How to visit 5-star hotels for free
How I enjoyed Chennai’s top hotels without paying a dime
Traveling can be fun, spontaneous and adventurous. But it also comes with quite some paperwork. Unfortunately, following the rules and getting paperwork done in time is not my cup of tea, and thus I got myself into some serious trouble in India.
Before traveling to India, check what types of visas are possible, how much they cost, and how to obtain them. Make sure to do this well in time, because the e-visa takes 4 working days to be registered. If you’re flying in on Monday, make sure you’ve applied for your visa by the previous Tuesday. You can select the date of start for your e-visa, so don’t worry about applying too early! Additionally, I generally like to stay in every place for a longer time and soak up the local culture, and I’ve learned that per country I need more than one month. This time I applied for a 1-month tourist visa but next time I know I should go for 3 months.
I definitely recommend to do your research before taking risks such as overstaying. Ask locals, look it up online, and call your country’s embassy. Overstaying usually entails pentalties, and is sometimes considered a serious violation.
In India the rules were flexible up until recently. And I found out the hard way. When the time I wanted to spend in Auroville was diminishing because I hung out in Chennai a bit too long, I looked up and asked around what would happen if I would stay a bit longer. I tried to extend my visa online, which did not work, and everybody said overstaying shouldn’t be an issue. I found a document stating an “ok” penalty for up to 15 days.
When, after an overstay of 13 days, I arrived at the airport, the staff didn’t know what to do. They discussed the issue (which takes about 10 times longer in India than you would expect) and ended up sending me away with the order to visit the Commissioner the next day to request an exit permit.
After booking a hotel for the night, driving to two different commissioners, and spending many hours at the office of a man who supposedly could help me, we found a solution (or so it seemed): I had to find a local who was willing to host me and give their address up for my exit permit registration, which could entail an interrogation by the police.
It took me many calls, lots of stress, and hours that went by in slow motion, with my thoughts going through all the worst case scenarios. But luckily, an Indian friend offered me to stay with his grandma, and his parents would help me with the procedures. So, now I’m on my way in a 6h bus ride to the grandma, hoping she will have the documents ready for a swift upload of my online application, which could take a whole week to be processed…
How I enjoyed Chennai’s top hotels without paying a dime
10 questions answered about safety, customs, and comfort for women in India.
When you meet people who make you feel safe, you know you’ve found your friends.
When I wrote that the online application for an exit permit could take a whole week to be processed, I thought I was underexpecting in order not to get disappointed. A simple procedure like that could easily be fixed in the matter of a day, if I’m honest. But you’re dealing with a system that is … pretty much backwards.
Once in Chennai, I spent a full day at the FRRO with no progress being made. I started looking for important or powerful people who could help me, I got the number of someone at the FRRO who made sure to prioritize my procedure, and still I saw no progress. Every time I had uploaded all necessary documents, I was requested more random documents. In order to obtain one file, I needed the other, which I could only obtain with a valid visa. It was a total Kafkaesque mess.
To summarize, I would like to advise you to not get into any government-related business. Be careful about your visa and passport dates, and don’t do anything wrong. You never know.
Try to make good friends who can and will help you out when in need. And to be honest… If something goes wrong, try to solve it with money first, to avoid situations like mine.
10 questions answered about safety, customs, and comfort for women in India.
Turn off your home-mindset and think in terms of “If I was at *destination*, what would I wear?”
Turn off your home-mindset and think in terms of “If I was at *destination*, what would I wear?”
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