March 16 2004

Thai visa run chaos in Denpasar, Bali

With a new Thai Consulate just opened in Bali, I wanted to test the island's potential as a Thai visa run destination. Located in a Denpasar industrial zone some 30 minutes drive from Kuta beach and the airport, the Thai Consulate proved hard to find. My taxi driver checked dozens of name plates and eventually located the Consulate on the fourth floor of an anonymous warehouse building.

Escorted up four flights of narrow steps, I managed to squeeze myself into the tiny office of the Thai Consul's secretary without knocking anything over. Her name was Yani and she seemed surprised to see me. After checking my form, Yani explained that, in addition to my passport, she needed 3 photos, a photocopy of my air ticket and US $25. Local currency was not acceptable.

For a simple tourist visa, no Thai Consulate has ever asked me for so much. Yani eventually agreed to accept the usual 2 photographs and allowed me to fax through a copy of my air ticket later. She wouldn't budge on the US dollars, though. I only had Thai baht and we both saw the irony of Thai officials judging their own currency worthless.

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Yani then delivered the killer blow. To process the visa would take 4 additional working days. This was Wednesday and the visa wouldn't be ready until the following Tuesday. Given that I was leaving on the Monday, I had to admit defeat and settle instead for a 30 day visa-on-arrival. The whole thing had been a complete waste of time.

Those contemplating Bali as a Thai visa run destination should plan on staying 8 days. In my view, the inefficiency of the Thai Consulate combined with the visa-on-arrival hassle at Denpasar Airport (See Bali travel report: Kuta Beach) makes Bali a poor choice.

Details

The Honorary Consulate Office of Thailand
330 Jalan Gatot Subroto Timur
Denpasar
Bali
Indonesia

[Posted to Visa Run by David]

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Readers' comments

Nick says:

Do you know if they, the Thai consulate in Bali, will issue a NON B visa there, i am planning a short stay in bali? Pls let me know, thanks!

Nick.

October 9, 2006 12:43 PM

terry57 says:

for people that would like to split a percentage of their time between thailand and bali this would be perfect.

its not hard to work around these requirements if one is pre warned.

good information for myself as this what i plan to do in the near future.

half my time in bali and half in los.

October 25, 2006 1:55 PM