visa run Hat Lek

[domdom]

Hello

I want to extend for one year my OA visa going out and coming back immediately at Hat Lek end of september..

I saw a visa is needed to enter Cambodia.. How to get it ?? Is there a problem taking it at the border.. What is the cost ?? I saw it is 30 dollars, but we are 2 and we only have a 100 dollars note.. I don't know if they give the money back or can we pay in bahts ?? How much will it be ??

There is no hassle getting it there and going out and coming back immediately ?

Have a nice day

[ubonjoe]

You can leave and re-enter at a border crossing to get a new entry from your OA visa.

You can get a Cambodia visa on arrival at the border.

Not sure they would make change for the $100 bill. You could probably go to a bank and they would change it for you. You can also pay in baht the amount seems to vary from 1300 to 1500 baht.

You can also apply for a e-visa for Cambodia. See: https://www.evisa.gov.kh

[domdom]

Thank you.. I didn't think of having it changed in a bank.. I am stupid. stupid really..

It seems to me the best option as for E visa you have to join a snap and I don't know to do it..

The good thing is that you confirm, they will give me the visa at the border without problem, and I can enter and go out immediately.. Do you know if this border is very crowdy ??

I read somewhere alcohol is much cheaper in Cambodia.. I suppose I can buy some alcohol just across the border and come back with it .. It is one bottle, isn't it ??

Have a nice week

[ubonjoe]

There are some instructions here about the photo. https://www.evisa.gov.kh/photo.aspx You just need to have the photo in a folder on your computer. Then you click on browse during the application process to find the photo and click on it and the website will upload it and size it to fit the application. Application instructions are here. https://www.evisa.gov.kh/manual.aspx

I don't thing that crossing is as busy as some others are. Best to go on a weekday. The weekends will be busier.

You are allowed one liter of booze each.

[DEQ]

Actually the Koh Kong immigration police are infamous for insisting on THB (and at poor rates of exchange). It is very difficult to persuade them to accept the correct $30 fee. You would need to have the correct money to stand any chance of getting them to accept $30. They will probably demand 1500 THB, which is currently equivalent to $42. Besides being $5 cheaper at $37, the advantage of the evisa is the immigration hopefully will not demand any money on the spot and you save a page in your passport. Be sure to print out two copies of the evisa as they may demand one on entry and one on exit, and guess what happens if you only printed one! If you don't get an evisa remember to bring one passport size photo.

Good quality (unknown brand) scotch whisky starts around $10 per litre in Phnom Penh. You may pay a little more at the border. Examine the seal on the bottle carefully. The sellers at the border will accept THB and will offer good rates of exchange but you may have to haggle. In other words you don't need any USD at Koh Kong.

[sandyf]

I read somewhere alcohol is much cheaper in Cambodia.. I suppose I can buy some alcohol just across the border and come back with it .. It is one bottle, isn't it ??

Have a nice week

Be careful with the Cambodia booze, a lot of it is fake and potentially dangerous. I saw bottles of whisky at the Laos border for about 40 baht each, could be made from anything.

I used to go to Ban Laem and they had a good selection of the good, the bad and the ugly. Read the labels carefully, you can get the finest Scotch Whisky made from the best quality grapes.

I always look at the barcode, I am only interested in products from the UK so the first 2 digits of the barcode should be 50, you should be able to get Grouse or Dewars for about 400/450 baht a litre. If you are interested in French brandy, or anything French the first 2 digits should be in the range 30 to 37. For the USA it would be 00 to 13 and Thai products start with 885.

For any other country google EAN 13. Good Luck.

[domdom]

Thanks a lot eveybody.. All this is great help ..

Thank you very much..

Have a nice week

[nowretired]

I read somewhere alcohol is much cheaper in Cambodia.. I suppose I can buy some alcohol just across the border and come back with it .. It is one bottle, isn't it ??

Have a nice week

Be careful with the Cambodia booze, a lot of it is fake and potentially dangerous. I saw bottles of whisky at the Laos border for about 40 baht each, could be made from anything.

I used to go to Ban Laem and they had a good selection of the good, the bad and the ugly. Read the labels carefully, you can get the finest Scotch Whisky made from the best quality grapes.

I always look at the barcode, I am only interested in products from the UK so the first 2 digits of the barcode should be 50, you should be able to get Grouse or Dewars for about 400/450 baht a litre. If you are interested in French brandy, or anything French the first 2 digits should be in the range 30 to 37. For the USA it would be 00 to 13 and Thai products start with 885.

For any other country google EAN 13. Good Luck.

"finest Scotch Whisky made from the best quality grapes." Really !

If you enjoy living do not offer that stuff to a Scot and tell him that its the "finest Scotch Whisky"

[domdom]

Hello

Is Hat Lek border also affected by the new rule ? (no in/out visa)

In this case I will just cancel my trip and hotel booking (good for thai economy... the hotel will loose 10.000 bahts only for the rooms and restaurant charges extra..).

I will then wait till my visa has to be renewed.. (I entered 3rd of march 2015 with a visa given on october 14th by a thai embassy).. I have till feb to redo my visa in Jomtien, haven't I ??

Have a nice week end

[ubonjoe]

Hat Lek has not been mentioned in any info I have seen. But that could be because not many people use that crossing.

I don't think I would cancel the trip just delay it a few days until after the 1st of October.. As long as you do the entry or or before enter before date you will get the new one year entry.

[domdom]

Thank you.. I followed your advice and rebooked my hotel from 5th till 8th... I will try to do it on 6th.. and I imagine we will by that time have more infos about what will be going on after october 1st.

Any info about the situation in Hat Lek would be very much appreciated

Have a nice week end

[Tomtomtom69]

Hat Lek has not been mentioned in any info I have seen. But that could be because not many people use that crossing.

I don't think I would cancel the trip just delay it a few days until after the 1st of October.. As long as you do the entry or or before enter before date you will get the new one year entry.

Just wondering, is this because after Sep 30 they will relax the rules again? Apparently Thai Visa Run service is saying that they will stop doing visa runs to the Cambodian border until after Sep 30. http://www.thaivisaservice.com/

[ubonjoe]

Hat Lek has not been mentioned in any info I have seen. But that could be because not many people use that crossing.

I don't think I would cancel the trip just delay it a few days until after the 1st of October.. As long as you do the entry or or before enter before date you will get the new one year entry.

Just wondering, is this because after Sep 30 they will relax the rules again? Apparently Thai Visa Run service is saying that they will stop doing visa runs to the Cambodian border until after Sep 30. http://www.thaivisaservice.com/

That and when it first started immigration said October 1st.

At least a crossing with a valid visa should be back to normal by then. I can't say anything with certainty about out/in visa exempt entries.

[visarunner]

Hat Lek has not been mentioned in any info I have seen. But that could be because not many people use that crossing.

I don't think I would cancel the trip just delay it a few days until after the 1st of October.. As long as you do the entry or or before enter before date you will get the new one year entry.

Just wondering, is this because after Sep 30 they will relax the rules again? Apparently Thai Visa Run service is saying that they will stop doing visa runs to the Cambodian border until after Sep 30. http://www.thaivisaservice.com/

That and when it first started immigration said October 1st.

At least a crossing with a valid visa should be back to normal by then. I can't say anything with certainty about out/in visa exempt entries.

The two operators from Bangkok who frequent Ban Pakard and Ban Laem namely Meesuk and ThaiVisaService and all operators from Pattaya have been advised by IO not to come up to 30th September, they told we will not stamp your clients even with valid visa. Bangkok Buddy in Aran might be a bit more lucky, IO there might stamp exceptional cases. If the current rule will be relaxed after 30th September no one know.

BTW also all operators for Laotian and Vietnamese have been advised not to come.

That included Kanchanaburi/Phu Nam Ron as well.

While the Laotian can go to Laos to get Passport stamped after a night sleep or after a Visa application the situation for the Vietnamese is dire, they just stay put and adopt "wait and see".

I assume that Had Lek will do the same in case Laotian or Vietnamese will turn up there, Chom Chong as well.

[domdom]

Hello

Back from Hat Lek and no problem, we got the one year stamp..

As I didn't want to take any risk I first went to the "entrance" immigration officer and showed my passport and told him I wanted to go and come from Cambodia in half an hour just to get this one year... (I told him some story about having my dog, having planed to go for a few days to visit Cambodia but complicated for dog's papers as I didn't want to tell him straight I was doing a visa run).. He looked at my papers and told me "Yes, you can do".. So, here I go, cross the border, walk till cambodia border, get my entry stamp after paying 1500 bahts visa (For your info I tried 10 places in Pattaya to change my 100 dollars to 20 dollars bank notes but, impossible), they then charged me 500 bahts for entry and out stamp (I imagine it is a scam but never mind), walked back to the thai border, filled the entrance card, went to the officer who advised me, and got my stamp..

My husband did the same 5 minutes later..

Just wanted to tell you we didn't face any problem, if this can help somebody else;

Have a nice day..