quick cheap visa run: what to do?

*jyoti*

Hey, guys! I'm looking to do a quick, cheap, safe visa run to Nepal. I and some friends had train tickets booked to Siliguri and were going to simply cross the border there. I got to the train station last night, and the train was cancelled!! Because of flooding apparently. Now my friends have decided to do something else, so whatever I do I'll be traveling alone.

Siliguri option:
What is the feasability of even getting to Siliguri, either by direct train or train to Kolkata and then bus to Siliguri, with the flooding? Am I going to just get stuck again if I try that route?

Is it a safe place for a female who has traveled in India a lot to be by herself?

Delhi option:
there is a place to cross just east of Delhi. Does anyone know what the actual name of the border crossing is? And how to get there and back?

Sri Lanka:
My other option is to fly from Sri Lanka. I am not sure of the safety in going there though. It seems to be getting worse.

I have a month before I have to leave but, considering these plans fell thru, it's better to get it done! My budget is tight so flying to Thailand or Kathmandu not an option, really, unless absolutely necessary.

Any advice?

*jyoti*

bump.

zoltan

Rather than fly to Sri Lanka (given the tension there at the moment) and if you have some $ to spare, why not get yourself to Varanasi & fly to Nepal from there ?

There's also the possibility of getting a visa in Bangladesh. Closer than Nepal... Any queries relating to a visa in B/desh should be referred to Mahmud who would have first-hand (and local) knowledge about how likely you are to get a visa approved there.

Cheers
Zoltan

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machadinha

Regarding Siliguri, I'd be more worried about the current unrest there, & how this might reflect on your local transport options if nothing else. There are frequent and prolonged bandhs in the area now. I don't think it'd be very unsafe at any other time no, although I don't know anything about the West Bengal border crossing & that general route involved. Siliguri itself I found somewhat sinister and gloomy, but it was drizzling and cold when I was there, won't have improved my impressions of the place. Others seem to report similarly though, and few seem to find it particularly cheery. That doesn't mean it has to be unsafe as such; just not a very cheerful place. I felt it's very much a sprawling industrial and business and transport hub for the wider region, with little of an identity of its own, which will reflect on the local "feel" and social infrastructure I guess. It reminded me of lost trade towns in the Andes (although this is in the plains). Depressing in a way.

But unsafe for someone traveling through? No, why would it be, few places in India are. Except for current conditions then.

On that unrest, see for instance Tourists attacked with iron rods - Darjeeling Hills & Dooers , there are other threads on the situation.

For a description of the Varanasi and Delhi overland routes to Kathmandu, try this, and remember it doesn't have to be fully up-to-date: http://www.seat61.com/Nepal.htm

On getting a new visa in Kathmandu, you may find this thread helpful: My stay in Kathmandu for Visa 25.12.06 - 3.12.06 . There are some recent reports towards the end of that thread too, not all of them very hopeful I'm afraid. But anyway, good luck with it and I think you have some experience with it already anyway; do let us know about your experiences after your return.

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*jyoti*

Right now the plan is to go to Gorakhpur in the hopes that I am less likely to be stalled again by flooding, then cross the border from Sunauli (spelling?)--bus or jeep to the border, walk across. I'm hoping to get back to India side and spend the night in India.

I don't need to apply for a visa. I have a 10 year tourist visa. i only need to leave the country and get the stamp that I've left, as I'm near my 180 days. Not over yet, but close enough I'd rather make sure I don't cut it too close.

Mickey S

Then it's not really a "visa run", is it?

If you'd provided this information in your original post you might have received more relevant (and helpful) replies.

*jyoti*

I didn't mean to imply the posts were unhelpful, as I really appreciated machaindia and zoltan's replies... as I have to leave the country, regardless of whether that includes applying for a new visa or just getting it stamped, the information was quite relevant. The information about the unrest at siliguri was especially helpful as I've been having a hard time finding good info about what's going on.

I haven't considered Bangladesh as I've heard that they are more likely to cause problems at the border for getting back into India after staying such a short amount of time. Train would also mean trying to get thru crowded West Bengal, which was the problem in the first place. Nepal seems more used to this sort of thing, and Sri Lanka is an option but safety is an issue.

If I were going to fly, I'd go to Thailand. From Bangalore it's the same price as Nepal, but since I only need to cross a border it seems like a waste to go that far.

madman16m

Is Bhutan an option that you considered?

Mickey S

I didn't suggest that you had implied the posts were unhelpful.

But the title of the thread includes the words "visa run", and nowhere in your enquiry did you say that you have a long-term visa and only wanted to cross the border and come back. Had you done so, then I'm sure that several people would have suggested suitable border crossings; as it is, everyone seems to have assumed (quite reasonably) that you needed to get a new visa.

It is important to provide all relevant information when asking a question on IndiaMike (or any forum). The people that did reply obviously went to trouble to do so but their information turned out to be irrelevant to your situation.

machadinha

Well, while I've never done it myself (nor even visited Nepal ever), I take it the Delhi-Kathmandu route (i.e. the Gorakhpur-Sunauli/Bhairawa crossing) (or Sonauli or whatever, spelling options as so often seem to be legion; I take it from Varanasi one likewise crosses over here btw) should be pretty straightforward and used by many, so it would seem like a fair bet to me. I suppose it may involve one night at either side of the border yes, I'm really not sure.

The precise conditions of that (US, I presume?) 10-year visa are forever beyond me, but if it's true that it means you only need to get it stamped and can carry on your ways, then obviously this would save you from worrying about the seemingly ever-unclear back-to-back visas situation. It would be nice if you could report back on this after you're done, i.e., if it's really still that simple for you guys. Maybe add your experiences to that Kathmandu visa thread above, and make sure to specify that that's the kind of visa you're referring to; (almost) no one else in the world can get such a visa.

So -- good luck with it, and have a safe journey

ps Madman, I think Bhutan would be very expensive for non-Indians so it's not really an option just for this purpose. We can only go there on all-inclusive tours, at a (very) high daily rate (US$ 200 per day or so), as far as I know.

zoltan

B/desh is an easy place to get in/out of.

The immigration staff (when I was there) were exceptionally helpful.

A B/desh visa will take around 5 days to obtain in Kolkata and you can fly from Kolkata to Dhaka for around US$100.

Personally, I think that the Bhutan option is expensive at US$200 per day.

Cheers
Zoltan

*jyoti*

Booked rail tickets this morning to Gorakhpur. Will let you all know how it works out!

As for the ten year visa:
The visa is good for 10 years but one can only stay in the country continually for 180 days. Technically that is without registering, but they don't generally let tourists register and instead tell you to leave. Technically, all I have to do is leave the country and get a new entry stamp that starts my 180 days over again. In reality, this sometimes raises questions from immigration, or so I've heard--which is, admittedly, far less trouble than having to get a new visa. Occasionally, I've heard, they will tell you at the border that you have to spend the night, which isn't actually true and is more often related to the border guard getting a commission. All my other trips out corresponded well with other places I needed to be, so I was always out a month or more. This is the first time I only need to cross and come back.

I guess since few people have long term visas like this, those people I know who do have to leave just to "restart" the visa still refer to this as a "visa run." But, yes, it's a little different from those who have to get a new visa itself. I guess someone will have to coin a new term for those of us who only have to cross the border.... a "visa jump start"?? :P

*jyoti*

p.s. thanks zoltan! I'll try Bangladesh someday--maybe when I have more time to hang out there for a couple days and make it worth the trip. :P That 5 days waiting for a visa is too much for lazy me just now.