Way to Russia Talk Lounge

polarrrbear · Frequent Guest Joined: 31 Aug 2007 Posts: 32

Greetings folks! This is my first time posting here, but I've been lurking around for a couple of years. Now, finally I've got a question. I'm going to try to make it as plain and simple as possible.

1)I'm applying for a tourist visa at Russian Consulate in Tokyo. I read about the itinerary on this site, but wasn't sure if it is absolutely necessary, so I called the consulate and the lady there confirmed that I do need it. My girlfriend is a front office manager at one of the large chain hotels in St. Petersburg and she has no problem conjuring up visa support for me as she did before, but never dealt with itinerary part (I guess tour companies take care of that kind of things). I asked the lady at the consulate if I need itinerary even though I'm directly booking hotel myself, and she said yes. So I have to have my girlfriend conjure up this interesting piece of info for me to add on the paper. So the question is, what kind of format should it be in? Should it be detailed, i.e. location, purpose, place to stay, method of transport (if I'm going to another city) for each day? (Previously I got my visa at Russian Consulate in Bern, Switzerland. No itinerary needed. Straight forward, efficient, tad bit rude but with same day service, 30 minutes and visa is done).

2)Should itinerary be a part of voucher, or should it be on a separate piece of paper with the same info as on voucher, plus point of entry/departure, and itinerary (as in the form of cover letter)? The lady at the consulate was never clear on that.

It would be great if someone could give me a pointer on this issue. It's rather annoying about this itinerary thing, but can't complain. Japanese consulate in St. Petersburg do ask Russians to submit itinerary when trying to get a visa to Japan, too (actually I had to write one up for her when she came for vacation, so yeh, it's her turn now. Ha!) Anyway, thanks in advance.

surfguy · Lounge Wizard Joined: 13 Apr 2006 Posts: 6979

All the itinerary is ...is the dates of entry and exit and then the places you intend to visit...I think I included this in the cover letter. Tourist visa are fairly easy...and the hotel support you get will do wonders

greg222 · VIP Joined: 15 Feb 2005 Posts: 600

When applying in Japan, the itinerary has to be done properly. Unfortunately, I don't know what format it should be in. It might be best to order your invitation through a visa support company. Then they should also provide you with this itinerary. If you order visa support through Way to Russia, the itinerary should be provided at no extra charge.

polarrrbear · Frequent Guest Joined: 31 Aug 2007 Posts: 32

Thanks guys. After talking to my girlfriend about it, I decided that I'll order it instead of gambling it. It's better to pay a bit and be on the safe side than ruffling their feather at the consulate (and it's easy to do!) with suspiciously done documents. So once again, thank you very much.