LOOKING FOR A DESTINATION WEDDING VENUE OR UNIQUE WEDDING VENUE THAT DOES NOT
REQUIRE FAMILY AND GUESTS TO HAVE PASSPORTS?

By
now you have probably heard sad stories of weddings that were planned out of the
country but some family and guests could not attend because they did not get their
passport applications processed quickly enough.
With
the new passport laws that began January 23, 2007 came millions of headaches.
The government expected ½ of American citizens to have passports in 4 years.
That is over 150,000,000 passports! Despite
this massive expectation, the U.S. Government Passport Office was not prepared.
The system became overloaded and the time to process a passport was taking months.
In summer of 2007, the U.S. Government enacted some changes and began hiring more
people. In 2008 they say they are back on a shorter time schedule.
There
are enough stressors when planning a wedding so why not skip the hassle of worrying
if you and guests have procrastinated till its too late to get a passport or if
the U. S. Government system is back on schedule.
There
are many wonderful no- passport- weddings destinations....such as beautiful
Puerto Rico, where you could have your wedding ceremony and wedding
reception
outside surrounded by gorgeous hibiscus flowers in near perfect weather year round.
How about Guam,
an island paradise during their dry season of January through May, or the U.S.
Virgin Islands (St. Croix, St. Thomas, and St. John), American Samoa, Swains Island
and Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands? These are commonwealths or territories
of the U.S.
Some
people think they need a passport for Hawaii and Alaska, but these are U.S. states.
When
planning, always check for hurrican season.
Citizens
of Mexico, Canada, and Bermuda will now have to have a passport to enter the U.S.
(http://travel.state.gov).
You should check with any country you may want to travel to to find out their
passport requirements. Since 9/11 the laws have been tightening.You can see more
details at www.newpassportlaws.com.
There are different
rules and deadlines to get a passport for flying or going by boat, and the rules
are changing in 2008. If you want to go on a cruise for your honeymoon, you may
still be able to take a cruise without a passport until summer 2008.