Carry passport around ports?

[TinkGirl]

If you get off the ship (Nassau for us) at a port, do you need to bring your passport? I know you don't at CC.

 

[KristiMc]

No you do not need to bring your passport. Just your room card and a photo id.

 

[canadiandisneyfamof4]

Personal preference, but I would never wander around a foreign country without my passport.

 

[Four Swampers]

Personal preference, but I would never wander around a foreign country without my passport.

Very reasonable; if something happens and the ship leaves, you have your passport.

Strangely, I never take my passport. I am too afraid it will be lost or stolen in the foreign country. I am going on the belief that if there is a problem, someone in our party can get back to the ship and get the passport(s). If we are all incapacitated, passports will probably be the least of our worries. If we are all just late to the ship, passports will be the greatest of our worries, especially after my anger dies down.

I think it all depends on what you fear more: the ship leaving you behind, or pickpockets.

No matter what, it is a good idea to scan and photocopy your passport: take some photocopies with you, keeping them separate from your passport. Also, email yourself a jpeg or pdf of your passport. If you do lose your passport, it is much easier to get a new one at the local US embassy if you have a copy. Any embassy can pull up your email and see your scanned passport. You'll have a new passport quickly.

 

[Msidescooter]

I'm in the photocopy boat. Although I had never thought about emailing it to myself and I'll be doing that for our next cruise.

We did take it with us when we got off in Nassau so we could get an entry stamp. But otherwise the original stays in the stateroom safe.

 

[canadiandisneyfamof4]

If you all get delayed in traffic or a car accident no one is getting back to the ship to retrieve the passports. I don't want to have to rely on a DCL rep to get them off the ship safely.

Again it's a personal
Preference, but there are lots of scenarios where you could be stranded in a country and no one from your party could get back to the ship.

 

[Sir William]

If you all get delayed in traffic or a car accident no one is getting back to the ship to retrieve the passports. I don't want to have to rely on a DCL rep to get them off the ship safely.

Again it's a personal
Preference, but there are lots of scenarios where you could be stranded in a country and no one from your party could get back to the ship.

Fully agree, I'm one of those who prefers to keep my passport on me when in any foreign country. Some years ago, several friends and I witnessed a serious crime in a major European city as we were on our way to a business meeting. The police needed to see our passports but one person didn't have his with him so they took him back to his hotel to retrieve it. We missed the meeting and if we'd been on our way to a ship or airport we'd probably missed that as well. It was an interesting afternoon, to say the least. After this experience I always carry my passport with me when I'm off the ship (except for CC).

 

[Gigi22]

Depending on the itinerary (thinking of European cruises) DCL will tell you that you must carry your original passport.

 

[bumbershoot]

Personal preference, but I would never wander around a foreign country without my passport.

I have the same preference. We don't take them off at CC, because if there's an emergency there the staff knows about it. But any other foreign port, they are with us.

And because they are with us, we can get them stamped if the port has an office to stamp passports (or if we can find it).

 

[over50visits]

If you get off the ship (Nassau for us) at a port, do you need to bring your passport? I know you don't at CC.

We haven't carried it with us. As I understand it, if the ship is leaving without us, Disney will enter your room safe and take your passport off the ship to their shore agent. For that and a number of other reasons, we always go ashore with the phone number of the shore agent (it's in the daily Navigator). Having that number available can make the unexpected much, much easier to handle.

So, although I've never seen it in writing, I've heard enough stories that I'm not worried we'll be stranded without a passport if the unexpected happens.

 

[TinkGirl]

What in the world do you do with them if you are doing some sort of excursion where you are in the water? I think I would be super paranoid about my bag.

 

[bumbershoot]

What in the world do you do with them if you are doing some sort of excursion where you are in the water? I think I would be super paranoid about my bag.

Witz brand "sea it safe" lanyard "lockers". Big, waterproof, hang from a lanyard around your neck.

http://www.amazon.com/Witz-05001-Black-P-Waterproof-Passport-Locker/dp/B00DKNBTVI


As long as you get the ones that are actually for passports, and not of credit card size, it should work well. Don't open it while you're in the water. Sounds silly, but I opened my CC sized one for some reason while standing in a pool, and a bit of water got into the seal and messed with the waterproof-ness of it for that day.