Help needed - Travelling to US, passport name advice

j-mee

Hi

I am travelling to America in 4 weeks time for my wife's mum's 50th trip to Las Vegas.

I have just realised that my name on the booking form is different from the name on my passport. I have always been known as Jamie however I was christened James, which is on my passport*.

The travel agents have told me that is is essential that I change my the booking to James. They've also told me that it'll cost £100 to do so.

I'm presuming that the US are pretty strict about stuff like this these days but just wondered if I should defnitely fork out the 100 quids???

(*It is pretty clear that the printed 'holder's signature' on my passport reads Jamie not James, not sure if that would count for anything though)

Any advice is very much appreciated.

jamie

(or...er.. james )

richardw

j-mee wrote: »

I was christened James, which is on my passport

That is your name then.

Voyager2002

It is not an issue with the US authorities, but with the airline carrying you there. See if you can contact their customer service people and explain the problem. Do NOT say you need a name change, but rather that there was a typing error in the way your name was entered on to the booking. Anything could happen, but my guess is that it will end up costing you more like twenty pounds than a hundred.

richardw

Voyager2002 wrote: »

See if you can contact their customer service people and explain the problem. Do NOT say you need a name change, but rather that there was a typing error in the way your name was entered on to the booking. Anything could happen, but my guess is that it will end up costing you more like twenty pounds than a hundred.

Good point, worth a try.

pulliptears

I had similar problems with the fact that my OH's name on his passport is Steven, but on the flight Data its Steve, the same with my son, Thomas on passport, Tom on the forms. It was a c0ck up by OH who also managed to put my DD, Eleanor down as Ellie on the flight.

I spent a day calling BMI about it, and in the end in desperation I went to the check in desk at Manchester where I was told this:

My OH and DS's names are shortened versions, so are perfectly acceptable. DD's name is a little more difficult and needed changing on the booking. This cost me £35 to do and was sorted out at the desk.

My advice would be, if you live near to the airport go to the desk and speak to someone, you can spend all day on the phone and get ten different answers. Take your paperwork and passport and see what they say. Like voyager said it may cost £20 ish, but worth it for piece of mind now rather than worrying until the day you check in.

Oh, and this was for US flights as well.

j-mee

Pullip/Voyager - many thanks for the advice.

I'm only half an hour from Manchester, were we fly from, so I'll nip over and have a word.

donny_osmonds_mad_fan

I agree, go to the ticket desk at the airport and be very very nice and smile a lot lol and call yourself an idiot...that always helps lol...I had this with BA once, they said it was no changable etc it was due to my surname and adding on my married name...long story but I worked for an airline using one name at the time so had to change my passport to match that for future cheap flights just so happened months before I had booked it in a previous name with BA, however went to the ticket desk (may have helped as I was in my airlines uniform who knows) but they only charged me £25 to change the name as where on the phone they were being awful.