My daughter just walked into the consulate in NYC last week when it first opened and they gave it to her two hours later. Simple

i spoke with the embassy in DC last week....they were not nice quite honestly...

they informed me that i must get my visa in nyc....

when you read the rules on line they are different, DEC and NY, even the site are different, and there is even a different form to fill out and the picture requirement is different and the fees are slightly different...

mine goes in the mail tomorrow morning...

i have my fingers crossed....

if i didn't want to go to india so badly, i would have cancelled after the way they spoke to me on the telephone...their first words were, "where do you live----boston---you need to call ny--goodbye" and my reply was 'wait a minute.......'

rhkkmk, the number of Indians who have embarrassed me with their lack of public manners is legion. If it makes you feel better the behavior of government officials towards fellow Indians is worse (than that typically meted out to a Westerner).

I applied in person in DC for my daughter. I had all the information required so I got it the same day. Being an Indian citizen, I've applied for many visas over the years and this was the fastest processing (except for French which is on the spot).

agt---its the same the world around...our "public servants" are sometimes an embarrasement too...it must be part of their make-up...

Bob...call up Travisa...202.463.6166 to see if they can handle it. They handle visas. When I went to Ghana,I was having trouble when I called the Ghanaian Embassy in New York...real rudeness...and one person even just hung up on me when I asked a question...very unlike Ghanaians...Anyhow, I went on line, did my research, and found Travisa and called them and was mailed out an application immediatedly. I filled it out, sent in a money order and passport and the visa came in less than two weeks. A friend of a friend also had a visa disaster...she went to LAX to catch a flight to Ghana only to find out that she needed a visa which she didn't have and of course was denied boarding. So, I had her contact Travisa...when she got home... and they took care of everything and she couldn't have been happier.She rescheduled her flight and thanked me profusely.
On the second trip to Ghana, I thought I'd need a new visa so I filled out the forms, sent in the money and passport again. They called me and said that they'd put a special notation on my visa so that I wouldn't have to pay for another visa although the first one was a single-entry one and had technically expired. I had no problem entering Ghana with their notation.
There is also a Travisa in San Franciso...closer to me, but that one didn't handle Africa, but handles Asia...so if you call the D.C. one and ask, they can get you connected to the San Francisco one. I talked to both offices on the phone and they were the nicest and most helpful people I'd dealt with in a long time. Very efficient. Happy Travels!

Just to let folks know I sent for my Indian visa to SF 8 days ago and it arrived back today.

J

my passport was received on aug 18 at ny office, so we will see when i get it back...i sent it certified...

Bob...Did you call Travisa? Happy Travels!

no i do not want to pay money to have someone process something that should be done for free....i saw your message after i sent my passports....

OK...but, the advantage I found with them was that I didn't have to stress out over the procedure. It was smooth sailing...priceless. Smiles. Happy Travels!

ok, the visa applications and passports were mailed aug 15 from boston to nyc, certified mail....today, aug 26 they were received back via certified mail....

very good service, contrary to some people's experiences...!!

couple of interesting things....the flimsy envelope that they were returned in was addressed to my wife only, and it was hand written....is india now liberated?? i paid $3.51 for the postage, plus $1. for my cardboard envelope and they charged me $7 for the "service" of mailing them back to me, also certified....capitalism at work...

so now on to india on nov 7...

We sent our applications to San Francisco and received them back in less than 2 weeks by DHL.

btw, the ny consulate will only deal with the us mail system for some reason....no dsl, ups, fedex....very odd, but it goes along with my initial experiences with them...

Just want to ask rhkkmk if he has confirmed his booking with castle and king as we are considering using this company for our India trip next year. I would certainly love to hear his experience once he gets back from his India trip. Have a good one.

pwll...i am trying to confirm it but my e mails this week have not been answered....last friday i did get a brief message but nothing since, even though i have sent 2 e mails....he may be away on a trip this week...after all this is the down time just before their busy season begins...i will telephone him next week if i have not heard...

up to this time i have had no communications problems with him at all....we are all set to give the initial deposit with is due shortly...

if you want ot hear my experiences contact me after dec 6 when i am home:

[email protected]

or watch for my trip report...i may even write a trip report from bangkok if i have extra time some day...otherwise it will be written in mid-december

QUESTION: The India visa applicaton asks for 2 references in India. What does that mean? What if you don't know anyone there??

Thanks.

Use two hotels where you will be staying.

If you think the India visa application process is bad, talk to someone applying for a visa to visit the U.S. about how difficult THAT process is...interviews, delays, etc. I have a friend in India who is supposed to speak at a conference in Oct and applied for a visa last July and the earliest interview they could give her (yes, interviews are required she has to go to Delhi) is in November, they don't get the point....

Applied for my visa last week in person in NY. I was able to pick it up at noon the same day rather than at 4:30 as they state on website. This may be helpful to some.

If you don't know anyone in India write-- N/A Touring -- on the visa application.

We were advised by freinds to do that on our India Visa application and it worked fine. I think the reference may be more necessary for those applying for extended stays for school,work, etc.