Photo: Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, 2025. Cruise Terminal 25, Galveston. Note: Downtime. Photo taken under the supervision of CBP.
Almost all deep-sea cruises involve ports of call outside the jurisdiction of the port of embarkation. Upon return, passengers must clear customs to enter the country of destination, irrespective if . Due to large volumes to be processed in a short amount of time, customs clearance is often organized in a manner similar to airports, particularly since they use the same clearance system. Although passports are usually mandatory documents to take a cruise, closed-loop cruises from the United States allow the use of an enhanced driver’s license or a birth certificate as valid forms of identification for travel. This is only valid for sea border crossings (such as the one shown in the above photo) and allows a larger pool of cruisers.