Visa on Arrival for Indians Experience at Bangkok Airport

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December 21, 2011 by Vallabh Rao

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What do you do if you have a layover of about half a day at Bangkok airport? You might consider getting a Thai Visa on arrival which is available for Indian nationals and go sightseeing. But the Visa on Arrival experience is not as easy as it might seem. You will have to wait with hundreds of people mostly from India and China and many other countries who can avail Visa on arrival. You watch in despair as people from other countries like EU, US and Australia get out without requiring a Visa.There is no seating while waiting at the Visa on arrival counter so you end up standing a couple of hours till your turn comes. On top of that the management is very poor. There was a separate queue for senior citizens and women but people were queuing up in both lines and they were processing the Visa in both lines irrespective of age. There is no one to tell you which is the proper line other than your fellow applicants who themselves are confused.
After going through this experience be prepared to interact with some unfriendly immigration officials who seem bored and depressed. So much for all the Thai tourism ads you see on Indian TV.
But it is worth getting this Visa as Bangkok has so much to offer even in a single day. Book daily sightseeing tours beforehand so that your guide can pick you up from the airport. There are sightseeing tour providers at the airport as well but be prepared to haggle. Remember they can always “give you a special price” if you can bargain.
Some photos I took in Bangkok can be found here.