{"id":19683,"date":"2015-10-29T17:35:09","date_gmt":"2015-10-29T23:35:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/?p=19683"},"modified":"2022-05-24T04:39:52","modified_gmt":"2022-05-24T08:39:52","slug":"navigating-your-way-through-visa-requirements","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/2015\/10\/navigating-your-way-through-visa-requirements\/","title":{"rendered":"Navigating Your Way Through Visa Requirements"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I haven\u2019t written a lot here lately, for the simple reason that I\u2019m spending an unusually lengthy amount of time researching my upcoming cruise with Viking River Cruises<\/a><\/strong> that will take me through the heart of Myanmar<\/strong>, formerly known as Burma<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unlike a lot of countries I\u2019ve travelled to, I\u2019m starting with a completely blank slate as far as Myanmar goes. When I booked this trip this summer, I did so without knowing the basic entry and exit requirements. I didn\u2019t research the vaccinations I may or may not need. And I certainly couldn\u2019t make logical sense of our cruise tour stops and ports of call.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To aid me in that respect, I went out and purchased two guide books on Myanmar, and one guide to local customs and culture (under the Culture Smart! <\/em>Moniker; check them out \u2013 they\u2019re tremendously helpful).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was only one thing that stood between me and the bliss of exotic Myanmar: I needed a Tourist Visa<\/strong> for my passport. And getting one wasn\u2019t quite as easy as I\u2019d hoped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Not<\/a>
Not only will you need some blank passport pages for your exotic river cruise…you might also need a tourist visa. Photo \u00a9 2014 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re curious as to whether you need a visa for a particular country or not, visit your local government website; they\u2019ll typically have travel information published there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Up until about a year ago, the only way to get a tourist visa for Myanmar was to mail your passport in to your nearest Myanmar embassy, or to use the (expensive) services of a visa procurer, which still requires sending your passport in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, the Government of Myanmar has set up an e-Visa service for tourists, eliminating the need to send your passport anywhere. For $50 USD, you\u2019re issued with a document to print out and bring with you to present to customs and immigration upon arrival in one of three Burmese gateways: Yangon International Airport, Mandalay International Airport<\/strong>, or Nay Pyi Taw International Airport. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Viking's<\/a>
Viking’s Myanmar Explorer river cruise tour takes us deep into the heart of Myanmar, formerly known as Burma. Illustration courtesy of Viking River Cruises<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s the truth: I hate handing my passport over for the purposes of a visa. Because of my packed travel schedule, sometimes it\u2019s just not possible \u2013 but I was really running the clock out on my visa. I have, after all, just 22 days before I fly to Thailand to start my Viking cruise tour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the end, I received my e-visa by email this morning. But it got me thinking: which countries, commonly visited by river cruises, offer an e-Visa service?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Myanmar<\/a>
Myanmar recently launched a new e-Visa service for travellers.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s what I discovered. Please note this chart is only applicable for Canadians and permanent residents of the United States. Citizens of other countries should check with their local consulate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
COUNTRY<\/B><\/th>TOURIST VISA REQUIRED FOR US \/ CANADIAN CITIZENS? <\/B><\/th>E-VISA OPTION?<\/B><\/th>CONDITIONS<\/B><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
AFRICA (including South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe)<\/B><\/td>Single-entry tourist visa required for Zimbabwe (Victoria Falls) only. Can be purchased in advance or upon entry. <\/td>YES<\/A><\/td>Min. 6 month passport validity; two blank facing passport pages free.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
CAMBODIA<\/B><\/td>Yes.
\nCan be purchased in advance, upon arrival (Siem Reap and Phnom Penh Airports only), or online.<\/td>		YES<\/A><\/td>Tourist visa on arrival must be paid in USD cash only. $30. <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
CHINA<\/B><\/td>Yes<\/td>No.<\/td>Visa not required for passengers on connecting flights through China. <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
EGYPT<\/B><\/td>Yes<\/td>No.<\/td>Visa-on-arrival exists for many airports, but consulates advise getting the visa before leaving home to avoid issues.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
MYANMAR<\/B><\/td>Yes<\/td>YES<\/a><\/td>Min. 6 month passport validity. <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
RUSSIA<\/B><\/td>Yes - and it gets complicated very quickly.
\nFor Canadians, click here.<\/a>
\nFor Americans, click here.<\/a><\/td>		No.
\n<\/td>		There are over 80 different kinds of Russian visas available for US citizens alone; you may wish to use a visa service for this one!<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
THAILAND<\/B><\/td>No<\/td><\/td><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
VIETNAM<\/B><\/td>Yes<\/td>Maybe? Some services purport to offer this, but we'd recommend getting a physical one before leaving home.<\/td> Both Canadian and U.S. Consulates warn of the proliferation of fake e-visa and visa services for Vietnam; use only official embassy services. <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n\n

So learn from my adventure: when you\u2019re booking a river cruise, make sure you research the entry and exit requirements thoroughly. Check it against your schedule, and determine if you can afford to be without your passport for two to three weeks sometime between your booking date and your departure date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, of course, sail on \u2013 and have fun!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"CroisiEurope's<\/a>
Sunset on the Mekong River. Photo \u00a9 2013 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Our Voyage Report from Myanmar aboard Viking River Cruises\u2019 Viking Mandalay<\/strong> begins in November – stay tuned!
<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I haven\u2019t written a lot here lately, for the simple reason that I\u2019m spending an unusually lengthy amount of time researching my upcoming cruise with Viking River Cruises that will take me through the heart of Myanmar, formerly known as Burma. Unlike a lot of countries I\u2019ve travelled to, I\u2019m starting with a completely blank […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":19684,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[278,319],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19683"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19683"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19683\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19684"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19683"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19683"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}