Cruises Departing From Shanghai

[Floridastorm]

Can someone explain the Visa Process for using the port of Shanghai as a departure and returning port. I see that RC Quantum of the Seas and HA Westerdam are primarily the ships that depart from Shanghai. I know that China requires a prior visa in order to enter the country. But, is there some special process utilized by the cruise lines in order to make it as painless as possible?

[Betty in Cozumel]

We are sailing out of Shanghai in March and will be using the 144 hr Transit Without VIsa (TWOV).  We fly in from Canada and our first port of call is Japan so we qualify.

 

Is Shanghai your only China stops?  At the beginning and end of your cruise?  How many days?  I wonder if you can use the TWOV for both entries?

[Hoyaheel]

You can use TWOV repeatedly IF each case meets the criteria (including your passport info)

 

If you exit Shanghai and the VERY NEXT place you go is OUTSIDE of China, no worries. Your travel is A-B-C (Country A, B=Shanghai, C= NON CHINA place and different from Country A)

 

So you can come back the same way, as long as it's A-B-C. 

 

You could do an endless loop if you really felt like it, as long as A and C are different places OUTSIDE of China. Chinese immigration cares about where you JUST were and where you are going JUST next. They do not care about the rest of your itinerary.

Edited January 16, 2019 by Hoyaheel

[Floridastorm]

The HA Westerdam departs Shanghai, to Qingdao, Beijing, Nagasaki, Seoul, Cheju City, Seoul, Kagoshima, Shanghai.

 

The RC Quantum of the Seas departs Shanghai to Shimoneski, Maizura. Nigata, Hakodate, Shanghai.

 

Since I would be flying round trip from Bangkok/Shanghai/Bangkok that would qualify as a non stop flight without landing in any other Chinese city.

 

I'm assuming, by your information and what I have gleaned from Google, that the 144 hr Transit Without Visa would qualify in my case.

 

6 Steps to Apply for 144-Hour Visa-Free Transit:

1.  Inform the carrier when boarding
2.  Fill an Arrival/Departure Card
3.  Apply for the 144-hour visa-free stay permit upon arrival
4.  Claim the luggage
5.  Go through the customs
6.  Leave the airport

 

What kind of a hassle is it with Shanghai immigration in obtain this Transit Without Visa? Both my wife and I carry American Passports.

 

Thanks Again

Edited January 16, 2019 by Floridastorm

[Betty in Cozumel]

20 minutes ago, Floridastorm said:

Since I would be flying round trip from Bangkok/Shanghai/Bangkok that would qualify as a non stop flight without landing in any other Chinese city.

 

No this does NOT qualify.  It is not A-B-C with A & C being DIFFERENT COUNTRIES.

[Floridastorm]

Please enlighten me, if you will. I am flying from Bangkok nonstop to Shanghai and departing via a cruise ship. Upon returning to Shanghai on that cruise ship I am flying Shanghai to Bangkok non stop. Where am I going wrong?

[Betty in Cozumel]

10 minutes ago, Floridastorm said:

Please enlighten me, if you will. I am flying from Bangkok nonstop to Shanghai and departing via a cruise ship. Upon returning to Shanghai on that cruise ship I am flying Shanghai to Bangkok non stop. Where am I going wrong?

Okay that is much clearer.  Which ship are you on?  The example you gave above for the Westerdam doesn't qualify as the first stop is China. 

[Floridastorm]

Probably the Quantum of the Seas, Betty. The Visa Free Transit is for 6 days (144 hours). Would that be cumulative or 6 days upon arrival Shanghai and another 6 days upon disembarkation in Shanghai? How do they start and end counting for the original Visa? Is it how many days you are physically on land in China? Or do they consider days aboard the ship? Any hassles with the Shanghai Immigration Officials?

[Betty in Cozumel]

2 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

Probably the Quantum of the Seas, Betty. The Visa Free Transit is for 6 days (144 hours). Would that be cumulative or 6 days upon arrival Shanghai and another 6 days upon disembarkation in Shanghai? How do they start and end counting for the original Visa? Is it how many days you are physically on land in China? Or do they consider days aboard the ship? Any hassles with the Shanghai Immigration Officials?

 

Yes I would think it would recount for each visit.  I wonder, however, what happens if your 2nd visit is within that first 144 hr period.  Hmmm

 

Check out the information on https://www.travelchinaguide.com/tour/visa/free-transit-144-hours.htm

 

 

How to count the layover time of 144 hours?

It counts from 00:00 of the day following passengers' arrival. That is to say, the allowed time to stay is actually longer than 144 hours.

Eg: If one arrives at 6:00 am on July 1, the layover time counts from 00:00 of July 2 and the passenger should hold a ticket with the scheduled departure time before 23:59 of July 7. In this case, the allowed stay period is 162 hours in maximum.

[Hoyaheel]

You can get less than 144 hrs - that's the max, not the requirement. 

 

Where do you go as soon as you leave PVG port? 

 

And on your return, what is the port immediately prior to Shanghai?? If you're flying PVG-BKK, the port cannot be in Thailand....

 

Each A-B-C transit is a new/separate TWOV.

Edited January 17, 2019 by Hoyaheel

[Floridastorm]

This is the most convoluted set of rules and regulations I've ever seen. Are they trying their best to discourage tourism? They are certainly succeeding. Looks like the only two cruises I am interested in do not "qualify". Which means, I guess, that someone who still wishes to go on these cruises needs to get a full visa which requires  forms filled out and submitted and at least $140 per person. I don't mind doing that but it's just the mindset that irritates me when a 144 hour permission to stay should satisfy this requirement. What pray tell do other folks do about the cruises that don't seem to qualify. Can the cruise lines assist? 😕

[sippican]

3 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

This is the most convoluted set of rules and regulations I've ever seen. Are they trying their best to discourage tourism? They are certainly succeeding. Looks like the only two cruises I am interested in do not "qualify". Which means, I guess, that someone who still wishes to go on these cruises needs to get a full visa which requires  forms filled out and submitted and at least $140 per person. I don't mind doing that but it's just the mindset that irritates me when a 144 hour permission to stay should satisfy this requirement. What pray tell do other folks do about the cruises that don't seem to qualify. Can the cruise lines assist? 😕

 

Generally the cruise lines will not advise you and it would be foolish of them to do so IMHO. They have  no control over your personal pre and post cruise plans, airline itineraries, or unforeseen circumstances, such as late ship arrivals and departures, or missed ports (which may disqualify you from the exemption). There have been some cases cited where passengers experienced additional challenges by not having a visa, after encountering schedule changes. 

Are you basing your selection of itineraries solely on the visa exemption?  Seems like a small price to pay in relation to the overall trip cost.

[Miaminice]

18 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

This is the most convoluted set of rules and regulations I've ever seen. Are they trying their best to discourage tourism? They are certainly succeeding. Looks like the only two cruises I am interested in do not "qualify". Which means, I guess, that someone who still wishes to go on these cruises needs to get a full visa which requires  forms filled out and submitted and at least $140 per person. I don't mind doing that but it's just the mindset that irritates me when a 144 hour permission to stay should satisfy this requirement. What pray tell do other folks do about the cruises that don't seem to qualify. Can the cruise lines assist? 😕

 

The rule sounds more complicated than it actually is. Maybe this explanation helps:

 

[Floridastorm]

On 2/24/2019 at 1:13 PM, Miaminice said:

 

The rule sounds more complicated than it actually is. Maybe this explanation helps:

 

Since the only two cruises we are interested in unfortunately depart from China and apparently do not qualify for this 144 hour exemption, we will find other cruises that depart from outside China. I don't believe in jumping through hoops and paying money I don't have to just to get on a specific itinerary. I'm really not interested in seeing anything that China has to offer that would make me go out of my way to see it. Just my personal preference. Loads of cruises out of Singapore where American tourists are welcomed with open arms and where no visa is required. Thanks for the info. It's appreciated.

Edited February 25, 2019 by Floridastorm

[BruceMuzz]

7 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

Since the only two cruises we are interested in unfortunately depart from China and apparently do not qualify for this 144 hour exemption, we will find other cruises that depart from outside China. I don't believe in jumping through hoops and paying money I don't have to just to get on a specific itinerary. I'm really not interested in seeing anything that China has to offer that would make me go out of my way to see it. Just my personal preference. Loads of cruises out of Singapore where American tourists are welcomed with open arms and where no visa is required. Thanks for the info. It's appreciated.

These hoops and extra money you are paying are a direct reaction and result to the even greater amount of hoops and money required by the US Government for Chinese citizens who want to visit the USA. It is called "reciprocity". You can thank your own government for this nonsense.

[Floridastorm]

I'm not interested in getting into world politics and why things are the way they are between governments. This convoluted  visa system is a result of a paranoid Communist Dictatorship and not of any type of reciprocity. IMO there does not seem to be any sane reasoning behind their monitoring of where and how cruise ships  transport their passengers in order to satisfy a strange visa requirement. Once again, I could care less what China's reasoning is for implementing such ridged rules. I'm too old to be jumping through hoops in order to go on a simple cruise. Just too many reasonable places available out there where they are happy to have my business without all of the bureaucratic nonsense. As I stated, Singapore has a multitude of cruises that depart from there and where an American citizen can obtain a 90 day visa upon arrival. One of the sane governments.

[Globaliser]

11 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

This convoluted  visa system is a result of a paranoid Communist Dictatorship and not of any type of reciprocity.

 

Very funny. Have you ever tried getting a US visa? Now that's a prime example of convoluted and unfriendly! 

[Floridastorm]

3 minutes ago, Globaliser said:

 

Very funny. Have you ever tried getting a US visa? Now that's a prime example of convoluted and unfriendly! 

Doesn't seem to be so convoluted and unfriendly as there are thousands of Chinese students studying in US colleges. How many American students are studying in China's colleges? Hmmmmmmmmm.

[Globaliser]

27 minutes ago, Floridastorm said:

Doesn't seem to be so convoluted and unfriendly as there are thousands of Chinese students studying in US colleges.

 

You clearly have no idea about getting a US visa.

 

The fact that there are thousands of Chinese students studying in US colleges is a testament to US educational standards, not to the ease and efficiency of the US visa/immigration system.

[Floridastorm]

1 hour ago, Globaliser said:

 

You clearly have no idea about getting a US visa.

 

The fact that there are thousands of Chinese students studying in US colleges is a testament to US educational standards, not to the ease and efficiency of the US visa/immigration system.

Oh for crying out load. Use your common sense. How do you think there are thousands of Chinese students, to include thousands more from other countries, studying in the US if it were that difficult to obtain a student visa? The problem is that if anything it's too easy to obtain a visa to the US. Pretty soon we're going to have half the world's population in the US and the citizens will have to move somewhere else.

[Globaliser]

38 minutes ago, Floridastorm said:

How do you think there are thousands of Chinese students, to include thousands more from other countries, studying in the US if it were that difficult to obtain a student visa?

 

You were complaining that the Chinese visa system is convoluted, not that you were having difficulty getting a visa.

 

These students have all jumped through convoluted hoops to get US visas, and they've done it because the education is so worth having. But they have had to jump through hoops to get a US visa that may actually be more convoluted than the hoops that you'd have to jump through to get a Chinese visa.

 

I bet you have absolutely no idea how convoluted the US process is. Maybe you should think of your Chinese visa experience as a reciprocal learning exercise.

 

Of course, if your real complaint is that a US citizen should be entitled to travel the entire world without ever having to condescend to a visa application, then maybe you should say so.

[Philob]

"How many American students are studying in China's colleges? Hmmmmmmmmm."

 

Unless you are planning to study Chinese culture or language having a college degree from a Chinese university is useless outside the 2nd & 3rd worlds.  Chinese trained GP doctors are usually only qualified to be a RN in the 1st world.

 

If a Chinese student where to apply for a job in China, the one with the western degree will always get preference (CCP affiliation aside).

 

American students going to China generally end up teaching ESL or doing "white monkey" jobs.  Cept that they even tightened up the ESL teacher requirement, you now need at least a college degree in English.   Here's a kicker, if you're an American Born Chinese and fluent in Mandarin, you won't get the an ESL job in China, even with a US teaching degree.  

 

https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=white monkey job

 

 

Edited February 26, 2019 by Philob

[Floridastorm]

39 minutes ago, Globaliser said:

 

You were complaining that the Chinese visa system is convoluted, not that you were having difficulty getting a visa.

 

These students have all jumped through convoluted hoops to get US visas, and they've done it because the education is so worth having. But they have had to jump through hoops to get a US visa that may actually be more convoluted than the hoops that you'd have to jump through to get a Chinese visa.

 

I bet you have absolutely no idea how convoluted the US process is. Maybe you should think of your Chinese visa experience as a reciprocal learning exercise.

 

Of course, if your real complaint is that a US citizen should be entitled to travel the entire world without ever having to condescend to a visa application, then maybe you should say so.

I rest my case. No sense to go on.

[Globaliser]

32 minutes ago, Floridastorm said:

I rest my case. No sense to go on.

 

As often the case when people are ranting about how they shouldn't have to suffer X, Y or Z indignity: others can read your posts and mine, and decide for themselves who's talking nonsense.

[sippican]

 

Floridastorm (appropriate name) If the visa cuses you such stress - by all means, choose an itinerary that does not require one.  It seems like the destination is not one you'd enjoy.

FWIW, I found it very easy to get the visa and did not feel like I was jumping through hoops.  We considered the cost to just be part of the trip expenses.

 

Back to cruising!

Edited February 26, 2019 by sippican