My US Tourist Visa Experience

One of the most frustrating things for me while applying for the US tourist visa was how little information was available online. There were multiple versions being posted on Reddit threads (often contradicting each other) and the official websites were very ambiguous in their statements. Also, the portal itself had changed recently and most of the content online was relevant for the old portal. So, I’ve decided to pen down my detailed experience of applying for a B2 tourist visa – essentially my personal guide to the US tourist visa process for myself and my 3 year-old son. The process started in Jan 2024 (remember this for later). I applied for the US Tourist Visa by filling up the DS-160 form and selecting the earliest available appointment date in Chennai – Jan 2025. I was one of the lucky ones – I got back-to-back dates for the biometric and visa interview – both at the same location. There are people who get dates 1 week apart in the same location or even back-to-back dates in different cities. Phew!