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The FINAL word on Passport/Travel Document Requirements. |
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The Departments of Homeland Security and of State issued the final rulemaking concerning the requirements of passports for land and sea border crossings under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. After years of development following 9/11, this ruling is the end of the process and can be considered FINAL when helping your clients ensure they have the proper identification when traveling. Effective June 1, 2009, the following rules take effect for cruise passengers: U.S. citizens on cruise voyages that begin and end at the same U.S. port (closed-loop itineraries) must show proof of citizenship* and government-issued photo ID (such as a driver’s license). A passport will not be required for passengers that fall into this category. *Documents include: Original or certified copy of birth certificate; Naturalization papers; Consular Report of Birth Abroad issued by Department of State All other passengers and/or itineraries (such as cruises which begin in one U.S. port and return to a different U.S. port or any cruise that begins or ends in a foreign port) will require a passport or other recognized document. For a list of accepted documents, see www.travel.state.gov. The good news for a majority of cruise passengers – American citizens that leave and return on their cruise from the same U.S. port – is that the travel document requirements will remain largely unchanged from how the industry is operating today. CLIA continues to encourage travelers to obtain passports to allow the broadest travel opportunities. Your clients can visit www.travel.state.gov to obtain information on how to apply at more than 9,000 passport acceptance facilities in the United States. |
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Carnival to put a freeze on new ship orders. |
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Micky Arison was recently quoted by a British publications as
stating that CCL recognize that they are unable to build new
ships for their U.S. brands at present due to the dollar-valued
costs and their own internal return projections. Arison says
Carnival Corp. looked at the cost per berth for ships and
concluded that if they ordered now, they would not meet their
return requirement.
The publication went on to mention that Royal Caribbean & Celebrity are continuing to order newbuilds, apparently for the North American market with Celebrity having five Solstice-class ships on order, including one placed this March when the dollar was already heading downwards. Royal Caribbean estimates the cost of Solstice is $320,000 per berth--earlier they had cited $230,000 per berth which suggest that projected return is likely to be below the cost of debt. |
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The legal battle for 33rd America's Cup Races |
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A number of our loyal following have asked me what is
happening with the 33rd America's Cup Races as they rarely see news
about the event in the press. In a nutshell - there has been
months of wrangling and legal challenges by the US Team over who has
the right to be the "Challenger of Record" and now there is more
wrangling over a number of contentious issues. Worldwide is following the events leading up to the races and the latest news is always available via a link from our web-site. This is one of the oldest and most prestigious sporting events still on the calendar as well as an opportunity for our corporate clients to tie in with an event that has such international recognition, as well as a wealthy and unique fan base. Worldwide has access to several equally prestigious small ships and super yachts from which to fly the corporate flag. Call us for details. |