Passport Question!!!

[just_us]

OF COURSE it makes sense to get one. I get that. But not everyone can last minute. So it's not the end of the world to not have one. Some people act like it is.

 

If you get hurt on foreign land and/or can't make it back in time to depart, you're pretty much screwed. But it's a chance you take when you book a last minute cruise with no passport. Just know that there are risks. Keep an eye on the clock and don't do anything too crazy (like drive scooters in the Bahamas).

[Kancruze]

It's not the end of the world to get one either!! And it makes a cruise a lot more pleasant when you don't have to look over your shoulder worrying that something might happen so you can't make that ship and you don't have a simple passport to say you're an American citizen. Not to mention the extra expense to prove who you are if an accident occurs.

Why would you take that chance? Yes, I'd say that was a tad irresponsible. Have a great cruise though.

[Harleycat]

It's not the end of the world to get one either!! And it makes a cruise a lot more pleasant when you don't have to look over your shoulder worrying that something might happen so you can't make that ship and you don't have a simple passport to say you're an American citizen. Not to mention the extra expense to prove who you are if an accident occurs.

Why would you take that chance? Yes, I'd say that was a tad irresponsible. Have a great cruise though.

 

That's what I don't understand. What is the point of not getting one? It's a one time expense and ends all worries about docs needed or if something happens.

[Harleycat]

OF COURSE it makes sense to get one. I get that. But not everyone can last minute. So it's not the end of the world to not have one. Some people act like it is.

 

If you get hurt on foreign land and/or can't make it back in time to depart, you're pretty much screwed. But it's a chance you take when you book a last minute cruise with no passport. Just know that there are risks. Keep an eye on the clock and don't do anything too crazy (like drive scooters in the Bahamas).

 

I don't understand what last minute cruising has to do with getting a passport or not. You get one, put it away and have it available when you need it for your last minute cruise.

 

My point is with the ever changing regulations, you might find yourself in a position of booking a last minute cruise and not being able to go because you don't have a passport and don't have time to get one.

[Lubbock2006]

Chances are if you continue to cruise or for that matter, fly to another country, then the closed loop provision won't be of any use. Having a PP makes those last minute cruises more possible not having to wonder if you will be able to get back into the USA.

[cherylandtk]

What I don't get - and this is not directed at anyone on this thread in particular - is why people say get the passport, give all sorts of good reasons why they are needed( if the ship leaves without you due to illness, accident or late arrival after an excursion), but then those same people leave the dang passport in the safe on the ship where it does no good at all. Baffles me.

 

In a recent poll, 70% of the respondents said they leave their passport in the safe, and this was specifically about the closed loop/Caribbean cruises. Why get it if you aren't gonna keep where it can be used?

[njhorseman]

What I don't get - and this is not directed at anyone on this thread in particular - is why people say get the passport, give all sorts of good reasons why they are needed( if the ship leaves without you due to illness, accident or late arrival after an excursion), but then those same people leave the dang passport in the safe on the ship where it does no good at all. Baffles me.

 

In a recent poll, 70% of the respondents said they leave their passport in the safe, and this was specifically about the closed loop/Caribbean cruises. Why get it if you aren't gonna keep where it can be used?

 

The reason for leaving it in the safe is that the chance of losing your passport or having it stolen if you take it ashore is probably greater than the chance of missing your ship.

 

By the way...and this is in no way directed at you...but based on some of the comments made whenever this topic is discussed, I wonder what some people think will happen if miss the ship and don't have your passport with you. Whether you have your passport or not, you're going to be greatly inconvenienced, but if you don't have it, none of the following will occur:

 

(1) You will spend the rest of your life rotting in a local jail.

 

(2) You will be thrown into a cage full of lions that have not been fed for a week.

 

(3) You will be sold to Somalian pirates.

 

What will happen is that the local government and US authorities will cooperate to send you on your way home despite the lack of proper documentation.

[cherylandtk]

njhorseman,

LOL, I like that Somali pirate one. Yes, I agree some of the assumptions made on 'what happens' tend to be worst-case scenarios that are far more outrageous than what really happens in a worst case scenario. Nothing that money and a couple of weeks cannot fix.

 

I am not so sure that the odds of losing a passport/having it stolen are greater than missing the ship, though. But I would definitely agree that most people THINK the odds are higher it will be stolen/lost than they will miss the ship. Course, they might change their minds on that as they jump up and down at the pier as the ship sails off.

[MrLee]

we get passport questions all the time..and we keep getting the same answers:p

 

whats so tough about getting a passport?..i live in a 2 horse town and

yet was able to get one thru the post office..

 

Easy for you...you have an extra horse! ;)

[DMRick]

What I don't get - and this is not directed at anyone on this thread in particular - is why people say get the passport, give all sorts of good reasons why they are needed( if the ship leaves without you due to illness, accident or late arrival after an excursion), but then those same people leave the dang passport in the safe on the ship where it does no good at all. Baffles me.

 

We bring our copy of our passport on shore with us. If we miss the ship, it makes it much easier to either replace, or as someone said on another thread a bit ago, they were able to use their copy to get on the plane and it made it easier to deal with the US once back on their soil.

[DaDead]

I was told 5 years ago when we were taking a cruise to Alaska that we would need passports to get off the ship on Vancouver Island. Got our passports through the Public Library. Easy as pie, and it does take alot of pressure off you when traveling. We take it with us everytime we visit the mainland for our "road trips" and on every cruise. Never know when you might want to go into Canada or Mexico!

[DaDead]

we get passport questions all the time..and we keep getting the same answers:p

 

whats so tough about getting a passport?..i live in a 2 horse town and

yet was able to get one thru the post office..

 

Easy for you...you have an extra horse! ;)

 

Wow, you guys have horses? All we got is mongoose or is it mongeese?:rolleyes: ;):D

[cherylandtk]

We bring our copy of our passport on shore with us. If we miss the ship, it makes it much easier to either replace, or as someone said on another thread a bit ago, they were able to use their copy to get on the plane and it made it easier to deal with the US once back on their soil.

I do not know when this event happened, but one cannot use a copy to get on a plane nowadays. At a minimum you will need a travel authorization letter from a US State Dept Consular Agent.

 

From what has been posted in the last three years, I am not all that sure that having the copy will make it any easier or faster to get a duplicate or replacement. The only mitigating factor for making it easier or faster seems to be the nature of the emergency and the need for speed in returning home. Evidence is admittedly limited, but I would not count on your copy as being acceptable in lieu of the real thing for cross-border travel.

[VABeach]

I agree with what everyone here is saying. Personally, I've had my passport since the mid 90's.

 

This particular situation was a combination of all of the above.

 

Last minute cruise, that we all decided to chip in and pay for a friend to go, who never travels, and is currently un-employed.... = NO PASSPORT. (That's why we asked the cruise line when we booked it).

 

BTW, We went and had no problems what-so-ever. Myself, like most people on here, HIGHLY recommend to anyone to GET A PASSPORT. It's just easier.

 

If this person ever decides to go on a vacation again, hopefully, she'll get a passport.

 

In the meantime, it did stress the heck out of me!!!

 

Thanks so much for all of the responses. They made the flight down there a little less stressful! :p