getting visa if coming from thailand

redrooster

i'm a u.s. citizen, and i need to get a tourist visa to india, but first i'm planning on going to thailand, traveling around, and then flying to delhi. so i don't have any ticket to india yet. i was hoping to purchase that in bangkok.

can i get a visa in the u.s. before i leave if i don't have ticket to india, or can i take care of that in thailand? i also don't have a reference in india, which is listed on the visa application. will that be a problem? thanks.

Bryan

Be aware that the visa starts from the day of issue rather than day of entry
You can pick up a visa in a couple of days in Bangkok without a problem

I've never been asked to show a ticket for arrival or an onward ticket for any Asian country so if you're planning on doing the 6 months in india get the visa in Bangkok

Hope that helps
Bryan

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Bonita

HI there. If you can and have time in the States, i would say do get your visa to India beforheand, just to save your time in thailand for travel and be done with it... You can get a visa for India without a ticket, nor do you need to write a refernce..In the US, you can easily get a one year mulitple entry visa(i do not know what you need), and yes, the visa will start from the date of issue..About the refernce section, do not worry...It just asks for one on the form, well, formalities. It is not a requirement.! You can always just write Ganesh Sharma or something, but better leave it blank..Also, IF you are really pressed, can just write a name of a hotel.....OH, for your info, you can find relatively cheap one-way tickets from Bangkok to Delhi, and yes, worse comes to worse you can definately get your Indian visa IN thailand..I have done it on a few occasions, but there are so so so many public holidays in thailand, that it soemtimes seriously holds up the visa processing process..oh, in the usa there are excellent visa processing ceners, that can do all the logistics for you in a accelerated-hassel free fashion, (without even going to the INDIAN consulate)..I know a great place in NYC, So if you want the contact, let me know..Also, if you plan to stay in thailand longer then a month, you might consider getting a Thai visa also beforehand. You can certainley get a one month(30 day) free visa in Bangkok on arrival, but if you are planning on staying in the Kingdom longer than that, you should probably sort it out in advance, as it is quite a haphazard to extend the 30 day on arrival, as if you do, u can only do so for about two weeks and at a big cost, and then if you want longer than that, you will be fined at the immigaration leaving the country....namaste and sawadee ka...

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salima

hi-
i am in bangkok now. i applied for a five year visa (i am an american citizen) but they told me at the embassy that no one gets more than a six month visa from bangkok. also the deal is you bring a copy of your passport, the passport, and two passport photos of yourself; go to the embassy between 9 am and noon and fill out the application, pay (3100 bahts, which are close to rupees in value) then you have to come back in four working days. i have to go back tuesday the 17th, i will let you know if the visa is really there for me. i hope so because my plane leaves the next day.

in the meantime, it has been the queen's birthday, and the embassy was open that day-so i hope whatever they are doing isnt slowed down because of that.

also, an american citizen needs no visa to come to thailand as long as they leave within 30 days. bangkok is clean and safe and modern and a wonderful place if you want to eat meat and fish, get drunk, and get a two hour massage...i just hope i get my visa on tuesday...

good luck, and so far that is all i know...

picklepak

I can highly recommend the Indian Embassy in Laos, just next door. The Ambassador in Vientiane is a friendly, happy man and he seems to like having visitors. Much like the rest of Laos. From North to South, beautiful country and beautiful people, with more dusty roads and incredible Lao-French-Thai-Vietnamese food and snacks. Check it out - and you can even fly out from several places, if you so wish. Like a quiet India, undiscovered.

salima

thanks picklepak-i never would have thought of laos...
what has been your experience, how long did it take and what kind of visa did they give you? and what is the cost of living and safety level in laos compared to bangkok?
salima

wonderwomanusa

On the other hand, it's still possible to get a 10-year visa (though you still must leave and re-enter after six months) in the USA.

Bryan

Laos is an amazing country
Very chilled out and less $$$ orientated than Thailand...Nice place to spend a couple of months and then trip over to india

Laos is ultra safe just like the rest of Asia
Can I just state for the record here that Asia as a continent is ultra safe and over years of travelling there and my partner also travelling there both seperatly we've never felt as safe as we fell in Asia

So please everyone stop worrying about safety
Don't believe the media hype that the world is dangerous

Sorry for the rant

As for cost of living Laos is the cheapest in SEA and only slightly higher than India ...so much much cheaper than Thailand

Bryan

picklepak

I believe it took one or two days, but mind their operating hours as you can only pickup your passport in the mornings. I just got a standard 6-mth tourist visa, not sure if other options are available.

Laos is one of the poorest countries in the world economically, but also one of the richest in many other ways. Cost of living two years ago was the same or lower than India, and the hotels tend to be more upscale and cleaner for the same price. The only exception is in the capital city of Vientiane, where it's expensive... hotels quote in $USD and the average cheap hotel is $10, with $5 hotels being hard to find two years ago. A two-hour trip north to Vang Vieng puts you back in the heartland, though.

It's worth at least a few weeks of your time, and ideally a few months. I recommend entering via Chiang Khong in far northern Thailand. From there you can take a slow boat down the Mekong River for two days until you reach Luang Prabang, an international historic site and one of the nicest places I've ever visited.

Lao people are fantastically friendly and kind, the only barrier is the language. Many people don't speak much English, but if you speak French you can still find some older folks to converse with.

redrooster

okay, to add to my original post...i've now made it to thailand. as for getting an indian visa for an american citizen, people are saying it ranges from 1 to 4 days. does anyone know where you go to get a visa in 1 or 2 days in bangkok? if you go to the embassy it seems like it'd probably take 4-5 days.

frankie

Hi,

I'm planning a trip to India via Thailand and wish to get my visa for India when I'm in Bangkok. Can anyone tell me where the Indian embassy is in Bangkok as I've had difficulty finding it on the internet and I'm not sure the information I have is correct.

Many thanks.

salima

hi-
if i remember right, it is on soi 23...all the embassies seem to be clustered together. it is on a lovely little sidestreet, with a big red iron gate and you go in from the side sort of...

the wonderful thing about bangkok was that the cabbies know where everything is, and in fact everybody knows where everything is, and everyone is honest and you dont have to worry about getting in a cab and saying 'take me to the indian embassy' because you will get there for the right fare.

on the way there is an internet cafe that serves lunch-if you like indian food, say hi to the people there from the american lady who wears a saree and used to have lunch every day waiting for my passport.

also, the embassy says to come back in four business days to pick up your passport-i dont think there is a faster way, unless you 'know somebody' who knows somebody at the embassy. later, the people in the indian restaurant (after they got to know me better) told me they could have gotten it back for me in one day. but sometimes people say those things and it isnt true...

and picklepak, now that i am still waiting for my papers to be done between bangalore and delhi, and i realize it may mean i have to get another visa in february-what is the deal with laos compared to bangkok as far as the getting there from india? i took a really expensive plane to thailand, and if i have to do this again i am going to have to do a train. what is the getting around town in laos like using cabs? and now that i think of it, what is the name of the city in laos that the embassy would be in? (good thing i forgot my geography, they keep changing all the names of countries and inventing new ones since i was a kid anyway)
salima