How to Visit Every Country in the World as an American
How many countries are in the world? This is a tough question to get a definitive answer for. It depends who you ask and what you define as a country. There are 195 Sovereign States according to the United Nations, 201 States with at least partial recognition acknowledged by at least one UN member, 204-207 De Facto Sovereign states that are self-declared countries, 206 olympic nations, 211 FIFA countries eligible for the World Cup, and 249 country codes in the ISO Standard List. This makes it very difficult to put an actual number on it. What is a country? First, we have to think about what makes a country, a country. By definition, a country refers to a territory with its own borders as well as total sovereignty over its territory and people. An independent country is not only a self-governed nation with its own authorities, but its status needs the international diplomatic recognition of sovereignty from at least some other sovereign countries. The United Nations, as the most influential international organization, is often considered the starting point for the correct number for total countries. There are currently 193 members of the UN that are recognized worldwide as independent countries. However, there are 2 permanent observer states, Holy See (Vatican) and Palestine, which are considered countries because of the UN observer status confirming the degree of their international recognition. This brings the UN total to 195, which is more than likely what will come up first on a Google search. But wait! There’s more! Here’s where it gets a bit more complicated with that figure excluding 2 more widely recognized entities in the list of independent countries. Taiwan is recognized by 22 countries as its own nation, but excluded by most due to the asserted ownership by China in order to prevent harm to relations and trade opportunities. Another exception is Kosovo. Despite being recognized by 111 countries as a nation, its been in political debate since declaring independence from Serbia in 2008. With these two exceptions, it brings the United Nation’s list of recognized countries in the world to 197. Nowadays, there is no consensus on the country quantity issue because there is still no universal agreement on the definition of “country.” When looking at a map of the world, it may seem easy to distinguish what areas ought to be countries based on looks. That’s not the case though! Greenland, for example, is a large island between the north Atlantic and Arctic oceans and certainly looks like it ought to be a country, right? Wrong! While it controls many of its own domestic affairs, Greenland is not recognized as a UN member. It’s actually claimed by Denmark, a European country fractional in size comparison and located 1,800 miles away. People can certainly say they’ve technically been to every country in the world even though there’s still a massive untouched section of map, though some may consider that cheating. Another example up for a technicality discussion is the United Kingdom, where I currently live. The UK is one country utilizing the same currency and passports, ruled by the same Monarch figure (long live the Queen), and ran by the same government. The FIFA organization, however, recognizes Northern Ireland, England, Scotland, and Wales as four separate “countries”. Many people, majority being football fans, follow the separation because of their teams and also because of the differences between the regions. All of this demonstrates the complications behind determining the exact number of countries in the world. So if you’re wanting to be in the exclusive club of travelers racing to visit every country in the world, you’re probably going to want to know how possible and realistic it is. There are currently 199 people who claim to have accomplished this goal, although only about a fourth of them have been verified. You can visit nomadmania.com to keep up with the world’s top travelers. This website breaks up each country into regions so that travelers can mark what regions they have been to in each country. I like that you can see where you rank amongst other travelers. How do I get into every single country? I have heard that some countries are nearly impossible to enter as an American, so I thought I would put together a list of visa requirements and any expected hurdles that you may come across. Hopefully one day the world will be more peaceful and it won’t be so much of a hassle to explore the world. One can dream, right?!? Still, Americans are very lucky compared to other nationalities. U.S. citizens have visa-free access to 113 countries across the globe. We can even get a visa on arrival in 41 countries, without applying beforehand. 43 countries require Americans to obtain a visa before arriving in the country, either by mail or an electronic application. A United States passport is a powerful document to have, ranking 6th in terms of travel freedom according to the Henley Passport Index. The US passport is tied with Norway, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Canada, Greece, and Ireland. Below is a list of the 197 countries in alphabetical order and how to enter each as an American tourist. Green indicates that no visa is required Purple indicates that a visa can be obtained on arrival Blue indicates that an electronic visa can be obtained in advance Red indicates that a visa must be obtained by mail or at an embassy Afghanistan- Visa requiredOnline application at https://www.afgvisa.com/Digital copy of your passportHave application signature notarized5-15 business days to process$195 Albania- Visa not required Algeria- Visa requiredVisit https://www.itseasy.com/visa-expediting/algeria/ to view requirements and complete applicationMail in passport to obtain a visa or visit consulate in personApproximately 10 days to process $309 Andorra- Visa not required Angola- eVisaOnline application at http://www.smevisa.gov.ao/ 2-6 days to process$120 paid in cash at the border Antigua and Barbuda- Visa not required Argentina- Visa not required Armenia- Visa not required Australia- eVisa/ETAOnline application at https://www.eta.homeaffairs.gov.au/ETAS3/etas 15-19 days to process$128-$178
