In ye olden days (before 9/11 and heightened security around the world), U.S. citizens could head to Mexico, Canada, and the Caribbean without needing a passport.
Alas, those days are gone.
Thanks to the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, if you've got a cruise to the Caribbean planned, you will need to get a passport. This includes short weekend trips to the Bahamas too. Any kind of cruise that leaves U.S. waters will require a passport.
But if you're planning to be a frequent cruiser anyway (and many people who cruise once love it and cruise again), it's something you would have needed to take care of eventually anyway. Just remember to do all the paperwork well ahead of time, so your passport will be ready for you when your ship is scheduled to sail.
2 comments:
But not until June 2008 so feel free to cruise to your hearts content until then, as long as its on closed loop cruises that start and end in the US
If you are leaving and returning to the same US Port you do NOT need a passport, just a birth certificate will do. Be sure to check w your cruise line first.
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