Visas, Singapore - Shanghai 22nd March 2015

[Wol]

Can anyone tell me whether Oceania arrange Cambodian and Vietnamese visas onboard?

 

(We are disembarking in Shanghai before picking up the cruise again in Sydney for Miami, so we have arranged Chinese visas so as to fly out.)

 

There are all sorts of conflicting reports and threads about the Cambodian and Vietnamese visas, usually with regard to other cruise lines and to cap it all I have had a very ambiguous email from Oceania mentioning "Transit" visas - which are airport transit visas for people getting off one flight and onto another!

 

Any *hard* and *recent* information would be gratefully received!

[SellaVee]

Just over a week ago I got in touch with Oceania Special Services in Portsmouth, UK to ask about visas for Vietnam as we wish to spend a night ashore in Hanoi. Here is the reply:

 

"Vietnam visa requirements recently changed. Effective January 1, 2015, Vietnam issues a visa on arrival good for 30 days and serves both In-transit and Disembarking guests. A visa application with passport photo is required to be completed / submitted at check-in to the cruise." My bold.

 

Since then my TA has been in touch forwarding forms from Oceania to fill in in advance and hand in once we board. This applies to Cambodia as well as Vietnam. Our on board account will be charged. We are obtaining our own visas for China.

 

I have also been in touch with the Vietnamese Embassy in London and they confirmed that arrangements changed in January. We could obtain visas from there if we wished.

 

You may want to check with the Vietnamese Embassy in your own country, as I can only speak for the UK.

[Wol]

@ C'est la Vie:

 

That's interesting - more information than I can get here in Oz! I've lost the will to live regarding these two visas - the Chinese one was bad enough. No-one had any idea whether we needed single, two days or multiple entry visas for that so eventually we took out a second mortgage and got a multiple one organised.

 

Since other lines seem to organise the other two onboard, and since Oceania do the same with the Vietnamese ones, (from what you say), I would expect the same to apply for Cambodia. However I have emailed them in Miami for confirmation, although from previous experience I'm not hopeful!

 

PS Do you have emailed copies of the application forms for both countries that I can get? I do have the downloaded ones for Vietnam, but from what you say they might not be the correct - latest procedure - ones.

 

wilsr ot internode.on.net

Edited February 2, 2015 by Wol

[no fuss travel]

We just got caught with the new regulations. Oceania has sent us instructions that we have to have two passport pictures and the visa application filled out before can board the ship in Singapore. They are doing the visa for us, but we have to fill out the forms ourselves and provide the pictures. Probably can tell you if there was any complications after we have been there this February.

[Wol]

Thanks - would appreciate an update after you've "done" it!

[Wol]

We just got caught with the new regulations. Oceania has sent us instructions that we have to have two passport pictures and the visa application filled out before can board the ship in Singapore. They are doing the visa for us, but we have to fill out the forms ourselves and provide the pictures. Probably can tell you if there was any complications after we have been there this February.

 

Did they say anything about the Cambodian visa?

[Wol]

>>Just over a week ago I got in touch with Oceania Special Services in Portsmouth, UK to ask about visas for Vietnam as we wish to spend a night ashore in Hanoi. Here is the reply:<<

 

Would you have a phone no. or email for the Portsmouth office? The Australian one is useless, and we hold Brit passports as well as Autralian ones.

[SellaVee]

Since then my TA has been in touch forwarding forms from Oceania to fill in in advance and hand in once we board. This applies to Cambodia as well as Vietnam.

 

Good morning Wol. Have you recently been in touch with your TA? Special services told me that my TA would be sending out the forms within the week. Your TA should have sent them to you. Our forms arrived from the TA the same day as the message from Portsmouth (just last week). The instructions are to print and fill in the forms and bring them on board along with passport photos. There are separate forms for Cambodia and Vietnam. It also says we can obtain our own visas if we wish.

 

I'm a bit limited as I'm on my iPad (can't get the forms to download) but I should be able to forward the forms later from the desktop. I can also get you contact details then.

 

According to CIBT, Oceania's preferred visa provider, we need a double entry visa for China as we're visiting 2 ports. For US citizens a multitrip visa costs the same as a single so I imagine that's what they will all get. It's different for Brits. Sometimes people recommend multitrip in case one has to go ashore somewhere else for medical reasons. That's a bit more expensive for us.

 

The visa for China only lasts 90 days for us so the Embassy recommends applying 1 month before you visit which is cutting it a bit fine!

[kuldalai]

e mail Oceania in USA contact us tab at foot of their website . Their Office in Sydney is only small and deflects all passenger enquiries to Cruise Co their Australian booking agents who are absolutely useless and direct you to your TA .

[no fuss travel]

Did they say anything about the Cambodian visa?

 

We have to print out the visa application and have one passport photo for it. Same procedures as for Vietnam visa. If I can get the shipboard internet to work once we are aboard and I know how it was handled at that time, I will post and let you know.