There is now no ship...

[Lord Gothmog]

When Elrond left Middle-earth for the West, the time came for his childern to make their decisions as to which people they would have their fate joined to, Eldar or Men. The brothers Elladan and Elrohir seems to have been able to 'delay their decision' by staying for a time in Imladris with Celeborn. However, Arwen did not delay, she made her decision to join her fate with that of Men and marry Aragorn.

There are some choices that do not allow for one to recant or change. This was one of them, in making her choice to join with Man she closed the door to the West. The same decision (with the same result) was made by Elros and he was in a better position to recant his choise and travel to The Undying Lands He was almost in sight of them. This is why There is now no ship that would bear Arwen into the West. She was no longer allowed to go.

As for Gimli, we are not certain that he did go into the West as this is only what the Hobbits heard after Legolas left. However, even if he did do so, we do not know the reason why he would be allowed even as far as 'The Lonely Isle'. The only ones we know of for certain are Bilbo and Frodo, both of whom were allowed into the West to have a chance to heal in sprit before dying and leaving Arda.

[Lindale]

Originally Posted by Lord Gothmog

The same decision (with the same result) was made by Elros and he was in a better position to recant his choise and travel to The Undying Lands He was almost in sight of them. .

Where was this stated Lord Gothmog? In one of the latter HoMEs, or the Letters?

Arwen chose to be mortal, and even if she did go to the West she's already mortal. And she'll die. The mortals who went to Aman, they don't lose their mortality. But they get healed, pretty way better than in ME anyway. But for a lovesick elf-turned-mortal much like Luthien was, I think no amount of beauty or bliss can heal that.

[Lord Gothmog]

It is stated in the published Silmarillion and in Letters.

From the Silmarillion: Chapter 24: Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath

It is told among the Elves that after Eärendil had departed, seeking Elwing his wife, Mandos spoke concerning his fate; and he said: 'Shall mortal man step living upon the undying lands, and yet live?' But Ulmo said: 'For this he was born into the world. And say unto me; whether is he Eärendil Tuor's son of the line of Hador, or the son of Idril, Turgon's daughter, of the Elven-house of Finwë?' And Mandos answered: 'Equally the Noldor, who went wilfully into exile, may not return hither.'
But when all was spoken, Manwë gave judgement, and he said: 'In this matter the power of doom is given to me. The peril that he ventured for love of the Two Kindreds shall not fall upon Eärendil, nor shall it fall upon Elwing his wife who entered into peril for love of him; but they shall not walk again ever among Elves or Men in the Outer Lands. And this is my decree concerning them: to Eärendil and to Elwing, and to their sons, shall be given leave each to choose freely to which kindred their fates shall be joined, and under which kindred they shall be judged.'

This shows that Mortal Man was not allowed to go to the Undying Lands. When Elros and Elrond made their choices Elros became numbered among Men and therefore was no longer permitted entry to Aman or even The Lonely Isle. Arwen made the same decision to be numbered among Men and therefore could not go to Aman, she would have been refused entry and this she knew.

From Tolkien's Letters:
297 Drafts for a letter to 'Mr Rang'

(The attempt of Eärendil to cross Ëar was against the Ban of the Valar prohibiting all Men to attempt to set foot on Aman, and against the later special ban prohibiting the Exiled Elves, followers of the rebellious Fëanor, from return:

325 From a letter to Roger Lancelyn Green 17 July 1971

The Elves who took this road and those few 'mortals' who by special grace went with them, had abandoned the 'History of the world' and could play no further part in it.

So unless they were given special permission, Mortals were not permitted to set foot on the Undying Lands.

[Sauron the White]

from Lord Gothmog

The only ones we know of for certain are Bilbo and Frodo, both of whom were allowed into the West to have a chance to heal in sprit before dying and leaving Arda.

What about Sam? At the end of Appendix B, Year 1482 it talks about the death of Rosie his wife and says

"Among the tradition is handed dwon from Elanor that Samwise passed the Towers, and went to the Grey Havens, and passed over the Sea, last of the Ringbearers."

By my count that would mean that a majority - five out of nine - of the Fellowship went over the Sea..... Frodo, Gandalf, Legolas, Gimli, and Sam. Thats a good deal of exceptions to the rule.

[William Cloud Hicklin]

Gandalf and Legolas are hardly 'exceptions.'

[Lord Gothmog]

Sauron the White

As I said, the only ones we know of for certain are Frodo and Bilbo. In your own quote it states:

"Among the tradition is handed dwon from Elanor"

This is not certainanty but simply rumour that has been given authority.

Personaly I would like to think that Sam at the least was allowed to go and see Frodo before he died. But we are not told this definately.

By my count that would mean that a majority - five out of nine - of the Fellowship went over the Sea..... Frodo, Gandalf, Legolas, Gimli, and Sam. Thats a good deal of exceptions to the rule.

If we allow that all Mortals who were Said to have travled to the West did so we have Tuor, Bilbo, Frodo, Gimli and Sam. Gandalf was a Maia and therefore entitled to go, Legolas was an Elf and similarly entitled to go. So throughout the history of Middle-earth we have a total of Five. Not that many exceptions to the rule.

[Quempel]

Arwen was the exception. Just on the other side. Going to Valinor would not change her situation at all. It would not heal her or change her pain.

[Alfirin]

On a somewhat related note there are two questions which have bugged me ofr quite a while. (if the answers to both of these are covered somewhere in the canon and I missed it my apoliges for wasting everyones time.)

Firstly, how could a ship bulit by Legolas get to the Undying Lands? Access to the Undying Lands in the Third Age was restricted exclsively to ships of the Falathrim elves. Legolas was an elf but he was Sindar not Falathrim. As an elf he would be entitled to enter the Undying Lands, but a ship built by him would not seem to be able to get there.

Secondly did the Falathrim ships and crews actually act like Charon for passegers. That is to say did Falathrimm ships and crews return from the Undying Lands to the Grey Havens,sans passengers, or was each trip for a ship one way with any Falathrim crew also never coming back? and as a subnote were there always Falatrim ships available for the jounery or did weary eleves have to sometimes wait in the Grey Havens for a shipworth of elves to arrive?

[Ghazi]

Originally Posted by Lord Gothmog

So throughout the history of Middle-earth we have a total of Five. Not that many exceptions to the rule.

Not quite. There were a lot of Numenoreans from Ar-Pharazon's armada that tread the hallowed ground of Tol Eressea and Valinor.

[Lord Gothmog]

Originally Posted by Ghazi

Not quite. There were a lot of Numenoreans from Ar-Pharazon's armada that tread the hallowed ground of Tol Eressea and Valinor.

Hardly, no Numenorean ever set foot on Tol Eressea. As for Ar-pharazon's army I would not really consider being trapped in the Caves of the Forgotten (those that did not sink with the ships) as treading the hallowed ground of Valinor.