Cambodia forum

Personally, I like having it before-hand. Whether or not you'd "save an hour" would depend on the situation at that crossing on that particular day, but it's definitely an easier/smoother experience when you've got the visa in hand (even with the visa in hand, those crossings can still be a bit of a pain - not the most organized places in the world). Good luck

I'm hoping to take my first trip to Asia and while I am looking into flying into Malaysia(no visas for Canadians) I am hoping to venture north as far as Vietnam.....so my question (please, I'm ognornat on this one!!) is how does on get visasa for the various countries that one wishes to travel through.......

freddychef -

There are a few ways to get visas.

Some countries that require visas allow you to apply and receive the visa when you cross into the country (Laos and Cambodia allow visas on arrival with no prior arrangements).

For any country, you can visit that country's consulate anywhere and apply for a visa. Some countries take longer than other's to approve. If you live in Canada, you may also send your passport by mail to the consulate in Canada with the proper paperwork and fees and they will send it back to you with the visa. If you want to do it this way just search the 'net for the embassy's website specifically for Canada.

There are also a number of services that take care of everything for you for an extra fee. You send them your passport with the application and they take care of it and send back your passport with the visa(s). This is the most expensive way but if you need several visas and don't have a lot of time it can be helpful.

Vietnam requires you to have a visa or pre-arranged approval before crossing into the country. Vietnam does not allow visa on arrival like Laos and Cambodia, nor does it allow a free visa-free stay like Malaysia and Thailand. If you're flying in to Vietnam you can arrange for an "approval letter" through many online services (I've found www.guidevietnam.com to work well). In this case you have to xoom or western union the funds to the service and they will contact the authorities within Vietnam to get you approved. Then you print the approval letter and show it to immigration upon arrival at Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi international airports. This only works if you're flying in, not for crossing over land.

What most travelers do is find a Vietnam consulate somewhere in Asia while they're traveling and stop there for a few days to get the visa. Vietnam has embassies in every SE Asian country... There's one in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Vientiane , Phnomh Penh, and also in Sihanoukville I believe. Any of these would be a fine place to pick up the visa (I've done it in Vientiane and it was easy; I've also heard Bangkok and Phnomh Penh suggested before on Travelfish). You just visit the consulate during office hours, fill out the application and submit it with your passport (you will also need some passport sized photos), and it takes a day or two to get processed. You can specify which date you want the visa to start, and generally the tourist visa is good for a month beyond that date.

Hope that helps. Travelfish's visa forum is extensive - look around there if you have any more questions; most likely they have already been answered.

I hope you got over ok, only one crossing from VN to Cambo allows eVisa.

For land borders the benefit is you don't get ripped off and I'm pretty sure it's just a stamp instead of a full page sticker.

At the airports the additional benefit is that you don't get stuck in the disorganized line where most of your flight will get a VOA.

Last time I entered it was very satisfying to push my way through the crowd waiting for Visas and be the only person not having to wait.