Belarus
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Visas, Embassies & Border Crossings
I am copying a letter I have written to the US Embassy in Belarus concerning a recent incident on a train from Moscow to Warsaw. As a traveler who never goes anywhere without a Lonely Planet, I feel you can help prevent this from happening to other people, which is my goal. I did notice that you commented on the required Belarus transit visa in your Belarus section, however, the problem is that when you aren't actually GOING to Belarus (just through it) you don't usually read about Belarus! Below is my letter.
Dear Consulate,
I am writing to inform you about an incident that occurred on January 2nd, 2006. On January 1st myself and one other American citizen were traveling from Moscow to Warsaw via an overnight train. At approximately 11:00am on January 2nd we were pulled off the train by a border guard because we did not have the necessary transit visa. We were then basically forced into a mini-van with two other "citizens" and the border guard. The border guard was very aggressive, had possession of some of our bags, and would not leave us alone. When we said we wanted out of the mini van and to return to the train station the guard followed us and continually demanded my passport which I would not give to him. We were very much aware that we were being extorted but felt we had little control over the matter. During this time we were treated very poorly, made to wait for hours at the police station and ultimately were charged $250 each in order to obtain the proper visa. In a certain way it felt as if we were being held hostage.
Private citizens, the border guard as well as the police were all playing a role and we felt we had no one to turn to for help. At the end of it all, all we knew to do was to pay the money and get ourselves safely, and quickly out of Belarus. In addition to paying the $500, we also had to purchase new train tickets considering we were pulled off our original train.
Upon reading your website I see that this is not an unfamiliar problem. I am writing to tell you our story simply so you have record of it and to perhaps suggest additional ways to inform travelers about the transit visa. I am a frequent (and I think, smart) traveler and I have never had such an incident happen. It never occurred to us to read about a country we were simply traveling through via train. I have often traveled through countries in order to reach my final destination and have never had an experience where a transit visa was needed. Perhaps it is a good idea to put this information on the embassy sites of countries who share borders with Belarus. I offer this suggestion simply because I do not want other people to experience the fear, frustration and loss of money that we did.
Anonymous, USA (Jan 06)
You can apply for a visa to Belarus upon arrival at Minsk 2 airport. But the cost is higher if Belarus has an embassy or consulate in your country of residence. Get the visa before getting in line for passport control. There are no signs showing you where to go to apply for a visa, but the ladies at the mandatory insurance counters will point you to the stairway leading up to the consular office. At Minsk 2 airport consular office there is a friendly "hostess" that will gladly help you fill out your visa application form and see that it is filled out correctly, as there are many fields to fill out on this form.
Brian Aslak Gylte, Norway (Jan 06)
Travel Tips
When talking with the locals in Belarus, do not try to coax their true feelings about the president out of them. Speaking negatively about the president is illegal, and the penalty can be as strict as three years in prison.
Anonymous (Jan 06)
Minsk: Praspekt Francyska Skaryny has been renamed by President Lukashenko to Praspekt Nezalezhnastsi (Independence Street). This street also has fancy new red and white road signs, making it easy to recognise for those who don't know the cyrillic alphabet (as opposed to the cheap, plastic white and blue signs used on all other streets).
The euro is pretty much a "valuta non grata" in Belarus. There's no reason to bring any. Banks will give lousy exchange rates. The only place you can use it is when buying mandatory "health insurance" and applying for a visa at Minsk 2 airport. The duty free shops at Minsk 2 will also accept euro. There are "bankomats" everywhere in Minsk that accept Visa, Mastercard and Cirrus (not American Express, AmEx can be difficult to use anywhere in Europe).
Brian Aslak Gylte, Norway (Jan 06)
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