St. Petersburg, Russia
Here
Saint Petersburg,
Russia
Cruise Passenger Visa Requirements
and Authorized Tour Companies
By Stanj,
The following is an excerpt from a thread in
Cruise-Chat.com on St. Petersburg. I thought it interesting enough to
post for everyone to enjoy. Thank you Stanj for allowing me do
share this information.
"T is a lot of
confusion about visas and Russia. The only class of visitor who is
eligible for a visa waiver program is a cruise ship passenger who is in
port less than 72 hours. The conditions of the visa-less entry into
Russia include a 72 hour limit in the country, the visitor must be
escorted by an authorized tour company that is licensed to host
visa-less visitors. The t are 3 main companies do this. Arctur, Red
October and Den Rus Ltd. Arctur offers primarily large bus tours of
45-50 passengers, and Red October. and Den Rus Ltd. offer both the large
buses and the popular private small personalized 2-12 passenger VIP
tours. The latter type of tour is very popular with cruise passengers
because they are personal and more effective in getting into the best
sights without lines or waiting. Arctur is the largest and DenRus Ltd is
the only American-Russian tour company which means western business
practices and customer service. But any of them can provide a great
visit to a fascinating and beautiful city.
If
you use a smaller tour company who is not registered for escorting
foreign visitors, you will need your own visa. The procedure is not as
complicated at it sounds or not nearly as much an obstacle to visiting
Russia than I read non-visitors warn people of who want to visit .
About 45 days before your visit, acquire a Voucher( term used to
describe the tourist invitation) from your tour company. Hotels and
tour companies send them by email or fax for free if you have booked
their services, otherwise a voucher can be purchased from many different
visa services or tour companies. With the internet allowing such easy
communications t is no need to use one of the high priced visa
services. I have had real problems with one of the most popular and
most advertised service, GoToRussia.com which I advise people to avoid.
A visitor can get the visa themselves easily so why add an extra cost
middleman that can introduce errors and confusion?
1.Print out your Voucher.
2.Fill out the Visa Application form available for free download at
http://www.denrus.ru/visaUS.pdf for US citizens and
http://www.denrus.ru/VISAnonUS.pdf for all other citizens
3. Get 2 Passport type photos from any travel agency, Rite-Aid,
Walgreen’s, or other photo services for about $5-10 for 2.
4.Your passport with at least 2 empty pages and 6 months remaining
before it expires
5. Self Addressed stamped envelope large enough for your passport to
return from the consulate.
6 Your Consular fee in the form of a postal money order. US citizens
pay $100 and UK citizens are charged about 17 pounds.
Put
this collection in an envelope and send it to your nearest Russian
consulate (addresses are
http://www.denrus.ru/russian-consulates.html
The processing time is
7 days but that can be shortened if you pay for faster service but it
can get expensive for immediate or last minute service. Your passport
will be returned to you with a page filled with a form pasted into it
representing your new Russian Tourist visa.