Job Discussion Forums

welshchris · Joined: 28 Aug 2004 Posts: 15

Hey guys my 6 months are up and im going to have to leave the country for the first time to re-enter so anyone have any advice??

I am currently living in Lima, and me and my wife both have to leave the country does anyone know the best way to leave? which country to enter and come back? best mode of transport? and how long do you have to leave for is it a matter of walking over and turning round (as in Thailand) or best to give it 24 hours before re-entering??

hoping someone can help

Thanks
Chris

naturegirl321 · Joined: 04 May 2003 Posts: 9041 Location: home sweet home

I went to Ecuador and only stayed in Ecuador for one hour, but I think it depends a lot on the mood of the immigration police.

Carina_Cisneros · Posted: Thu Oct 14, 2004 9:16 pm Post subject: Only one place...Arica!

Probably too late; you already renewed. For next time, yes a heck of a long bus ride, but head for Tacna, Peru. Get in a collectivo Taxi and spend a few days in Arica, Chile. Best little beach town in Peru-Chile. Close to the free-trade zone (Iquique; worth a visit even if you are not looking for cheap electronics or what-not; great old port town) if you need to buy anything, Peruvian prices in Chile, relaxed, safe, good food, tap beer, new little movie theatre, one bus ride from LaPaz (if you were ambitious and seeking cold weather), and their train station and church were designed & built by Eiffel (yes, that Eiffel, he must have really pissed off some important person to get stationed there...). Arica is great; not sure why tour books barely mention it.

Carina_Cisneros · Posted: Thu Oct 14, 2004 9:24 pm Post subject: Out of Lima...

Sorry, forst reply didnt address this part. Well, due to location, nothing is all that fast and easy crossing a border from Lima. Tacna is a monster bus ride, but done well by the directos, with movies and food. Tacna is cheap, but you havent much reason to stay. The Tacna bus station is also the departure point for the Arica collectivos. Cost is minimal (few dollars covers everything to Chile). Trip is short and fast, and it your driver is "known" by Chilean-Peruvian immigration, and you do not look "suspicious", they do not even search your bags or anything. Collectivo takes you to Arica bus station. Out front in the standard Arica taxi route (last time I was there, any ride in the city proper was $1 or so). Head for a cheap family pension near the main street. Stay a few days doing nothing. Conceivably, you could go in and out on the same day, but I cannot think of why you would want to (not after a bus ride like that). How long you leave is negotiable, I would guess. The collectivos mostly exist for workers and businessmen, who do go and come back every day, so going and coming back on one trip would not at all look suspicious.

welshchris · Joined: 28 Aug 2004 Posts: 15

Carina

Great info thanks will def follow your advice, what is the best bus company to use going to Tacna? Cruz del sur? also once you are in Arica are the collectivo�s just as easy to get back to Tacna? i take it they stop at the bus station again?

Sorry about all the questions, thanks for the help though.

Carina_Cisneros · Posted: Mon Oct 18, 2004 11:25 pm Post subject: Buses / Taxis

Well, I suspect -sad to say- the best company is the most expensive one, though of course that doesnt tell you the name of it. As of 2 years ago, I would take Cruz del Sur, no doubt. Still a very good company. I cant remember the name of their competition now. If you do not find a pricier one, then Cruz it is. It is a long bus ride, made only more tortuous by the occassional bingo and karaoke some bus lines offer. Yes, in Arica the taxis are just as easy, and they also depart from the main (only?) bus terminal; Arica is small, and eveyrone in the city -except other tourists- knows the tourist offices, pensions, bus terminals, etc. Some of the taxi drivers are Peruvian, some Chilean. Doesnt much matter what you use, as the fair should be the same by all drivers (though it might cost a bit more the way back into Peru) for the same destination. Easy to change money on both ends. The Arica bus station is well done, and all buses depart here with posted times and prices. Really, if you have a few days to spare, it is worth it to take the ride to Iquique. The new bus route (I forget the name) there is along the ocean, atop the sand dune bluffs; very nice ride, and Iquique is a bigger, more historic place (nothing like it in all of Peru, to be sure). If you have only 2 days or whatever, make sure to have your taxi driver ask at immigration on both ends, what the minimum stay is to renew for Peru; at some checkpoints things are by the book, and at others no one really cares.