"NEW" visa for Cruise Passengers -Cambodia

[Aulanis]

WE are on a cruise  that visits Sihanoukville 1 day only  and I believe that the place has deteriorated

a lot in the last few years.   Anyway we are told we have to have a visa and the evisa is not 

available to cruise passengers, which means an expensive full visa is required

or the ship may do a group one that would save the hassle.

However  I have come across this 

iVisa.com  have this on their website
Cambodia Transit Visa (D): In 2023, the Royal Government of Cambodia announced

the short-term transit visa (D category) to tourists visiting the country on a cruise ship.

It allows you to stay in the country for up to 96 hours.

You can apply for this visa through a consulate or authorized travel agencies.

 

I am seeking further details as this is new for 2023   but wonder if anyone else has found

anything anywhere.

Or  does anyone know if you HAVE to have visa even if not getting off the ship?

 

Edited October 22, 2023 by Aulanis

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

I'm not sure, but I think I read that the evisa is not accepted at Sihanoukville port, only at certain other ports in Cambodia.  So I'd see if you can confirm that what I read is true.  I'm looking into getting my visas from the Cambodian embassy in Washington DC.  They have something on their website that indicates people can get a regular sticker visa attached to their passports that allows one-time entry into Cambodia for 30 days.  It's $30 and you must go in person, with money order, photo, copy of your passport, passport, etc. You can't apply until 2 months prior to your visit.  But at least it's reasonably-priced, and no mailing or keeping of passports is required. So if you have a Cambodian embassy or consulate anywhere close by, you may want to explore that option.  Otherwise, you may need to pay the cruise line to get a visa for you from GenVisa, Visa Central, or a similar company. 

 

As for actually having to have a visa for Sihanoukville, for Sihanhoukville officials or the cruise line, I have no clue.  I've also read that the city is not what it used to be.  Nevertheless, the temples there sound worth visiting, and I don't need much to be happy in a new port, so I don't want to stay on the ship that day.

[Aulanis]

Yes all you say is correct.  We have had to get the ship to do ours its too expensive to go

to  the embassy in London and I got no reply from the consular service in London or Cambodia

regarding the Type D visa.

[Vallesan]

On 11/15/2023 at 8:58 AM, Aulanis said:

Yes all you say is correct.  We have had to get the ship to do ours its too expensive to go

to  the embassy in London and I got no reply from the consular service in London or Cambodia

regarding the Type D visa.

I can’t find anyway to apply for the D visa either.

But you can apply for an evisa at evisa.gov.kh

Think I’ll ring my cruise line first.

[Aulanis]

3 hours ago, Vallesan said:

But you can apply for an evisa at evisa.gov.kh

 

The evisa is not acceptable for arrival by sea  they can be only used

in major airports.    Unless it is cheaper for you to go to London the

cruise line is the cheapest and easiest.

[Vallesan]

1 hour ago, Aulanis said:

 

The evisa is not acceptable for arrival by sea  they can be only used

in major airports.    Unless it is cheaper for you to go to London the

cruise line is the cheapest and easiest.

Thank you.

[pmatawan]

I will be sailing on the Oceania Riveria which has a stop in Sihanoukville in Feb. 24. A transit visa issued on arrival is needed. The cruiseline tells us they will obtain the visa for us and bill our onboard account for the fee.

[davela2]

We just got off NCL.  The ship took care of the Cambodian Visa for $30 pp

[toolworker]

On 12/1/2023 at 12:17 PM, davela2 said:

We just got off NCL.  The ship took care of the Cambodian Visa for $30 pp

Lucky you. Regent wants $99.

 

On 10/22/2023 at 8:52 AM, Aulanis said:

iVisa.com  have this on their website
Cambodia Transit Visa (D): In 2023, the Royal Government of Cambodia announced

the short-term transit visa (D category) to tourists visiting the country on a cruise ship.

It allows you to stay in the country for up to 96 hours.

You can apply for this visa through a consulate or authorized travel agencies.

Has anyone found any place to apply for a D visa? The U.S. Cambodian Embassy website lists several visa types but not D. I see nothing on the web.

 

iVisa also says you can apply for a visa on arrival, but getting on a line for visas while trying to make a ship's tour doesn't sound appealing. I may be stuck with Regent's $99.

[yamanid]

On 11/24/2023 at 10:32 AM, Aulanis said:

 

The evisa is not acceptable for arrival by sea  they can be only used

in major airports.    Unless it is cheaper for you to go to London the

cruise line is the cheapest and easiest.

 

When we visited Sihanoukville Princess took care of the Visas foe us both times.  Which cruise line are you sailing with? 

On 11/24/2023 at 10:32 AM, Aulanis said:

 

The evisa is not acceptable for arrival by sea  they can be only used

in major airports.    Unless it is cheaper for you to go to London the

cruise line is the cheapest and easiest.

 

[toolworker]

5 hours ago, yamanid said:

 

When we visited Sihanoukville Princess took care of the Visas foe us both times.  Which cruise line are you sailing with? 

How much did Princess charge for the visa? 

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

I haven't cruised yet, but have been having a horrible time finding a way to get a visa.  Oceania charges $89, the Cambodian Embassy in Washington DC keeps extending their "closed for Visa services" announcement on their website, and isn't sure if the evisa can be accepted for Sihanoukville seaport.  From what I've read, it's not accepted, but I suppose things MAY have changed.  But last month an Oceania cruiser reported that he/she had purchased an evisa and a few days pre-arrival, Oceania notified them that it wouldn't be accepted upon arrival in Cambodia.  So a  visa was purchased on the ship.  The visa company that Oceania uses had an announcement a week or two ago that evisas for tourism weren't being done by them because Cambodia had the whole process on hold.  The embassy employee told me that system changes were being made, and they were having problems, which is why the date an evisa could be obtained kept being delayed.  So if anyone has any recent information about how a tourist visa can now be obtained, I'd love to hear it. 

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

On 11/26/2023 at 12:08 PM, pmatawan said:

I will be sailing on the Oceania Riveria which has a stop in Sihanoukville in Feb. 24. A transit visa issued on arrival is needed. The cruiseline tells us they will obtain the visa for us and bill our onboard account for the fee.

Curious - did they give a price?  I think it's $89, but I may be wrong.

[pmatawan]

54 minutes ago, IWantToLiveOverTheSea said:

Curious - did they give a price?  I think it's $89, but I may be wrong.

Not sure, I heard it was $99.

[JRIH]

1 hour ago, pmatawan said:

Not sure, I heard it was $99.

We paid $89 through Oceania.

[alwayscruisetime]

We just returned home today from 28 days in Southeast Asia, and got all our own Visas before leaving home.  We were fortunate to have travel to Massachusetts in the month prior to our departure because there's a Cambodian consulate there.  I had a hard time reaching them by phone (looks to be a 1 or 2 man office, and I think they're not there 9-5 every day) but we were able to make an appointment the week prior, arrive with the appropriate paperwork (downloaded from the internet and filled out) and $30 cash for each of us.  It took less than 15 minutes total.

 

Obtained Vietnam and Indonesia on our own, through the internet, and did our "landing card" for Singapore once we were traveling, as it can't be done before 72 hours prior to entry.

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

1 hour ago, alwayscruisetime said:

We just returned home today from 28 days in Southeast Asia, and got all our own Visas before leaving home.  We were fortunate to have travel to Massachusetts in the month prior to our departure because there's a Cambodian consulate there.  I had a hard time reaching them by phone (looks to be a 1 or 2 man office, and I think they're not there 9-5 every day) but we were able to make an appointment the week prior, arrive with the appropriate paperwork (downloaded from the internet and filled out) and $30 cash for each of us.  It took less than 15 minutes total.

 

Obtained Vietnam and Indonesia on our own, through the internet, and did our "landing card" for Singapore once we were traveling, as it can't be done before 72 hours prior to entry.

You were lucky.  I started my Cambodia quest in late Octobera, although I believe back then the official word was that it couldn't be obtained until 2 months pre-arrival, so I had to wait. And I had a lot of trouble contacting the embassy here.  The phone just rang no matter when I called.  At least when I finally drove there, someone answered the intercom!  

 

At least I have the Vietnam one taken care of.  

 

So I'm curious now.  Did you go to Sihanoukville, Cambodia?  If so, was there a shuttle from the port/ship to the gate outside of the port.  I hear it's a bit of a walk.   And was there a shuttle that went somewhere outside the port and into the city? And if you went to Ho Chi Minh City, did you dock at Hiep Phuoc?  Was there a shuttle into center city? 

 

Thanks.

[alwayscruisetime]

Sorry - we had a "deviation plan" - our ship was overnighting in Bangkok, followed by a day at sea, followed by Sihanoukville, followed by Phu My, Vietnam.  We left the ship early the first day it was in Bangkok and did 2 days in Bangkok, flew to Siem Reap and did 2 days there, then flew to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) for a day of touring and then meeting back up with the ship.  We were really pleased with our decision - we were able to spend more time in the places that required it and not waste time with sea days or industrial ports.

 

I don't know if it was because our ship was the first to call there this season, but at Sihanoukville the Prime Minister came to the dock and gifted every passenger with a local-made scarf as they disembarked.  (Since we missed that port, we only learned about it when we saw the photo gallery with the photos.)  Sorry we missed that!

[yamanid]

19 hours ago, IWantToLiveOverTheSea said:

You were lucky.  I started my Cambodia quest in late Octobera, although I believe back then the official word was that it couldn't be obtained until 2 months pre-arrival, so I had to wait. And I had a lot of trouble contacting the embassy here.  The phone just rang no matter when I called.  At least when I finally drove there, someone answered the intercom!  

 

At least I have the Vietnam one taken care of.  

 

So I'm curious now.  Did you go to Sihanoukville, Cambodia?  If so, was there a shuttle from the port/ship to the gate outside of the port.  I hear it's a bit of a walk.   And was there a shuttle that went somewhere outside the port and into the city? And if you went to Ho Chi Minh City, did you dock at Hiep Phuoc?  Was there a shuttle into center city? 

 

Thanks.

 

Yes there was a shuttle bus to take you to the Port gate     and we docked in Port PHU MY

On 1/7/2024 at 3:14 PM, toolworker said:

How much did Princess charge for the visa? 

 

I want to say $21 but when I get home I will check it out

[yamanid]

20 hours ago, alwayscruisetime said:

Sorry - we had a "deviation plan" - our ship was overnighting in Bangkok, followed by a day at sea, followed by Sihanoukville, followed by Phu My, Vietnam.  We left the ship early the first day it was in Bangkok and did 2 days in Bangkok, flew to Siem Reap and did 2 days there, then flew to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) for a day of touring and then meeting back up with the ship.  We were really pleased with our decision - we were able to spend more time in the places that required it and not waste time with sea days or industrial ports.

 

I don't know if it was because our ship was the first to call there this season, but at Sihanoukville the Prime Minister came to the dock and gifted every passenger with a local-made scarf as they disembarked.  (Since we missed that port, we only learned about it when we saw the photo gallery with the photos.)  Sorry we missed that!

 

 

We absolutely loved our time in Sihanoukville (Cambodia)  We had an amazing Tour and took us everywhere, fabulous price and much much cheaper than same ships tour.  Everybody who joined us also thought it was FAB.  ALL organised before we left home !!

[Aulanis]

HAL  Charged USD50  pp   for our Cambodia visa.

More than some but less than others and less the HAL online guess of Usd60

 

Only alternative was to visit embassy in London  which would have cost us more

for travel.

@alwayscruisetime

"I don't know if it was because our ship was the first to call there this season, but at Sihanoukville the Prime Minister came to the dock and gifted every passenger with a local-made scarf as they disembarked. "

Hi   The reception/party  was because  when the Westerdam  got stuck in Asia

on the outbreak of covid  Cambodia was the only country that would let them dock

and allow the cruisers and some of the staff to travel to the airport to get home.

 

If you google  Sihanoukville  and westerdam   there are  news reports.

 

We  were not going ashore but on seeing the port talk decided we would try

and walk to a Temple.  By chance we met some others doing the same and they had

a map on their phone so asked if we could follow them.  

  It was well worth the visit though the 4km or so walk there and back in almost 100deg F  what a challenge.

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

Sihanoukville is certainly an interesting city, and I want to see all I can. And presenting a scarf to every passenger after a previous Westerdam ship was helped by the city is wonderful. I'm still a little unsure:  For anyone who did not take a ship's excursion, was there a port shuttle to the port exit, and if so, did it go into the outskirts of the city there, possibly near the "heart" below?  (Yaminid, I wasn't sure if you were referring to Sihanoukville or Phu My port.)  As for walking to Wat Krom, I'm not sure I'll be up for that.  But I'm hoping to take a tuk tuk or something to see it, and other things. We'll see how things go.

Edited January 9 by IWantToLiveOverTheSea

[Aulanis]

1 hour ago, IWantToLiveOverTheSea said:

For anyone who did not take a ship's excursion, was there a port shuttle to the port exit, and if so, did it go into the outskirts of the city there, possibly near the "heart" below? 

 

That would be us then 😉   When we were there, there was a free port shuttle 

as they said you could not walk off!!   However  you could the shuttle is a small bus

and coming back  we waited ages and ended up  walking back to the ship.

This pic  shows the  end of the inner harbour wall that the bus  goes over

then it turns right along to the  Heart place you show.   Second pic if  you Zoom in on

it you can see the back of the heart  and a christmas tree  near the centre of the pic at the end of the second long building.

So it not far at all.      As you leave the area there are many tuktuks available we dined later with someone who had taken one to the Temple.

  They HAL  also had a paid shuttle to the beach but think it

was only mentioned  the night before after they had sold all the tours they could.

It was either 15usd  or 25usd return,  cant recall as we didnt use it.

 

 

 

Edited January 9 by Aulanis

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

5 hours ago, Aulanis said:

 

That would be us then 😉   When we were there, there was a free port shuttle 

as they said you could not walk off!!   However  you could the shuttle is a small bus

and coming back  we waited ages and ended up  walking back to the ship.

This pic  shows the  end of the inner harbour wall that the bus  goes over

then it turns right along to the  Heart place you show.   Second pic if  you Zoom in on

it you can see the back of the heart  and a christmas tree  near the centre of the pic at the end of the second long building.

So it not far at all.      As you leave the area there are many tuktuks available we dined later with someone who had taken one to the Temple.

  They HAL  also had a paid shuttle to the beach but think it

was only mentioned  the night before after they had sold all the tours they could.

It was either 15usd  or 25usd return,  cant recall as we didnt use it.

 

 

 

Thank you very much!  That's perfect, and very helpful!

[hernandk]

On 1/7/2024 at 9:14 AM, toolworker said:

How much did Princess charge for the visa?