greatam

I have been planning this China trip for 2 years. Applied 3 weeks ago for a Chinese visa at the consulate in Los Angeles. Everything was going fine-money paid, visa issued, turned over to FedEx for delivery back to me in Arizona. FedEx cannot find my passport. US government tells me they will have a new, replacement passport to me by Friday, September 30. I leave for Beijing, Monday evening, October 3. The Chinese consulate will replace the visa immediately. However, I do not have the time to go to Los Angeles and get the visa. My Cathay Pacific flight leaves at 11:00PM Monday evening. My PHX/LAX flight arrives at 6:30PM. I could change my PHX flight, but Los Angeles consulate cannot guarantee that they can do a replacement visa in a couple hours (when they indicated immediately I felt is was more like one-two days).

I fly Cathay to Hong Kong, arrive at 7:00AM and leave for Beijing on Dragon Air at 4:00PM. ANY way to get a double entry visa in Hong Kong in the time I am there? The method must be almost foolproof, as I sure don't want to leave the US and end up stuck at the HKG airport for 10 days, until I leave for Vietnam.

Any and all help is appreciated. Thanks

Gina

rjh

You could call the China visa office in HK and ask them. Tel: +852 2827 1811 If that number doesn't work, try:
+852-25851657 OR +852-25851680 OR +852-25851794

Same day visas I believe they call "fast process." Just tell them you want it the same day and your time constraints when you call.

They're moderately easy to find at:

5th Floor, Lower Block, China Resource Building
Harbour Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong
MTR: Wanchai

Rich

christep

It's not quite the cheapst way (but I guess that isn't an issue right now), but you can use the China Travel Service at HKG airport. They promise 4-5 hour turnround which fits your schedule just fine. Details here: http://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/aguide/tourism.html

moondog

I suggest you spend Monday in Los Angeles (go early and rent a car; weekend rates apply). Fedex should eat this cost anyway.

greatam

I had thought about this, also. I can drive to LA if need be (229 miles) However, I am really concerned that the consulate WILL NOT be able to process in one day. They will NOT guarantee that they will be able to process the same day. If they can't, then what do I do?

I really am not worried about the cost. Fighting with FedEX to reimburse anything other than the express fee is a worthless fight. I own a global logistics company and the T & C's in most freight contracts do NOT allow for extra expenses. Normally just damage to product and delay.

Thanks, Christep, for the info on CTS. I have my Yangtze cruise and Beijing tours booked through them. I will get in touch with my agent this evening and get her insight.

And thanks, rgh. I will call Hong Kong this evening.

Somehow, someway, with everyone's help, I will be able to see China. Thanks again

moondog

I didn't have time to expand on my rationale for advising you to settle your business in Los Angeles, in spite of the fact that you have already scheduled a day in HK.

The fact of the matter is that the Los Angles idea is definitely viable, whereas the HK option is about 50/50 (if you postpone HKG-PEK till Wednesday, that's an entirely different matter).

If you decide to go to the Los Angeles consulate, try to get processed before they take their lunch break. I imagine, given the situation, they will let you bypass the line, which can be long on Mondays and Fridays, but I would still try to get there by 10:45a or so, which means you'd want to land in LAX no later than 9:30a; doing so would get you into a rental car by 10:15a (I'm being conservative).

The consulate will probably advise you to come back a few hours later. It is on the NW side of downtown so you might want to spend a few hours in Griffith Park and/or take in a movie. After picking up your passport, you could "drive west on Sunset to the sea" (to quote Steely Dan) and take in a nice evening in the beach city of your choosing.

I personally like Los Angeles and have enough schedule flexibility to waste days there (or anywhere else for that matter), but after having written all that, the HK option is starting to make a lot more sense. If you simply resigned yourself to the idea of spending Tuesday night there, all of your problems would disappear. Plus, you'd be able to go straight to a hotel after your incredibly long tpac flight, where you could (as I always do) take in an invigorating steam bath and catch up on email. The alternative of walking the city like a nomad, after having speant a sweaty day in SoCal prior to a 14-hour flight, is much less apealing IMO. Besides, you've sentenced yourself to inconvenient routing anyway, so you might as well make the most of it (HK is an enjoyable city).

BTW, I hope you enjoy your trip.

christep

I'm not sure whether you were planning on going into HK for the day, but another option would be to get a day room at the Regal Airport Hotel, which is attached to HKG terminal (landside). I think the rate is about HK$100-150/hour which would give you a place to relax and unwind while CTS is getting your visa together.

moondog

We posted at around the same time so I didn't get a chance to address your concerns about the Los Angeles consulate's ability to help. I based my suggestion on my previous dealings with them; they have always gone the extra mile to help me.

Furthermore, I assumed that a pre-lunch drop-off would virtually guarantee you an evening pick-up (it's not like they have to complete any background checks or the like to replace your lost visa). In HK, your passport will likely have to go to Shenzhen and back for processing and the odds of that happening in time for you to catch a 4p flight aren't good (I said 50-50 before, but now I'd like to notch that forecast down a bit).

Bottom line: If you stay overnight in HK, your concierge can do all the legwork for you. If not, you'll need to go a TA (or visa office) in person, which is not fun. If you do decide to do this, I recommend Japan Travel Service in TST. They are very popular with expats in Beijing and Shanghai (less so these days because it is much easier to get visa issues resolved in-country).

moondog

I just now read Christep's suggestion and agree that it is the most plausible. I also would like to apologise for missing it previously.

OT: I still don't like the 9 hour layover, even if the OP now has justification for such. Before I discovered NRT and SFO, I used to put myself through the same torture (well, I would usually attempt shorter layovers, but that is anoter matter alrogether), but now I've learned that shorter routings are worth lots of extra dollars.

greatam

Gees,you guys have me so confused. I like Christep's idea-CTS at the airport. Is the consensus that this is the best way? Am I assured of getting the visa before I must try to get on my flight to Beijing? Don't know how I can change the flight-first class award tickets on Cathay. I have NO MORE Qantas miles for change fees. Thank you Randy, for this trip AND Concorde in 2003.

9 hour layover-Cathay only flies one trip per day out of Hong Kong to Beijing that connects with the US flights. 1605-Dragon Air.

And besides, I figured I would wander around HKG for the day. Never been there, so up for an adventure. Christep had been kind enough 5 months ago to provide me with a running commentary for a day tour. May kind of change the plans, since I have to deal with the visa. But the airport hotel, the AC, or anyplace in between is fine with me. So long as I get the visa so I can go on my cruise on the Yangtze, see the pandas in the mountains outside Chengdu, and fly to Llhasa (have the special permit-but it must have a Chinese visa # attached to it)

christep

Now I am confused... Cathay itself flies twice a day to Beijing (except Mondays when they only fly once), and Dragonair flies about 8 times per day (although the CX flights don't have F, and only 3 or so of the KA ones do). Dragonair is an associate of CX, but, as far as I know it is not an airline you can redeem Qantas miles on.

None of the Dragonair flights appears to be at 16:05. There is a Cathay flight at 16:50.

I'm not sure where you have got the Dragonair idea from, but I think you may be mistaken: my guess is that you are actually on CX312 HKG-PEK depart 16:50, arr:20:00 in business class.

If by "AC" you mean Admiral's Club then there isn't one at HKG. There are, however, the excellent CX lounges. If you are arriving off CX F and connecting onwards to China you should be able to use the F-sections of The Wing and The Pier. You will need to go landside to arrange your visa, but I am reasonably sure that CTS could deliver it to you later airside in one of the lounges.

There are plenty of comments in the Cathay Pacific forum here comparing the facilities of The Wing and The Pier - and you have time to sample both if you decide not to go into HKG.

greatam

Christep,

When I booked the tickets almost a year ago, Cathay had not been authorized to fly directly into China yet. I think that happened this spring.

My tickets, paper, were booked using Qantas miles through Qantas award booking dept. Purchased enough magazine subscriptions in 2002 to allow two tickets on Concorde and two first class tickets to Asia. Qantas booked the Dragon Air leg. I was aware at the time that I would not be flying first on the HKG/PEK leg. And yes, the tickets say 1605. Guess I will call and get that straightened out.

Now a really big question. The "3 hour visa" guy in LA (Timelyvisa.com)states that the LA consulate will not be processing visas next week (first week of October), due to a Chinese national holiday. Will I run into the same problem in Hong Kong?

SylviaCaras

I'm so glad to read that this is working out, and the Plan B suugestions here for coping. This redesign will I hope be the first part of a story you'll get to tell for a long time.

In the meantime, I'm curious what FedEx says about where the passport is. I thought everything today was barcoded and could be traced. Or was it stolen within FedEx?

Sylvia

moondog

IME, those week-long holidays in China tend to equate to one day off for Chinese government agencies abroad. Furthermore, National Day isn't really all that special in HK.

While I can't imagine that you'd be shut out for the entire week, you might want to prepare a contingency plan that allows for such (though I hope you can get an answer via phone/email before you depart). Personally, I'd rather spend next week in HK than Beijing (and I might, very well, do so), but I understand your desire to spend as much time here as possible and hope everything works out for you.

greatam

Thanks, Sylvia, for your concern. I still have not figured out the visa, due to the new wrinkle-National holiday.

FedEx has NO explanation where both passports are. I have a tracking number, the package left the Chinese consulate and went to the sort center in LA. From there, they have no other scans, no info.

This is especially frustrating, as the company I own is a global logistics provider. We ship time senstive, mostly perishable freight, all over the world. We generally do not loose freight and if we "misplace" it, our tracking is sufficient to locate it within a couple of days. We have never truly LOST any of our freight. It generally shows up someplace, usually with the wrong manifest numbers or something minor.

I have had it with FedEX. Our company deals with their ground service a lot. We billed over $400,000 on FedEx ground in 2004. If it is NOT in their computer, you are just SOL. And there is no reimbursement for all the havoc when they loose something.

OT-They lost a shipment of truffles last year, overnight out of France. They were destined for our warehouse in NY and never arrived. We called, we complained. No truffles. The best they would do was reimburse cost of product and shipping fees. WE had to pay for a truck to reload the shipment in France, WE had to pay cash for the product (wire transfer to France and all that involved) and a truck to pick up the truffles at JFK to get them to our warehouse, where the chef was picking them up. WE paid an exorbitant amount for "first out" service on air cargo. Our company LOST over $800.00 on a 80 pound shipment. We still have our customer (a big time event planner in NYC-the truffles were going to a society wedding). FedEX is EXTREMELY good for some stuff. Just don't count on them to back you up when they screw up.

And don't EVER use FedEX or UPS on an Ebay purchase if the seller is arranging the shipping, EVEN if you are paying the seller for shipping. If the seller will not file a shipping claim, you are just SOL. I learned that the hard way. Bought a Sansui 9001 receiver on Ebay. It was crushed when it arrived-UPS. The shipper was a solo seller on Ebay (not one of the commercial venders or "store" owners) and had moved. I knew they were moving. That is why they sold the 9001. NO way to contact the original seller and I would have been out $800.00 + shipping and insurance. I feel sorry for people who do not have the wealth of knowledge I do. I have been in the transportation business for over 30 years so I filed a small claims action against UPS. It was a hassle, but I did get my money back, FINALLY. 14 months after I made the purchase on Ebay.

Thanks again for your concern. I hope this all works out.

Gina