Cambodia vs. Laos vs. Malaysia for Thai tourist visa.

[Csaw]

Which embassy is easier to get a Thai tourist visa from? I hear the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh is notorious for denying visas, BUT really easy if you let the doorman or a travel agency handle it - any truth in that?

 

Laos i hear is "easier", but haven't heard of any doorman or agency expediting things in exchange for a little compensation for their troubles.

 

Malaysia i haven't heard anything about.

 

Honestly, i'm leaning towards Phnom Penh and use someones service, but i'm not sure how reliable it is. Anyone with experience?

 

So basically, with compensation in hand, looking for a guaranteed success doing this.

 

Any pointers?

[overherebc]

A lot depends on how many tourist visas you have already and where and when you got them.

Edited December 5, 2017 by overherebc

[BritTim]

Presumably, you only have a very few tourist visas. If this is not true, give us your previous tourist visa history. If you are only looking at the short term, you will find it easiest to get a tourist visa in Vientiane Laos. Both Phnom Penh and Penang will also be OK,(and you can use an agent in both if you so desire) but there are some requirements that must be met. Also, most consulates in the region give back the passport with visa the next day, but Phnom Penh takes longer. Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in Vietnam should also be on your radar. If you have a bit more money to spend, the very best place in the region is Hong Kong.

[phuketrichard]

Penang and Phnom Pehn use an agent and they will provide all necessary paperwork

Penang 1 night, Phnom Pehn 1-3 nights

Laos very easy on ur own

[Csaw]

Thanks for the input guys. Yeah LOTS of visas on my passport. That's why i'm a bit worried, and looking for a sure fire why of getting this done. Heard a lot of fail stories. The using an agent in Phnom sounds interesting to me. Do they guarantee it? How is that vs. doing it myself in Malaysia vs Laos?

[BritTim]

13 minutes ago, Csaw said:

Thanks for the input guys. Yeah LOTS of visas on my passport. That's why i'm a bit worried, and looking for a sure fire why of getting this done. Heard a lot of fail stories. The using an agent in Phnom sounds interesting to me. Do they guarantee it? How is that vs. doing it myself in Malaysia vs Laos?

If you have lots of existing tourist visas in your passport, you almost certainly will get a red stamp if you apply in Phnom Penh or Penang. In Phnom Penh (even using an agent) they may deny you a visa altogether. In Vientiane, you would get your visa, but may get the red stamp.

 

My suggestion would be to use Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Savannakhet or Yangon (if you want to minimize costs) or Hong Kong (if you want a hassle free experience).

[JackThompson]

17 minutes ago, Csaw said:

Thanks for the input guys. Yeah LOTS of visas on my passport. That's why i'm a bit worried, and looking for a sure fire why of getting this done. Heard a lot of fail stories. The using an agent in Phnom sounds interesting to me. Do they guarantee it? How is that vs. doing it myself in Malaysia vs Laos?

If you have "lots" - and especially if they are close together, expect Phnom Penh to possibly ask for an "interview" - even if using an agent - and also getting a "red stamp" on your new Tourist Visa from them, which would make it impossible to get more Tourist Visas from many other consulates in the region after this one.

 

Note that there has been some reduction in "Agent Influence" recently - with a loss of "pay for speedy service," and possibly other "greasing of the wheels" at that consulate.

 

If you really have "lots" of Thai Tourist Visas, you should be prepared to get a new passport soon, if you wish to continue staying here longer-term/frequently - but no harm in choosing consulates wisely, to put that off as long as possible. 

 

If it were me, I'd go to Savannakhet Laos, and provide everything they require.  We don't have reports of red-stamps from them (yet).  The others BritTim suggested would also work - though it's difficult to return from Yangon by land, so you'd be dealing with Immigration at the airport, with a passport full of Thai Visas - likely an unpleasant experience at best, and rejected-entry at worst - depending on how much time-away was between your Thai-visits.  Not sure if you could route a trip back through Penang easily from Yangon - or maybe come back to Chang Mai airport, for which we don't have bad-reports regarding Tourist Visa entries.

[NorthernRyland]

1 hour ago, Csaw said:

Thanks for the input guys. Yeah LOTS of visas on my passport. That's why i'm a bit worried, and looking for a sure fire why of getting this done. Heard a lot of fail stories. The using an agent in Phnom sounds interesting to me. Do they guarantee it? How is that vs. doing it myself in Malaysia vs Laos?

The visa service I talked to in Phnom Pen said if I had more than a few visas then they can't submit themselves and you should do it yourself (presumably they want to see you in person and know who you are).

[NorthernRyland]

Btw how are visas in Malaysia and Hong Kong? I was going to go to Laos later but it may be cheaper to fly to Malaysia then even take a bus to Laos.

[phuketrichard]

Quote

.... though it's difficult to return from Yangon by land "

why do u  say this>   train to Hpa-an- than shared taxi to the border( Mae Sot)

Any agent in PP will be able to do 3 tourist visas and than no more

Call or write Lucky lucky motorcycles on Monivong in  PPand ask them before u head over

 

I suggest you write or call Banana GH in Penang (there on Chula street) and ask them if they can do it or not,  always found them very honest

 

Quote

 

I was going to go to Laos later but it may be cheaper to fly to Malaysia then even take a bus to Laos.

 

KL is not a good place to apply for a tourist visa

Edited December 6, 2017 by phuketrichard

[Csaw]

5 minutes ago, phuketrichard said:

why do u  say this>   train to Hpa-an- than shared taxi to the border( Mae Sot)

Any agent in PP will be able to do 3 tourist visas and than no more

Call or write Lucky lucky motorcycles on Monivong in  PPand ask them before u head over

 

I suggest you write or call Banana GH in Penang (there on Chula street) and ask them if they can do it or not,  always found them very honest

So if they say they can. Will it mean they really can... and would?

Edited December 6, 2017 by Csaw

[phuketrichard]

ONLY death is 100% guaranteed

[Csaw]

Just now, phuketrichard said:

ONLY death is 100% guaranteed

True. I'm good with %99 though :)

[NorthernRyland]

27 minutes ago, phuketrichard said:

KL is not a good place to apply for a tourist visa

That's what I heard around the forums but why do you say that? I never tried because I heard bad things but I'm not sure why.

[Csaw]

2 minutes ago, genericptr said:

That's what I heard around the forums but why do you say that? I never tried because I heard bad things but I'm not sure why.

this

[ubonjoe]

19 minutes ago, genericptr said:

That's what I heard around the forums but why do you say that? I never tried because I heard bad things but I'm not sure why.

In the past KL was inconsistent with their requirements to get a tourist visa. It seems to be better now and their have been reports of it being easier now.

One of the reasons is that they now have a checklist for visa applications on their website. Checklist here: http://www.thaiembassy.org/kualalumpur/contents/files/services-20170329-105808-985625.pdf

[my friend I]

Luckylucky 010 998 099 

023 220 988

[NorthernRyland]

32 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

In the past KL was inconsistent with their requirements to get a tourist visa. It seems to be better now and their have been reports of it being easier now.

One of the reasons is that they now have a checklist for visa applications on their website. Checklist here: http://www.thaiembassy.org/kualalumpur/contents/files/services-20170329-105808-985625.pdf

It's just all the usual stuff it looks like. They want a return ticket in and out of Thailand (I never saw the flight in requirement before, as if the visa holder needs proof they will actually use the visa??) but they fail to specify the date of the out ticket. I guess it's assumed we all know that means within 2 or 3 months even though no embassy will state this publicly.

[JackThompson]

1 hour ago, phuketrichard said:

Quote

.... though it's difficult to return from Yangon by land "

why do u  say this>   train to Hpa-an- than shared taxi to the border( Mae Sot)

Thanks for pointing this out.  I did not know of that option - most reports indicated a rather unpleasant bus-ride.  As the country develops, this can change rapidly, of course.  I wish I had considered this when doing visa-runs.

 

I checked my usual train-info site - seat61 - and found a map to the lines.  Does not show that city (hpa-an), but it should be a stop, since it is a regional-capital.

 

https://www.seat61.com/Map-southeast-asia-train-routes.htm

https://www.seat61.com/Burma.htm#Yangon (Rangoon) - Mawlamyine

 

According to another site's report (2016), the cost is 10,000 kyat per person for the shared-taxi (private transport) to Myawaddy, booked via guest-houses, and the journey takes about 3 to 4 hours, leaving Hpa-An early morning.  From there, you would cross to Mai Sot.

Edited December 6, 2017 by JackThompson

[BritTim]

3 hours ago, genericptr said:

Btw how are visas in Malaysia and Hong Kong? I was going to go to Laos later but it may be cheaper to fly to Malaysia then even take a bus to Laos.

Hong Kong is great.

 

In Malaysia, there are three possibilities: Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Kota Bharu. Penang used to be an excellent place to apply, but should now be avoided by those with many previous tourist visas in their passport unless prepared for the dreaded "red stamp". Kuala Lumpur was for a while an absolute no-no for anyone with many previous visas, and dubious even with a clean passport. However, recent reports suggest a definite change of attitude, and should now be regarded an unknown quantity until more data becomes available. I have no personal experience of Kota Bharu, but what I have heard is positive. I might risk going there with many previous tourist visas, but recent reports from someone with direct knowledge would be welcome.

[cacahootie]

If you want to be sure of getting another visa, already having "LOTS" in your passport, the best bet is to get a new passport.  I found Vientiane to be the most convenient, the border post at the Friendship Bridge at Nong Khai has never given me any issues.  If you go to Penang and enter overland by minibus that means Sadao, which should be avoided.  If you don't want a new passport, AFAIK Vientiane will issue one unless you have a red stamp already, but you may very well earn your red stamp on this try.  Nothing about visas is certain.

[NorthernRyland]

6 hours ago, BritTim said:

Hong Kong is great.

Thanks I'll think about that for some point in the future. You can get some crazy cheap tickets there at certain times. You probably get killed on accommodations however as the visa processes (I assume a few days).

[BritTim]

6 hours ago, genericptr said:

Thanks I'll think about that for some point in the future. You can get some crazy cheap tickets there at certain times. You probably get killed on accommodations however as the visa processes (I assume a few days).

It is possible to arrive in the morning, applying the same day, and get your passport back the next day in the morning. This is different from other locations.

 

When flights are cheap, you can usually find pretty good flight+hotel deals on places like Expedia, but your room will be tiny with the cheapest offers. Maybe, for a one night stay, it might be worth splurging just so you enjoy your short time there.