Yes or no?

[krdisneybound]

yep - had a passport since 1965. Love looking at the different stamps I have in it from time to time when I use it nowdays.

 

[UGAFan0829]

The DH and I don't have ours yet, but we are going to go get them within the next few weekends.
Does anyone know about how long it takes to get them bacK? We're cruising in Jan, and want to make sure that we have them back in time!!

 

[BethC1952]

We've had ours since 1997. We were planning a trip to Nigeria to visit friends of the family, however, I couldn't get an entry visa into the country because of certain considerations involving women entering their country.

In today's world, I wouldn't leave the country without one, even if I'm only going to the Bahamas. Too many things can happen, and I'm much happier knowing that I can prove that I'm an American citizen.

Beth

 

[TheWog]

Yes, we all have them. Son got his when he was 6.

 

[hjensen]

Not yet...but we're getting them!! This is the first time we've sailed and there seems to be some confusion as to whether we will need them or not!! But we would rather be safe than sorry!! So we had to bite the bullet and spend some extra $ but thats ok!!!

 

[DrCavin]

I voted no, because currently we don't have them. We have the photos & application done, just have to get to the post office & send it in.

 

[cockermom]

DH has had one for years because of business travel. I got mine two years ago when we "finally" visited our Mexican family (exchange student of 13 years earlier and his family).

 

[Jan3571]

We all have them. Me, m husband & 21 month old daughter. You never know when the opportunity to travel abroad may arise. I'd hate to miss a good trip because we didn't have passports. Also, I feel more comfortable taking our little girl out of the country with a passport than just a birth cert.

 

[frank2271]

Hello,

How old do the children have to be to get passports and how long are they good for for them?

Frank

 

[johare]

Do you and your family have passports?

Yep! Just got them so we could take the kids to London and Paris last month (yes, we went to Disneyland Paris!)....so we should be set for the next 5 years.

Just remember to apply at least a couple months in advance before you expect to need them and be aware that BOTH parents must be present when you go to apply for them. Also, Walgreens is probably the most inexpensive place to get the photos done....about $6.99, compared to 'passport photo places', camera shops and Mailboxes Etc... type places which will charge $12.99 to $14.99 on average.

 

[HooKooDooKu]

The only reason we've got them is because we felt like they were needed for the May Repo.

Technically, they were not needed. But since 911, I expect getting back into the U.S. (especially in LA) would be VERY DIFFICULT without photo-ID. You need photo-ID to get on/off the ship at ports of call, and I didn't want to risk losing my only photo-id (driver's licence) if I were to lose my wallet (dropped/stolen/etc) while in ports of call. So we got passports as a back-up that we could keep in the safe on-board and not have to worry about losing our only id while off the ship.

 

[TheWog]

Hello,

How old do the children have to be to get passports and how long are they good for for them?

Frank

They can be any age and the child's passport is good for 5 years.

 

[anty30]

any age, true. even a newborn can get one as long as they have a SS#.

 

[nzdisneymom]

How 'bout a "Not Yet" option? We have our applications filled out and our photos done, but just need to take them to submit and pay. We may do it tomorrow.

 

[Disney with Triplets]

We just considered it a part of the budget. I can't imagine leaving the country without passports for adults and children. Hopefully, we won't need them...

 

[SeaSpray]

I've had a passport for almost 10 years now (will have to renew soon!), DH got his passport for our first cruise in 2003, and then we got passports in 2004 for our Disney cruise last August. I'm glad to have them, especially when traveling outside of the US. I've read lots of stories about people who had emergencies arise while on vacation and things were less stressful because they had their passports.

Even just traveling within the US, having passports makes things much easier when checking in at airport security.

 

[Wynn]

My family of 4 have passports. I figured if I lost them, I still have me birth certs at home with family for (God forbid) an emergency.

 

[debloco]

My DH has had one since '83 or '84 for work-related travel.
I've had one since '80 for a HS Band trip to Europe.
We needed them for our honeymoon in '87 and a few trips after that.
DD got her first one in '97 when she was 8 for her first trip to Europe. We had to renew hers recently for our Disney Magic cruise in '04.

 

[tvguy]

My wife and I both have had, and have kept current, passports since we were teens (that's over 30 years).
I have extended family in Canada, and made the mistake of traveling there with DS when he was 2 ( in 1989) with just a birth certificate, and with a letter from the Canadian consulate saying that is all I needed. After a less than friendly encounter encounter and delay caused by Canadian Customs, I was told loud and clear that I would have avoided this if my son had a passport. So from age 2 on, both kids have had current passports.

 

[Aisling]

Does anyone know about how long it takes to get them bacK?

We got ours I think it was back in May when the application fee was about to go up. We were told it can take up to 6 weeks, especially because of the large numbers of people doing the passport rush, but we got all 4 of ours within 2 weeks. That was a nice surprise, because we didn't expect them so soon.