Explorer Bangkok to Sydney Nov 25 - Indonesia Visa difficulty

[mmcguir]

We received several emails from Regent regarding the necessity to obtain our own visas for Indonesia on this cruise. Using Regent’s recommended provider, VisaCentral, I have been having some difficulty with one of ours.

 

Using VisaCentral, the Traveller is required to input and download all required information, including a passport scan/photo. (I’m not sure exactly what VisaCentral adds to this process). One of our passports was accepted after a few attempts and a visa issued.  However, the other passport scan keeps getting rejected - each time it takes a few more days to receive the rejection notice. The reasons given are lack of clarity, glare, cropping, etc. Visacentral recommended having the passport scanned at a copy shop, which we did, but still it keeps getting rejected.  Has anyone had a similar issue and/or any advice as to how to proceed?  Perhaps, there is another service where we (reluctantly) hand over the passport and let them obtain the visa? Thanks so much for any advice! 

[Pudgesmom]

We will be leaving next week for Bali for a chartered cruise on Ponant. Our tour company has recommended the “visa on arrival” in lieu of getting one ahead of time. It’s $35 and can be paid in US cash.

[mmcguir]

Ah, thanks,  That makes sense but Regent was pretty explicit in its communications. We’re concerned that we may not be permitted to board the ship without the prior-issued visa.  This from the Regent email:

 

The Indonesia e-VOA is a single-entry visa valid for ninety (90) days from the date of issue and allows guests to stay in the country for up to thirty (30) days.  The e-VOA is mandatory for all non-exempt guests arriving by air or sea.  Guests in transit (arriving and leaving Indonesia with the ship) are required to secure the e-VOA prior to embarkation, even if they plan on staying onboard while in Indonesian ports.

….It is the responsibility of all guests to obtain the necessary documents in advance of sailing.  Failure to produce the correct documentation at embarkation may result in denial of boarding and be subject to full cancellation penalties.

 

[mrlevin]

Why don't you get to the Indonesian Consulate in New York City:

 

https://kemlu.go.id/newyork/en/kontak-kami

 

I have found best to go to consulates (when convenient) than using mail order or online.

 

Marc

[crispy46]

Info is very conflicting…some sites say none required for US passport holders. Cruise line …so far…is saying we do. !!!!!!

[Stefken]

We are on this cruise, RSSC sent us the information needed to apply for Indonesia Visa ourselves. We had already done it ourselves, but the information from RSSC was the same we used. It worked.

 

we were also told, we had to have the Indonesia Visa when boarding the ship.so to get the visa on arrival is not an option

 

there is another thread for this cruise, it may help you to apply for your own. As a poster on the thread has uploaded the RSSC information.

 

hope this helps. 🛳🛳🛳🛳🛳

Edited October 11, 2023 by Stefken
Added info pic

[tobewan]

Our friends used the online Indonesia eVOA form successfully.  There was some issue with it accepting their photos but they got the visas and printed them out okay.  (Note: the PDF visa file is formatted for 8.5x14" so be sure to scale it to fit the paper you use - 8.5x11 here in US.)   There is some discussion about it on the REGENT SEVEN SEAS NAVIGATOR group on Facebook.

[TheShag]

i am on this cruise and gave up trying it myself and used [reluctantly!] VisaCentral. They got it after a couple of tries. I found that taking a picture of my passport while it was on a table created glare, etc. that was unacceptable. You may try holding the passport vertically [can't believe one has to go through these gynmastics!] See you on board [hopefully] - Stefken and I will be the ones drinking Vesper Martinis!! 🍸🍸By the way, there is a roll call for this cruise as well you may wish to check out.

[GoNavyFamily]

We got our visas through the government web site directly, and here is the link: https://molina.imigrasi.go.id/.  I suggest you try that for the one you still need to get before giving up. A tip is to set up an account first, which makes the process much easier.  Also note that the picture you upload of the person applying must be within a certain pixel size, so a photo you take may need to be resized before submitting.

 

Also, those who stated Regent requires a visa before boarding and so you can't try the Visa on Arrival do not understand how that works.  If you are flying into Denpasar airport, you can get your visa at the airport and it will be issued immediately.  So you WILL have the visa when you get to the ship.  You may have to wait in a line at the airport, and you need to have all the documentation required (passports, your cruise confirmation to show where you are going, etc).  See the airport link to get full information and search on other sites for same: https://www.bali-airport.com/en/international-flight/index/what-is-lorem-ipsum-2

 

Hope this helps!

 

 

[flossie009]

On 10/11/2023 at 2:36 PM, mmcguir said:

Ah, thanks,  That makes sense but Regent was pretty explicit in its communications. We’re concerned that we may not be permitted to board the ship without the prior-issued visa.  This from the Regent email:

 

The Indonesia e-VOA is a single-entry visa valid for ninety (90) days from the date of issue and allows guests to stay in the country for up to thirty (30) days.  The e-VOA is mandatory for all non-exempt guests arriving by air or sea.  Guests in transit (arriving and leaving Indonesia with the ship) are required to secure the e-VOA prior to embarkation, even if they plan on staying onboard while in Indonesian ports.

….It is the responsibility of all guests to obtain the necessary documents in advance of sailing.  Failure to produce the correct documentation at embarkation may result in denial of boarding and be subject to full cancellation penalties.

 

Regent are probably advising against the "visa on arrival" because you are arriving in Indonesia by ship rather than into the international airport.

 

[samiam99]

On 10/12/2023 at 8:07 AM, TheShag said:

i am on this cruise and gave up trying it myself and used [reluctantly!] VisaCentral. They got it after a couple of tries. I found that taking a picture of my passport while it was on a table created glare, etc. that was unacceptable. You may try holding the passport vertically [can't believe one has to go through these gynmastics!] See you on board [hopefully] - Stefken and I will be the ones drinking Vesper Martinis!! 🍸🍸By the way, there is a roll call for this cruise as well you may wish to check out.

vesper martini, I may have to try one, see you on board. 

[Stefken]

1 hour ago, samiam99 said:

vesper martini, I may have to try one, see you on board. 

Hi, see you on board. It should be a great cruise, already lovely people on this thread.

 

Safe travels 🛳🛳🛳🛳🛳🛳 40 days to go 🛳🛳🛳🛳🛳🛳

[forevertravel]

On our Singapore to Sydney cruise last December Regent got us the Indonesia visa. They sent us email about visa and stated we could get it ourselves or through them. We opted to let them do it. They originally said the visa was $90/pp but they ended up only charging us $35. It was very easy. Maybe they don't get the visas themselves any longer.

[TheShag]

1 hour ago, forevertravel said:

On our Singapore to Sydney cruise last December Regent got us the Indonesia visa. They sent us email about visa and stated we could get it ourselves or through them. We opted to let them do it. They originally said the visa was $90/pp but they ended up only charging us $35. It was very easy. Maybe they don't get the visas themselves any longer.

That is correct. It is up to the passenger to get the visa now. When we booked this trip in January, a $50 fee was collected for the visa. They advised us midway through the year to look after ourselves. I imagine this will be the case going forward for all Indonesian visas.

[Moosemarty]

On 10/13/2023 at 12:25 PM, samiam99 said:

vesper martini, I may have to try one, see you on board. 

Our travel agent got our visa using scans of our passport and picture.

[mmcguir]

Thanks for the responses. Just to follow up, we were never successful with VisaCentral but were able to obtain the visa through Balivisas.com  You exchange info and docs via email (12-hour time difference from US east coast), pay a small fee through PayPal and they make it work pretty easily.