Visas

[pipster37]

Do you need a visa to go to Brazil? Is a valid passport not enough? :)

[Druke I]

US citizens must have a Brazilian Visa to enter Brazil, and they (the Brazilians) are very fussy about that.

 

Case in point: Mar 98, on a Royal Princess cruise, Buenos Aires to Barcelona, with two in-transit stops in Brazil, a party of 5 was denied boarding in Buenos Aires, as they did not have Brazilian Visas.

 

I later asked a ship's officer about that, and he stated that Brazil might have levied a fine against the ship for transporting undocumented persons into the country, and that Brazil might have not allowed any other passengers ashore. That we were in-transit had no bearing on the issue.

 

We've been to Brazil twice, and both times we were pre-warned by Princess that Brazilian Visas were required. The first trip, for an Amazon cruise in 1991, we went to the Brazilian Consulate in San Francisco for our Visas. The 2nd time we used a Visa service, which was much simpler (and more expensive).

[arzz]

You definitely need a visa to go to Brazil. To make it more difficult, there are very specific rules about the timing between the purchase of the visa and when it is valid -- if you purchase your visa too early you will not be able to use it -- wait too long and you will not have your passport back in time to travel. Best and least expensive way to acquire a visa is through a Brazilian consulate if you have one near by. Otherwise you can use a visa service. When we traveled on HAL early this year, HAL had an arrangement with a Visa service that provided the visas in a timely manner to those passengers who were willing to pay a bit extra. You need to find out what Azamara will or will not do for you here.

 

If your ship goes to Brazil and you do not have a visa before you travel you will, in all probability, be denied boarding.

[Hlitner]

I agree with the above post. Getting a Visa to Brazil is one of those experiences that one does not want to repeat. They make it difficult and/or expensive. The Visa costs about $100 ($110 if you use a Visa service) if you present yourselves in person at a Brazilian consulate. You need to have your valid passport, proof of your transportation into and out of Brazil (more on this later), and a US Postal Money Order made payable to the Brazilain Consulate (exact instructions can be found on the Brazilian consulate web site). They are always changing their rules, but the last we heard they refuse to issue the Visa on the day you apply. You need to return on either the following day or several days later (it seems to depend on which consulate) and they have very specific time frames during the say when you can apply and pick up the Visas. We had a major problem with the Washington DC consulate last winter when we were taking a 14 day Celebrity Infinity cruise round trip from Buenos Aires (it had several Brazilian stops). We had all the cruise documents but the consulate insisted on proof and exact flight information for our flight home from Argentina (hard to understand why they care). We had to fight with Celebrity to get that information faxed to the Brazilian Consulate. The interesting thing is that once you have the Visa, its good for unlimited visits for 5 years (this is for US Citizens) without any further proof of anything! The Deputy Consul in DC told us the reason they are so picky is primarily in retalitation for the difficult Visa procedures imposed on Brazilian citizens by the USA. You must use the Visa (for the first time) within 90 days of issue or it immediately expires...and you cannot apply prior to that 90 day period. An alternative way to get the Visa (its a lot easier) is to use a decent Visa service such as Zierer. However, it is not cheap as they will charge you $110 for each Visa plus their fee (usually about $55 per person) plus another $20 or so for postage..hence a pair of Visas will cost you around $350 as opposed to $200 if you get it in person.

 

Hank

[cujosmom]

You need to find out what Azamara will or will not do for you here.

 

I booked direct with Celebrity/Azamara and have made countless changes to my booking with them emailing me a new confirmation each time. NOT ONCE has an agent told me a visa was required for our sailing nor is it printed on the confirmations I receive. I wonder how many people will show up to board and be denied due to a lack of the visa.

[WCAB]

That would be horrible to pay and plan a cruise and not be able to go because you were not informed you needed a visa. Thank goodness for this board.

 

Carol

[ocngypz]

I booked direct with Celebrity/Azamara and have made countless changes to my booking with them emailing me a new confirmation each time. NOT ONCE has an agent told me a visa was required for our sailing nor is it printed on the confirmations I receive. I wonder how many people will show up to board and be denied due to a lack of the visa.

 

 

All the more reason to use a qualified travel agent. And you also need to watch Yellow Fever vaccine requirements not only of Brazil, but of the other countries on your itineraries. While you MAY not need the vaccine for your portion of Brazil, other countries require you have it if you have visited Brazil.

 

Always for exotic itineraries consult your particular Department of State, Consular office and foreign travel clinics.