Visas for Asia

[Maureenxx]

Would like to hear from someone who has recently been/is going on Grand Voyage to Asia in September regarding visa requirements. Have gotten conflicting info so far. Am told that HA will give visa ON BOARD for Viet Nam and charge to our account. Got conflicting info about China; some say we need visa some say no if only going on HA tours. No visas needed for Japan and Hong Kong and Korea and Singapore (where our segment ends) we are told. Just wanted to know what others are/have experienced on thie cruise.

[CruiserBruce]

I can tell you there is no Visa requirement for Singapore.

[SilvertoGold]

We had to get a China visa ourselves before the cruise, otherwise boarding would be denied. It has been like this for a long time. No visa needed for Singapore, S. Korea, Japan, H.K. Ship will supply and charge for the Viet Nam one.

 

This is a great cruise!

[surfsidemary]

I was on the 2010 Asia Grand Voyage. The only visa I had to get myself was China. As previously stated, this was not negotiable - no China visa/no boarding in Seattle!

[CathyK2]

We took a cruise from Bangkok, Thailand to Beijing, China with ports in Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, two ports in Vietnam, Japan, (we were suppose to go to Korea but had a tsunami warning which canceled it), and Shanghai. Anyway...for those ports, we were told that the Visa would be taken care of for Vietnam by the ship and yes, they charged our shipboard account for it. It wasn't much, but I can't recall the amount.

 

For China though, we needed a double entry Visa and this we were responsible for getting on our own. With this said, I would definitely want to check the information for your particular cruise. And as others have stated, you had to have your Visa all lined up in your passport BEFORE you could even get on the ship in the first place.

 

Cathy

[chrispb]

Would like to hear from someone who has recently been/is going on Grand Voyage to Asia in September regarding visa requirements. Have gotten conflicting info so far. Am told that HA will give visa ON BOARD for Viet Nam and charge to our account. Got conflicting info about China; some say we need visa some say no if only going on HA tours. No visas needed for Japan and Hong Kong and Korea and Singapore (where our segment ends) we are told. Just wanted to know what others are/have experienced on thie cruise.

 

Depending on your nationality, you will need a visa for China possible a double entry if going into more than 1 port. The rest of your info is correct - for Brits anyway.

[Sir PMP]

Visa for China needed, get it yourself at embassy or consulate, cost is approx $150, Vietnam: Hal will do that for you, cost $40, I believe..

[Maureenxx]

Thanks so much everyone. I knew I could get the answers here! Always a group of good and knowledgeable people.

[msteries]

Visa for China needed, get it yourself at embassy or consulate, cost is approx $150, Vietnam: Hal will do that for you, cost $40, I believe..

 

How does one buy a visa for China if they live in the midwest, with no embassy or consulat nearby? Can the application be downloaded for advance that county?

[Pam in CA]

How does one buy a visa for China if they live in the midwest, with no embassy or consulat nearby? Can the application be downloaded for advance that county?

Easiest way is to use a visa service, such as Zierer (http://www.zvs.com.) It's more expensive but more dependable IMHO because someone from the agency takes everything in to the Consulate and does the process for you. I wouldn't feel comfortable just mailing my passport to the Consulate. I've used Zierer several times for visas for several countries, including China. I send my passport to them via FedEx and pay for FedEx return as I want everything traceable.

[Sir PMP]

How does one buy a visa for China if they live in the midwest, with no embassy or consulat nearby? Can the application be downloaded for advance that county?

 

I believe you can, you need the usual pics and passports to send in and allow yourself plenty of time, there are agencies that will do it for you HAL has one at an additional fee, which isn't too bad...

[chrispb]

How does one buy a visa for China if they live in the midwest, with no embassy or consulat nearby? Can the application be downloaded for advance that county?

Yes, then you send it in a registered envelope plus enclose another registered envelope for them to return it to you safely. That way you can track it.