I have a friend who plans to travel to Japan for a week long vacation this March but she's thinking twice because of the expensive budget and the hassle of having to apply for a visa. She's also considering to travel to South Korea but heard that it also requires visa to be able to travel there. I on the other hand usually prefer traveling to visa free places as long as I could. How about you guys, does it matter if the place you're traveling into requires a visa or not?
I don't travel abroad any more so I no longer need to apply for any Visas. However I know that if someone wants to travel somewhere it wouldn't matter if a visa might be required or not. One can always plan ahead, apply for a Visa early and they'll get it. If someone can't be bothered with that then a vacation at home isn't such a bad idea. Most people don't know their homelands well enough after all.
Filipinos do not need visa when traveling to south east Asian countries. So our travels are normally visa free like this year we have trips to Bangkok, Thailand and Singapore. But last year, we went to Beijing, China that required a visa. Although getting the visa is not difficult, we prefer to travel to places with no visa. We also have a plan for a Japan trip in May, in time for the cherry blossoms, but my husband was discouraged with the visa so we passed on that one, maybe next year.
I'm one of the people who's guilty of not really knowing my homeland very well. There are so many beautiful local places that I haven't been able to visit yet and I'm actually planning on discovering the wonders of each and every one of them. It's a great idea to discover one's local destinations first before trying out other countries.
Well, my parents live fairly close to Canada, and currently unless you are in a border state you need a passport or visa to get in the country. I really want to go back to Canada so I plan to apply for a passport again very soon. It is just one of the things that I have on my todo list. Going to Canada is something I really enjoy doing.
And it does save you a lot of money too. You won't be spending any money on plane tickets or fancy, pricey souvenirs [you'll know the prices of everything (makes it a lot harder for someone to rip you off)] and you'll know which of those places are safe to visit and which ones aren't. Like you there are many places I haven't been to here and I intend to visit as many of those places as I can. It'll take a really long time to visit all them all.
I totally agree with everything you said @Denis Hard! I remember my husband's cousin who's here for a 2-month vacation. It's his first time here and he basically doesn't know anything about the place and the prices of basic goods here. One time he bought a pair of sunglasses from a street vendor and when I asked him how much he bought it, I was shocked to learn that he actually paid triple the price of the said sunglasses. He was obviously ripped off because the vendor knew he wasn't from here.
It does depend on your passport and what restrictions you have. Visas do not bother me at all, but some like a Russian one is hard to get, so you do have to plan your journey for that. One should remember visas only give you permission and it can be revoked at any time.
I will be traveling to Peru later this year. There is no fee for a visa. Even if there was a fee for entering Peru, I would still go. I have been wanting to traveling to Peru for awhile. I would just factor the cost of the visa as part of my vacation expense. So having to pay for a visa wouldn't stop me from traveling to a country.
I find it very annoying having to apply for a visa beforehand in order to visit certain countries, but if you plan well ahead it's not too bad. Sadly some countries like mine have many restrictions, whereas if I had a British passport I'd have the freedom to travel to many countries without the need for a visa. It's a bit tedious, plus you do have to pay for it, so it can discourage some people from visiting certain countries. For people in my country (and I believe many other countries), the US visa is very notorious for being particularly hard to secure, but the good thing's that once you've got it issued, you don't have to apply for many years to come because they usually give you a multi-entry 10 year visa
I agree with this. In my country it's also very hard to get a tourist visa for the US. I guess this is because of the increasing number of people who tend to use tourist visas as a way of entering the US but they actually don't have plans of returning to the home country. I remember when I went to a US territory for a visit, I wasn't required a visa but I was required to secure an entry pass so I could visit my relatives there. I was able to go though and I stayed there for about a week.
That's so true, @gracer! All these people spoil it for everyone else. I know for a fact that some people from Botswana have also used the multi-entry visa as if it were a Permanent Residency permit, which is totally wrong! They get the visa, go to the US and never come back out. I just wouldn't want to do that because I reckon it'd be hard to then leave and re-enter, because if they're keeping close tabs on all foreigners entering the country, they'd be able to see that some people aren't going just to visit, but rather to settle. I guess that's why some people are then 'locked in' and are never able to leave. It's just so sad. I guess the terrorism thing also doesn't help matters, as there are stricter controls.
