Has anyone been left at a port?

[rjf32]

I read so many threads about whether or not to take your passport with you while at port. My question is, is there anyone out there that has actually been left at a port, and if so how imperative is it to have your passport with you?

[HurricaneSally]

I have seen people left at port and wondered how they managed without their passport. I always take mine with me, but I am always back at least two hours before the ship leaves port.

[Onessa]

Is it important to have your passport with you in port? - It Depends On The Situation.

 

If you need to come up with your own transportation from one country to another country to either "catch up" with the ship or to get home, having your passport can make it a lot easier.

 

Carrying at least a photocopy of the front page of the passport of each individual in your party and carrying those with you is a good idea (and is encouraged by the state department). Keeping a photocopy with someone that you can contact back home is also helpful - having the information that is on that page can make it much easier for officials to help you - help you whether you've missed the ship, have been involved in an accident, or have any other emergency.

[Schplinky]

There is another passport thread and the lady who called the State department said they told her that photocopies are presumed to be forged by foreign countries. She mentioned an incident where a woman was in a cafe when a fight broke out and another woman tried to claim this woman's children as her own and since she had to passports, they had to wait at the jail for her husband to bring their passports. Stories like these and others make me want to carry my passport. I'm not a child and am able to protect my valuables.

[mrsfuzzmo]

We take our actual passports with us on shore as well, and leave a color copy back in our cabin safe with the rest of our valuables. I have seen numerous people left onshore. A couple of times the ship has stopped after pulling out and a small pilot boat has brought the late passengers aboard (yes, actually saw it happen on 2 different cruises...once in St. Thomas, one time in St. Maarten) and I have also seen passengers miss their ships in other ports....Cozumel is a big one....Thanks Charlos & Charlies!....I have heard numerous pages and last calls for passengers that never made it back onboard, and the stories go on and on. I myself have never had a problem, but usually get to the last tender, or within a couple hundred yards of the ship if docked and enjoy my last hour or two onshore enjoying some local refreshments while watching everyone board. Then at last call, we board. Long story short, if I were to be left ashore for whatever reason....what if you have to be taken to the hospital???.....I definitely want my passport.

 

Mrsfuzzmo

[Cotton]

I agree. Whenever I am on foreign soil, my passport is with me! I've heard many times that foreign governments will not accept a COPY. I do keep a copy in my cabin safe, but the original is with me at all times.

 

And yes - I have seen passengers waving frantically from the port. Too bad, because they had to find and pay for their own transportation to catch the ship at the next port. If the ship doesn't have another port scheduled, they have to get back home on their own.

 

I'm always back on the ship at least an hour before sailing.

[luv2cworld2000]

:eek: Things to take to port just incase your watch stops and you miss the ship: passport, credit card, one day supply of prescription medication, location of where the ship is going to be next.

[wrp96]

:eek: Things to take to port just incase your watch stops and you miss the ship: passport, credit card, one day supply of prescription medication, location of where the ship is going to be next.

 

And the number of the port agent.

[HaloV]

We have had to leave our passports both times when we checked in on Paul Gauguin.

[thecoop]

We saw one couple left at the Cozumel port last year. Ship was pulling away as they casually sautnered to the pier. They took their good old time and we all took ourt ime waving at them as we sailed away (I know we did not sail but you goet the point). On our first cruise, we were warned about not buying drugs in the caribbean. Captain announce one couple would not be returning because they were in the loca jail for purchasing drugs and getting caught with them.

 

On our last cruise we almost missed the ship ourselves. We docked in Port Canaveral. We rented a car and drove to Orlando. It took us 40 minutes to get to Orlando. On the way back we hit a dangerous storm that had traffic crawling at 20 miles an hour. It took us 2 hour 40 minutes to get back. The ship was pulling up the gangplank as we ran from the taxi that dropped us off from the rental agency (the agency had closed before we got there because it was a Sunday and we were held up in traffic). We were able to get on the ship. Our tablemates watched us through a window and were cheering us on as we ran to get on. We will never do that again.

[LHT28]

Two couples missed the ship in Mazatlan and had to find their own way to P.V. to meet the ship the next day.