Passport ?

[kiraryker]

Going on the Triumph in March - ports San Juan, St. Thomas & St. Maarten - do we need a passport?

[StrangeBrew]

Nope , ship card and a picture id will suffice ,you have to have both to get off the ship anyway and both to return . If you are booking , you need Birth Certificate , Picture I.d. , and such .

[fllady61]

Nope , ship card and a picture id will suffice ,you have to have both to get off the ship anyway and both to return . If you are booking , you need Birth Certificate , Picture I.d. , and such .

 

 

did they change the manditory date for ppts again? it was June 1, 2008. but they keep changing it.

[forensic]

I would not take a chance - why would you not get a passport. Right now there are no backups at the passport processing centers. Go to a CVS get your photo(s) taken print an application off from on-line put it all in the mail soon you will have a passport. We use ours all of the time, we use them every time we fly, even just in the US, a great form of ID. I believe that every citizen should have one and you are going to have to have one soon anyway, why wait for the rush?

[StrangeBrew]

did they change the manditory date for ppts again? it was June 1, 2008. but they keep changing it.

• 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, or WHTI-compliant document.

[cruisinlawn]

....spend the $, get the p'port. As stated above, currently no backups. You have over 8 months til you cruise, alot can happen in that time. All it will take is one incident and policies will change instantly. Enjoy.

[Rockee4055]

You can get on without a passport but you should have one. If you get stuck on an island and have to get back to the US you may have an issue.

[Lady_Jag]

You can get on without a passport but you should have one. If you get stuck on an island and have to get back to the US you may have an issue.

 

Yeah, but most people lock their passports up in their cabins, so if they get stuck on an island, they'll still have an issue. ;)

[Gma&Gpa]

We have OUR passport - but I'm contemplating taking my d-i-l on a short 4-day cruise in February. It's not likely they will be traveling outside the US for a long time - as money is always an issue for them. In fact, on this cruise, I'll likely be paying the entire cruise and flight. They don't have the money for passports and any extras - and another $90/$100 (whatever it is now) is jsut that much more that I would be coming up with. It would be different if I thought they would be doing a lot of traveling/cruising over the next few years.

[Cruise, J.D.]

• 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, or WHTI-compliant document.

 

Guess what. That final rule has been published. Nothing changes June 1, 2009, for most cruisers. If you are a US citizen on a closed-loop cruise within the Western Hemisphere beginning and ending at the same US port, you do not need a passport. Now or June 1, 2009.

 

Read it for yourself: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-6725.pdf

[kiraryker]

That is why I was wondering - we have 3 children that I would have to purchase passports for - $$$

[andnickali]

We have been on many cruises without a passport and have had no troubles. I did just purchase them in December in preparation for the once again changed date of January 2008- as we were cruising in April. The passports arrived in 7 days and the date was changed to maybe sometime in 2008 for the mandate!

 

Now with the date set for summer 2009 and an upcoming cruise with the kiddies scheduled for November I will not be getting them passports- I suspect it will be five years more until the date is set in stone for cruisers to actually be required to carry them.

[MusicMan]

We have OUR passport - but I'm contemplating taking my d-i-l on a short 4-day cruise in February. It's not likely they will be traveling outside the US for a long time - as money is always an issue for them. In fact, on this cruise, I'll likely be paying the entire cruise and flight. They don't have the money for passports and any extras - and another $90/$100 (whatever it is now) is jsut that much more that I would be coming up with. It would be different if I thought they would be doing a lot of traveling/cruising over the next few years.

 

I understand entirely!! I took by son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter on a Disney cruise last year and caught a lot of flack about being so stupid as to travel without a passport. Well, maybe so, but when you're footing the bill for three extra people another three hundred bucks makes a difference.

[Cruise, J.D.]

 

Now with the date set for summer 2009 and an upcoming cruise with the kiddies scheduled for November I will not be getting them passports- I suspect it will be five years more until the date is set in stone for cruisers to actually be required to carry them.

 

Uhhh . . . it has been set in stone (as much as it can be). The final rule is effective June 1, 2009. It exempts US citizens on closed-loop cruises within the Western Hemisphere from the passport requirement.

[gr1634]

State of Washington??

[fllady61]

We were in the mad rush last year to get PPTS by our September cruise becaue it was to go into effect June 07. then before our cruise, it changed again to Jan 08, then June 08, then Jan 09, now it is June 09.

 

wish they would make up their minds.

 

I do not lock my ppts in the cabin when in a foreign port is... St. Maarten. I am not going back to my cabin after having them checked.

 

How much do the ppt cards cost extra? May look into them.

[cherylandtk]

...How much do the ppt cards cost extra? May look into them.

If you already have a valid passport book, they cost $20 because it is only a renewal, technically. If you don't they cost $45.

[zqvol]

Guess what. That final rule has been published. Nothing changes June 1, 2009, for most cruisers. If you are a US citizen on a closed-loop cruise within the Western Hemisphere beginning and ending at the same US port, you do not need a passport. Now or June 1, 2009.

 

Read it for yourself: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-6725.pdf

 

Don't you hate having to give this same answer over and over again when people give wrong information about passports.

 

Everyone would be smart to cruise with a passport, but there is no need now or next year or at any specified time to have one as explained above.

 

We have been on many cruises without a passport and have had no troubles. I did just purchase them in December in preparation for the once again changed date of January 2008- as we were cruising in April. The passports arrived in 7 days and the date was changed to maybe sometime in 2008 for the mandate!

 

Now with the date set for summer 2009 and an upcoming cruise with the kiddies scheduled for November I will not be getting them passports- I suspect it will be five years more until the date is set in stone for cruisers to actually be required to carry them.

 

There is no date. Passports are not required for most cruises.

 

We were in the mad rush last year to get PPTS by our September cruise becaue it was to go into effect June 07. then before our cruise, it changed again to Jan 08, then June 08, then Jan 09, now it is June 09.

 

wish they would make up their minds.

 

I do not lock my ppts in the cabin when in a foreign port is... St. Maarten. I am not going back to my cabin after having them checked.

 

How much do the ppt cards cost extra? May look into them.

 

It is not June 2009. It is never for most cruises.

[kiraryker]

My hubby and I have ours but your saying that I do not need to get them for our 3 children then?

[Cruise, J.D.]

We were in the mad rush last year to get PPTS by our September cruise becaue it was to go into effect June 07. then before our cruise, it changed again to Jan 08, then June 08, then Jan 09, now it is June 09.

 

It's not June 09 either for most US cruisers . . . See above.

[Cruise, J.D.]

Don't you hate having to give this same answer over and over again when people give wrong information about passports.

 

YES!! I wish they would make the passport requirements/non-requirements a sticky. The final rule is published. The uncertainty is gone.

 

Initially, "everyone" thought that passports would be a requirement. Now that they are not, TAs, the cruise lines, and others keep giving out misinformation.

 

It also doesn't help that the U.S. Department of State website doesn't include the passport exemption for closed-loop cruises under the summary of WHTI requirements. Of course, everyone just skips over the phrase "most U.S. citizens" in the summary and assumes it includes those on a cruise.

[CruisinloversfromTexas]

Going on the Triumph in March - ports San Juan, St. Thomas & St. Maarten - do we need a passport?

 

 

You will not need a passport as this itinerary is part of the US Virgin Islands. You only need a birth certificate to book.

 

I have already checked as I plan to go on this cruise in January, 2009.

[zqvol]

You will not need a passport as this itinerary is part of the US Virgin Islands. You only need a birth certificate to book.

 

I have already checked as I plan to go on this cruise in January, 2009.

 

You don't need a passport, but it has nothing to do with the fact that one of the stops is in the USVI. St. Maarten is in the Netherlands Antillies, not the USVI.

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

True that if you are starting a cruise in the US and end back up in that port then you don't NEED a passport to be able to board the ship (as long as you have a birth cert). BUT - when your child winds up in the hospital in a foreign country & needs to get back to the US cuz the ship left (just one scenario of many that could happen), you can't board a plane to the US without a passport. If you have a passport and left it on the ship, at least it would be easy to prove your nationality thru the Embassy but much more difficult without a passport on file. Not worth the chance in my opinon. I forked over the extra $ for my kids passports just in case. I consider it insurance.