After four years of false starts and some minor concessions to opponents, the Bush-era Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative officially kicks in Monday June 1st, 2009, affecting travelers over the age of 16 in Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda, and Americans returning from abroad.

All of those travelers will now be required to have a passport or some other form of enhanced, U.S.-approved documentation.

The modern-day imperatives of homeland security will require Canadians and Americans alike to carry a passport in order to cross the 9,000-kilometre frontier and enter the United States.

See also - "Closed Loop" cruises article.