Visa to Belarus

TripleAce

Hello, I am planning to go to Belarus with my girlfriend for holidays in May and would like to know what the Visa requirements are? Would you know if they differ depending on whether you enter Belarus by plane (direct flights from Shannon) or by train (via Poland or Lithuania) I tried to email the Belarusian embassy in London but got no response.

Any other advice is also more than welcome

BuffyBot

http://www.worldtravelguide.net/country/29/passport_visa/Europe/Belarus.html

I doubt they differ at all

cailinoBAC

I am currently applying for my visa to Belarus (going in May too...). It'll be about my 9th one! Are you going there for any particular reason? I'm just leaving work now, but I'll answer your questions later.

jackbhoy

cailinoBAC wrote: »

I am currently applying for my visa to Belarus (going in May too...). It'll be about my 9th one! Are you going there for any particular reason? I'm just leaving work now, but I'll answer your questions later.

Got to get transit version myself for Warsaw-Moscow train, so be interested in whats involved in visa application, did you apply to London embassy?

cailinoBAC

Yes, through London. All the info is here
http://www.belembassy.org/uk/cons-visainfo.html
The link to the application form doesn't seem to be working so here it is
http://www.belarusembassy.org/consular/eng/visa-eng.pdf

For the transit visa it looks like you need to already have your Russian visa. I'm not sure about this, the only transit visa I got was for the other direction, coming from Moscow.
You need to add £5 on to the charge because you can't send a return envelope from outside the UK.

For the holiday - are you going to be staying in hotels or do you know people there? If you're staying in hotels you'll get the tourist visa, which is cheaper, but I assume if you're staying with people you're saving money that way. For the short term visitor's visa you don't need an invitation, though they kind of hide that information among everything else. See type C, short term

Citizens of the European Union states, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and some other countries (please, check at the Embassy), who intend to stay in the Republic of Belarus for the period less than 30 days do not need to provide letters of invitation. Still, the inviting person or organization and their address must be indicated in the visa application form

If you don't know anybody, but want this option, send me a pm......
However, this is only when you have your visa in advance (through London as no embassy in Ireland). You can only get your visa in Minsk airport if there is an invitation waiting for you there. That is the only place you can get an on the spot visa, they don't do them at border crossings.
I haven't flown to Minsk directly in almost 4 years because the tickets are simply too expensive, I'd have to fly to Shannon first and there is usually only one flight a week. Vilnius is only 4 hours by bus from Minsk and there are so many more options. Lithuanian, AirBaltic and Aer Lingus fly to Vilnius, Ryanair flies to Kaunas. In May I'm flying to Vilnius with Aer Lingus and back from Kaunas with Ryanair (the days suited better that way). It's costing me €90 including my luggage. Last time I flew with Belavia, a one way ticket was €250. Also, Vilnius is a very pretty city, worth seeing. When I spent a year in Belarus and finally got my multiple entry visa, I headed for Vilnius that first weekend. It was like a western heaven compared to Minsk. And I love Minsk but it can get a bit much at times!

I don't have very much experience with tourist visas. My parents got some last October. You can't ask a hotel for an invitation, you have to get it from an approved agency. There is a list on the page, I can't remember exactly which one my parents dealt with but it seemed to work out fine. I'll have a look and can maybe post the details later.Hotel prices seem to be pretty expensive in Minsk and totally the opposite everywhere else.

This is probably the best guide to Belarus (well mainly Minsk)
http://www.inyourpocket.com/country/belarus.html
also
http://www.inyourpocket.com/lithuania/city/vilnius.html
Vilnius, should you happen to pass through....

Let me know if there's anything else you want to know, or send me a pm

TripleAce

Thank you for the information!!! This is very useful!

I have found the Visa requirements through the Belarusian embassy website, so I should be ok there....I am going down for only a week so I don't need invitation letters. Thanks again also for the other links!

Lamps

Well how did yis get on in Minsk?

I'm going later in the year, lookign forward to it.

gary the great

I loved this city!! Its kinda like going back to Soviet times a little with the buildings, buracracy, fashion, advertising...awesome city!

Only thing i didnt like was the roubles...trying to buy anything!

video removed...its on my youtube page if anyone wants to see...

cailinoBAC

Feel a bit 'homesick' watching that. My next trip isn't til July and it will be almost 2 years since my last one. Looking forward to it now. But yeah, the roubles are really annoying. Great for playing 21 or poker though....you feel like you're playing for such high stakes but it's not really.

mike kelly

I was in Belarus this summer, it's a great country to visit. Is there a kind of Belarus Fan Club in Ireland?