When it comes to cruises, the United States is the busiest departure country in the world. Trips to the Caribbean, Alaska, and The Bahamas carry millions upon millions of passengers each year.
The vast majority of those passengers are U.S. citizens as you might expect. For them, taking a cruise is as simple as bringing along a passport or a birth certificate and ID. But what if you want to cruise from the United States but aren’t a citizen?
There, the requirements can get a little trickier. To help you out, we’ve rounded up some guidance from cruise lines on what documents you need to have in order to sail from the U.S.
Taking a U.S. Cruise as a Foreign Citizen
There are cruises from the United States that go everywhere, including ones that literally go around the world. For those trips, you’re obviously going to need to bring a passport no matter where you call home.
But what if you want to travel on one of the thousands of typical cruises that departs a spot like Miami, sails for a week and then returns? These classic cruises may be simple when it comes to sailing as an American. It can be slightly more complicated if not.
For non-U.S. citizens that are sailing, you’ll need to have two things.
First, you should have a valid passport from your home country. This passport must be good for at least six months after your cruise ends. Unlike U.S. citizens, you can’t cruise with just a birth certificate and photo ID.
Second, you need to be aware of any visas you might need. Now, visas can get complicated. For one, you may need to have a visa to enter the United States, depending on your home country. Then, you may or may not need visas depending on your home country and where the cruise is traveling.
As one such example, passengers that aren’t citizens of the U.S., Canada, U.K, Australia, or New Zealand often need a visa to visit Canada.
The cruise lines DO NOT handle these immigration issues for you. For instance, Carnival says clearly on its website:
“Non-U.S. Citizens must contact the appropriate embassy or consulate of the countries they will be visiting for specific travel documentation requirements. Carnival assumes no responsibility for advising guests of Immigration requirements.”
Bottom line, you’ll need a passport, but then will also need to do some homework to see if you need a visa to enter any countries visited on the cruise or to enter the United States.
Taking a Cruise as a Canadian Citizen
If you’re Canadian and cruising from the United States, the rules may be more relaxed than with other countries.
To put things as simple as possible, it’s highly recommended that you simply travel with a valid passport that’s good for up to six months beyond the end of your cruise.
Passports are required if you are flying into the United States to take your trip. This is regardless of age.
However, if you are driving into the United States to take a cruise (or are already here), then you have other options. In addition to a passport, adults are allowed to cruise with a Provincial Enhanced Driver’s License (EDL), however, it can’t be used for air travel. This special license is issued only by British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec and demonstrates both citizenship and identity.
Meanwhile, kids under 16/15 years old (depends on the cruise line policy) can travel with an original naturalization certificate, valid Canadian citizenship card, or original birth certificate issued by Canada.
Note that these rules apply only for the basic round trip cruises from the United States. If traveling one way or on extended trips, then Canadians will almost always require a passport, no matter their age.
Taking a Cruise as a U.S. Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder)
Are you a Permanent Resident of the United States? If so, the best advice is to bring your passport and your Permanent Resident Card (Green Card) with you on your cruise.
This combination of identification should cover you for any cruise you take round trip from the United States. Simply make sure that your passport is valid for at least six months beyond your travel dates.
If you are traveling on a round trip cruise from the U.S. that doesn’t go to Colombia, Greenland, Panama, Bermuda, or Canada, then you are able to travel with only your Permanent Resident Card as long as it also has photo identification with it.
Even so, we think it’s much smarter to simply travel with the Green Card and passport just to be sure you’re covered for any issue that may come up. Also, be aware that you might need visas to visit some countries, depending on your nationality.
Bottom Line on Travel Documentation
When it comes to the rules about what documents you need to sail from the United States if you’re not a citizen, you can see that it can get a little complex.
The best advice is to simply carry a passport that’s valid for six months after your cruise and also make sure you have any visas required to visit the country in question. Some conditions allow you to travel without a passport, but it’s much easier to simply carry it with you.
For more specific details on what’s required, we suggest reading more about travel documentation on your cruise line’s website. You can find Carnival’s information here and Royal Caribbean’s here.
