Which day and time did you activate your K1 visa?

[kuro 0]

Is there a certain time when you should go through a POE to activate your K1 visa? I will be going through a fairly busy one (Peace Arch), although I don't know how busy they are during winter. Are weekdays better than weekends? Morning or afternoon? I am thinking that with the Cdn dollar being high, they might have a lot of weekend travelers. I just don't want to be stuck there for hours.

[Peachey 10]

I did mine at 8 AM on a Sunday morning. There weren't too many people in there before me, but the room was full when I left. The border guards also seemed to be in a very good mood.

I crossed at the Peace Bridge also.

[Sam and Ben 2]

I did mine at 6am on a Sunday.

One thing you might want to keep in mind when deciding - if you pick a less busy time, or a less busy border crossing, you may encounter patrols that aren't as familiar with the process/paperwork involved. So I certainly wouldn't aim to be there at 2am without reason.

My thinking at the time was to avoid any major rush hour for travelers/commuters, so we aimed for the 6-8am span and it suited us just fine. In and out in forty minutes.

[Udella&Wiz 325]

8am-ish on a Monday (or was it a Tuesday....2 yrs later I cannot remember )

[Road 2 Peace Arch 0]

Is there a certain time when you should go through a POE to activate your K1 visa? I will be going through a fairly busy one (Peace Arch), although I don't know how busy they are during winter. Are weekdays better than weekends? Morning or afternoon? I am thinking that with the Cdn dollar being high, they might have a lot of weekend travelers. I just don't want to be stuck there for hours.

It appears that your crossing at the Peace Arch (Blaine, WA). I go accross it all the time to visit my Fiancee. I plan on going again next weekend as she just passed her K1 Interview in Vancouver and I want to pick up the documents from her to start working on the K2 out of Manila. She wont activate her Visa until March/April. Just keep in mind the Olympics traffic.

I'm going next weekend because the Olympics start in a couple of weeks and although I have a NEXUS Card, it's going to be a zoo at the border crossing.

[Wyatt's Torch 45]

This may not help you much, but I'll be crossing at Peace Arch as well, and aim to cross in the 6:00 AM - 7:00 AM timeframe, the day after I get my passport back from the consulate.

In general, I think it makes more sense to cross at peak hours, simply because you'll likely have more staff on during those times. Crossing after 8:00 AM on a weekday is probably your best bet. If it wasn't for the fact that I'm going to be driving across the continent after POE (aiming to make it to D.C. in three full days of driving), I'd be crossing at 8:00 or 9:00 instead.

P.S.: Peachey? Peace Bridge is different from Peace Arch.

[ZansGirl 0]

This may not help you much, but I'll be crossing at Peace Arch as well, and aim to cross in the 6:00 AM - 7:00 AM timeframe, the day after I get my passport back from the consulate.

In general, I think it makes more sense to cross at peak hours, simply because you'll likely have more staff on during those times. Crossing after 8:00 AM on a weekday is probably your best bet. If it wasn't for the fact that I'm going to be driving across the continent after POE (aiming to make it to D.C. in three full days of driving), I'd be crossing at 8:00 or 9:00 instead.

P.S.: Peachey? Peace Bridge is different from Peace Arch.

The Peace Bridge connects Buffalo, New York in the United States and Fort Erie, Ontario in Canada.

[Wyatt's Torch 45]

The Peace Bridge connects Buffalo, New York in the United States and Fort Erie, Ontario in Canada.

Come to think of it, I've crossed at both.

Dozens of more times at Peace ARCH though, obviously.

[ZansGirl 0]

Come to think of it, I've crossed at both.

Dozens of more times at Peace ARCH though, obviously.

I usually cross at Port Angelas..use the Coho Ferry from Victoria..but I have been through the Peace Arch..but most often..I use Sumas..or the one over near Omak/Oyosos

Edited January 25, 2010 by ZansGirl