ilcannone

Regarding my remark about the Russian visa, that was assuming it was through an agency rather than independently. What I do know is that a private citizen has even more headaches getting an invitation sorted than an agency ever would be!

Does Uzbekistan really still have that VOA in place for those without an embassy? Interesting!

aroundtheworld76

India by far. OMG India. I frequently have to get visas on a very last minute basis (Find out Monday that you leave for India on Wednesday type of notice). India is the only one that is routinely problematic. They always issue one year visas when multi-year are requested. Inevitably, the next trip will be 13 months later, requiring yet another visa. Complicating matters is that I sometimes enter a country on a commercial flight and then leave via company aircraft as crew, or vice versa. Brazil, Russia, Ethiopia, even China, are all fairly time consuming, but easy enough. I never feel like they are subjectively issued or rejected at the whim of the consular officer. India goes out of its way to be difficult.

That said, I am ashamed and embarrassed every time I hear the awful stories of people who dare to try and visit the US.

B747-437B

This is true anywhere in the world though. I've lost track of the amount of times I've been asked to show an "entry stamp" or "exit stamp" when they obviously don't stamp a crewmember in/out on a routine basis. Just keep a copy of your general declaration handy for future reference.

aroundtheworld76

Yeah, that usually works. It's irrops and such that mess stuff up. arrived PVG once with a Crew visa only to find out that the company plane I was supposed to join the next day had gone mech and the mission was cancelled. No amount of explaining to the Chinese immigration folks would convince them to let me in. I even asked if I could just stay airside overnight before the AA flight back to DFW my office had booked for the next day. Nope. So, off to a still very welcoming HKG I went.

airmotive

Sounds like we have similar travel habits.
India....Yep.
Although I was able to get a 4-year Indian visa from the Chicago consulate. Drop off in the morning, go watch a taping of Oprah's show, pick up visa in the afternoon.
Brazil was a similar process, and required an overnight in Chicago...but at least that was for a ten year visa.
Russia...forget about it. Trip to Washington, several days in Washington...then fly on to Moscow (with a 10 day visa costing as much as a Moscow hotel room )

rankourabu

To be precise, it was VOA only if you had an invitation letter.
Turkmenistan does not require a tour per se. I used an agency that just had me book the hotel with them, and I was free on my own in the country.

im.daniel

Without a doubt, NIGERIA!!! I applied and sent in documents for a visa 2 months before my trip, paying for 'express service', which would 'guarantee' the return of my Passport and visa within 3 (!!!) days should everything ok.

Everything was not ok. Despite having the correct documentation required, I had to call up around 10 times, 50 times if you counted for all the un-answered calls. Each time would be a different answer. "We haven't received it yet (despite tracking saying it has"). "We have many visas to process". "We can only return your visa within 5 days to departure". True to his word, I received my visa 2 days before my 5 week trip through Africa. I called everyday at T-2 weeks, and had to tell the representative that I would be departing from rural Australia, and that Australia Post could take anywhere between 2-7 days. Luckily, he sent it that day.

Converse to that, next door neighbours, Cameroon Consulate's representative in Australia is a gentleman. Answered questions promptly via e-mail, and had my passport within 3 days of sending it.

seavisionburma

Apologies for causing offence to you. Kindly post the form which requested grandparents names and I'll happily retract my statement.

Thunderroad

India, both in its old incarnation in the USA, where you had to go through some incompetent travel agency, and in its more recent incarnation, where you have to go through a very problematic online process.

Having said that, foreign friends and colleagues tell me that they find the USA the worst.

ilcannone

Oh, please, tell me more about this. I've never known anyone to visit without a tour unless travelling by land from Iran to Uzbekistan!

CMK10

A Turkish one during last year's Turkey/US Visa Spat. Typically you can either get an E-Visa for $20 or a Visa on Arrival for $20. However, the US and Turkey got into a pissing match over God knows what and Turkey suspended visas on arrival and e-visas for people from the US. I had a trip planned and therefore I had to fly to New York on a $435 last minute round trip coach ticket from RDU and go to their Consulate. I had to bring a number of documents including my government filings for my business and all my travel documents. And they couldn't even return to the passport with the visa to me the same day, it had to be picked up the next day. It also cost $160 (cash only) instead of $20. And it was just a single entry 90 day visa.

Palal

Nigeria, hands down. Angola was pretty straight forward, in comparison, as it was a transit visa.
Brazil was smooth, Russia was also pretty smooth.
Back in the day when Myanmar didn't have an eVisa, had to get a pre-arranged visa through a consulate in Paris. In hindsight not a big deal.

hfly

CMK, it was a little more complicated than that, goes much deeper, however it was the US that first said that they were restricting visa applications for Turks in Turkey which was then reciprocated by the Turks. It was a terrible situation, but once again one can get E-visas for $20.

wxman22

As an American who has been almost everyplace in North America, Europe and northeast Asia, it's all pretty easy.
Lat year I had to get a multiple entry visa for Vietnam and that was easier than anyplace I went in the Caribbean.
Must of my travel is my boat. The rules become very different than arriving my air. Strangely, northern Europe was simple, while southern Europe was a PIA.
The Caribbean my boat is a real PIA.
I didn't stop in some places, like Columbia, where I was told it would take 3 days just to get in the country.

Sadly, I think the worst is the USA. Not for me obviously, but the bureaucracy has run amok. I ran in to many boaters who wanted to visit, but the paperwork is daunting and they will seldom approve single people from about 80% of the countries in the world.
Richard on Dauntless

hfly

So much for the Brazilian "reciprocity". due to getting almost no US tourists, they are now moving to an easy online system and dropping the "visa" fee down to 40 dollars. Just an acceptance of reality.