Why You Really Need That Blue Book

In the past I have written about bucket list travel and if yours includes foreign destination you are definitely going to need a passport, so go ahead and get one. Why? you never know when that great value to a location comes up and don't you want to be ready to take advantage of it? Processing times listed at on travel.state.gov site range from 4-6 weeks. If you have a passport, check the expiration date, because a good rule of thumb for foreign travel is your passport needs to expire 6 months after your return date, and while anyone age 16 and over passport is good for 10 years, in reality it's really 9 years and 6 months. Do you really want to be sweating out waiting for the Fed Ex truck to deliver a new passport a day before you leave?

So maybe really exotic "foreign" locations aren't what you are looking for, but you may not realize that you do need a passport even closer to home. Thinking about getting to a warm weather location in the middle of winter? Let's face it Southern Florida can get too chilly in January & February to sit on a beach. By not having a passport, you are limiting yourself to only a few places to get out of the cold, like Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. If you are looking for all inclusive resorts, the majority are found in Mexico, Jamaica and Dominican Republic.  I spent some time researching flights and resorts for a colleague, who had clients that couldn't get to St Thomas, USVI because of weather and no passports, remember those 3 snowstorms that hit the Northeast last winter? She ended up sending them to Florida and the clients saw the light and are applied for passports when they return. So if you are thinking warm weather for next winter get that passport application filled out.

While a certified birth certificate will be accepted on "closed loop cruises" , Caribbean cruises embarking and ending in US ports, a passport is a much better option to take  along. It is actually recommended by the cruise lines and myself. Why? What happens if there is an family emergency and you need to fly home from a foreign port? Or if you get injured or sick and have to be taken off the ship? Plus from a practical stand point, it's much easier carrying a sturdy passport than an older birth certificate that can easily be torn. Plus countries are requiring passports, like Martinique. If you are on a sailing including that island you will need a passport.

Thinking of an Alaskan cruise+land tour, well you are going to need a passport, because you will start or end your adventure in Vancouver Canada. Yes you need a passport to fly into and out of Canada, even though the majority of the trip will be spent in the United States. Also some of the longer Canada/New England cruises start or end in Quebec City. You may also need one if you are doing a land tour in New England, because some do cross over into Canada.

So go ahead and apply for that passport, it's your key to the world.