Much as we like we to follow our travel dreams of just getting up and being on the road, we have to limit these dreams to India. Entry into most countries will require enormous amounts of planning, however South East Asia was a bit of relief. We could in some ways, just book a ticket and go. You will need a few things like some photographs, some cash at hand etc, We have answered similar question in our VISAS Section.This section is currently intended to explain the visa on arrival for Indian Passport Holders in South East Asia.However we have information about visas for other nationalities too, Please leave a comment as we will be happy to answer your queries. Cambodia VisaLaos VisaIndonesia VisaMalaysia VisaThailand VisaVietnam Visa

Indonesia – 30 day tourist visa is issued on arrival for Indian citizens.                 All you need to get your Indonesia Visa is to catch a flight and show up at one of the airports. You will queue up, and pay 25$ (USD). Once you have your receipt, you will queue up to get through immigration, where you might be casually asked a question or two about your purpose of visit or something similar. In our case, they wanted to know why we were carrying a medicine box with so many medicines. We said we were travelling long term and got a big smile in return, got our passports stamped and out we were. What happened once we got out was a completely different story.                There is an exit tax in Indonesia. When you leave the country, you have to pay a fee at the airport. This charge varies from airport, and is higher at the more popular airports like Bali, Jakarta.

Thailand – 15 day visa on Arrival only at crossing Listed here http://www.mfa.go.th/main/en/services/123/15393-Visa-on-Arrival.html You need the following 1)      Passport with 6 months validity 2)       Return tickets within 15 days 3)       Copy of your credit card or copy of 6 months bank statement 4)       2 Passport size photographs with white background 5)       Currency of 350 USD or equivalent per person or 700USD per family 6)       Accommodation vouchers Cost: 1000 Thai Baht Validity: 15 days on a single entry At immigration counter:  You will get the immigration form in the flight. Once the flight lands, you get in the VOA arrival queue, get your documents and photographs verified, pay the visa fee and get a token. Then you wait for your token to be called and get your passport stamped. We had a pleasant experience at Suvarnabhumi airport but Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok was a pain. For some reason the immigration officers were keen on seeing the 350USD per person in cash for Indians on that day, they would not accept bank or credit card statements. We were harassed for about 45mins before being given the visa. Also they were very fussy about the photo specifications. So be prepared to wait, if it is not your day. The other option is getting a visa in advance in India, along with the filled thai visa application form you will need 1)      Passport with 6 months validity 2)      2 Passport size photographs with white background 3)      Return tickets 4)       Copy of your credit card or copy of 6 months bank statement Cost (for single entry): INR 2000 (Thai visa cost) + 600 (VFS cost)

Visa on arrival depends on how much you pay To get visa on arrival you will need to get a pre-approved visa letter. This can be obtained from a lot of sites, we got ours from http://www.vietnamvisapro.com/. As usual, with an Indian passport you will need to pay more money. We paid 18$ each. Visa Fee is 45$ for 1 month single entry, 1 month multiple entry is 65$. The website needs basic details of your passport, date of entry in Vietnam. They usually take 3-4 working days to issue this letter. You need to print a copy of this letter and have passport size photograph ready at the airport along with the visa fees in USD or VND. You land at the airport, fill a form, submit the passport, the form, along with the visa letter at the airport Visa on Arrival Counter, then wait for your name to be called. The waiting times are usually up to 25-30 minutes. You get your visa, and get through immigration, once you go out, you are like a stray dog who gets chased by the Dog Catching authorities. Other option is to get your visa from your nearest embassy, which we would not recommend as getting the visa yourself is easy and not many countries will allow you this luxury with your Indian passport.

Transit Visa for Indians sounds easy on paper but is a lot more complicated. We dint get one but internet research about the same gave very complicated results. We had planned two weeks for Malaysia (which we regretted later), hence we applied for Visa before entering Malaysia. We did the same at VFS New Delhi. You will need the following documents for your visa. Passport with 6 months validityPassport size photographyTickets in and out of MalaysiaA Cover Letter You can find detailed information here, http://www.vfsglobal.com/malaysia/india/wrf2.html or leave a comment as we will be able to guide you through this. Based on the recent update on the VFS Malaysia visa will cost 1000  + 2000 + 335  + courier charges (about 250). That is roughly 3500 INR, which is a lot to get a Malaysian Visa.

There are two ways to get a tourist Visa for Cambodia for Indian Nationals Cambodia – 30 day visa is issued on arrival Visa on Arrival is available at International Airports and Land borders Passport with minimum 6 months validity and a minimum of 2 blank pages. 2 passport size photographs with white background – we were only asked for one.Enough foreign currency to support yourself in Cambodia (most of the immigration officials don’t bother about this) – No one will ask you about this. Completed and signed visa form (one can get this at the immigration check point at the airport, if you are getting into Cambodia via a Land border then you will probably have a travel guide with you while crossing the border and he will have these forms.)The visa on arrival cost is USD 20 (the e-visa costs USD 25) and the visa allows you to stay in Cambodia for duration of 1 month. Only US Dollars in cash are accepted as a mode of payment for the visa. However at most crossings, you are expected to pay a bribe for lots of reasons, we ended up paying 28$ each and have heard people paying between 25-30$ on an average. The e-visa will work at the airports, and some land crossings only. The place where we crossed into Cambodia from Southern Laos did not have any facilities to process an e-visa. You can apply for the e-visa here. If you like to have hassle free travel pre-arrange your e-visa or get one through the nearest embassy, although obtaining the visa on arrival was a piece of cake.

Laos – 30 day visa is issued on Arrival for Indian Passport Holders The visa for Laos is as simple as the visa for Indonesia, only a little expensive. It was 40$ (USD) plus 1$ (USD) service charge. We entered Laos via land from Hanoi. After getting the exit stamp from Vietnam, you walk and get into Laos immigration where the bus waits for you. They direct you into a small room, where you have to submit a form, your passport, visa fee and a photograph. Waiting time depends on how crowded the visa section at the time you arrive. In our case, 4 of us were the only people queuing up for the visa, and we got our passports back in less than 10mins. We were also returned our photographs. You can also pre-arrange your visa at any Lao Embassy, some internet sources say you will need to pay 5$ (USD) to get the visa on the same day. Considering how easy it was to get the visa on arrival, I wouldn’t bother getting a visa beforehand.

  If there’s one thing that can be said for almost any country in the world (with the exception of the truly small ones!) is that to truly experience it, you need to travel to at least 3 or 4 different places within it. Time and money constraints, unfortunately do not allow for such itineraries. However, if you have 10 days to spare and a desire to do a whole country, north to south, then think no more and head to Croatia! With a healthy mix of natural beauty, eclectic art and culture, a thriving urban scene, best beers (Karlovačko and Ožujsko) and some of the hottest music festivals in Europe, Croatia is a small package that has something to offer for every traveler. The fact that they use the local currency i.e. Croatian Kuna instead of the Euro makes it easy on the pocket too. So without further ado, let’s get started on the trip which we completed in less than 900 Euros!   Pro-tip 1: Before you book your tickets, check the season you plan to travel in. Tourist season begins in March, hits its peak in June-July and completely fizzles out by August. If you’re looking to engage in a few activities, but want to avoid the tourist rush, March-April is perfect for you. The warmer period of June- July is great for those who don’t mind the crowds, who are interested in the music festivals and who are looking to bumming around on the beach as well.   Pro-tip 2: Always look out for last minute announcements especially in the European airports. We got so lucky at the Frankfurt airport where we received 300 Euros just for agreeing to take a delayed Lufthansa flight through Munich instead of flying to Zagreb directly. Yes, it does not …