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These cruises eliminate the hassle of passport renewal and are perfect for last-minute travel plans, when time is tight, and governmental red tape is a no-go. A cruise to the Caribbean transports you to tropical islands bathed in turquoise waters. Whether you seek warm beaches, cool drinks, water sports or cultural education, you can find a Caribbean cruise to fit the bill. More complications arise for non-passport holders who book shore excursions that involve crossing from Alaska to Canada. White Pass and Yukon Route allows cruise passengers to go on the three-hour train excursion without a passport but doesn't allow them to take any longer routes.
The Bahamas
Or, you can see the Victorian era architecture and historic homes of Portland and visit Arcadia National Park in Bar Harbor. As native New Englanders, we sometimes take the fall foliage for granted. North America’s breathtaking East Coast cruises are steeped in history with panoramic views from Nova Scotia’s rugged cliffs and drenched in Quebec’s fabulously French culture. If there are any doubts, be sure to contact your cruise line well in advance of your trip.
You can cruise without a passport from Seattle to Alaska
That’s because of something called the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, or WHTI for short. Put simply, this rule says that if you embark and debark from a cruise at the same port in the United States, then you can enter the U.S. using only a birth certificate and a driver’s license. Whether you need a passport depends on numerous factors, including where you embark and disembark the ship, where you're sailing to and which line you're cruising with. Despite the allure of no-passport-required adventures, we’d be remiss not to highlight the security and peace of mind a passport provides. Imagine needing to fly home unexpectedly from a foreign port because of an emergency, or getting the chance for an impromptu jaunt to a fascinating nearby country. Imagine stepping off your cruise ship and straight onto the soft sands of the Bahamas.
Popular cruise itineraries without a passport
Our suggestion is to always sail with a passport that’s valid for at least six months after your cruise. But if that’s not possible, then you can sail with a birth certificate and a government-issued photo ID. For example, if something happens on your cruise and you need to fly back, the passport card does no good.
A closed-loop cruise to this part of the map often means flying to Honolulu, which you can do passport-free, but airfare can be pricey. When traveling outside of the U.S. a passport is always recommended, but cruises are the exception to the rule. As long as you book a closed loop cruise, you can travel to certain destinations without a passport. Because international cruises in Europe and Asia require air travel, these vacations also demand a passport.
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Bermuda has beautiful golf courses, historic forts and excellent dining. Many cruises overnight here to give passengers time to get out and explore. Alaska is a popular vacation destination for its majestic scenery, glacier-filled landscape and outdoor adventures from dog-sledding to helicopter rides over the mountains. Seeing this part of the country by ship is one of the most convenient and beautiful ways to get around. A few longer, seven- to 15-night itineraries stop in the Bahamas on their way into the Caribbean.
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You won’t run into any passport requirements on tried-and-true routes from U.S. ports such as those that visit Puerto Rico and the U.S. Thomas, St. Croix, and St. John—which are all part of the United States. In October, Disney does sailings from New York that add the bonus of Halloween activities with special spooky movies and “ghoulish treats” for passengers of all ages. Other lines sailing to Bermuda on closed-loop itineraries include the foodie-focused upscale brand Oceania Cruises, also from New York.
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Passport-free cruises to Bermuda include ample five- to 10-night sailings from the East Coast ports of Baltimore, Bayonne, Boston and Manhattan. Occasional itineraries also pop up throughout the Bermuda season departing from Norfolk, Virginia; Charleston; and the Florida ports of Miami, Port Canaveral (near Orlando) and Jacksonville. This means that Alaska cruises are one instance when the passport card would be a handy alternative to traveling with both an ID card and a birth certificate. Before we go further, let's clarify that when we talk about cruising without a passport, we're referring to pricey passport books that some travelers do not wish to purchase.
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These vacations are more about the destination than the cruise ship. Cruises to Alaska appeal to nature lovers, photographers, and explorers. On an Alaskan cruise, you can set off in search of glacial vistas, wildlife encounters, and some of the freshest seafood. Further, passports are also required for cruises that begin and end in different locations (open loop cruises). For U.S. citizens, these are the top cruise destinations you can visit without one in 2023.
Princess Cruises offers a number of trips to Alaska that depart from Seattle — and don’t require passports. For example, this seven-night trip departs from Seattle and passes through Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, Alaska, and then heads to Victoria, British Columbia, before returning to Seattle. An interior room is priced at $649 per person before taxes, and the price includes meals prepared by Michelin-starred chefs, on-board entertainment, an adults-only solarium and plenty of additional amenities. This loophole, if you want to call it that, is the result of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative designed to allow travel to and within North American countries on a cruise ship.
In the Eastern Caribbean, find dream destinations like Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic and Grand Turk in the Turks and Caicos archipelago. In Amber Cove, you can tour the Dominican outback, soak up the sun on Coconut Cove Beach, or ride the Waterfalls of Rio de Damajagua. On Grand Turk, enjoy swimming with stingrays, riding horses along the coast, or touring the island by ATV. The opportunities for adventure on a Caribbean cruise are endless. Carnival’s six-day Bermuda from Norfolk cruise spends two days at sea and three days in Bermuda.
Be sure to bring the original birth certificate, and not a photocopy. Here are more questions about cruising with a passport you might be wondering. You will easily be able to tell when searching, though, as these cruises are often over one week long and clearly state that they are venturing elsewhere.
Los Angeles and Norfolk also offer occasional one-off, closed-loop sailings to the Caribbean. Or, what if you’re in an accident or there’s an emergency at home? If you had a passport, you could just leave the cruise during its next stop and hop on a flight from the nearest airport. However, you always need a passport to fly internationally, so if you don’t have one, you’d be out of luck. While not common, it’s certainly not out of the realm of possibility for a cruise ship to need to make a sudden, unplanned stop at the nearest port.
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