Belarus Travel Forum

I plan to visit Belarus, staying in Minsk and Brest, probably several nights in each, during March this year.
While I know that I can apply for a visa at the Belarus Embassy in London, I need a letter of invitation, but I do not know where I am staying yet and want to avoid 'tourist agencies' and terrible inflated prices and fees for accommodation and a letter.
Does anyone have any advice or can help me at all?? Please?

EU citizens may receive belarus visa without invitation letter, if apply for guest visa (visit friends). All you need - name and contact information of person, who invite you.

Thanks for the help.
Is there an chance that you or anyoen else that lives in either Minsk or Brest can help me out with a letter stating that my friend and I will be visiting you in Belarus. We would be happy to meet up and buy a drink perhaps to thank you, should you be able to help us?

mail me - amalker@tut.by

all done, or you still need a help with belarus visa? so contact me

regards
E

We are planning a similar trip in june this year and need as much info as possible about this country. Did you decide where to stay - hotels vs. couch surfing? What about visa and invitation? Do they have cheap accommodation a'la hostel?

Try to get your visa sorted asap, I left mine very late and it can take a while. We used a company called Gotobelarus.com to provide us with the invitation letter etc that you need to support your visa app. On the visa app you do not need to have booked anywwhere to stay as the gotobelarus comany will tell you to use one of their appartment addresses. They also put us in touch with a bloke who we rented an apartment off in Minsk and we met people who helped us with accommo in Brest too. Info not always available on line!! Certainly not in English.
The internet is heavily policed over there ann much of Belarus does not have access to Western web sites anyway!
Not a lot in terms of hostels exist in Belarus, and very little in terms of couch surfing. I would recommend an appartment every time.
In Minsk, everything is very big, they are not fans of signs though, you need to know where you are going, as you can easily walk past shops, resturaunts and bars without knowing although we found a good area around the back of October Sq for pubs. Little or no info available there so get maps before you go, we used www.inyourpocket.com not another city map could I find!! Should be better in the summer, tables and chairs outside, was snowing the whole time we were there. In terms of cost, it can vary, in the local off the track pub you can pay 50p a pint and in the Irish pub expect to pay £3 a pint, hard to tell, there seems to be no reason for one place to charge more while next door charges half.
Let me know if there is anything more specific you need to know.