New Requirements for Travelers:

Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative

AIR TRAVEL

ALL PERSONS traveling by air outside of the United States are required to present a passport or other valid travel document to enter or re-enter the United States.

LAND AND SEA TRAVEL
The following summarizes information available on the Department of Homeland Security’s website.

• CURRENTLY: 
  U.S. citizens need to present either (a) a passport, passport card (scheduled to be in full production beginning in July 2008), or WHTI-compliant document; or (b) a government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, along with proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate.
• LATER:
  On June 1, 2009, the U.S. government will implement the full requirements of the land and sea phase of WHTI.  The proposed rules require most U.S. citizens entering the United States at sea or land ports of entry to have a passport, passport card, or WHTI-compliant document. 

Note: The passport requirement does NOT apply to U.S. citizens traveling to or returning directly from a U.S. territory.

U.S. PASSPORT AND WHTI COMPLIANT DOCUMENTS: 

• U.S. Passport: U.S. citizens may present a valid U.S. passport when traveling via air, land or sea between the U.S. and the aforementioned Western Hemisphere countries.
• The Passport Card: Passport card applications are currently being accepted in anticipation of land border travel document requirements.  Based on current projections, we expect the passport card to be in full production beginning in July 2008. We will provide additional updates as available. Once in production, the passport card it will only be valid for land and sea travel between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean region, and Bermuda.
• WHTI-Compliant Travel Documents for U.S. citizen travel via land or sea, as of January 31, 2008:
• • Trusted Traveler Cards (NEXUS, SENTRI, or FAST)
  • State Issued Enhanced Driver’s License (when available)
  • Enhanced Tribal Cards (when available)
  • U.S. Military Identification with Military Travel Orders
  • U.S. Merchant Mariner Document when traveling in conjunction with official maritime business
  • Native American Tribal Photo Identification Card
  • Form I-872 American Indian Card

Passport Fees & Information:

New

Age 16+     Application Fee $75   Execution Fee $25  TOTAL $100

Under 16   Application Fee $60   Execution Fee $25  TOTAL   $85

Renewal

By Mail  TOTAL $75

The Passport Services Office provides information and services to American citizens about how to obtain, replace or change a passport.

A passport is an internationally recognized travel document that verifies the identity and nationality of the bearer. A valid U.S. passport is required to enter and leave most foreign countries. Only the U.S. Department of State has the authority to grant, issue or verify United States passports.

New Application for a U.S. Passport

To obtain a passport for the first time, you need to go in person to one of over 9,000 passport acceptance facilities located throughout the United States with two photographs of yourself, proof of U.S. citizenship, and a valid form of photo identification such as a driver’s license.

Acceptance facilities include many Federal, state and probate courts, post offices, some public libraries and a number of county and municipal offices. There are also 13 regional passport agencies, and 1 Gateway City Agency, which serve customers who are traveling within 2 weeks (14 days), or who need foreign visas for travel. Appointments are required in such cases.

You’ll need to apply in person if you are applying for a U.S. passport for the first time: 

• if your expired U.S. passport is not in your possession; 
• if your previous U.S. passport has expired and was issued more than 15 years ago;
• if your previous U.S. passport was issued when you were under age 16;
• or if your currently valid U.S. passport has been lost or stolen.

For more information on getting a new passport, please visit How to get a passport page.

Renewal of a U.S. Passport

You can renew by mail if:

• Your most recent passport is available to submit and it is not damaged;
• you received the passport within the past 15 years;
• you were over age 16 when it was issued;
• you still have the same name, or can legally document your name change.
  

If your passport has been, altered or damaged, you cannot apply by mail. You must apply in person.
For more information on how to renew a passport, please visit How to renew a passport page.

Weather:

Expected high & low temperatures listed for the most popular destinations and their sailing seasons:

Hurricane Season:

Officially, the National Hurricane Service states that hurricane season begins June 1 and ends November 31. This makes up 6 months of the year. The greatest amount of hurricane and tropical storm activity is between late August and mid-October.

Ships are equipped with state of the art weather equipment that keep the Captain and his crew aware of storm position and the latest changes in weather conditions. If the storm poses any danger to the ship, the Captain will reroute the ship to a destination in order to avoid the storm. The passengers safety is of the utmost importance to the Captain & his crew.

Keep an eye on the storm

Special Dining Requests:

The cruise lines are happy to meet your requests with low sodium, low fat, low sugar, vegetarian and kosher meals. Any other special meals must be requested in advance at least 3 weeks prior to sailing with your cruise specialist.

Physically-Challenged Cruisers:

Cruise lines are dedicated to offering the finest cruising experience to guests with disabilities and special requirements. All ships provide a quality of service and variety of accessible features to make your voyage a relaxing and enjoyable experience. Carnival Corporation has been honored with the "Access Freedom" award presented by the Society for Accessible Travel & Hospitality (SATH); this award is the highest honor in the travel industry that SATH presents to recognize individuals and organizations that have made the greatest strides in advancing opportunities for persons with disabilities. The majority of other lines have followed in Carnival's foot steps.

Onboard Wheelchairs

Onboard Wheelchairs are limited for emergency use only. If you require the use of a wheelchair while onboard, you must bring your own, or rent one. Cruise lines will provide wheelchair assistance for embarkation and debarkation guests arriving at the designated port of departure.. Debarkation procedures will be printed in cruise line's daily newsletter onboard.

Wheelchairs and Scooters
All ships have a limited number of staterooms designed to be wheelchair accessible. There are size guidelines for wheelchairs that vary from vessel to vessel. If you are planning on bringing a Wheelchair or Scooter onboard, please contact your agent. Due to safety requirements, all scooters must be stored and charged in your guest stateroom.

Fully accessible staterooms include an entry doorway which isapproximately 32"in width; a 36"wide accessible path through the stateroom; accessible closet rods and shelves; safe; telephone and desk; and bathroom with roll-in shower, grabs bars and accessible lavatory. Wheelchair accessible public restrooms are located throughout the ships.

Celebrating a Special Occasion:

If you are celebrating a birthday, anniversary or honeymoon during your cruise, the cruise lines will be happy to honor the event with a special cake in the dining room. Please notify your cruise specialist no later than 3 weeks prior to sailing.

Laundry & Dry Cleaning:

Take a vacation from the washing and ironing and let the professional laundry service do all the work for you. Just put everything in the capable hands of your stateroom steward or stewardess who will have everything returned within 48 hours, or even the same day with the express service offered by all cruise lines.

Religious Services:

Some cruise lines provide Catholic, Jewish, and Protestant services on most sailings, others provide these services on most major holidays.

Medical Facility:

Should a guest require medical attention while aboard a cruise ship, the Infirmary staff is available to assist 24 hours a day. The Infirmary is equipped to treat minor non-emergency matters. Physicians are available to render services at a customary fee. A charge for medical services will be billed to the guest's on board account and a receipt will be provided for the guest to submit to their insurance company upon return for possible reimbursement.  The physicians on board are independent contractors and are entitled to render services at a customary fee which may vary from ship to ship based on the time of day. The basic fee does NOT include medication, tests or treatment.  

While at sea or in port, the availability of medical care may be limited.

Typical Hours:

Infirmary Hours: 8:00am - 8:00pm 

Doctor's Hours : 9:00am - 11:00am; 3:00pm - 6:00pm    

Anchors Away suggests travel insurance to minimize your out of pocket expenses for medical treatments. We proudly sell Travelex (link) insurance.

Shipboard Dress Codes:

Wondering what is acceptable & appropriate attire while onboard your cruise
ship?

DAY
Shipboard dress is casual during the day. Tasteful shorts & jeans are acceptable even in the dining room.

EVENING

Depending on the length of the cruise, either formal dress or casual resort wear is required in the Dining Room during the evening hours.. The dress requirement for children is the same. For those not wanting to dress up, the buffet style restaurants are open nightly (with the exception of the last evening of the cruise), and have a casual dress code. Formal Wear: tuxedo (optional); suit and tie; sport coat, tie and slacks; evening gown; cocktail dress; pantsuit Casual Resort Wear: sport shirts and slacks; dresses; skirts; pantsuit

NOTE: Shorts, t-shirts and bathing attire are not permitted in any of the ships Dining Rooms during dinner.

Staying Connected - Shipboard Internet

                          The following is a guide to most ships:

The Internet Cafe/Workstation

For guests who want the option of staying connected to the rest of the world, the cruise lines offer access to the internet via the onboard Internet Cafés and wireless networks using the ships own satellite connection. The Internet Cafés are open 24-hours a day and features private terminals with the latest flat panel computer monitors.

The Internet is accessed via the C-band satellite system and utilizes state-of-the-art compression and acceleration technologies to deliver a great guest experience. As a result, guests can feel right at home while surfing the internet at sea. Guests will have the ability to send and receive e-mail, chat online and access the full internet. Guests can also access their own e-mail account through AOL, Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo, etc. Alternatively, guests will have the option to use their very own temporary e-mail account via most of the cruise lines.

Wireless Internet Access (Wi-Fi)

Most cruise lines now offer wireless internet access. Depending on the vessel, you will have either limited wireless access in and around the shipboard internet café and select public areas, known as "hot spots" or a complete wireless network. The complete wireless network allows guests (and crew) to enjoy Internet access from literally anywhere on board, including all public areas, lounges, bars and pool decks, guest suites and cabins. To take full advantage of this feature, guests should bring their personal laptops along with them, as the number of laptops available for rent onboard is limited. In addition, this network supports the latest Wi-Fi enabled i-Phones, Palm Pilots and Blackberrys.   "Hot Spots" vary from ship to ship.

To use WI-FI access, you'll need:
A laptop
Windows operating system
802.11b Wireless networking capability

The cost for Wi-Fi access through your own laptop varies between cruise lines. 
Base rate is $.55 per minute or choose from an example of prepaid packages:

Short cruise:

• 30 minutes for $16.50 ($0.55 per minute)
• 60 minutes for $24.00 ($0.40 per minute)

Long cruise:

• 100 minutes for $55.00 ($0.55 per minute)     
• 250 minutes for $100.00 ($0.40 per minute)

Please note that the internet pricing options are identical, whether an Internet Café terminal is utilized, or a laptop. All internet access charges will be billed directly to the guest's onboard account.  In addition, when using a Café terminal, files can be downloaded as "read only" but cannot be saved, since a floppy disk cannot be inserted into the PC's.  Users who bring their own laptop can read and save files without restriction.

All prices are subject to change without notice.  This is a sample guide.  It is suggested that you call your cruise line for the most up to date internet availability and fees.