Original Birth Certificate Instead Of Passport/Passport Card For 3 Day Disney Cruise

[awilliams4]

Hello.

Our family does not have Passports or Passport Cards and are planning our 1st Disney Cruise. 3 Day cruise to Nassau and Castaway Cay.

Since we anticipate this may be our only Cruise for quite sometime, we would like to try and save the $170 it would take for my family of (4) to get Passport Cards.

Has anyone used just their Birth Certificate to get on the boat and back into the country? If so, any hassles, delays, problems in your experience?

Thank you.

 

[Victoria]

Even though they did not need them, we went ahead and got our kids passports (my DH and I already had passports) for our recent cruise. Whenever passport rules change there can be a mad rush which results in longer waiting periods to get them, and I did not want to risk that happening to us before our cruise had they changed the regulations. Sure it was an added expense, but still a drop in the bucket when you look at what we paid for the cruise itself. I kind of looked at it as insurance...better to have them just in case. Plus, if a great deal ever pops up at the last minute on a DCL Med cruise (which I am dying to go on!) we will already have the passports! I know, wishful thinking. But you never know!

I think you might be referring to the line of 15 people I encountered at the post office today. I've never seen so many people trying to get passports all at once. :lol: Thankfully I was only there to mail something.

 

[Magical Dreamer]

I was told before if you get off the boat at port you will run the risk of not being able to re-board without a passport or passport ID card.

Your going to another country !!!! Get your proof of citizenship!!!!

 

[happymom52003]

actually the rule applies to cruises on as well. believe it or not no matter how you get there you need a passport to get off the boat and back on and finallly back to the usa. it use to be that way for the carribean and such but new rules are new rules. and you must have a passport, not the card,the card is for canada and mx only i believe. i would call disney cruise line just to make sure. i would hate for you to get there and they not let you on

I was told before if you get off the boat at port you will run the risk of not being able to re-board without a passport or passport ID card.

Your going to another country !!!! Get your proof of citizenship!!!!

Not true. As of now, the OP does not NEED passports or passport cards. A certified birth certificate will work. However, like myself and others have pointed out, there are benefits to having a passport, and I would recommend getting them. But it is not required at this point in time.

lforti...perhaps what you heard was that if you do not take your id and key card with you off of the boat at ports, you will have problems getting back on. This IS true. You have to have proof that you are indeed a passenger of the ship to reboard after being in port.

 

[luckyeye13]

Whenever passport rules change there can be a mad rush which results in longer waiting periods to get them, and I did not want to risk that happening to us before our cruise if they happened to decide to change the regulations.

Certainly a good point! When I mailed in my passport in mid-2007 to get visa pages added, it took a whopping 14 weeks (as opposed to the usual 5-6 weeks) for me to get the passport back because of the volume of applications. (I can't even imagine what the wait was for a passport to be issued!) Although it wasn't an issue when I sent it in for my pages, I did start to worry because I was working for British Airways in Orlando at the time and it was highly recommended that we have passports available should the need to travel come up. In fact, in November 2007, I was sent to London for a tour of Heathrow Terminal 5 and to hear from some of the company's executives. Luckily, I had finally gotten my passport back just about three weeks before the trip or I would have missed out on an awesome experience.

 

[Disneyfalcon]

Not true. As of now, the OP does not NEED passports or passport cards. A certified birth certificate will work. However, like myself and others have pointed out, there are benefits to having a passport, and I would recommend getting them. But it is not required at this point in time.

lforti...perhaps what you heard was that if you do not take your id and key card with you off of the boat at ports, you will have problems getting back on. This IS true. You have to have proof that you are indeed a passenger of the ship to reboard after being in port.

Happymom is absolutely correct. It could change in the future, although it is doubtful it would without a lot of advance warning, but right now you do not need a passport or passport card to sail on a closed loop cruise.

You do not need a passport or passport card to disembark on a Disney cruise at any of the current ports in the Caribbean.

Of course it's never a bad idea to have one, and getting one now before the prices jump is ideal if you an swing it.

 

[JeffH]

...this is all assuming you are an American citizen

If you are not, I believe you WILL need a passport (e.g. driving down from Canada).
after 4 Disney Cruises since June 2008...
The only time I need my passport is when I filled out the online paperwork, then again when we check in for the cruise (I was under the impression that ADULTs need a passport, but children traveling with their parents can get away with a birth certificate)...so I'd gotten a passport for me and a card for my daughter.
After you check in you are told to put your passport away, and that all you'd need was your room-card/id and drivers-license/id throughout the cruise. When you leave the ship you are told to be sure you have your passport with you (don't pack it away), although the last 2 returns they didn't look at my passport as we left through "customs".
NEVERTHELESS, I wouldn't trust anybody on this forum as an expert (no offense) and would call/email the Disney Cruise Line for the true policy.

 

[Disney05]

Passports are about to, if they have not already, go up to $135.

 

[lewisc]

From Disney's website:

Guests are responsible for obtaining proper documentation to board the ship. U.S. Government passport requirements continue to change; therefore, we strongly encourage Guests of all ages to have a valid U.S. passport for all cruises. Having a passport allows you to always be prepared to travel wherever you wish, and offers an added measure of security when you're traveling.

Since Disney doesn't require a passport passengers can take advantage of the closed loop exemption. That's not really a good idea. You'll have real problems if you have an issue and need to fly home from the Bahamas.

 

[tracyandalex]

we did the 3 night cruise in april (me, DH, and DD (18 months)) and no none of us had passports. it is not required for this cruise. we hace never been on any other cruise so i can't speak about those. we were told however that if we did get stuck at one of the ports and had to return home from there it would be more difficult. one of my friends works at immigration and he said there is some form that you have to fill out and they verify your citizenship status with, well i don't remember the agency, but anyways you won't be stuck in nassau forever! everything went really smoothly for us with birth certificates.
the most troubling thing to me was that no one verified that the little one actually belonged to us. we had her birth certificate, but were never asked for it.

have a great trip, we loved it and are planning a 7 night cruise next april :wave:

 

[disneyrcks]

We were going to take a cruise from Port Canavral to the Bahamas prior to our disney trip in August. I was told by family that we would need a passport. I applied six weeks ago at the post office and they told me that a passport card would be fine. I went for the regular passport just for possible future trips. Recently we found out my cousin is having the same cruise in Nov for a destination wedding. The cruise planner we booked with sent an email stating a passport or card were not necessary but a birth certificate with seal was needed. At this point if your cruise company says u dont need it then u dont need it. However original birth certificates are hard to come by and you don't want to risk losing them. If you can fit it into your budget do the passport cards (cheaper) or just make sure you keep track of the bc's. Whatever you decide I am sure your trip will be wonderful....have fun and enjoy

 

[Disney05]

If you need a copy of your birth certificate: www.vitalchek.com

 

[happymom52003]

However original birth certificates are hard to come by and you don't want to risk losing them.

It does not need to be original...just a certified copy, which are very easy to get.

 

[val1756]

Just got back from 7 night eastern Carribean this spring. We DO NOT have passports and we had no problems.

Yes, you can get on and off the ships without your passports, just a room key and photo id, we were told the reason they take your picture when boarding the ship for the first time is for identification purposes, such as when reboarding at a port. A person in our group even forgot their driver's license and was able to reboard without a word because your photo comes up when they scan your key card. We were actually encouraged to leave our passports on the ship to prevent them from being lost or stolen.

As someone stated the State Department WAS making passports mandatory a couple of years back for cruises and then backpeddled at the last minute and gave the closed loop itinerary exception, as someone already explained.

Here is my advice though, when dealing with something like this that could be serious, never take our word. Several people have said things that are not correct on this thread. Call Disney directly and ask them, they will know if laws are scheduled to change or if you should expect problems, etc.

 

[Phonedave]

Just got back from 7 night eastern Carribean this spring. We DO NOT have passports and we had no problems.

Yes, you can get on and off the ships without your passports, just a room key and photo id, we were told the reason they take your picture when boarding the ship for the first time is for identification purposes, such as when reboarding at a port. A person in our group even forgot their driver's license and was able to reboard without a word because your photo comes up when they scan your key card. We were actually encouraged to leave our passports on the ship to prevent them from being lost or stolen.

As someone stated the State Department WAS making passports mandatory a couple of years back for cruises and then backpeddled at the last minute and gave the closed loop itinerary exception, as someone already explained.

Here is my advice though, when dealing with something like this that could be serious, never take our word. Several people have said things that are not correct on this thread. Call Disney directly and ask them, they will know if laws are scheduled to change or if you should expect problems, etc.

Make that call the State Department.

Disney gets things wrong too (well, the State Department is not 100% either)

Simplest solution, get a passport.

-dave

 

[topcat47]

Don't know if anyone has brought this up but main reason you should have a passport on a cruise is boats don't wait. If for whatever reason you don't get back in time the ship will still leave. That will leave you on an island that is not U.S. property without proper ID to return in a timely manner.

 

[mcstensrud]

I happened to have had a hard time in Bermuda with a Birth Cert.It was obviously in my maiden name and my license is in my married name.
I did not have a copy of my Marriage Cert with me.Good thing I was with Hubby because they would have shipped me back to Boston!
Got a Passport when I got Back ASAP.I suggest you do the same.:wave:

 

[mkt]

Don't know if anyone has brought this up but main reason you should have a passport on a cruise is boats don't wait. If for whatever reason you don't get back in time the ship will still leave. That will leave you on an island that is not U.S. property without proper ID to return in a timely manner.

Actually, that's not.. but it's close.

The main reason to have one is that if you need to fly home for ANY REASON WHATSOEVER, you more than likely won't get on the plane with a passport card.