Visa Problem
 

Hi,

As we will be leaving next week on our trip
I would like to know if we need a single visa or multiple...
We fly into Nairobi then Masi Mara on Sept 19
on sept 24 fly back to Nairobi then fly out to Zanzibar ..back to Nairobi on oct 1 where we have 8hr wait - so I have book a tour for 5hrs to pick us up at the airport then bring us back ....I have sent email to the embassy but I have heard nothing...I have downloaded the visa forms not sure how many each we will need...
thanks for help

I believe that as long as you don't travel outside of the 3 country region of Kenya/Tanzania/Uganda, you don't need multiple entry visas. Your original single entry Kenyan visa will still be valid for re-entry from Tanzania as long as the duration of your trip doesn't exceed the visa validity period. So for the purposes of this trip, you should only need 1 single entry Kenyan visa and 1 single entry Tanzania visa.

If you were to travel outside of this 3 country zone, then you'd need a separate visa for re-entry.

Hi,

My worry is coming and going out of the country several times...does that make it a multiple visa requirement?
thanks

Short answer: no, it's not a problem.

But have you checked the websites for Kenya and TZ visa requirements? I haven't been since 2004, so I suppose it's possible things have changed.

If no one here has the addresses at hand, do check the Africa branch of Lonely Planet's Thorn Tree. You can definitely find it there.

blemke,
Another thought: what does your tour operator say? I think I misunderstood your question.

We got separate visas for Kenya and Tanzania. Neither were multiple-entry, though.

We had a similar itinerary, flying into Nairobi, overnight there, safari in Tanzania, to Zanzibar, back to Nairobi. However, our flight from Zanzibar ended up seriously delayed, so we didn't have time for our last-day tour, which we, like you, had arranged.

But please, check with your operator and/or the embassies. I think I must have checked and rechecked and checked again, etc. I was nervous and the last thing I wanted was to be turned away at any point. ;)

Good luck.

As far as I know, within the validity period of your single entry visas, you can travel back and forth across the borders of all 3 countries as many times as you wish. You do need separate visas for each country, but just single not multiple entry ones.

If your itinerary had you traveling from Kenya to Rwanda and back to Kenya, then you'd need either a multiple entry visa or 2 single entry visas or a combination of a single entry and a transit visa for Kenya.

There's an FAQ on the LP Africa board on this topic, post #29 in this thread -

http://thorntree.lonelyplanet.com/me...amp;parentid=0

Sorry, that should be post #27.

We leave in 3 weeks for Kenya & Tanzania. I have printed out the forms for both countries visas so that we can get our visas at the airport. Just to be sure - it is $50 per person in each country (total of $200 for visas for both me & my husband), right?

Thanks for the help!

I am in similar situation. I talked to Kenya Embassy in DC and was told to get multiple visa. To avoid trouble at border, I applied for multiple entry, probably wasted $50. :(

Hi,
It is kenya that I wonder about as I am going in and out of the country several times?
Do I understand the answer that if I bought a multlpe visa in Kenya it would cover Tazania as well?
the keyan website does not explain the differences ...
thanks

blemke,
I think you should still be okay; as I said, our plan was very much like yours, but b/c of flight delays we didn't test it out. No one ever suggested to us that we'd need another visa or a multiple-entry one for our last fun day in Nairobi.

I'm pretty sure some people on this board have more recently done this, but I do encourage you to post your question on the Thorn Tree. So many of those travellers are there right now or have just returned.

Good luck, and as I said before, I completely understand your concern. It *is* confusing.

lorib1,
Yes, it's $50 per person, so $200 total for both of you if you're each getting one Kenya and one Tanzania visa.

blemke,
The multiple entry visa doesn't cover multiple countries. There's no multi country visa for this region as far as I'm aware. You still need SEPARATE visas for each country. Perhaps someone who has been there recently can confirm, but my understanding is that you'll only need one single entry visa for Kenya and one single entry visa for Tanzania. You get the Kenya visa upon arrival at Nairobi airport and I'm pretty sure you can get the Tanzania one upon arrival at Zanzibar. In case the rules have changed, you can always get a second single entry visa (or probably just a transit visa since you're only staying a few hours) at the airport on your return back through Nairobi. You don't need to get multiple entry visa in advance.

blemke,
Sorry, yes: what Patty said! One visa for each country. I didn't mean to imply you'df only need 1 visa for both countries. Yikes! :o

When you arrive in Nairobi you need a Visa for Kenya. You can obtain upon arrival with a completed form and USD$50. Single entry good for 6-months as a "pleasure" visit.

You will neeed a Tanzania Visa when you arrive in Zanzibar. You can obtain upon arrival with a completed form and USD50. Single entry good for 3-months as a "pleasure" visit.

You can download the Visa forms from each country's Tourism sites. Photos are not required if obtaining these Visas upon arrival (they have your passport as verification).

You will be able to return to Nairobi after your stay in Zanzibar. Hakuna matata! (no problem).

thank you for all your help....first trip to Africa ....so excited

Thanks for the clarification on the visas for us. Can we use US fifty dollar bills to pay for the visas? Trying to pare down the number of bills we have to bring...

I don't think there's any requirement that you pay in a certain denomination bill. I think we paid for 2 visas with one $100 bill. Also accepted are 50 euros, 35 pounds or 70 Swiss francs.

lorib1 - a clean, fresh (doesn't have to be freshly minted) USD$50 will bring smiles to the agent processing your Visa. As to the other USD bills, should be clean/fresh, no folds, tears - washed in your jeans pocket - and preferably printed within the past 2-3 years. The reason for the last comment - many of their currencies loose value over the years, while we know ours don't, but locals don't quite realize this. Happy travels!