Question:
what the new passport requirements will be in 2007?
Answer:
There is still a lot of confusion about what the new passport requirements
will be in 2007. For now, all cruise lines that I am aware of are still
telling people to GET A PASSPORT!
Below are HAL's and Royal Caribbean's latest info on this:
From Royal Caribbean -
It is requested that we address our Travel Partners' concerns with the
following statement:
"Though Royal Caribbean / Celebrity is aware of the recent U.S. Government
change in U.S. passport policy. We are presently reviewing the implications
of that policy and possible effects it can have on our guests, should anyone
of them need to depart the ship in a Caribbean, Mexican or South American
port for any reason and be required to fly home without a passport.
Until that determination has been made, our requirement for a valid U.S.
passport for anyone sailing with us and returning to the U.S. on or after
January 8, 2007 remains in effect.
You may have heard of the very recent change announced by the U.S.
government concerning U.S. Passports.
RCCL will NOT change our current U.S. Passport requirement message at this
time.
Our current message is:
Special Note for U.S. Citizens: Effective December 31, 2006 the U.S.
Government's Intelligence Reform Bill requires passports for all air and sea
travel to or from Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean
and Bermuda.
What this means to you:
.Guests sailing in mid December 2006, whose itinerary transits or ends its
voyage in the United States on or after December 31, 2006 will be required
to present a valid passport during ship check-in formalities.
.Guests sailing on or after December 31, 2006 will be required to present a
valid passport during ship check-in formalities.
.Guests not holding a valid passport should apply for one as soon as
possible.
.Guests holding ARC/Green Card are exempt.
The U.S. Government announced a change to the December 31, 2006 effective
date (above) a couple of months back. The revised effective date is January
8, 2007 but as a company, we have not altered our original message.
I am one of those people that had a passport for years, way before 9/11. It
was and still is a great investment in security and for anyone who travels
out of the country. Why people never purchaced one I will never understand.
People spent and are spending thousands on a travel vacation and for chump
change you have a document to prove you are an American Citizen and proud of
it. Excuse me............CHEAP BASTARDS.
Perhaps as an encentive to your travel package you could offer the proper
forms and fee's as a great customer service to your already one cut above
the rest agency. As I have said in the past, "It's like the differance
between Choice and Prime".
Passports are a form of government control of who can travel. They are
not something to believe in. They are a method governments use to
control citizens. Now I believe people should have passports but only
because you need them for many types of travel and travel is something
people should do, not because I think they are a good thing. In an
ideal world you would not need passports. Having a passport or not does
not make one a proud American or not a proud American. It just means
one has one because it is a travel requirement. As far as being cheap,
I do think it is a cost issue for larger families. When you need four
or more passports for a family then the cost adds up.
You know that I meant that I
believe in HAVING a passport, Charles..Not believing IN one! ;-) And of
course I don't believe that you are not a proud American if you don't have
one.
I think not..........I don't know about yours, but on mine is states,
Passport....United States of America and when you open it up it proves I am
a citizen of the greatest country in the world and that does make me proud.
..........Large families deal with huge expences every day.
Vacations are one of them. Expences do add up every day, this is just
another to add to the list of, "What I have to pay for before I leave for my
already expencive vacation". As I stated before, travelers should have
always been required to have a passport when leaving the country. This is
not a 9/11 issue, this is not a way for the government to control your where
abouts, It's fixing a wrong that was done years ago when they dropped the
requiement. Think of it as your house key, if you don't have it , you don't
get in, plain and simple. Your passport is like your Locksmith, you'll pay
for him to get you in.
Thats easy........Stay home or vacation in the USA where you can still
travel anywhere you wish for free.
Bottom line sooner or later you will need a valid passport to do any
travel. Get it now before all the rush.
There's a difference. ..you excused yourself BEFORE you continued...Should
have been afterwards if you really meant it! ;-)
Hang in there, you are doing much better!
No, some will still be able to carry other documents. And one of those
other possible documents will be a wallet sized Pass Card that will be
available for land and sea travel between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico,
the Caribbean, and Bermuda.
Royal Caribbean seems to be out of step with
Holland America and Princess when it comes to REQUIRING a passport by
this January. Below my signature is the latest from Princess. Of
course all cruise lines strongly recommend having a passport.
PASSPORT REQUIREMENTS
Please be advised that while originally the U.S. Department of State
regulations stipulated that passports would be needed by January 8,
2007 for land and sea travel, recently passed legislation has deferred
this date until at least January 1, 2008. However, all passengers
traveling by air between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, Central and
South America, the Caribbean, and Bermuda will still be required to
present a valid U.S. passport beginning January 8, 2007. Even if your
cruise does not involve air travel outside the U.S., should you be
required to unexpectedly depart a vessel prior to the end of the
sailing, a passport would be required to re-enter the U.S. by air. As
such, Princess Cruises continues to strongly recommend that all
passengers are in possession of a passport by January 8, 2007.
Information regarding the passport requirements is available at
www.travel.state.gov. Foreign nationals should contact their
governments for further details.
Many countries require your passport to be valid for six months after
the completion of your travel. Check your passport to verify it will
be valid for this period of time. Please ensure the name on the
passport matches the name on the booking. Additionally, ensure your
passport contains blank pages for entry and exit endorsements and any
visas that may be required. If necessary, allow sufficient time to
renew your passport and/or obtain additional pages.
A valid passport is required of all non-U.S. and non-Canadian citizens
for all itineraries. It is also required of all U.S. and Canadian
citizens sailing on non-domestic itineraries including Africa, Asia,
Australia and New Zealand, Europe, India, Central and South America,
South Pacific and Tahiti.
For itineraries ending in 2006 in which a passport is not required,
U.S. and Canadian citizens who do not have a valid passport must
provide the following proof of citizenship: A naturalization
certificate or an original certified birth certificate from the state
of their birth (a hospital certificate will not suffice) together with
a valid, government-issued photo identification, such as a driver's
license. Although recommended, photo identification is not required
for those 18 years and younger at the time of printing. U.S. Resident
Aliens are required to present, in addition to a valid passport, a
valid Alien Resident card. Canadian permanent residents are required
to present a valid Permanent Resident card in addition to a valid
passport. On domestic cruises, ensure your travel documents are valid
through the completion of travel.
As a clarification, the law was changed due to the legislature
deciding there would be a new ID that would be available for a less
initial outlay than the 10-year passport fee. IOW, an alternative to
the passport is to be developed. This will especially aid those that
don't wish to spend the $ including families with children. I guess
if you have a 13-year old son you could buy the new less expensive ID
and then tell him to get his own passport when he turns 18.
Just a clarification though, that alternative which I posted about, the
Pass Card, will only be good for non-air North American travel. If you
want to fly to say a Dominican Republic resort you will need a
passport. A passport will still be the best travel document to have.
But I could see people only getting it for their children for cruises
and getting passports for themselves.
GoldenSPAM has to stick his nose in to get his advertising doesn't he. It
has been so much quieter when I don't see his damn advertisements and then
you go and quote him Kurt! Get a passport and forget what the spammer has to
say about some silly alternative that may be in the works.
Jim
if you were taking the boat out of San Juan, would you still
need it? I can never figure out how PR and the American Virgin Islands
figure into this.. even before.
Out of San Juan you would need the same documents you need out of Miami
or New York.
interesting. Last time we went out of SJ, the travel club
said we needed drivers license, birth cert or passport just like flying
to anywhere else in the Caribbean. How much of that was just overkill
on the part of the travel club, don't know.
guess Jimmy has not read the new law. Is this being written by the
same guy who got really mad at me when I wouldn't cut him a "special
deal" (as in no commission) so he would say glowing things about me on
this news' group? Is this the same guy who got all upset with me when
I would not pay to advertise on the web site when he was "National
Sales Manager"? Oh well, I guess I will have to live with him making
his little snide remarks and spreading his lies. After all, we have
survived here in Santa Barbara for the last 14-years while Jimmy has
drifted from job to job.
You need those to take the ship. If you were just flying to San Juan to
stay there or elsewhere in Puerto Rico you only need a valid photo ID
for the flights. You don't have to go through any immigration or
customs to visit just Puerto Rico or return from there.
That is a bald faced lie and you know it. Prove it asshole. There are at
least a half dozen TA's right here in RTC that will tell you that I never
got mad at them for not advertising nor have I ever asked for anything
special from any one of them to make 'nice' remarks about them. Again you
are a damnable liar Goldenburg and what you are saying is libel and I could
sue the crap out of you for saying so unless you can prove it, which you
can't because it is not true. The only reason there isn't an attorney at
your doorstep right now is because you have nothing of value nor does it
look like you would ever be able to pay a judgement. By the way, I have
basically had two jobs in my life, one was joining the service when my
country was at war so that I could serve it and the other was as a Police
Officer as I wanted to continue to serve my community and country. Anything
else I have ever done was strictly for fun with no concern for payment and
most were done without any pay to help others out. Would you like to compare
or lives and creditability you piece of human waste? You would rally end up
on the short end exposing yourself to be a highly disreputable slimeball.
Jim
What's the matter you lying piece of waste. Waiting for another TA to back
you up? Not going to happen. They will not lie for you as they are honest. I
am asking any TA here that I have ever gotten mad at for not purchasing
advertising space to say so. Also is any TA here that I have contacted about
a cruise wants to say anything about me asking for a 'special' price not
available to everyone else so I could say something bad about them or
promise them to say something good to step forward and reveal this. Guess
what you dishonest piece of garbage, no takes because I have never done that
nor will I ever. You have told one lie after another on this newsgroup and
whenever someone calls you on it you pull back and play the innocent or hope
your 'fans' will interject. Not this time, I'm calling your lies out and to
the attention of everyone. What happened to your claim that these press
releases come to you just like you post them and you do not delete the
contact information that is someone other than yourself? Everyone knows that
was a lie now as some other said that they thought that okay. Well, wasn't
that also a lie? Do you get 'special' press releases like you said you did
or did you lie when you altered them? How about telling people to go to your
website if they missed any of your press releases as they are all listed
there? That's another lie, less than half are there. Also how would anyone
know if they missed a news release and how would they find it? Another lie.
Why don't you come clean with everyone who has been supporting you and be
honest with them and admit that you have lied often and repeatedly? I
recommend everyone use a TA when booking a cruise but I would never
recommend you for anything. I hate dishonest people like you.
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