A Pasport To Cancun Is Generally A Safe Bet When Vacationing
One of the beauties of traveling to Mexico and Canada has always been that there was never a need to have a passport to make the trip. Now imagine having planned and paid for a trip over a year ago and then realizing that a passport to Cancun may be needed because of the new laws that are in effect. It will depend on what type of a trip is being made, but chances are a passport will be needed.
While it is not generally assumed that if a traveler is leaving US soil for any reason, they will need a passport. With Cancun being located in a foreign country, it would only make sense that a passport would be needed to go there. This is probably true in most cases, but there are still a few circumstances when a passport may actually not be needed.
In order to figure out if you will need a passport to Cancun, it is first important to understand the new passport laws. As of June 1st, 2009, passports are required for travel to Mexico, Canada and nearby Caribbean Islands. These laws apply to air, land and sea travel. Prior to these laws, passports were not required for land and sea travel to Mexico. International Mexican travel only required a valid driver’s license or other government issued identification.
Anyone who is considering traveling to Cancun for a trip will definitely need a passport. But hold on, this is where the exception comes in at. The rules are adjusted for people that are taking cruises. It is because of this very exception that much of the confusion about needing a passport started in the first place.
When a travel is on a closed loop trip to certain destination that leaves port from the United States, they are not required to have a passport. A closed loop is when the ship leaves out of a US port and then returns to the same port at the end of the trip. However, this exception has limitations for the different countries that it can be applied.
Approved international countries include: Mexico, Canada, Bermuda, the Virgin Islands, and select Caribbean Islands. That being the case, a passport is not necessary for a closed loop cruise to Cancun. However, a closed loop cruise to South America would necessitate a passport.
Citizens have been screaming at Homeland Security from day one about these new rules, but they are in place to protect everyone. Cancun has always been a location that US citizens could pretty much travel to and from without any hassle. In all honesty, the hassles will remain minimal; there are just some extra security measures in place to make the borders more secure.
Anyone traveling to Cancun from the United States will almost certainly need to fill out a US passport application. The only time a passport to Cancun is not necessary is when a person is traveling to Cancun in a closed loop cruise. Any other form of travel will require that a valid new passport is in hand or that person will risk not being able to enter the foreign country.
