This post is originally from February 3, 2017
Hi there Everyone!
So today is Friday and tomorrow I leave for my next adventure – India and Sri Lanka! The last few trips I have done I have been solo but this time I am super excited because I get to share this adventure with my friend Kris. For those of you who don’t know Kris, she is my friend that lived in Australia with me. That goes way back 15 bloody years!!! No longer are we spring chickens…just old geese!
This month has been nothing short of eventful for Kris leading up to this trip. Three weeks ago she was skating and tripped on her ice picks, falling to the ice and fracturing both her elbows! At that point it was questionable whether she’d be healthy enough to travel. She had her arms in slings and was at the mercy of anyone around her to help her get dressed! She was determined to still come though, and instead of bringing a backpack like most other backpackers, this shining star will be dragging a wheelie suitcase! haha (I am laughing, but I will be the one who has to hoist it into vehicles and onto conveyor belts!- who’s laughing now SUCKA)
So in the midst of the lack of use of limbs Kris waited to submit her Visas to get into both India and Sri Lanka until just under two weeks until our departure date. Apparently I was told that getting an eVisa is ‘fool proof’ but I do pity da fool cuz getting a Visa into India has been an absolute nightmare for Kris. It wasn’t straightforward for myself either, but I got my Visa within a week of trying. Kris on the other hand…
Attempt #1 She submits the eVisa and it comes back with an error message the next day saying there is something wrong with her photo and she has 48 hours to resubmit or else she loses her money and is denied. (this happened to me too, so we figured this was normal). I end up resubmitting the photo for her so that it is exactly how it was when I did it. A day later she gets notification – Visa DENIED.
Attempt #2 Kris comes to my work and we start from scratch. The website looks normal until we get to the portion where you need to submit a photo. From there we are both dumbfounded as to why the site looks different and why it is not taking the photo. We were in a rush because we both had to go back to work so we clearly didn’t investigate as we should have. By the time it asks for payment the fee has increased to $170 which is double the amount I paid. Again ‘Dumb and Dumber’ think that it has increased because we are asking for a Visa in such short notice. I pay the amount and go back to work. When I get the receipt emailed to me I noticed that the seller is not the same as the one on mine. Yes people…we were scammed! Dumb and Dumber got Duped!
I have to say in the midst of all this we were both calling the Embassy and any number we could get our hands on. NOBODY would help. They would just say ‘we don’t do that’. I was talking to one lady and asked her if she had the number to call and her response was ‘not right now’. WTF?!!!
Attempt #3 I resubmit Kris’ eVisa to the correct website and now we wait. The next day we get the same message that we have to resubmit the photo and have 48 hours or lose everything. So, we submit the photo yet again…wait… Wednesday night DENIED. And let me explain that they give you no reason when they deny you.
So now we are seriously freaking out and have come to the conclusion that there is a fairly big chance that I will be flying solo to India and Kris will have to meet me in Sri Lanka. That night Kris spoke to a friend of a friend who is from India and he called the number in India to find out the problem. They hung up on him too! So last resort he suggested Kris go to this business in Edmonton (who we had called and was ever so NOT helpful) and show up at 8 am in person. He said chances are they will be more helpful in person.
Attempt #4 We are now at Thursday and Kris goes to this business and the guy is amazing. Super helpful and sure that she will get approved in 24 hours. He said the reason her Visa was getting denied was because it needed both a passport photo heads hot AND a photo of her passport, however I most definitely did NOT include a passport head shot. At this point we are hopeful, but I wouldn’t hold my breath too long. And this morning (the day before we leave) Kris finally gets approved for her Indian Visa! Yay! Nothing like last minute!
So tomorrow we head to Kochi, India via Seattle and then Dubai. I have never flown with Emirates Airline before but I hear that it is AMAZING! I am sure that this will be the most luxurious part of our trip! I look forward to what lies ahead and I hope you don’t mind me sharing my stories with you once again!
Until next time! NAMASTE BITCHES!
IF YOU ARE WANTING TO GET AN EVISA THIS IS THE CORRECT WEBSITE TO APPLY TO:
The Urban Wanderer 
3 responses to “Getting ready for the next adventure – troubles getting an eVisa into India”
India needs to revamp their eVisa system, cause I was also denied the first time that I applied too with no EXPLANATION why, and had to pay TWICE… I think they do this on purpose so they get more $$$!!!
Have fun!
Staci Blunt – Owner & Travel Consultant Vacation Visions 939 E. Monterey St., Chandler, AZ 85225 Tel. 480-777-7835
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It is so frustrating when they don’t give you an explanation, but you are totally right, they just want more money. Cheers Staci!
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[…] was a couple of years ago when we went to India and Sri Lanka. That was when we experienced the Visa debacle of 2017, where it took Kris 3 or 4 times to get her Visa for India. At one point I tried to do it for her […]
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