Information correct as of July 23, 2019, obtained from www.travel.state.gov. Please always check the latest guidance at U.S. Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs before booking a trip.
What is a transit visa?
A transit visa is a temporary visa that allows travelers to enter a country for a short amount of time, and is ideal for long layovers to different cities.
The craze started in the Middle East, and is slowly but surely gaining worldwide appeal. The visa is now offered in many destinations, including Shanghai, Bangladesh, India, and more. With so many countries now offering transit visas, imagine just how much you can fit in one trip.
I took a very short trip recently from Hong Kong to London, in order to spend New Year’s Eve with some of my closest friends. Unfortunately, I only had a couple of days to spare, but my wanderlust soul is always keen to get lost in new cities, and experience new frontiers. So, when an 18-hour layover in Dubai popped up in my flight search, the cheapest flight option turned into an opportunity for the adventure I’d been hoping for. Travel is forever challenging me to get off the beaten path and take on new experiences, so I took the chance and ended up learning several do’s and don’ts of long layovers in the process.
Get some sleep:
Before taking a layover vacay, make sure you get plenty of sleep on the flight over. Trying to fit in a whole city in a tight time span can be exhausting, and you’ll need all the energy you can get. When you board your continuing flight to your final destination you will definitely thank yourself for the extra rest.
Take a carry on suitcase:
Trust me when I say there’s nothing worse than carrying around a ton of bags, especially when you have to lug them around an unfamiliar city. When I reached my layover in Dubai, I assumed there would be lockers for me to store my last minute souvenirs in but, as it turned out, my only option was more of a glorified storage room. It was required that any bags left in it should be fully closed, which meant no packing my last minute goodies before boarding the next plane. So, storing my bags was out of the question, and unfortunately all my dune bashing, camel riding, and photo taking in the Burj Khalifa had to include not one, but TWO big carrier bags. Take a carry on.
Organize what you want to do and plan accordingly:
Of course when taking a layover trip, there should be some planning involved. Walking blindly into a new city without a game plan could end disastrously, as you might go over your time limit while trying to see everything you wanted to, and end up not making it back to the airport in time for your flight. Prepare for the trip by finding out ahead of time what the best places and pastimes are in that city, and what attractions you can’t miss. You can do this by asking all of your well-traveled friends, or reading online forums. For my trip, I had the entire itinerary planned out in my head in advance, but failed to follow through with my bookings until the morning I arrived. What ensued was a tour guide picking me up late, and I ended up losing an hour or two of precious time from my layover. So please, book your tours ahead of time.
Always pre-book your seats or check-in online:
This tip is important if you want to successfully achieve my first piece of advice–getting enough sleep. On my trip I forgot to check-in online, and ended up being a sleepless sardine on both of my flights, en route to my layover city and my final destination. I cannot explain the tiredness I felt when I arrived back in Hong Kong. Make your life easier, and take a few minutes to check-in online.
Check if you need to apply for a ‘transit visa’:
While many cities, particularly in the Middle East, require a transit visa, you won’t need it for every destination. Make sure to research the exact transit visa requirements for each country before booking your travel. So, if you plan on traveling during a long layover, do some research before getting on your flight.
Some destinations will even require you to pre-apply for your transit visa for a fee, depending on your nationality. Thankfully, Dubai gave my British passport a transit stamp on arrival, although passport control did tell me ‘there was a problem….’ Apparently, it was just a flirtatious way of throwing me a compliment–clearly I’d come to the right layover.
Opt for the layover:
Last but not least, take the no longer ‘dreaded’ layover–it’s the perfect way to squeeze in a new city and challenge yourself to fit in some new experiences in a short amount of time–nothing ventured, nothing gained!
About the Author | ||
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Abbey Wilson// The Travelling Sole
Abbey is a full time travel vlogger, who has been wandering the world since the age of 18. She shares all of her experiences on her YouTube Channel, The Travelling Sole. Check out her channel to learn more about her adventures and travel tips.
