How to Apply/Not to Apply for a Visa to Belarus
 

Before you begin the process, ask me. I just made every mistake in the book.

Unlike what you would think, you have to present evidence of hotel bookings BEFORE they will give you the visa. Of course, if they don't give you the visa, then you have to cancel everything.

The entire process is, from an American perspective, silly, but you have to remember Belarus makes the rules and the US does not exactly give Belarus nationals an easy time if they want to visit the US.

The Embassy has been very helpful once I explained to them in detail my travel plans for Belarus and why I was going (principally to visit the ancestral villages where my maternal great grandparents and grandmother were born.

Belarus does lack a lot of tourist infrastructure and not many go there. I will be home exchanging in Warsaw, so, if I was going to see those villages ever, that was my shot.

Hopefully I'll get the visa, but it has been a lot of back and forth.

Um, that's typically how visas work for Russia and associated countries. They don;t want you wandering around at random so they ask for hotel reservations before giving you the visa.

They have been operating this way for more than 25 years. It is no mystery. And a 5 minute look at the requirements would have shown you this.

Not sure why you are making such a todo about it. Different countries have different rules/regs - and it's up to the tourists to sort them out.

If you've actually been to Belarus, did you post a trip report? Did you apply for the visa yourself or did you use a tour operator?

We had to show our reservations at Chinese Consulate when applying for a visa to travel there.

>>you have to present evidence of hotel bookings BEFORE they will give you the visa. <<

That is the way visas work in LOTS of countries . . .

I don't know why you thought that you would not have to provide reservations. The Belarus Ministry of Foreign Affairs site states you need it.

To take the guesswork out of what is required to support a visa application, you can use a website such as CIBT and enter your nationality, purpose of trip etc. It will display the list of requirements, which for Belarus includes proof of travel arrangements. You are lucky that the Belarus consulate was helpful to you, as most are very unhelpful at the best of times esp when you are unprepared and haven't researched what is needed to support your visa application.

Why don't you arrange for a home exchange with the Belarus Foreign Minister?

<Unlike what you would think, you have to present evidence of hotel bookings BEFORE they will give you the visa.>

Seriously?

It's unlike what YOU would think. I would think that a country left behind in the 1970s that has a totalitarian cult-of-personality regime run by a Stalinist and which is politically aligned with the 1918-1991 version of Russia would have restrictive prerequisites for getting a visa.

My passport arrived with the visa today. I am going to Belarus! While a lot of people would not see Belarus as a tourist destination, it is a destination for Jews with roots there. I look forward to my brief stay there. I don't care about the politics. I care about seeing where my ancestors once walked.

Yes, I made some mistakes in applying for the visa, but there is no reason to beat me over the head about it. Contrary to what you might think, the Belarus Embassy in Washington, DC, was quite helpful. It is just a shame that they make this needlessly complicated (just like the Russians). Of course, on the other hand, it would be very difficult for someone from Belarus to get a visa to come to the US. So, there is a lot of tit for tat going on here.

I had no problem giving them the hotel reservations first. Now that I know how to do it, I wouldn't make all these mistakes if I ever go again. I do have other parts of Belarus with relatives and might choose to go see those bits should my travels take me to the area again.

lauren_s_khan...Great that all has worked out..Now make copies,,one for you to carry with originals on the trip, one to leave at home with emergency contact..And one just in case!!!Passports also!!!

I will do that. I usually have copies of my passport all over. In luggage, etc., and it is a good idea to make copies of the visa as well. I did learn a lot from this stressful experience. Next time I would have it all done before asking for the visa and it should take no time at all--if there is a next time.

Live and learn!

For the record, I posted a piece on my website about the entire experience:

http://altecockertravels.weebly.com/...r-belarus.html

Hopefully it will help others who don't know the ropes of this sort of visa.

Getting ready to leave on the 2014 Grand European Haj with Belarus visa in hand! The trip begins in a few days. Just revised my home exchange book, printed out instructions for my cleaner (she cleans the house between exchangers), and, the piece de resistance, I successfully (after several tries) got a bus ticket from Warsaw to Brest in Belarus. That last one was a lot of work. Google translate helped a lot.

To follow the trip, just check my website: http://altecockertravels.weebly.com/

I'll be setting up blogs for the different legs of the trip. After all this work, I can hardly believe the time is almost here.

Best of luck wherever your travels take you.