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Passport Rules Shift Spring Break Geography

By Dan Schlossberg
ConsumerAffairs.com

March 8, 2007

Passport Rules • Passport Snarl Finally Ends • Furious Travelers Blame Feds For Passport Mess • Passport Frenzy Forces Further Rule Change • Passport Problems Likely to Worsen by 2008 • Congress Fights Homeland Security Over Passport Snafu • New Passport Rules Temporarily Suspended • Homeland Security Eases Passport Rules for Kids • Passport Frenzy Creates Long Waits • Passport Rules Shift Spring Break Geography • January 23 is D Day for Passports • Passport Deadline Nears, Few Americans Prepared • Passport Problems Loom as Top Travel Pitfall • Passports Required for U.S. Entry by 2008 --- • More Travel News ...

Thanks to new passport regulations, this year's spring break could be a big break for U.S. resorts.

Because of cost ($97) and timeliness (six weeks to process), most Americans failed to meet the Jan. 23 deadline requiring passengers arriving by air to show valid passports. As a result, many collegians on spring break are staying in the States, or such American territories as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Since passport requirements include arrivals from Bermuda, Canada, and Mexico, the usual crush of collegians in Cancun could be shifting to Panama City, Fla. or South Padre Island, Tex., plus the popular ski resorts of the Colorado Rockies.

Border towns in both Mexico and Canada should also benefit since the new passport rules apply to air travelers only. For U.S. drivers, most of whom have state-issued licenses with photographs included, only a photo ID is necessary.

Cancun, hit hard by Hurricane Wilma two years ago, expects 40,000 collegians by mid-month but could be driving some away with high prices (a nightly average of nearly $230 U.S.).

Panama City, located on the Florida Panhandle, is considerably cheaper, depending upon the type of accommodations selected. It expects to draw upwards of 300,000 this year, with most of them arriving in the middle of this month.

Fort Lauderdale, popularized as the center of spring break in the Connie Francis song "Where the Boys Are," no longer encourages the rowdy college crowds. On Florida's east coast, the center of attraction has gone north to Daytona Beach.

Like Fort Lauderdale, Cancun is trying to entice an older, quieter, and more upscale crowd. The new prices, passport regulations, and airfare costs should help.

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