Team-BHP - Travelling to Europe. Need advice

I am looking to travel to Europe in April-May this year, covering France (Paris) and Spain.

Any inputs on how long it takes to get Visa appointment and then to receive the Visa?
Also, which one will take less time to get the Visa - Spain or France as the port of entry?

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Originally Posted by ece2k2 (Post 5480240)

I am applying for a French tourist visa and have got an appointment with VFS next week. On the VFS documents checklist, it says "Please carry your original insurance for verification at the time of submission of visa application form" and "Please note that original insurance will be seen by the submission officer at the time of submission of visa application form. Online insurance should be certified by the insurance company". While I have purchased the travel insurance from Reliance General Insurance company, I was wondering if it is really necessary to get it certified. Please share your experience. Thank you!

I have travelled to France during September 2022 and I took the insurance online and taken a printout. I have not done any certification by Insurance company. And I got the Visa. :)

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Originally Posted by Krish_Diesel (Post 5482773)

I have travelled to France during September 2022 and I took the insurance online and taken a printout. I have not done any certification by Insurance company. And I got the Visa. :)

Thanks all for sharing the experience. I was able to complete the visa application/documentation submission today using the insurance policy print out.

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Originally Posted by LordSpymaster (Post 5483349)

Let me know if you have any other questions. I went to France, Switzerland and Italy end of last year and loved it.

How long does France visa take to process from date of appointment?

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Originally Posted by Naetik30 (Post 5494567)

How long does France visa take to process from date of appointment?

I got the revert in about 2 weeks, and had my passport in hand by the 3rd.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Naetik30 (Post 5494567)

How long does France visa take to process from date of appointment?

My Mum got her business visa on the third business day of application. This was in the second week of January.

Traveling to Europe this May and will be starting from Paris. Would appreciate a recommendation on SIM card availability & plans at Paris CDG airport? Also, which network service provider is good in Europe? Will need the SIM for 2-3 weeks for usage in FR, IT, Switzerland, Netherlands & Belgium.

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Originally Posted by k88k (Post 5529818)

Also, which network service provider is good in Europe? Will need the SIM for 2-3 weeks for usage in FR, IT, Switzerland, Netherlands & Belgium.

I've generally used Lycamobile; they have good plans that allow you a choice of voice + data, just voice, data-oriented. Most their plans don't allow you to enable your phone as a hotspot though - just in case that matters to you (eg. working via laptop).

Quote:

Originally Posted by k88k (Post 5529818)

https://travel.orange.com/en/offers/europe/

I got his for my 10 days in Europe. Its an esim so I had downloaded it at the Delhi airport before departure. Worked like a charm throughout France, Switzerland and Italy.

Schengen requirements are getting truly insane now!

Can ‘free-cancellation’ hotel bookings kill your Schengen visa?
https://www.cntraveller.in/story/can...ngen-visa/amp/

I will be leaving for France and Spain trip next week, are there any restrictions related to Covid (test, vaccines etc.)?
It seems no such documents are needed, just wanted to confirm the same from anyone who has travelled recently.

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Originally Posted by adimicra (Post 5538899)

My family last week travelled across Germany, France and Switzerland. No COVID tests or vaccine proof asked. But they carried vaccine certificate proofs as precautionary measure.

Aunt is traveling to Netherlands for a couple of months to visit. She has a Jio Prepaid & wants me to suggest which IR pack to put

I found this very confusing.

https://www.jio.com/selfcare/plans/m...edCountries=NL

I assume I should choose the 1000 Rs for 1 month Wifi Calling plan. However, if anyone else understand if it may fall short in some way, let me know.

Quote:

Originally Posted by LordSpymaster (Post 5483349)

Let me know if you have any other questions. I went to France, Switzerland and Italy end of last year and loved it.

We are thinking of a similar trip this Apr/May. Can you please share the itinerary you followed, suggested places of stay and the approx cost (understand it may be different now, but looking for ball park).