Visa for India - Need advise

[jtslattery]

I have been working to obtain the visa for Inda for an upcoming Silversea cruise. 

Does anyone know what wwe are supposed to use for the Reference name in India, address and phone number?

Not getting any help fro Silverseas on phone or email. 

[canderson]

Ask SS specifically for the Silversea port agent's phone and address for the port city and see if you can get a response to that. 

 

Since you have no personal/business/hotel contact there for your trip, the agent is about all you've got available.

[C-sea]

On 9/22/2023 at 11:53 AM, jtslattery said:

I have been working to obtain the visa for Inda for an upcoming Silversea cruise. 

Does anyone know what wwe are supposed to use for the Reference name in India, address and phone number?

Not getting any help fro Silverseas on phone or email. 

I just obtained an India e-visa for an Uniworld River Cruise on the Ganges... the process was frustrating and took much longer to complete than they let on!  First, do not try to request your visa until you are 30 days or less out from your entrance into India. I did contact Uniworld for the Reference name, address etc... which they provided.

You will need for Silverseas to provide this to you, Good Luck!

[jtslattery]

Thank both of you for your help - India Visas just got approved.

[david63]

If anyone has the port agent details can they please post then to save others (especially me) having to contact SS

[TLCOhio]

On 9/22/2023 at 11:53 AM, jtslattery said:

I have been working to obtain the visa for Inda for an upcoming Silversea cruise.  Does anyone know what wwe are supposed to use for the Reference name in India, address and phone number?  Not getting any help fro Silverseas on phone or email. 

 

Good, informative thread.  As we prepare for our February 2024 Silver Moon Mumbai to Singapore sail, we will use either the agent arranging our pre-cruise "Golden Triangle" tour and/or the hotel where we will stay initially for in New Delhi.  

 

Clearly, all indicators are that it takes some time and patience to complete their Visa process.  Great sharing here.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

[jtslattery]

Silverseas was less than helpful, one person told me to use a visa service and the other hung up one me. I used the ship name for the refernce name ie Silversea Silver Spirt, the port adresss which I had to google and no longer have, and the ship phone number 17863225288 (for Silver Spirit found on website) Good luck, it is one of the more complicated visa forms but only cost $40

[david63]

1 hour ago, jtslattery said:

it is one of the more complicated visa forms

Think yourself lucky that you can now do it online - last time I went to India you had to apply for the visa in person.

[labrasett]

For anyone doing a new visa application please make sure you are using the bona fide Indian Government website, there are a couple of sites which come up on the web which are not the real deal and they charge about four times the true cost!

[FauxNom]

I had to improvise when I did this in January. I found an Indian travel agency that sells Silversea cruises and used their contact info. Nobody noticed the agency had nothing to do with my cruise.

[PaulMCO]

Silversea uses Pinnacle for their visa service. 

https://www.pinnacletds.com/tours/tours.aspx?agency=2

 

Of course there is business to make money so they do charge a surcharge.

You can call them or use them to process the visa

 

In the past the port agent was listed as:

ON BOARD SHIP  (for address and name of hotel)

GULF AGENCY CO. (for reference, name address, and phone)

30 MANOHARDAS STREET  MUMBAI, INDIA 400001

91 22 4030 7800

[ak1004]

52 minutes ago, PaulMCO said:

Silversea uses Pinnacle for their visa service. 

https://www.pinnacletds.com/tours/tours.aspx?agency=2

 

 

 

We were in touch with them when we applied for a visa. They admitted that they don't have any control over the process or processing times. They just help you to fill the forms and submit them, which can be done independently with no issues. Once it's done, the rest of the process is the same. There is no need to pay the surcharge.

[PaulMCO]

11 hours ago, ak1004 said:

 

We were in touch with them when we applied for a visa. They admitted that they don't have any control over the process or processing times. They just help you to fill the forms and submit them, which can be done independently with no issues. Once it's done, the rest of the process is the same. There is no need to pay the surcharge.

Yes but from the OPs post -- THEY NEED HELP.  Yes many people like you and me can do things on their own (been getting visa for 50 years of travel - many times in person at overseas foreign consulates) - but some need help and a VISA service for a couple of hundred dollars is nothing compared to a 20K plus trip.

[david63]

I think that one of the problems with India is that the officials take bureaucracy to a whole new level and do not diverge from the script. If the rules say that a certain thing is to be done in a certain way then that is what happens - there is no room to use ant discretion if it does not fit the rules.

 

Once you get beyond the bureaucracy then in my experience Indian hospitality is up there with some of the best.

[david63]

I have been given this as the Mumbai port agent for Silversea which should be sufficient information for visa applications

 

JM BAXI & CO MUMBAI

+912224045429

jmbcruise@jmbaxi.com

43 Veer Nariman Road,

2 floor, ReadyMoney Mansion,

MUMBAI

Postcode: IN-400001

INDIA