Passport confusion, can anyone help?

[Halbwahrheiten]

I have German nationality (dualled with another new-EU country) and live in the UK.

I haven't renewed my passport since I have been married, because I haven't needed it.
I am planning on travelling abroad in august and am faced with the task of trying to figure out how to go about this.
My passport is still within date, but it is in my maiden name. It is a German passport. To get a new one I would have to travel to london (4-5 hours, I have two kids under 2) with about 2 million bits of paperwork. I have to admit that I have been a slacker and haven't even let the german embassy know that I got married, so I have to fill in paperwork for that as well. it all sounds so very complicated on the embassy website.
I qualified for a british passport even before I got married, but never quite understood the naturalisation procedure, and also didn't have the 800-odd pounds spare the application seems to cost.

Alternatively, if I could get to germany I could apply for a new passport in my married name in person and the whole thing would be a lot simpler.

Is it at all possible/legal to travel with my current passport, maybe if the tickets are booked in my maiden name? it's all so complicated and confusing.

[natation]

In the UK, you can call yourself anything you like, though most women still choose to change their name upon marriage. But there are many who keep their name. Where exactly are you travelling to? Do you have other ID in your original name? I personally would just book everything in my original name. I cannot see anything illegal about travelling in that name. The only thing which might complicate things is if you are travelling with your children and you have a different surname and their dad with the same surname is not travelling - you might be asked to prove parentage when surnames are not shared - this is easily solved, copy full birth certificates and stick them permananently in the childs' passports.

[Halbwahrheiten]

I'll be travelling with my husband and children, to a couple of mainland european countries. I don't think I'll be travelling with the kids without my husband any time soon, but might just do the birth certificate thing anyway, just in case.
I still have my german ID card which obviously also has my maiden name on it, all my other ID (well, my driving license) is in my married name.

[natation]

Take a copy of your marriage certificate to link your surnames and you should have no problems.

There a several countries where women cannot change surname, so it's quite normal to see some women who change surnames and some women who don't. What's far more important is consistency.

[Halbwahrheiten]

thank you, that's really helpful.

[Portofino]

Do you have to travel to London? Cannot the German consulate or whatever do it? I am British but in Brussels, so we had to send our passport renewals to the British consulate in Paris (as Brussels doesn't do it anymore). Didn't have to go in person though....

[Portofino]

If your passport is valid, and you book tickets in the same name, I can't see why you should have a problem/

[Sibble]

Agree, I traveled from NZ on a UK passport in my maiden name until it expired. Children were on NZ passports with DHs name. Most of the time I was on my own with them. We did get interrogated in Hong Kong etc (felt like a child trafficker) but I don't think it's uncommon for mother and children to be on different passports in different surnames. I think the key thing is that the tickets and passport are in the same name.

[Halbwahrheiten]

As far as I am aware, it has to be done at the embassy, there was some issue with the consulate last time I had to renew my passport. and at that point I didn't have a valid passport so no options - it was an exhausting experience. The germans seem to like you to be there in person for some reason.

As children me and my brother once travelled with my father and his boyfriend, (our mother gave us her surname). When we crossed the swiss border we were stopped and interrogated for a couple of hours - me and my brother were taken to a separate room where we were questioned about the two men with us and where we thought we were going etc. Our passports were even examined under the microscope (those were the days when children's passports in germany used to be a sheet of paper, folded in 3 and with a photo glued in..)

[mummytime]

As far as I am aware you can travel in your maiden name as long as that is the name on the tickets.
I did not take my husbands surname, and have travelled alone with my kids with no problem. (Even back from the US alone, and its often best then to have a letter from the other parents giving you permission, but I guess coming back to the UK was seen as fine as it was our home country.)

I hate to see it but I can see why children travelling with two seemingly unrelated men could cause problems (I would hope the same would be true of unrelated women). But a letter of permission or other documents could overcome this.

[Halbwahrheiten]

The swiss border was the only one we were stopped at, the others just waved us through. (this was before all the borders were open).
Really, it's a good thing that they did question it, but my father wasn't best pleased :o

[ExpatAgain]

you can travel on your passport as long as your ticket is in the same name. Sorry, but what's the advantage in going thro naturalisation?? Aren't we all the same being EU anyway or am I being thick here? Personally wouldn't bother with expense/hassle unless there is a real advantage..