Citizens of the following countries may not require a visa to visit Venezuela for tourist purposes only for up to 90 days a tourist-card will be issued instead: Andorra, Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, Dominica, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Hong Kong, Iceland, Iran max. 15 days, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, Nevis, New Zealand, Norway, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Russia, San Marino, Spain, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & The Grenadines, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Trinidad & Tobago, United Kingdom, United States of America, and Uruguay. Business travellers almost invariably require a visa to be issued before entry.
In Caracas, passengers pass through immigration in the recently refurbished arrivals hall before going to baggage claim. Officers will check your passport and may ask questions. If a customs officer or anyone asks about your purpose of visit, tell them you are only there to visit, tourism. At baggage claim you will be required to match the baggage sticker on your flight ticket to the bar code on your bag before you hand over your tax form to customs officials.
There will be many individuals who approach you after your arrival offering assistance with locating a taxi or trading currency. It is best to not interact with anyone who approaches you. Even airport officials with proper identification may attempt to lead you to other areas of the airport to trade currency on the black market. When taking a taxi from the airport, always settle on a price before getting into the cab, and only use taxis that have the official yellow oval seal.
By plane
Vaccinations
Some airlines ask passengers to show a valid Yellow fever vaccination certificate before flying to Venezuela. This is not an official entry requirement, however the CDC Yellow fever vaccination recommendation is "for all travellers over 9 months of age travelling to Venezuela, except the northern coastal area. The cities of Caracas and Valencia are not in the endemic zone." A valid measles vaccination certificate may be required to board flights out of the country following a nationwide immunisation program in 2006, but foreign tourists are usually exempted.
The main international airport is Simon Bolivar International Airport also known as Maiquetia airport, IATA: CCS, ICAO: SVMI located in the Vargas state. It is approximately a 30-minute ride from Caracas. Buses are available during the day, departing from Parque Central next to Calle del Sur. Buses run from 7AM-6PM, and cost 18BsF per passenger. A taxi ride from the airport will cost Bs. 150,000 BsF. 150/ US$70 official exchange rate and US$28 unofficial exchange rate during the day, or Bs. 200,000 BsF 200 / US$93 official exchange rate and US$37 unofficial rate at night. There are international flights to Maracaibo and Valencia, but the choices are very limited.
You can travel non stop from the US and most major European cities.
United Airlines links Caracas to Houston and Newark weekly. American Airlines offers daily flights from Miami, San Juan, Dallas and New York. Delta Airlines offers a daily flight from Atlanta. Air Canada offers a direct flight from Toronto four times a week.
From Europe, there are non stop flights from Paris Air France, Rome and Milan Alitalia, Madrid Iberia, Air Europa, CONVIASA, Santa Barbara, Tenerife Santa Barbara, Santiago de Compostela Air Europa -Seasonal Service-, Frankfurt Lufthansa and Lisbon and Oporto TAP.
Aeropostal, CONVIASA, Avianca, Copa Airlines, TACA, Lloyd, LAN Chile and Aerolineas Argentinas provide flights to the rest of Central America and South America.
Copa Airlines has a daily service from Caracas, Maracaibo and Valencia to Panama and connections to all South America, Central America and USA.
American airlines has a daily service from Maracaibo to USA.
For international departures at Maiquetia Airport, the airport tax is Bs. 137.00 / US$53.49 official exchange rate and US$23 unofficial exchange rate and a departure tax Bs. 46 / US$21.4 official exchange rate and US$9.2 unofficial exchange rate. These taxes are paid at the airport, although many airline tickets might include these taxes. Currently, only American Airlines is allowed to charge the airport tax with the ticket purchase. All other international carriers do not have the capacity to include this tax in their ticket price. It is a good idea to keep at least $50.00 US on hand when departing from Venezuela. If the fees increase, or you are required to pay both the airport and departure tax, you can head into the main lobby area where many businessmen will eagerly buy fifty dollars for 250 bolivares fuertes, plenty to pay the bill. If you are stuck without cash, you can ask the Canada Air employees to charge your credit card and provide you with cash to pay the airport tax. Ask for 'efectivo' when employing this strategy.
For domestic flights at Maiquetia Airport, the airport tax is Bs. 23 BsF. 23 Aeropostal Alas de Venezuela, Santa Bárbara Airlines, Avior Airlines, Conviasa and Aserca Airlines are the major domestic airlines in Venezuela.