Dear Friends,

I shall arrive at DPS this week (flight from AMS, EC).

Do you know if there is a special lane for Plat (I mean special lane at "on arrival visa" desk and at immigration) ?

I read terrible stories about DPS lanes...

There is not. And indeed, DPS lanes take forever and a day if you happen to arrive in a nice big plane full of tourists like they airlines to send there. The only thing that speeds things up is having an Indonesian passport.

No special lane. My last arrival in DPS - about a month and a half ago - was actually very efficient (I was at the luggage belt within 15 minutes). It's not always bad; YMMV.

Keep on dreaming...
Although if you travel J-class you will leave the plane first and with a bit of luck other flights have already been processed.
But be prepared to wait.

That is what I feared...

I suppose I shall have to pick the visa first, then go (wait ?) through immigration ?

I think my row is 12th, not too bad if no other flight is processing (being processed ,) at the same time (about 7:20 pm).

It's been a little while since I've been at DPS, but if memory serves you pay for the visa first, then go wait in another line where you get it and pass immigration in one fell (yet slow-moving) swoop.

I guess therefore that another way to speed this up would be to get the visa beforehand. But that is not a one-week process.

Many people are very confused (they both look and act it). Just know what you need to do: (1) Fill up the immigration form on the flight, (2) go straight to the Visa On Arrival (VOA) desk and pay, (3) go to the immigration line, (4) go to baggage claim. If you don't stand around looking confused for a while (like many people do) it's not always that bad.

One word of caution for the return flight (when leaving DPS): you will need to pay a stupid tax ("service charge") that for some reason is NOT included in the ticket price and it needs to be paid before going through immigration. There was no ATM in sight and you can only pay cash. You can exchange money though. Make sure you have some cash (IDR or some currency you can exchange) when you head to the airport to leave.

I arrive at DPS about twice a year. Expect the whole process to take at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour (more if you land after a Japanese plane).

Make sure you have the exact change for the visa in US$ (25). Upon exiting the airport turn right immediately and look for the window where you get your prepaid taxi. Fixed prices to all hotels on Bali. Do not arrange for a hotel pick up. Way too expensive.

Departure tax is INR 100.000 (about €8,-) and is not uncommon in Asia.

Another option to minimize the scrum is to get an Indonesian tourist visa from a consualate or embassy if either are avaialable where you live. I've did that prior to my last trip to DPS it saved me the trouble of queueing up with 300 of my fellow passengers.

However, this will take two trips to the consulate and is more expensive. In NL you will be waiting longer at the consulate than at the airport. You can use the VISA service of your TA but that will cost even more.

I just traveled in J with KLM to DPS

Please note that as you arrive.. a QR and a GA flight.. also both from singapore arrive just 2 min before you...

I try to get off the plane as Pax nr 1 and then really try to walk as quick as u can.. to the visa desk.. Every pax i pass is someone who wont be infront of me in the immigration line...


in ourcase we had to wait around 30/40 min but when i looked behind me.. it was atleast 1,5 hour wait perhaps even longer... - HORRIBLE...

Dear friends,


Some feedback from DPS :

- we arrived ahead of schedule, pleasant flight but bumpy ;

- I was seating row 12, Biz was quite empty, I was maybe the 20th to exit ;

- when I arrived at VOA, I paid the cashier (turn to the lef) ;

- I stood in line : we arrived just after a Singapore Airlines flight (I counted 26 persons before me) ;

- It was slow but with no big problem ;

- when having finished all my immigration stuff, I found my suitcase already waiting ;


Result : 48 minutes from aircraft gate to meeting with the transfer person to resort.

This is not horrible (could have been !).

Thanks for the update. I'm glad it worked out ok. Enjoy Bali!

Thanks for the info on getting a visa in advance. We will be in Singapore first so might try to get a visa there first before heading on to Bali. Will most likely be flying KLM since it is the cheapest option out there right now at USD$200+ ^

Here's my advice to skip the immigration line at DPS:

Book a Club Room at the Intercontinental Bali Resort.
They will pick you up right before immigration, they take care of your visa and your luggage while you can enjoy a drink at the Intercontinental arrival lounge. Very convenient! And besides that, booking a Club Room at the IC Bali is really worth it IMO.

I think there are some other hotels which offer the same service...