Passports for Mexico ports

[skyrain30]

The passport laws are very confusing. If i understand it correctly i can cruise with just a drivers lisence and a birth certificate but i just read on a CC article that many ports require a passport. Is this true of Mexico? I am traveling on Carnival Elation departing 4/19 for Cabo and Ensenada.

[cb at sea]

Mexico doesn't require a passport for CRUISE passengers! A BC and DL will be just fine!

[kitty9]

If you're flying into Mexico, you need the passport, but not for a cruise that departs and returns to a US port.

[Happy ks]

Cruise pax don't need a passport for round trip US cruises. It does get confusing, but I look at passports as my guarantee of getting back into the US, not being able to get into Mexico.

 

If you have to fly home, you will have problems if you don't have a passport. If your cruise is ending in a different US port than where it started, you will need a passport.

 

It does cost a bit, but they are good for 10 years and it can give you the freedom to travel to other countries when you're not cruising.

[skyrain30]

I definitly understand the importance of having a passport but this is our 1st cruise and probably not something we will be able to do again for a very long time. We have a very tight budget and are just trying to get a break from the kids for a few days. This is in fact our first vacation ever other then a 1 night getaway. If i thought we would ever leave the country again i would probably get one but i think this is a 1 time splurge.

[RetireeWannabee]

Then don't bother yet. Wait until you have more opportunities for travelling.

[tnsail]

You want to be sure to leave your BC on the ship when you get off in Mexico... All you need to re-board is the S/S card and a D/L (photo ID)... Read once where a woman cruiser thought that she needed to carry all these ID's with her... Needless to say purse or whatever got wet making the BC almost illegiable.... Took her a couple of months to get new certified copies of all the BC....:eek:

 

You just need your BC to re-enter the US, not to enter Mexico....

[lady_cruiser]

You will need your passport to re-enter the United States. If I am wrong I am sure that someone will let us know since the rules have changed so many times. All I can say is that I am glad I got my passport in 2005 when they first started mentioning that we might need a passport in 2007.

[ChBoxers800]

You will need your passport to re-enter the United States. If I am wrong I am sure that someone will let us know since the rules have changed so many times. All I can say is that I am glad I got my passport in 2005 when they first started mentioning that we might need a passport in 2007.

 

No they won't. Passports for cruise ship passsengers are not required until 6/09. If you use a BC & DL to get on the ship, you can use it when you disembark back in the states.

[kitty9]

You will need your passport to re-enter the United States. If I am wrong I am sure that someone will let us know since the rules have changed so many times. All I can say is that I am glad I got my passport in 2005 when they first started mentioning that we might need a passport in 2007.

 

 

 

You do NOT need a passport to enter the US after a cruise. The only time you need a passport now is if you're flying into or out of any foreign airport, but not on a cruise until 6/09

[cherylandtk]

You do NOT need a passport to enter the US after a cruise. The only time you need a passport now is if you're flying into or out of any foreign airport, but not on a cruise until 6/09

Do not need a passport after 6/2009 either, but only on a cruise-final rule says just a BC and ID will continue to be accepted on RT cruises indefinitely. Land borders, you will need a passport or passcard after 6/1/2009.

[ChBoxers800]

Do not need a passport after 6/2009 either, but only on a cruise-final rule says just a BC and ID will continue to be accepted on RT cruises indefinitely. Land borders, you will need a passport or passcard after 6/1/2009.

 

Call me confused. This is what I found on the US passport site:

 

LAND AND SEA TRAVEL

The following summarizes information available on the Department of Homeland Security’s website.

• CURRENTLY:
  U.S. citizens need to present either (a) a passport, passport card (available in spring 2008), or WHTI-compliant document; or (b) a government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, along with proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate.
  
• LATER:
  On June 1, 2009, the U.S. government will implement the full requirements of the land and sea phase of WHTI. The proposed rules require most U.S. citizens entering the United States at sea or land ports of entry to have a passport, passport card.

Sounds to me as if you will need a passport to get back IN to the US after cruising........after June 1, 2009.

[98Charlie]

Call me confused.

Gee, I don't know how anyone could be confused. It's only a 153 page document written in government doublespeak:D

 

Here is a quote from part of the "Final Ruling" section on cruise ship passengersClick Here For The Link

Thus, U.S. citizens traveling entirely within the Western Hemisphere may present a

government-issued photo ID along with an original or a copy of a birth certificate instead

of a document designated in this final rule if they: (1) board a cruise ship at a port or

place within the United States and (2) return to the same U.S. port or place from where

they originally departed. In addition, DHS and DOS added a new provision that clarifies

that U.S. citizens under the age of 16 are required to present either an original or a copy

of his or her birth certificate without having to provide a photo ID.

So, as I read it, if you are a US citizen you don't and won't need a passport if you start at a port in the US, sail only in the Western Hemisphere and return to port of origin.

 

If you do a repositioning you'll need a passport after the rule becomes effective on June 1, 2009. Of course that is if the government doesn't change it's collective mind and revise, rescind, or reissue the "Final" rules they have set.:rolleyes:

 

Charlie

[prwjr]

Obtaining a valid US Passport is like paying for auto insurance...you may never need to use either...but you surely will be glad that you did when you do need either...