Passport or birth certificate for a New Orleans cruise

Almost every ocean cruise from New Orleans is a round trip. It leaves from here and comes back here. U.S. Customs and Border Protection calls that a closed-loop cruise, and it is the one case where U.S. citizens can sail without a passport. The lines then add rules of their own, and they don't all agree.

Round trips from New Orleans

CBP says U.S. citizens on a closed-loop cruise can re-enter the country with a birth certificate and a government-issued photo ID. It also warns that the countries the ship visits may still ask for a passport.

Each line publishes what it accepts. The differences that catch people out:

	Carnival	Royal Caribbean	Norwegian
Birth certificate	Government-issued; a clear photocopy is accepted	Original or official government-issued copy, no photocopies	State-certified, no photocopies or photos
Photo ID needed from	Age 16	Age 16	Age 16
Not accepted	Hospital certificates, a Certificate of Live Birth, a mobile or digital ID	Hospital certificates, a Certificate of Live Birth, a driver's license on its own	Baptismal papers, hospital certificates of birth

Carnival accepts a school or student ID as the photo ID for guests aged 16 to 18. Carnival and Norwegian both reject Puerto Rico birth certificates issued before July 1, 2010.

All three lines also say they recommend a passport, even where it isn't required. Carnival adds that a guest without the right documents won't be allowed to board, and that the fare isn't refunded.

One-way trips and crossings

A few sailings from New Orleans end somewhere else, and the closed-loop rule doesn't cover them. In the schedule they are marked with their end port.

• Norwegian requires a valid passport on any sailing that starts in one U.S. port and ends in another, such as its trips from New Orleans to Boston or New York.
• Carnival makes a passport book or passport card mandatory on cruises that start and end at different home ports.
• Royal Caribbean's transatlantic crossings end in Spain or Italy, so they aren't closed-loop cruises at all. Bring a passport.

Viking Mississippi

Viking's river cruises never leave the country. Viking's booking terms ask for valid government-issued identification if you won't leave the United States, and a passport valid for six months after the trip only if you will.

Name changes

If the name on your birth certificate doesn't match your photo ID, bring the paper that links them. Carnival lists a marriage certificate, a marriage license or a court name-change document, and accepts an original or a clear copy. Royal Caribbean asks for an official supporting document, such as a marriage license, a divorce decree or a government name-change document.

Children

CBP lets U.S. citizen children under 16 travel with a birth certificate alone, and all three lines follow that. The rules for a child sailing without both parents differ more:

• Carnival strongly recommends an original, signed letter from the parent or guardian who isn't sailing.
• Royal Caribbean requires a notarized form signed by the child's guardian when a minor travels without them.
• Norwegian requires a consent form signed by both parents or guardians when the adult traveling isn't one of them, handed in at check-in.

Permanent residents and visitors

Green card holders need their Permanent Resident Card on every line. Royal Caribbean and Norwegian also want a valid passport from the country of citizenship; Carnival's page for round trips asks only for the card. Non-U.S. citizens need a passport, and Norwegian says it has to be valid for six months after the cruise.

REAL ID

A REAL ID license is a photo ID, not proof of citizenship. TSA's own FAQ says REAL ID cards can't be used for international sea cruise travel. Carnival accepts a REAL ID license as photo identification but not as proof of citizenship, and Royal Caribbean lists a driver's license on its own, REAL ID included, as unacceptable. You still need the birth certificate or a passport alongside it.