Passports for family of four

[aggiedog]

BUT you can always apply for them while abroad in a true emergency. You aren’t going to be stranded indefinitely in a foreign country.

Last year, while on a cruise to the Carribbean, my uncle tripped, fell, and hit his chin on a curb. It instantly broke his neck. He was rushed to the hospital, then medevac-ed home, while on a ventilator, to Boston the next day. His 78 yo wife was with him.

Yes, this is an extreme example, but I'm glad she wasn't having to worry about paperwork for her in the middle of all that. And not trying to scare the OP, just stating that life takes turns you never expect.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Don't think of the passports as just needed for a 4 night cruise. As previously stated, they can be used for so much more and worth the investment. Depending on where you live, you may need passports to fly domestically in the near future, if you don't have the right drivers license for ID.

 

[CamColt]

We bit the bullet and got them about 13 years ago (and renewed since). While it is a hefty expense at the time, it will come in handy for future travel. My DS and I have both used ours for ID when needing a second form of ID for a job too. Also, while we do not need them to fly within the US I have started bringing them with us anytime we travel as backup since DH lost his wallet on a trip once. Thankfully he found it but I don't know how we would have gotten home without his license had he not found it. IMO, it's always good to have an extra ID.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

This is such a unique and quirky cultural attitude of the U.S.A. In absolutely no other country is this ever a question

Yes, get your passports! There is no downside to having one and in many cases, it is the only form of acceptable ID.

Should you have a medical emergency abroad, you really don't want to have to split up your family in the heat of the moment, during the beeping of the crash cart, and send part of them to the hospital to make sure the patient gets proper care, while the other half head off to an Embassy to beg for emergency assistance. You want to be able to look at the doctors and say, "Stabilize the patient, we have our passports right here (pull at pouch at neck) and we can get them to a hospital in the USA as soon as clearance is given."

Have a great trip!

 

[Lisa F]

my father once shattered his ankle in Bermuda and it was a nightmare for my mother because the cruise was a prize and she had grown accustomed to automatic trip and supplemental medical insurance when she booked trips with her Amex. scrambling to put together $25k cash to pay on advance for the airlift while in a foreign country was awful. as it turned out they were able to stabilize him for a first class flight back to the US. I can't imagine the additional level of stress if she had to deal with the consolate too.

Now I never travel outside the US without supplemental medical and passports. you never think a medical emergency will happen to you but once it does it seems pound foolish to not be prepared.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

my father once shattered his ankle in Bermuda and it was a nightmare for my mother because the cruise was a prize and she had grown accustomed to automatic trip and supplemental medical insurance when she booked trips with her Amex. scrambling to put together $25k cash to pay on advance for the airlift while in a foreign country was awful. as it turned out they were able to stabilize him for a first class flight back to the US.

Nearly the same thing happened to my grandparents when they went to France! D:

Grandmom was wandering about, trying to figure out where to shop next, when Pop-Pop lost his balance and fell right down a staircase of stone steps onto the cobblestones. Neither of them spoke a word of French (WHYYYYYYYYY??? at least today your cell phone can translate!) and both were quite hysterical and in states of medical shock by the time by-standers figured out how to communicate with them and get them medical assistance. Turns out he broke his ankle because my Grandmom was distracted by an advertisement for men's underwear.

Nobody lets them forget their trip to France now! LOL

 

[DWillowBay]

JMHO, but we just live in a world now where passports are just a good idea when traveling...for lots of reasons like those from PPs. Sorry, I know it's expensive, but....yes!

 

[DietCokeMommy]

We have a repo cruise coming up for our family of 4. My husband and I have passports but we needed something for the kids since it’s not closed loop. My kids are pretty little - 4 and 1.5. We decided to go with passport cards for this for a couple reasons. For one it saves $65/kid. For another, at their age I don’t have foresee doing the kind of travel that requires a passport. When they’re older I want to do Europe and much more extensive world traveling.

If I’m wrong about our needs for the next 5 years, we’ll spend the money and get them passports and we will have wasted $80. If I’m right, I saved us $130.

 

[SteveMouse]

A HUGE disadvantage in the cards is they CANNOT be used for international air travel. That would, I expect, include air travel associated with an emergency.

 

[MUN]

Do you feel that anyone has tried to *scare* or *guilt* the OP? Or do you just feel that facts and how we do risk-benefit analysis to be scary or guilt-inducing?

Yes, exactly like I predicted, many on here are scaring and guilting the OP to buy expensive passports that they simply won't need for their 4-day cruise.

MUN

PS, my favorite so far is the person who suggested that you will need a passport to get back to the US if you do something to get kicked off the ship. What a hoot!!!

 

[MUN]

Uh, I have ZERO interest in going ashore in Nassau.

Good for you!

 

[lanejudy]

We have a repo cruise coming up for our family of 4.

Which repo cruise are you doing? I don't know that the passport card is valid for the Panama Canal cruises as those move outside the western hemisphere initiative. Please double-check that the card will be acceptable for your cruise.

OP -- most people here advocate for getting a passport. It isn't required. Many people are on each cruise without one. As long as you are aware of the possibilities and willing to accept that risk, you are fine to cruise with birth certificates (plus ID for those age 16+). There are other plusses you'll find by having the passport, but it's not required.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[kiford]

My husband and I have passports but we needed something for the kids since it’s not closed loop. My kids are pretty little - 4 and 1.5. We decided to go with passport cards for this for a couple reasons.

Which repo cruise are you doing?

My understanding of passport cards is that they can only be used for US domestic flights, travel between US-Canada and US-Mexico by land or sea, and travel to Bermuda and the Caribbean by sea. All other travel requires a passport book regardless of method of transportation. If the repo cruise is the Panama Canal one, a passport book is not valid since it stops in South and Central America. If it's those that reposition between Canada and the US, it's fine.

 

[OKW Lover]

Here is the official US Department of State info about Passports and Passport cards: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/apply-renew-passport/card.html

 

[DietCokeMommy]

My understanding of passport cards is that they can only be used for US domestic flights, travel between US-Canada and US-Mexico by land or sea, and travel to Bermuda and the Caribbean by sea. All other travel requires a passport book regardless of method of transportation. If the repo cruise is the Panama Canal one, a passport book is not valid since it stops in South and Central America. If it's those that reposition between Canada and the US, it's fine.

It’s San Juan to Port Canaveral, not a Panama Canal one. Our ports will be US owned plus Castaway Cay.

Thank you for the heads up from people who suggested I check. After reading the discussion initially I did go and check just to make sure and we are ok with passport cards for the kids.

 

[cyclenut]

This question comes up frequently. My answer is no. It's an added expense that isn't necessary. Yes, there are and can be emergencies and yes, not having a passport adds to the stress, but the vast majority of cruise ship passengers simply don't have those types of emergencies.

While getting of the ship in Nassau is not really a factor in requiring passports, choosing to stay on the ship reduces many of the risks that could cause you to require one (e.g. missing the ship, becoming injured while on land, etc.).

One risk that you could be taking if you don't have passports is not having the proper birth certificate paperwork. You must have the certified copy or original that was registered with the government, not just a photocopy or one printed at home. Some hospitals used to give out a cute one that you could put in your baby book, but that's not the official copy. When you go to get passports, they check all this to make sure you have the right documents.

I suggest it may be a good idea for the adults to get passports, but save the money on the kids. As was recently pointed out, they are only good for 5 years anyway.

 

[Billinaz]

We saved a little money on our passports by using our pwn photos. You can get a free sizing software online to get it to the perfect size.

We have the cards as well, but they are not good for Air travel. We use them for embarkation and ID to the TSA thats all. I keep the passports put away in the event of emergency. I know it can be expensive for a family, but they are good for years and IMHO a wise backup as the only US Embassy would be really difficult to get to.

 

[gotomu212]

This is such a unique and quirky cultural attitude of the U.S.A. In absolutely no other country is this ever a question

Yes, get your passports! There is no downside to having one and in many cases, it is the only form of acceptable ID.

Should you have a medical emergency abroad, you really don't want to have to split up your family in the heat of the moment, during the beeping of the crash cart, and send part of them to the hospital to make sure the patient gets proper care, while the other half head off to an Embassy to beg for emergency assistance. You want to be able to look at the doctors and say, "Stabilize the patient, we have our passports right here (pull at pouch at neck) and we can get them to a hospital in the USA as soon as clearance is given."

Have a great trip!

It’s a uniquely American view because our domestic territory is HUGE. If we lived in a country the size of Illinois I would travel international every other week. As it is, between the number of domestic destinations and the shorter vacation benefits, many Americans won’t need a passport within the 5 year applicable period for children.

At over $400 for a family of 4 it’s a really expensive insurance plan that 99.9999% of young family cruisers just won’t need.

(There’s also no need in the moment of a crash cart beeping for family to split up. Doctors stabilize patients in the Caribbean without passports and no one needs to rush to an embassy to beg for anything. The Nassau embassy can issue an emergency passport in 30 minutes-average processing time quoted from their website- and will even work with you after hours in life and death situations and have staff that will come to a hospital. I get that some people feel strongly about the added protection of a passport but really to suggest that you’re making deathbed decisions in an ambulance because you didn’t have a passport is a bit of an overreaction.)

 

[Quellman]

I feel like passports are a good second form of identification, like a drivers license or anything else. A passport complies with the REAL ID act, so you'll be able to fly domestically without added fuss.

Our 14 month old traveled a 7 day closed loop cruise with no passport. No big deal. Could it? Sure. I guess. But usually a consulate or embassy will help issue an emergency passport for transit back to the US. A bit more headache or time, but it isn't like you'll be stranded somewhere. Disney also has a guest services representative who will get off with you for medical emergencies, or their port agent.

Since then we have a passport for our kid. It is a good form of identification at a minimum.

 

[scgustafson]

Would you guys spend the money for passports for a family of four? We will be doing a four day cruise and will probably not go ashore in Nassau. Three adults and one child.

Absolutely, I would never leave this country without my passport book in my possession, nor would I allow my family to do so.