Which should be done first - visa or trip itinerary?

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China: Visa agencies in the US often explicitly state you can submit only 'reservations' with you visa application. Meaning, you don't need to and they're effectively saying don't pay for anything until the Visa is approved.

Check to see what various agencies recommend or require. I'll go out on a limb and say booked and paid tickets will be required very infrequently if ever. Even then, there are way around that.

Example from Allied Passpot: "One flight itinerary with passenger name listed on reservation (required, but does not have to be a purchased ticket or confirmed reservation, unbooked itineraries are acceptable)"

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A fake booking is sufficient for applying visa if you worried about losing money once you denied. You can apply for this in any travel agencies and the can give it to you for free or sometimes for a small amount like the cost of printing.

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It seems like a catch-22 to me. In many cases, there is no chance to get a visa without a booking, so it is only possible to do the booking first. As much as possible, make a fully refundable reservation. This is not always an option and I had to risk it when applying for a Brazilian visa to go for Carnaval and all the hotels I could find had only very expensive non-refundable rooms for that week.

Some visa application accept an itinerary without a reservation which you can submit but that certainly depends on the the embassy involved and perhaps who processes your application. The best bet is to call ahead and ask as part of checking visa-requirements.

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