Visa Visitors to Venezuela should have visa. For this purpose you may kindly contact the Venezuelan Embassy in New Delhi at the following address: Embassy of the Bolivarian Repúblic of Venezuela in New Delhi, India Ambassador: Mrs. Milena Santana de Ramirez Information for Business Visitors located in the Business Section >> ckick here Tourism Venezuela provides excellent vacation spots for tourism and recreation. Visitors would be advised to make bookings either before arriving or through reputed travel agents or airline offices in Caracas. Caracas has several beautiful sites, particularly the hill range of the National Park El Avila, which can be ascended from several locations, several kilometers distant, to a height of approx. 4000 ft, with intermediate stations. The city has a cable car, going all the way up to the top of one of the peaks of El Avila (price: Bs.F 30 per adult). The centre of the town, though crowded, has some historic buildings, including the National Assembly, the residence of the Liberator - Simon Bolivar, the Father of the Venezuelan nation - and other interesting sites. Just outside Caracas is the charming handicraft village of El Hatillo . Canaima, in the southeastern State of Bolivar, is a National Park with breath-taking scenery of flat-topped mountains (tepuys) and waterfalls, among which is the famous Salto Angel � Angel Falls � the highest in the world with a drop of 1000 metres. One can fly to Canaima lagoon from Puerto Ordaz with a charter operator, take an aerial view of the Angel Falls and land for a day-visit at the lagoon (cost is approximately Bs.F 1000 per person). There are also excursions to the Angel Falls from Caracas for which a travel agent should be consulted. The region of the south-east is rich in wildlife and provides an excellent adventure vacation. Margarita island on the northeastern coast has spectacular beaches and wonderful scenery. It can be reached from Caracas by air or by ferry from Caracas or from Puerto la Cruz. It is a duty-free island with excellent and inexpensive shopping. Merida in the west provides another aspect of Venezuela , in the Andes mountains, with the highest peak � Pico Bolivar � over 5000 metres and snowbound for much of the year. There is a cable car up to the peak, which should be taken as early in the morning as possible. Merida is also a charming town with old constructions and surroundings which remind one of a hill station. Morrocoy is a beach resort in the northwest, accessible by road in approximately 3 hours from Caracas . The town has inexpensive guest houses and hotels for accommodation. It has breath-taking islands with excellent beaches, which can be reached by launch ferry. Falcon, further northwest, with its spectacular Paraguana peninsula, with sand dunes, beaches, etc. is accessible from the ancient town of Coro , capital of the State of Falcon , and once the seat of the Spanish Viceroyalty. Los Roques is an archipelago approximately 1 hour by flight from Caracas . Travel agents provide air fare and two nights' stay for approximately US$300 to US$500 per person. It is extremely sunny and hot, but for beach lovers, who like snorkeling, scuba-diving, etc. it provides a fantastic holiday destination. There are several other beaches, towns and excursion spots of tourist interest in Venezuela, information for which can be obtained from the Embassy or from Venezuelan government authorities. For more information on tourism in Venezuela go to: www.think-venezuela.net Vaccination Since Venezuela is in the Yellow Fever zone, vaccination should be taken ten days before starting the trip in India. Without the Yellow Fever Certificate, the travellers on return to India might face quarantine. Airlinks From India, the best way to reach Venezuela is through European cities such as Frankfurt and Paris. All the major European airlines fly to Caracas. There are about 15 flights between Caracas and Miami (2 hours). There are daily connections to the United States, with Continental, Delta and American Airlines. There are also flights to Miami from Valencia and Maracaibo. Venezuelan international airlines, Conviasa and Aeropostal, fly to Europe and Miami. Caracas is well connected to the other major cities in Latin America. Aeropostal is the biggest airline of Venezuela. The others are Conviasa, Avior, Aserca, Laser and Santa Barbara. The national (Maquetia) and international (Simon Bolivar) terminals are within five minutes of walk within the same airport complex.
On your arrival at the Simon Bolivar International Airport, please take the prepaid taxi service. This counter is called as Ticket Taxi and is run by the company Corporación Antifitriones de Venezuela at Gate 2 who charge about Bs.F 150 ($75) for the hotels in the city. The vehicle is Black Ford Explorer SUV. This taxi can be shared by two to four persons and there is ample space for luggage. This is safe and reliable. Please be careful about touts and freelance taxi drivers who try to get you unawares as soon as you come out. There have been cases of overcharging and even robbery by these taxi drivers, who take advantage of foreigners. In the baggage arrival area there are two kinds of trolleys. The free trollies can be taken only up to the Exit gate and not upto the car. In such cases, there are porters available who charge Bs.F 20. Airport Tax at the time of departure is Bs.F 137.50.
Venezuelan Exchange Control Restrictions from 6 February 2003 Taxis Taxis here do not have fare meters, and the fare has to be negotiated in advance. In general, the city taxi drivers are somewhat reasonable (unlike the freelance airport taxis) and taxi charges are much less in comparison to other countries in the region. Petrol costs just 2 Rupees a litre! Taxis could also be called on the phone. Language Many businessmen speak English. But executives at middle and lower level speak only Spanish. There are software packages available for translation from English to Spanish and vice versa. Spanish translators are available in India from institutions such as JNU in Delhi and free lancers. The visitors can hire local free lance interpreters. Charges per day are around 60 US Dollars. The price depends on qualification and experience. Some of the interpreters are willing to use their own cars for meetings. Banks: Monday to Friday - 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Offices: Monday to Friday - 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Shops: Monday to Saturday - 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Shopping Malls: Monday to Saturday - 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Like many other Latin American cities, Caracas also has its share of crime and violence. The visitors have to be extremely cautious everywhere. Exposure of valuables such as jewellery and expensive watches is not advisable. If confronted by muggers and criminals, it is advisable to give away whatever is demanded, without any resistance. Caracas city has a rich variety of cultural, touristic and nightlife activities, besides a number of international restaurants. The visitors can certainly enjoy these, while taking precautions. Sufficient allowance of time should be given for reaching the offices of clients taking into account (a) the usually congested traffic and (b) need for the taxi driver to search for the place of visit since the buildings do not have numbers. Even taxi drivers get lost in the many complicated one way streets of Caracas. Please be prepared for delays and last minute cancellations of meetings and it is advisable to reconfirm just before the meetings. Visit other cities in Venezuela - Click here Hotels - Click here Shopping malls and Department stores - Click here Restaurants - Click here For Venezuelan links - Click here
Postal system is very poor in Venezuela. Courier agencies are used for dispatches. Houses and buildings, in general, do not have numbers.
January 1, Carnival Monday and Tuesday (variable in February), Easter Thursday and Friday (variable, in March or April), April 19, May 1, June 24, July 5 and 24, and October 12. and December 25. Between 10 December and 10 January, it is holiday period.
Most restaurants include ten percent service charges. Additional five percent can be offered if the service is good.
Trains run from 5:30 to 23:00, every 90 seconds during peak hours. The tickets for Metro trains are very reasonably priced. Single tickets are Bs.F 0.45. A 10-ride ticket for any number of stations is Bs. F 4.5 and a 2-ride (return) ticket costs Bs.F 0.90. |
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