I am going to the Bahamas next month..and wondering if I need a passport or can I use a drivers license. My birth certificate has my maiden name and doesn't match my license.

silly you for changing your name. But there's another recent thread on the same topic with some helpful advice.

y'know, it would have been more helpful if I'd posted the link - here it is. http://www.fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=5

Be safe and use a passport, especially since your birth certificate and license don't have the same name.

all right curiousx, i'll bite..why do you have problems with people changing their names?

well, caribtraveller, clearly the decision to change her name has given karen1166 a paperwork and potential travel hassle that she would not have had if she had kept the name she was born with. Who needs this ? So that's one reason I think the decision doesn't make sense.

There are other social consequences as well - here's a web address to a short, if slightly polemic, article on the subject
http://www.ivillage.co.uk/relationsh...162190,00.html. Note that this is just one point of view.

However, many women I have talked to say the saddest consequence of name change, and one they realize only later in life, is that school friends and colleagues from 'single' days find it very difficult or impossible tp reconnect later in life because they do not know their friend's new name. There have been some theories that this contributes to a lot of the sense of isolation felt by some married women and widows.

Frankly, to me, a woman changing her name on marriage makes no more sense than a man changing his. Again, my opinion.

But you asked.

Cheers !

Problem solver: I use both my maiden and married name, with a hyphen in between. I will admit, however, that it can be a pain to sign both last names since they are both long.

If you changed your name due to marriage, all you need to do is bring a copy of your marriage license. So you need you Birth Cert., Drivers License and Marriage License, you may have time to get the passport, it does make traveling easier, and in this world today, I would advise getting one if you are leaving the country.

To enter the Bahamas you need:

"Proof of U.S. citizenship, i.e., (i) a passport (if you are using an expired passport it cannot be expired more than 5 years) or (ii) original or certified copy of a birth certificate with a photo ID. You may also be asked to show an onward/return airline ticket. For further information call Embassy of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, 2220 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008 (202/319-2660) or nearest Consulate: Miami (305/373-6295) or New York (212/421-6420)."

A good place for information on entry requirements for US citizen travelling to other countries is http://travel.state.gov/foreignentryreqs.html. This is the US State Dept website with information on the entry requirements to many countries, with links to the embassies. The above quote is from the US State Dept website.

Curious

You are certainly entitled to your opinion regarding the name change. But calling her "silly" for having her own opinion and wanting to change her name isn't called for.

curiousx: i get your opinion but i would never think of calling someone silly because they want to do or have done something i wouldn't.
i wouldn't think of calling you silly because you disagree with a woman changing her name.
respect other people's choices like you'd like your choices respected. as the article points out, it works for some women and doesn't work for others. that's all.

my point exactly kath!

hey - caribtraveller and kath - you are both right - the adjective 'silly' was uncalled for...it comes across as pejorative in print rather than the friendly tease I intended. Apologies therefore...especially to karen1166.

That said, it is important that people make informed choices and know all the consequences beforehand (such as the need to change travel docs) and think them through...especially on an important matter such as personal identity. There are adjectives to describe decisions made without full understanding but I'm not going to get into trouble again !

Cheers

"There are adjectives to describe decisions made without full understanding"
what is that???
that just negated the apology. just stop.

by the way, you reminded of what happened to a co-worker of mine who kept her name. she told me this story when i got married and hadn't decided whether to keep my name or not.
her husband was into a bad accident. when she got to the hospital, they wouldn't let her make a medical decision because she couldn't prove she was his wife (she had to go home to get her marriage certificate). after 15 years or so of marriage, she changed her name. i'm going to go out on a limb here and guess she thought the inconveniences of changing her name were minor compared to what happened that day at the hospital.
your lesson of the day curiousx, there are plusses and minuses to everything. you pick what'ss most important to you and let others pick theirs.
no i'll take my own advice and stop

Enough...I only posted a question...didn't want to get into any of the other stuff....thank you for all your suggestions and answers. If you want to continue this discussion I am sure that there is a chat room somewhere.