Queen Elizabeth - Australia Circumnavigation - October 18 - November 17, 2024

[NancyDrew1953]

Although not a traditional "Live From", I am intending to post semi-regularly prior to and during this voyage to share my love of this adventure.  A little bit about me, I am a solo mid-70's cruiser from the Great Lakes area of the US and love Cunard, but also enjoy many different lines (see my signature). Circumventing Australia is a "Bucket List" item for me.  On Cunard, I normally book Britannia Club, but this trip is a major splurge for me, and I am in the Grills for the first time! 

 

I am so looking forward to this cruise, having been on the Queen Elizabeth in May this year on the Grand Japan.  I have been to Australia previously; just Sydney and Melbourne on a HAL cruise that focused more on New Zealand.  I am excited to see more of Australia and have started to select some of the ship excursions and am thinking about the challenges of packing.

Today, as an American, I just completed my eVisa application for Australia.  Once I successfully completed the photo, it was fairly easy.  And, I received confirmation that my entry was granted in less than 2 minutes! I am impressed with how efficient the process was.

Recognizing that most of the people on this cruise will be Australian, does anyone have any experience for US citizens' requirements to visit Indonesia?   Information on the web is a bit confusing and contradictory. 

 

According to the Indonesian consular website, "Visit Visa Exemption or Visa on Arrival for Leisure Purpose are granted for foreign nationals at the Immigration Checkpoints as follows:", then there are list of airports and seaports.  There are two seaports in Bali listed - Benoa, Bali and Padang Bai, Bali, but I haven't been able to determine where QE is docking in Bali.  Help?  I also posted this in the Roll Call; however, the Roll Call is not very active. Any experiences or input on the Indonesian VISA process much appreciated.

 

Please join with me on this adventure.  All comments, hints, suggestions, etc., would be great. 

 

 

[NE John]

A good travel agent should help with immigration questions and have accountability to your specific needs. As much as many on CC want to help, at the end of the day you need someone to fall back on with any issues that may arise out of a big trip like yours coming up. Sounds pretty awesome!

[sfred]

2 hours ago, NancyDrew1953 said:

does anyone have any experience for US citizens' requirements to visit Indonesia?   Information on the web is a bit confusing and contradictory.

 

1 hour ago, NE John said:

A good travel agent should help with immigration questions and have accountability to your specific needs. As much as many on CC want to help, at the end of the day you need someone to fall back on with any issues that may arise out of a big trip like yours coming up. Sounds pretty awesome!

 

@NE John's suggestion is a good one.  In addition, or in case you've booked directly with Cunard, the Cunard FAQ contains a link to Cunard's "preferred visa partner" CIBT. 

 

The online portal link in the FAQ goes to https://cibtvisas.co.uk/   There, you enter nationality, destination, and purpose of trip and it will tell you the relevant visa information. 

 

Best wishes for the Australia trip!

 

[sfred]

Edit to add:  You need not actually use CIBT to obtain any necessary visas.  You can still use any other travel provider, or specific country immigration department online sites, to obtain whatever you require.

[3rdGenCunarder]

cruisetimetables.com says you'll be in Benoa on Oct 29. 

Timetables for Cruises To Bali, Indonesia on 29 October 2024 (cruisetimetables.com)

 

Click on where it says Bali, Indonesia, and it will take you to a little info on Benoa

Edited July 28 by 3rdGenCunarder

[intel]

8 hours ago, NancyDrew1953 said:

 

Please join with me on this adventure.  All comments, hints, suggestions, etc., would be great. 

 I have also been looking at the Roll Call for this cruise , extremely quiet. We are joining this cruise are  booked in Grills and am sure you will enjoy it. Being from here we have travelled extensively here with exception of the West Coast of Aust. only been to Perth, so new territory for us. For us in past the Barrier Reef trip is really worth it.

Not sure about Indonesia Visa will have look into myself but some good responses so far, not sure of the past.

 

 

[daisybel]

I enjoyed the QE round Australia just after COVID The ship issued a blanket visa for Bali for every passenger , going ashore or not ! There was a small charge to our room account.

We r also booked for October but will check with Cunard that this visa situation is still the same , and will post !

[NancyDrew1953]

Thanks everyone who commented.  I thought everyone might be interested in the various responses I've received to-date:

 

* I called Cunard and the customer service rep did not have any information.  I called a second time, different representative and same response.

 

* My travel agent checked with her sources that (1) normally the ship provides this, but she could not obtain a definitive answer from Cunard, and (2) that normally there is a VISA On Demand / Waiver for one day visits in Bali (with a fee of less than US$20 - this is more a passenger fee than a true VISA) that is payable upon landing.

 

* The CIBT VISA service Cunard recommends wanted to charge over US$100 for a 30-day VISA to Indonesia. Having had a bad experience with CIBT previously where I was charged for a totally unnecessary Turkish VISA on a Viking cruise early this year, I am very skeptical of them.

 

* Further exploring the Indonesian Government website seems to confirm a VISA On Arrival at Benoa is available. 

 

I am a US citizen so @daisybel experience may not be applicable, but I am still very interested.  

 

Right now, I am taking a "wait and see" and hoping that the outcome is that a VISA can be obtained upon arrival, if necessary.

 

Meanwhile, I am spending my time exploring the various ship excursions offered by QE for this cruise.  Although I recognize that ship excursions can be pricey and somewhat limited, I do not enjoy the hassles of DIY tours.  @daisybel  or others who have done this cruise before - any recommendations for excursions (I am not a beach, swim, snorkel person) would be much appreciated. 

 

 

Only 77 days to departure!!!!!!

 

 

[NE John]

1 hour ago, NancyDrew1953 said:

Although I recognize that ship excursions can be pricey and somewhat limited, I do not enjoy the hassles of DIY tours.

I can attest that the Cunard sponsored excursions (Alaska) were excellent and, if there was a premium paid, well worth it. 👍 

[Kiwi_Cruisers]

We recently did a QM2 cruise from Sydney to Singapore stopping at Bitung Indonesia. Every Cunard person we spoke to prior the cruise gave a different answer including staff on board our previous Cunard cruise who dealt with visas who said we must have a visa prior to boarding. Once on board Cunard made a copy of our Indonesian visa and they asked passengers who did not have one to apply using the free link to the Indonesian Govt website on the Cunard portal. The cost of the visa was about US$25.

[NancyDrew1953]

Thanks @Kiwi_Cruisers, I am still attempting to obtain a definitive answer. This is becoming a bit worrisome as further searching on the Indonesian government’s website seems to provide conflicting information.  Could you provide more details on the Cunard portal as all I find is the link to the CIBC that wants to charge me over US$100 for a 30 day Visa.

[Kiwi_Cruisers]

Hi NancyDrew

You will not get a definitive answer from Cunard, our recent experience gave the impression that Cunard never sailed to that part of the world and were unfamiliar with visas. The Cunard portal with the free links to Govt. visa websites is only available when you are on board the ship.
So either purchase a visa through the Indonesian Govt website pre cruise or wait until you are on board and they will do it for you, it was roughly about US$25.

[Pushpit]

I think the rough and ready rule here relates to the fact that realistically many countries see visas not as a scrutiny method, but as a form of tourism tax. Indonesia is one of those, basically they will let any tourists in, just so long as they get their slice of fees.  Somewhere like the USA then visas / ESTAs are purely about scrutiny, the fees are not important to that government. For the first group of countries usually cruise ships will make arrangements onboard, or negotiate to hold passports back for those going onshore in order to eliminate immigration controls altogether. For the second group of countries you won't be allowed on board unless you have the visa in advance.

[intel]

Hi Nancy

Last time we called there I am sure a visa was issued on the ship. However that was some time ago (years) and there has been changes. The official information site of the Indonesian Government is as follows

https://molina.imigrasi.go.id/front/info/evoa

The cost is Rp500,000.00 or about AU$47 or US$31 on todays exchange rate. Due to the uncertainty of information I am going to apply on line for a visa. The official site is

https://molina.imigrasi.go.id/

It looks straight forward and takes away the uncertainty and no doubt it will be cheaper than on the ship.

Brian

[daisybel]

I called Cunard yesterday and no longer issuing a blanket visa for Bali , so all passengers need to get their own