Venezuela & Visa
 

Hey gang!

Currently I am in Sao Luis, Brasil and plan to reach Belem this week where I will ferry me and my bike to Manaus for Carnaval and then drive North into Venezuela shortly thereafter. Two questions...

- Do I need a visa to enter Venezuela and if so could I get this in Manaus? And if so is it difficult or does it take long?

- Anyone else nearby want to meet up enroute?

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-Daryl

Visas are not required for US citizens.

A helpful bookmark:
http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/...ures_1229.html

I got confused by this statement on the lonely planet website...

'US nationals, Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders, UK nationals, South Africans and most western and Scandinavian Europeans do not require a visa if they fly directly to Venezuela. All foreigners entering Venezuela by land require a valid visa; get one before you leave for South America.'

...at...

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldgui...tial?a=borders


Is this a farce?

A friend and I entered Venezuela from Brazil without visas in April 05. A third had a visa, having read the Lonely Planet advice, but it was not required ... there was some speculation that it's up to the immigration officer handling your papers.

There's a Venezuelan consulate in Boa Vista, address 657 Benjamin Constant. Good place to check & make your decision.

If you're looking for lodging in Belem, Zoghbi Hotel at about $20 US a nite offers a large room with cable TV and secure garage parking. It's about three blocks from the main central park & the Hilton Hotel. Seemed to be the best downtown option w/parking. Enjoy ~~

Hey Darrel,
sorry can't help you with the visa thing, I have a work visa here in Ve...but if you end up in Puerto la Cruz, near Isla Margarita, drop me a line. I'm planning on heading to Brazil in a bit, so wouldn't mind hearing your stories.
Cheers
Susan

Darrell,
I'm Australian and didn't need a Venezuelan Visa. I've found that Lonely Planet's fairly inaccurate or out of date about a lot of things in South America so it's always worth double-checking their info.

And G'day Susan!

Grant

In summer of 2005 I traveled from Manaus to Venezuela. I didn't need a visa but a touristcard/entrycard. That card you can get at the Venezuelan consulate in Boa Vista. NOT AT THE BORDER!!! Be sure you are early at the border because you have to go to the nearby town (15 km) for policeregistration and than back to the border for the paperwork of your bike.

Hi,

I (dutch) did not need a visa or a tourist-card in advance crossing from Colombia into Venezuela.
But for the bike it takes a lot of paperwork and, like mart says, you need to enter Venezuela (with bike) go to a "trafic" office and return to the border to get the right papers.
It took so long that I spend the night back in Colombia.
No one seemed to mind me crossing back without any pperwork done the next day.

Then leaving Venezuela to Brasil I did not "export" the bike.... and could enter later without any paperwork.

very easy going, but lots of red tape..... and super cheap fuell (3 euro-cent a liter)

Maarten


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- www.maartensworld.com -

[This message has been edited by mmaarten (edited 05 February 2006).]

yeah i hear that crossing to venezuela with a bike is a hassle, so i just wanted to make sure of everything.

are there any hidden hassles or requirements on the motorcycle worth mentioning?

guess i will pick up the tourist card in boa vista just incase.

maybe it is easier to just drive through and not even stop? entering brasil i had to actually search for the officer to stamp my passport and fill out the papers for the bike. the whole time i was doing it there was a stream of vehicles entering without stopping. also i did a trip to bolivia for 2 weeks and back without them stopping me at the border.

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-Daryl