Honduras Visa Requirements UK Citizens

[Cheller1973]

I’ve just become aware of the new requirements which will come into force on 15 August requiring UK citizens to have a visa for entry into Honduras.

 

I can’t read the Honduran information as it’s in Spanish but have been told to get a visa will require an in person appointment in London… 
 

Panicking as we’ve had this holiday booked for ages.  As we live in Scotland a trip to London before our cruise - assuming we can get an appointment at the embassy- would be expensive! 
 

I’m assuming lots of people will be affected by this and am thinking there must be an easier way - they can’t surely expect everyone going on a cruise to visit London for a visa? Can they? 

 

 

[Sunshine3601]

Have you checked with Royal Caribbean or your TA if a Visa is needed if you are entering Honduras by a cruise?     It is possible the visa requirement may only be required if you were traveling to Honduras by plane and have a land vacation planned.

[Ken at the beach]

https://apply.joinsherpa.com/travel-restrictions?language=en-CA

[Omega1]

I’ve just become aware of the new requirements which will come into force on 15 August requiring UK citizens to have a visa for entry into Honduras.

 

The information on the Honduran Embassy website is in Spanish but it seems that an in person appointment for a visa in London is required… that’s two days of travel, overnight accommodation plus the visa cost for an eight hour visit!! Plus the visa office is only open two days per week.

 

It’s a long shot, but does anyone have information about this - is a one day visit by cruise ship visa exempt? I ‘ve spoken to the Embassy and they couldn’t give any further information. Thanks
 

 

Edited August 4 by Omega1

[Cheller1973]

Thanks, the above link confirms what I’ve said. My concern is that there’s no way of making a visa appointment on the website and we are running out of time. I find it hard to believe that everyone cruising with a one day stop in Honduras has to travel to London to get a visa.

[Cheller1973]

41 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Have you checked with Royal Caribbean or your TA if a Visa is needed if you are entering Honduras by a cruise?     It is possible the visa requirement may only be required if you were traveling to Honduras by plane and have a land vacation planned.

We don’t have a TA and past experience with them is that we usually know more anyway. Royal Caribbean just states all passengers are required to check their own visa requirements.

[Sunshine3601]

When is your cruise?

[ARandomTraveler]

See if you can find out from Royal if they'll still allow you to board the ship and just not get off the ship at that port. I went on a cruise that required visas for different ports and I saw some people be denied boarding altogether, while others were let on the ship, but told they couldn't get off at certain ports, depending on their nationality and what visa was needed.

Edited August 4 by ARandomTraveler

[BlerkOne]

You might call them and ask

https://cibtvisas.co.uk/destination/hnd/honduras-visa

 

Cruise ships sometimes have different rules

[Cheller1973]

41 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

When is your cruise?

22 September 

[Cheller1973]

35 minutes ago, ARandomTraveler said:

See if you can find out from Royal if they'll still allow you to board the ship and just not get off the ship at that port. I went on a cruise that required visas for different ports and I saw some people be denied boarding altogether, while others were let on the ship, but told they couldn't get off at certain ports, depending on their nationality and what visa was needed.

I’ve emailed the embassy and will call, them tomorrow. Roatán is the only port we haven’t been to and the primary reason we opted for this cruise. Typical.

[Sunshine3601]

Good luck tomorrow with the Embassy call.   Hopefully there is an online option to apply to avoid the 8 hr +/- drive to London or even better they tell you that you won't need a Visa if traveling for one day via cruise ship from the US.    

[Ferry_Watcher]

46 minutes ago, Cheller1973 said:

22 September 

 

You have 7 weeks to get your Visa.  Stop looking for a 'work-around' and just handle it.

 

You may find that it could be as simple as sending in a form outlining your travel plans (arriving by cruise ship, leaving by cruise ship the same day), and once approved, you send in your UK passport to the Honduran Embassy, they attach the VISA, and mail it back to you. 

Or, maybe you do have to apply in person.  Regardless, you know what is required, just start working on it tomorrow.

[Cheller1973]

4 minutes ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

 

You have 7 weeks to get your Visa.  Stop looking for a 'work-around' and just handle it.

 

You may find that it could be as simple as sending in a form outlining your travel plans (arriving by cruise ship, leaving by cruise ship the same day), and once approved, you send in your UK passport to the Honduran Embassy, they attach the VISA, and mail it back to you. 

Or, maybe you do have to apply in person.  Regardless, you know what is required, just start working on it tomorrow.

Thanks, I’m not looking for a work around. I’m looking for clarification which isn’t available on the UK government site nor the Honduran site from what I’ve managed to translate.

 

If we need to appear in person it’s a two day trip for us and will be costly and stressful just 6 weeks before we travel. 

[Sunshine3601]

9 minutes ago, Cheller1973 said:

Thanks, I’m not looking for a work around. I’m looking for clarification which isn’t available on the UK government site nor the Honduran site from what I’ve managed to translate.

 

If we need to appear in person it’s a two day trip for us and will be costly and stressful just 6 weeks before we travel. 

the good news is that you found out now instead of the right before your cruise or once onboard the ship.     

[Host Kat]

@Cheller1973 and @Omega1

 

Your two threads re the same situation have been merged into one thread. Due to the Cruise Critic software, all posts now appear in post date/time order in this newly merged thread. The merged thread has been moved to the UK Cruisers forum where others can possibly help.

 

I suggest you both use the Follow feature on any new threads you start or any other threads or forums where you are interested in the new replies. That way you will not have to go looking to see if there are new posts because they will come l👀king for you as notifications! If you need information on how to do it, please click here: How to: Follow Topics & Forums (Subscribed Threads/Forums Info) and here: How To: Change Email Settings/Unsubscribe: Notification Settings

 

Hope this will be helpful!

 

Happy sails,

 

Host Kat

 

[Ferry_Watcher]

25 minutes ago, Cheller1973 said:

Thanks, I’m not looking for a work around. I’m looking for clarification which isn’t available on the UK government site nor the Honduran site from what I’ve managed to translate.

 

If we need to appear in person it’s a two day trip for us and will be costly and stressful just 6 weeks before we travel. 

 

I can appreciate that, and I can appreciate that the newly announced need for a Visa from Honduras is an unwelcomed, and a potentially expensive surprise 6/7 weeks before you sail.

 

I actually work at a cruise port in the US, and we deal with foreign passengers from certain countries who are required to have a Canadian visa to sail to Alaska (which includes an hours long stop in a single Canadian port).  Sadly, if a passenger from one of those countries that a Canadian visa is required shows up to board the cruise ship, and we don't see the Canadian visa, then it is a full stop denial of boarding.  And to make it even worst, the cruise line does not have to refund any of your cruise fare because you (or your travel agent) have electronically clicked off on an acknowledgement that you understand that you, the passenger accepts all responsibility of knowing what travel documents are needed.

 

As an example, Canada added Mexico to the list of countries that require a Canadian visa to enter Canada.  All ships sailing from US homeports must stop in Canada.  That means that all Mexican passport holders need a Canadian visa to board an Alaska bound cruise ship in the US.  The Canadians added Mexico to the list of countries on April 1, 2024, and the first ships sailing to Alaska were at the end of April.  So at the beginning of the season, we had lots of denials.  It got better as the season has gone on, but there are still folks arriving who need a Canadian visa, but sadly don't have one - and they are denied boarding.

 

I am glad that you are going to start working on this tomorrow, and I wish you all the best.  I hope you come back and give us an update.

[Omega1]

2 minutes ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

 

I can appreciate that, and I can appreciate that the newly announced need for a Visa from Honduras is an unwelcomed, and a potentially expensive surprise 6/7 weeks before you sail.

 

I actually work at a cruise port in the US, and we deal with foreign passengers from certain countries who are required to have a Canadian visa to sail to Alaska (which includes an hours long stop in a single Canadian port).  Sadly, if a passenger from one of those countries that a Canadian visa is required shows up to board the cruise ship, and we don't see the Canadian visa, then it is a full stop denial of boarding.  And to make it even worst, the cruise line does not have to refund any of your cruise fare because you (or your travel agent) have electronically clicked off on an acknowledgement that you understand that you, the passenger accepts all responsibility of knowing what travel documents are needed.

 

As an example, Canada added Mexico to the list of countries that require a Canadian visa to enter Canada.  All ships sailing from US homeports must stop in Canada.  That means that all Mexican passport holders need a Canadian visa to board an Alaska bound cruise ship in the US.  The Canadians added Mexico to the list of countries on April 1, 2024, and the first ships sailing to Alaska were at the end of April.  So at the beginning of the season, we had lots of denials.  It got better as the season has gone on, but there are still folks arriving who need a Canadian visa, but sadly don't have one - and they are denied boarding.

 

I am glad that you are going to start working on this tomorrow, and I wish you all the best.  I hope you come back and give us an update.

Thank you - we are familiar with the necessity for visas, this year we have acquired estas, etas, visas for Kenya and Tanzania. The issue we face is that Honduras has introduced the new visa requirement but does not have the infrastructure in place to deal with the increased volume of applications - the visa office in London is only open two days a week - no online applications (only in person). So a two day trip is required and then the passport has to left with them for it to be mailed back or collected in person - they don’t state how long this process takes!

I did speak to someone at the Embassy last week who didn’t know much about the process, I asked if there would be a visa exemption for one day cruise ship visits - he said there may be but they were waiting for ‘official’ information.

Of course, time is now tight and there is no guarantee we are practically able to obtain a visa. If we are able to obtain a visa, the cost of obtaining it is almost equal to the 7 day cruise out of Galveston for one person!! Needless to say, had we known all this when we booked the cruise 13 months ago we wouldn’t have done so!!

[Emma101010]

I’ve been battling the Honduran visa change for the last two weeks and my situation is desperate. 
 

I noticed the change on 17th July, coming into force on 15th August. Our cruise with Royal is on the 17th August!

 

I phoned the Honduran embassy in London immediately and was told cruise passengers would not need a visa and to send in an email which they would reply to within 3 days.

 

10 days later - still no email, so I phoned again last Tuesday and the embassy said that they still did not have authority to send the emails. They said it will be “highly unlikely” i would need a visa and they could not get me an appointment just in case as they were inundated. 
 

The fallback would be to try the Honduran embassy in Miami before the cruise. 
 

I called the Miami embassy- this very nice lady again verbally reassured me that I would not need a visa. Also there’s no appointments available for August! 
 

So I’m utterly stuck, worried beyond belief, not knowing if we’ll be able to go on this cruise.  
 

There’s no information- CIBT visas didn’t even know of the change when I called two weeks ago. Their websites still show UK nationals not needing a visa for August! Royal Caribbean just pointed me to CIBT. 
 

I called CIBT again last week - now their call center staff know about it. And I was reassured that they were waiting for information from the Honduran embassy - they expected cruise passengers not to require a visa and told me to hang tight. Even if we do need visas CIBT won’t be able to help as they’re not setup with the Honduran embassy’s in order to process on behalf of clients yet.  
 

I’m not sure, given the complete lack of clarity, that it’s at all easy to get a visa. The only progress available is an in person appointment on Tuesdays or Thursdays. But given that the London Honduran embassy is swamped, it can’t get an appointment. 
 

Trying to stay calm faced with this pressure is ruining what should have been a once in a lifetime holiday for us. The threat of losing all of our cruise is heartbreaking. 
 

Good luck with your September trip. The minute I find out what happens for us on the 17th Aug, I’ll post our experience. 

Edited August 5 by Emma Berry

[Omega1]

19 minutes ago, Emma Berry said:

I’ve been battling the Honduran visa change for the last two weeks and my situation is desperate. 
 

I noticed the change on 17th July, coming into force on 15th August. Our cruise with Royal is on the 17th August!

 

I phoned the Honduran embassy in London immediately and was told cruise passengers would not need a visa and to send in an email which they would reply to within 3 days.

 

10 days later - still no email, so I phoned again last Tuesday and the embassy said that they still did not have authority to send the emails. They said it will be “highly unlikely” i would need a visa and they could not get me an appointment just in case as they were inundated. 
 

The fallback would be to try the Honduran embassy in Miami before the cruise. 
 

I called the Miami embassy- this very nice lady again verbally reassured me that I would not need a visa. Also there’s no appointments available for August! 
 

So I’m utterly stuck, worried beyond belief, not knowing if we’ll be able to go on this cruise.  
 

There’s no information- CIBT visas didn’t even know of the change when I called two weeks ago. Their websites still show UK nationals not needing a visa for August! Royal Caribbean just pointed me to CIBT. 
 

I called CIBT again last week - now their call center staff know about it. And I was reassured that they were waiting for information from the Honduran embassy - they expected cruise passengers not to require a visa and told me to hang tight. Even if we do need visas CIBT won’t be able to help as they’re not setup with the Honduran embassy’s in order to process on behalf of clients yet.  
 

I’m not sure, given the complete lack of clarity, that it’s at all easy to get a visa. The only progress available is an in person appointment on Tuesdays or Thursdays. But given that the London Honduran embassy is swamped, it can’t get an appointment. 
 

Tryinn to stay calm faced with this pressure is ruining what should have been a once in a lifetime holiday for us. The treat of losing all of our cruise is heartbreaking. 
 

Good luck with your September trip. The minute I find out what happens for us on the 17th Aug, I’ll post our experience. 

Emma - thank you for replying. Your experience mirrors our own but we don’t sail until early October so not as acute. I spoke with someone at the embassy this morning who confirmed they had received ’thousands’ of enquiries about this and were awaiting further information regarding cruise visitors being visa exempt- she was ‘hopeful’ it would be this week. Our TA is very vague and trying to get further info (we have a package of 2 cruises, hotel, flights and transfers). I sincerely hope a positive outcome comes through quickly for you.

Edited August 5 by Omega1

[JohnPangbourne]

Hi Emma

 

We're boarding Wonder of the Seas on Sunday 11 Aug and are due in Roatan in the 15th Aug.  I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[Emma101010]

15 minutes ago, JohnPangbourne said:

Hi Emma

 

We're boarding Wonder of the Seas on Sunday 11 Aug and are due in Roatan in the 15th Aug.  I'll let you know how it goes.

 

Good Luck John. I’m wishing you all the best and all is ok for your trip too. 

[Cheller1973]

1 hour ago, Emma Berry said:

I’ve been battling the Honduran visa change for the last two weeks and my situation is desperate. 
 

I noticed the change on 17th July, coming into force on 15th August. Our cruise with Royal is on the 17th August!

 

I phoned the Honduran embassy in London immediately and was told cruise passengers would not need a visa and to send in an email which they would reply to within 3 days.

 

10 days later - still no email, so I phoned again last Tuesday and the embassy said that they still did not have authority to send the emails. They said it will be “highly unlikely” i would need a visa and they could not get me an appointment just in case as they were inundated. 
 

The fallback would be to try the Honduran embassy in Miami before the cruise. 
 

I called the Miami embassy- this very nice lady again verbally reassured me that I would not need a visa. Also there’s no appointments available for August! 
 

So I’m utterly stuck, worried beyond belief, not knowing if we’ll be able to go on this cruise.  
 

There’s no information- CIBT visas didn’t even know of the change when I called two weeks ago. Their websites still show UK nationals not needing a visa for August! Royal Caribbean just pointed me to CIBT. 
 

I called CIBT again last week - now their call center staff know about it. And I was reassured that they were waiting for information from the Honduran embassy - they expected cruise passengers not to require a visa and told me to hang tight. Even if we do need visas CIBT won’t be able to help as they’re not setup with the Honduran embassy’s in order to process on behalf of clients yet.  
 

I’m not sure, given the complete lack of clarity, that it’s at all easy to get a visa. The only progress available is an in person appointment on Tuesdays or Thursdays. But given that the London Honduran embassy is swamped, it can’t get an appointment. 
 

Trying to stay calm faced with this pressure is ruining what should have been a once in a lifetime holiday for us. The threat of losing all of our cruise is heartbreaking. 
 

Good luck with your September trip. The minute I find out what happens for us on the 17th Aug, I’ll post our experience. 

Emma 

 

thank you for your reply. As omega has said your experience is very similar to ours. We too are sailing with RCI but not until 22 September- due in Honduras on 26 September.

 

Ive tried emailing the embassy but the email was undeliverable so I phoned them but the guy I spoke with didn’t have great English and I don’t think really understood my question about cruise passengers.

 

I’ve phoned RCI who pointed me to the CIBT site 🤦‍♀️.

 

I really hope this all works out for you (and subsequently all of us) and that you get clarity soon so that you can look forward to your holiday! 

[Aaron3]

We're due at the end of October 

We always check visa requirements at time of booking so this change would have possibly passed us by. Hopefully someone here gets a definitive answer soon otherwise I'll try and have a Spanish speaking friend call the embassy

[Emma101010]

I just read in another forum that UK tourists (not on a cruise) who need to definitely get a visa, have been told there are no appointments at the London Honduran embassy for over 3 months. 
 

Also they’re talking about having to get DBS checks done to show letters of good standing which are required go through the process when you submit details alongside bank statements etc. 
 

I can only imagine that this process will just stop any UK tourists from being able to book any of the Caribbean cruises going forward. It’s surely a big issue for the cruise lines?! Or are we not really that numerous on these cruises over in the Americas? 
 

Hopefully some clarity will come at the end of the week and what I was told by the Honduras Miami embassy official is true…. we’ll all have to fill in a form at the Roatan port upon arrival, declaring we’re there for less than a day, pay a fee and be allowed to enter Roatan for a few hours.
 

Fingers Crossed 🤞 We all need a bit of luck 🍀.