Royal Caribbean Cruises Independence of the Seas Passport Requirements for Cruises
Passports are required for all travelers, including citizens of U.S. and Canada, who enter or re-enter the United States by air, land or sea.
Regarding Royal Caribbean Cruises Independence of the Seas to destinations in Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean, the Bahamas and Bermuda, there is a notable exception to this US passport rule, pertaining to land and sea crossings for US Citizens.
US Citizens on closed-loop cruises (cruises that begin and end in the same U.S. port) and travel to destinations in Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean, the Bahamas, and Bermuda are able to re-enter the United States with proof of citizenship other than a passport or passport card. Acceptable proof of citizenship includes an original or certified copy of a government issued birth certificate (raised seal and signature) and a laminated government issued picture ID (typically, driver's license), Consular Report of Born Abroad Certificate, or a Certificate of Naturalization. NOTE: Baptismal records and certificates issued by a hospital are not acceptable.
Our (Royal Caribbean) Recommendation
Royal Caribbean International strongly recommends that all guests travel with a valid passport during their cruise. This greatly assists guests who may need to fly out of the United States to meet their ship at the next available port should they miss their scheduled embarkation in a U.S. port; guests entering the U.S. at the end of their cruise; and guests needing to fly to the U.S. before their cruise ends, because of medical, family, personal or business emergencies, missing a ship's departure from a port of call, involuntary disembarkation from a ship due to misconduct, or other reasons.
Guests who need to fly to the United States before their cruise ends will likely experience significant delays and complications related to booking airline tickets and entering the United States if they do not have a valid U.S. passport with them.
Source: http://www.royalcaribbean.com/beforeyouboard/passportGuidelines.do
NON-US Citizens, US Citizens on open-loop cruses (being and end in different ports) and passengers on cruises that stop at ports in South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and Antartica ALL require a valid passport, and in some cases a visa as well as a copy of your Alien Registration Card (Green Card).
Passports and Visas.com is based in Miami, Florida and assists travelers going on a cruise with obtaining an expedited passport, passport renewal, or other passport or visa services. If you need a US passport quickly for your cruise, Passports and Visas.com is a private company that works with the Passport Agency to obtain your US passport application in as fast as 24 hours, with services starting at $59.
We are a nationally recognized US Passport and visa service by the Washington Post, New York Times and USA Today. Our team has been getting passports and visas for over 15 years.
The benefits of using our private passport expediting service are :
- You can get your passport back as fast as the same day we receive your application materials.
- Our service is guaranteed; if you don't make your trip - the passport is on us.
- You will see online real-time tracking of your order.
- We are based in Miami, Florida - not far from many embarkation ports (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach)
Need to know about passports or visas? Contact us or review our Travel Document Learning Center.