Mistakes from a World Traveler: Passport Renewal Procrastination

If you’ve read my trip reports, especially my Round The World trip last year, you’re probably thinking how organized and methodical I am when planning a vacation. It may appear that way now, but I’ve experienced a lot of mishaps along the way that helped me become better prepared before I travel.

In my series Lessons Learned: Mistakes from a World Traveler, I want to chronicle the mistakes I’ve made in the hopes that others will not make the same errors as well. Some of my experiences aren’t so bad, although others may seem catastrophic at the time.

My next installment reflects an incident that occurred a few years ago. I thought I had it all figured out until I realized I didn’t.

What Happened?

Who would’ve thought that a passport was necessary to drive into Canada? I mean, they’re our neighbors after all. Well, I guess living in Hawaii, apart from the continental US and far way from our neighbors, prevented me from seeing the obvious – post 9/11 resulted in a lockdown and increased monitoring of our borders. The last time I went to Canada about a decade ago, only entry via flight required a passport.

I planned a trip for my mom to see Niagara Falls, one of her bucket list items. I planed the flight from Honolulu to Buffalo, New York, booked the hotel on the Canadian side (for a better view), and arranged a car rental so we could drive into Canada.

A month before our trip, my mom asked me if we needed a passport. I replied, of course not, which I have been saying for weeks. It’s Canada. I did as she asked and checked the US Department of State and, lo and behold, you do need a passport to enter Canada.

With four weeks until departure, I read through the details on renewing my expired passport. Luckily, the processing schedule allows for expedited requests if you have proof of an upcoming trip.

US Passport Processing Times:

Kamagra jelly is one viagra price of the best medications for long lasting erections: Kamagra Polo enables sturdy erections for up to 6 hours. Your willingness to forgo your right to truthful health knowledge, and thus your viagra online no rx you can try here health freedom. There are many alternatives, but the FDA and the government refuse http://deeprootsmag.org/page/2/ cialis 5 mg to accept the privileges of Eastern medicine, homeopathy, and herbal remedies, which create great problems in the further study of their benefits to the American public. It is a online sildenafil india drug used to treat impotence, increases sperm production and enlarges the penis.

I went to the agency located in Honolulu and submitted my application with my expedited request and flight itinerary as backup. They processed it in a couple weeks and we were set to go.

If you’re an extreme procrastinator, some areas of the country offer 1-day/24-hours expedited processing at Regional Passport Offices, only for urgent cases and immediate travel. You can go to the US Department of State site or Passport-Renewal.org for locations and more information.

Lesson Learned

As a result of this last minute rush to renew my passport, I will ALWAYS renew my passport in advance, and ALWAYS check the US Department of State if a visa is required. Good thing because a visa was required for my trip to Beijing last summer and acquiring it was pretty complicated, especially since a Chinese Embassy/Consulate General is not located in Hawaii.

The Final Word…

Don’t procrastinate! Your trip will be less stressful by getting this checked off your to-do list early on. And less stress makes for a better vacation.