saltedegg
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Posts posted by saltedegg
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In case anyone is wondering, quick sitrep of Cheang Wattana from a few days back:
- It was packed, but staff were on the ball, things seemed to move along pretty quick.
- Arrived around 7am, got a ticket, just under 300 in the queue. Office opened at 8:30. They placed fluro stickers on people's clothing to indicate they had been in the queue.
- Most people were wearing surgical masks, a few N95s. More than a few people wearing them around their neck or leaving their nose exposed. A couple people had safety goggles, too.
- Officers at entrance had gloves. Staff inside the room (after the queuing) had no gloves.
- Seen staff walking around holding together stacks of passports. Probably usual way of doing things but in the current situation, pretty unsanitary IMO.
- No temperature checking that I noticed, as has been referenced elsewhere - perhaps that was introduced in the past few days. Staff with surgical masks seen temperature checking each other and mostly either laughing it off or upset about it. I really feel for the staff in this situation, just the anxiety must be horrible.
- If you're wondering about demographics - plenty of people from all over. A lot of Chinese, obviously, and seen a lot of Japanese passports.
- Yes, children there in prams and whatnot. Seen kid taking off mask to scratch his nose.
- Yes, people coughing blatantly in the packed room, and also people trying to hide their cough.
- Yes, a bit of anxiety around the issue but we figured it was better to extend than get on a plane at the moment. Been holed up for a few days now just incase. Hope it was the right decision, we will see... The whole wu flu situation seems bad overall, misinformation everywhere though, could be a lot better or worse than it's portrayed to be in the media and hysterical forum posts (*looks cautiously at what I just wrote here*) - hoping it's the former.
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Can't find CZ8344 departing BKK anywhere other than https://suvarnabhumi.airportthai.co.th/en/flights (which is the Suvarnabhumi site, sooo...)
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Best options with a passport worth IO scrutiny?
For frequent travellers, the consensus here seems to be that BKK/DMK is no-go, Cambodian borders are out, Sabao(sp?) is strict/corrupt. I haven't read of anyone being hassled CNX / Krabi / Vientiane, are they pretty safe bets (I mean, it's basically a gamble right) ? Are land crossings generally more lenient?
I don't have an extensive history of staying in Thailand, but I've got a lot of in-and-out exempts and a TV in my passport (as in an entry every 3 pages), which I'm sure warranted the IO pulling me aside at DMK during my previous visit (From what I've read here, got let in on a typical 'next time you stay out 6 month' bs clause). I'm meeting friends there for a couple of weeks this time around, and don't really want to screw up my holiday. So I'm weighing up my options for what will be my last visit for a while.
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33 minutes ago, superal said:
slightly off topic but a friend of mine was denied entry at D/M yesterday coming from Hong Kong . Apparently too many visits using voa 30 day . Turned around and back to H/K i 3 hours at the expense of Air Asia
That sucks. I was interviewed going HK -> DMK yesterday. 3 exempts over the course of 12 months. Entered on a SETV. The officers were friendly enough.
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Update: Collected visa within 60 seconds today, all well and good. No scrutiny like yesterday.
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Ok, so an update for anyone who may find this helpful. Applied for a SETV in Hong Kong. As per other posts on the matter, staff weren't exactly a pleasant bunch, but they were quite helpful. Was requested to get a bank statement and have an interview with their supervisor. After waiting I got the same person who took my documents telling me "only one visa, no more, go back to home country" (Which I have done multiple times between visa exemptions, but I was too over situation to bother mentioning that). As mentioned in a previous post, too much of a hassle for me to bother stuffing around with this. Arrived around 10AM, quite quick from what I gather (10 minutes + 10 minutes waiting for supervisor), although I've never gotten an official visa before. I'll update again if I actually get the visa...
Documents needed:
- Flight in
- Flight out
- First 30 days accommodation (start date of which is after the fly-in date. Hoping no issues there).
- Bank statement
- HKID or arrival slip (photocopied onto A4 page - wouldn't accept the original arrival slip because "needs to be A4")
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Thanks. I've been able to book a few "pay w/o card, free cancellation" on Agoda. I can kind of understand the frustration of the long-term expats on this forum, having to do this constantly and the new TM30 stuff must be a pain. I think I'll just take my chances with an exemption next time, and if denied then so be it, I'll go somewhere else.
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I'm planning to get a SETV in KL soon. So far I've gotten 3 exempt entries over the course of about a year (all extended, stays 40-60 days) - from what I've read here, obtaining the SETV should be ok.
However the requirement for 60 days of pre-booked accommodation seems ridiculous. I'm only planning to book a hotel or airbnb for a couple of weeks in Bangkok at first, then decide where to go from there.
I gather that KL is strict regarding documentation and pre-arranged hotel bookings are mandatory, but I can't imagine everyone does this, right... Are people booking refundable hotel stays or printing fake reservations? I don't really use hotels and tend to stick to airbnb - what sites offer full refunds for hotels.. ? It seems crazy to rely on expecting a 60 days refund every time if you're doing border runs regularly.
Is there any place to get a 60 day SETV without the 60 days of accommodation??
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Australian, usa expats, what is your plan?
in COVID-19 Coronavirus
Posted
It feels like this is the biggest issue many are facing here, reading a bunch of different threads it seems most people would rather stay put than jump on a plane. Here's hoping immigration comes through for everyone