, do not get just the passport card as it is not accepted many places. The only true document to leave and enter the country is the passport book.

[Rick&Jeannie]

54 minutes ago, Potstech said:

 Do not, repeat, do not get just the passport card as it is not accepted many places. The only true document to leave and enter the country is the passport book.

Yes...thanks for stating that!  I meant to say that about the "cards" but forgot.

[sonomaphil]

3 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

That is called a closed loop cruise. If the cruise does not call at Martinique a birth certificate is okay and a passport is not required. A passport is recommended in case there is a situation where you would have to fly back. 

There are many more than just Martinique.  Princess calls many different itineraries "Western".  Honduras for example requires a passport and many Galveston sailing hit Roatan.  

[sloopsailor]

4 hours ago, swdke said:

Birth certificate okay for cruises out of Galveston?  Or are passports now needed for all cruises?  It's for a Western Caribbean cruise, depart and return Galveston.n thanks.

 

There was a recent story that made worldwide news of people who were refused boarding even though it was one of those "closed loop" itineraries. They were denied because some countries on the itinerary required passports. They were told from different sources that they did not need a passport and ended up losing all their money spent on the cruise when they were refused boarding.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2902852-guests-denied-boarding-due-to-passport-requirements-at-port-everglades/

 

I would never chance going out of the country without a passport. Too many things can happen to cut the cruise short and having to come home right away, which will require you have a passport, or days waiting to get one issued to get home. At about $16 per year for your first passport that will last 10 years, it's one of the least costly things you will spend money for on your cruise. And one of the most valuable things you will bring. 

[Charles4515]

38 minutes ago, sonomaphil said:

There are many more than just Martinique.  Princess calls many different itineraries "Western".  Honduras for example requires a passport and many Galveston sailing hit Roatan.  

You don't need a passport for a closed loop cruise that does Honduras out of Galveston.

 

https://www.galvestoncruises.com/what-to-know/1/proof-of-citizenship

 

[sloopsailor]

3 hours ago, jeromep said:

For those of us on the left coast, our drivers licenses are no longer REAL ID compliant (unless you pay your state a lot of money for an "enhanced" drivers license), so a lot of us are having to get passports and/or passport cards just to fly domestically.

 

Not everyone on the left coast. We renewed our California driver's license two years ago when the old ones were about to expire. We had our paperwork ready, paid the usual renewal fee, and the REAL ID license was processed in less that 20 minutes at our local DMV. We received them in the mail about 10 days later.

[Charles4515]

4 hours ago, jeromep said:

For those of us on the left coast, our drivers licenses are no longer REAL ID compliant (unless you pay your state a lot of money for an "enhanced" drivers license), so a lot of us are having to get passports and/or passport cards just to fly domestically.

Real ID is not in effect. You can fly with a non Real ID DL. The deadline for Real ID is now May 7, 2025. 

[jeromep]

3 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

Real ID is not in effect. You can fly with a non Real ID DL. The deadline for Real ID is now May 7, 2025. 

Three or 4 years ago, the deadline was a year to 18 months out.  The date keeps getting pushed back.  Why wait to get an acceptable ID?  Either that or Congress needs to go back and scrap REAL ID.  The REAL ID act was passed in 2005.  So, if they do stick to the 2025 enforcement date, it will have taken 20 years for it to actually be enforced.  In that 20 year time period, with REAL ID not being enforced, has its absence actually caused any problems?  No.  Which proves that it was unnecessary law with no measurable benefit.

 

This is a long walk down the garden path from the OPs original inquiry.  But I stand by my advice to do any kind of travel which may be international with a Passport and not take anything to chance.

[Charles4515]

14 minutes ago, jeromep said:

In that 20 year time period, with REAL ID not being enforced, has its absence actually caused any problems?  No.  Which proves that it was unnecessary law with no measurable benefit.

 

This is a long walk down the garden path from the OPs original inquiry.  But I stand by my advice to do any kind of travel which may be international with a Passport and not take anything to chance.

 

I agee with you that Real ID was unnecessary. Not everyone may be aware the deadline was extended again. 

 

I agree that a passport is the prefered and recommneded document but when someone asks a question we should give the answer even when one option is not in agreement with our personal preferences. 

Edited January 10, 2023 by Charles4515

[Thrak]

I don't care at all about the deadline for Real ID. As soon as I could I went down and replaced my driver's license with the Real ID. It was quick and easy. I showed up at DMV about 20 minutes before they opened and chatted with the folks in the line. When the DMV office opened it was very quick and easy to change my license. I didn't see any reason to fiddle around about it.

 

For our first cruise we were told we only needed our birth certificates. To heck with that. We got passports. I don't see any good reason not to get a passport if traveling out of the country. If one can afford to cruise they can afford to get a passport.

[grobbins]

While I agree a passport is best, if you don't have time to get one before you cruise, make sure you have a certified copy of your birth certificate if it will be accepted.  .  Those have a raised seal- not a copy of it.   And double,  triple check your cruise ID requirements from the Princess website.   

[wrongwaywatson]

4 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Amen!

Ditto!  Get the passport!