Is that true for Mexico as well? My tourist card cost 290 pesos (~$23) on a USA passport. Just curious.

I am from Austria, Europe :-)

Thanks, Sjoerd Bakker. Any advice helps! I guess I will get the hang of it ... it's just a lot to take in. :-) BTW, I am from Austria, Europe.

got to www.visahq.com....enter your country (austria) and where you normally live and then the countries you want to enter and it will tell you if visas are required and if so how much they are, they should be the same price at the borders as you ride thru

That's a great website. Thank you so much! :D Now I know that I don't need a tourist visa for any of the places I want to go to. Is there anything like this to check if I need transit visas?

when you say transit visa do you mean for importing the bike and related fees? if so i can't think of one off hand, maybe someone else has a site with info, i did a search but couldn't find one...mexico is the only place thats requires a large refundable deposit, their kind of version of a carnet i guess, but nowhere in Ca or Sa is a carnet required that i have traveled thru

Yeah, that's what I meant by transit visa. Fees for you and your bike, carnets etc. when you take a road in instead of coming by plane ... there's just so many fees to pay. Do you know if the import fee for the mc is refundable everywhere? Some people say yes, others say no.

I also wonder if these fees are totally random depending on who you deal with. You say Mexico charged a large deposit. I found a site that says it's about $50, but Guatemala and Honduras were expensive to get in and out of ... very bizarre. This is the website I am talking about:

Central America By Motorcycle: Border Crossings

so what is it that makes all the difference? corrupt border officials???

mexico charges you a refundable deposit, they keep about 10% approx, not sure on the exact figures...i was charged differently coming in from guatemale to mexico than i was heading south from texas to mexico...once my money clears i can give you a figure for sure

belize has no entry fee but has a $30 exit fee, and some people have also been charged a $5 government fee and/ or a cleansing fee

again email me a about a week and i can tell you for sure

the link you sent is BS, i read a few lines and closed it, the information for one thing is 3 years old and that guy was taken to the cleaners, he was scammed everywhere it sounds like, i never had some those fees and have never heard of anyone else having them either, you don't need a helper at any border really, just use quieter border, borders not on the pan american highway are best...there are some fees, search for a thread about border crossings and 'john downs' specifically lists each one and fees, most are just a few dollars upto maybe $30

unless you are paying and getting a reciept or a stamp in your passport then question it

Sorry about that. We've been fighting spam pretty hard, and it seems having a "real" name limits the spam accounts a lot.

I understand not wanting to use your real name, you can just use two words seperated by a space. Ie you could be "e innocent".

Also, you don't have to make an account to contribute, you can just click "Edit" anywhere on the entire site and change anything that needs changing.

Thanks for any contributions!

-Dan

Thanks for a great post John... Cheers...

The guy in that link was scammed unbelieveably badly, ignore his description.

I can give current info on USA-Mexico and Mexico-Guatemala crossings and 6 year old info on the rest of CA.

USA-Mex: I was charged $290 pesos, 23USD, for my tourist card. In Mexico you get a form with a stamp showing your port of entry to keep with your passport. I put this charge on my credit card right at the issuing office. For the bike they charged my credit card 3,2xx pesos, 254USD, which included the non refundable fee for the bike permit, and the refundable deposit. This was in Nuevo Laredo. When I exited at La Mesilla Guatemala, they refunded 202 USD to my credit card, so the cost of the permit was $52. Mexico used to have a different system of deposit, but now they hit your credit card for $200 for bikes 2000 and older, $300 for 2001-2007, and $400 for 2007 and newer. The refund was trouble free and very professionally handled. Under the old system the permit cost $32, so this has gone up quite a bit in the last year or so.

For Guatemala, I got a stamp in my passport for free, which is my only visa, no seperate document. Bike permit cost 160 Quetzales, or $21., paid at the bank office within steps of the aduana where I filled out the form. You will need some Quetzales to pay for this, as they only accept moneda nacional. There are money changers there, but know the exchange rate before hand and expect them to get 2% to change money, if you use them.

Reply here or PM me if you want 2006 info on the rest of CA, I won't go into that now as some is probably obsolete.

I took a look at that site, punched in my nationality, USA passport visiting Mexico for an example, and it says no visa required. I think it is just saying you don't need to apply in advance, because I have always in 12 or so crossings, had to obtain and pay for a tourist permit, but it is issued at the border with no advance permission. So just because it says no visa required, doesn't mean it is free crossing.

repurchasing temporary import visa?
 

does anyone know if you have to turn in your temporary import visa on your bike in guatemala if you are coming back that way or do you have to repurchase it on your way back, thanks!

No you don't have to.
 

Provided you come back before it expires you only need to notify customs office at the border.:thumbup1:

+ 1 on what richsuz said about the Guatemala TVIP

DO be careful not to misplace or lose that or any other document, .
Not finding these papers is a guarantee for a long delay at the customs
office on the return trip.

A bit of a headsup for the eventual return to Mexico Babbalouiex . Since you left
Mexico at an unstaffed border crossing you probably still have both your Mexican. Tourist Card and TVIP . The TVIP will not create a problem because
you would have been allowed to keep it for the return trip on Mexico.
With luck and an understanding border worker your UNCANCELLED Tourist Card
also may be overlooked . Really, when crossing into Central America the Tourist Card must be cancelled and you should have had an Exit Stamp placed in
your passport below the Entry stamp of this trip when you crossed from
the USA..
Basically you are all set for the return through Mexico so when coming back to Mexico simply ride your bike
right through the border facility, show your documents if asked but
don't volunteer any information .At least you should have some
benefit from crossing out at the unguarded border .
Remember to cancel the MEXICAN TVIP before heading back into theUSA,
and be sure to get your bond refund........OR.....
If you sailed past blithely and avoided all the required customs processe when you first
entered Mexico from the USA then you will have to get the Mexican Tourist Card andTVIP and pay
the refundable security deposiit.
And take note, depending on where you cross to the USA you may
be able to that cancel and refund performed at a customs terminal/ checkpoint
many km before the actual border crossing in a city. Pay attention .