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all your online accounts secure! Many of you globetrotters might have proudly
shared a map of the world on social media which shows all the countries you have visited. There are 193 United Nations-recognized states,
but that number can be 197 if you include countries with a somewhat embattled status. If you come from a developed nation, of course
you have a better chance of seeing more of the world, but then if you look at U.S. state
department statistics you can see that 64 percent of Americans don’t even own a passport. Still, if you’re from Europe, it’s easy
just popping over the border for most people. We are told that Queen Elizabeth II has visited
120 nations, but you can find news reports about people who claim to have visited every
country in the world. That’s some feat, and not easy, as many
places are just very difficult to visit. We might add that it depends on what passport
you are carrying, but some places are not exactly welcoming to many citizens of the
world. If you don’t believe us, ask a man called
Henrik Jeppesen, someone who like a few others these days, says he has visited every country. So, where did he have problems? 8. Syria
He mentions Syria. This is what he said, “Having a visa isn't
always enough to get into the country. I flew into Beirut where my contact picked
me up and took me to the border. The immigration officer wouldn't believe I
was in Syria as a tourist, but eventually they decided to stamp me in.” According to the website The Unusual Traveler,
it’s much easier to get into Syria now than it was just a couple of years back. Not long ago it would take 10-12 weeks for
your visa application, but these days it’s not even close to that. Although, we are told, it takes longer for
Brits and Americans than most other nationalities. You might also be told you must have a guide
and go on a tour, but you can wing your trip, too, it just might be harder to get the visa
if you want to do it that way. You don’t have too many options as to how
to get in, as you can only fly in on small airlines from nearby countries, and many of
its borders with other countries are not open. Your best bet is to travel from Beirut in
Lebanon to the Syrian border. From what we can see, this is how most other
western travelers did it. So, it’s by no means easy, but not impossible. You might also find trouble if you have an
Israel stamp in your passport, and if you are American, well, maybe your jaunt in the
Middle East might mean a red flag, but we can’t be sure about that. 7. Yemen
Visiting Yemen can also cause you a great, big headache, and at the same time you won’t
find many government’s telling their citizens it’s safe to go. One guy that claims to have visited every
place in the world, an Irishman called Johnny Ward that started off his travels teaching
English in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and then made a small fortune with his travel blog,
said Yemen certainly was hard to get into. He wrote this, “Saudi have imposed a no-fly
zone through Yemeni airspace, there are no commercial flights due to the war, visas are
hard to come by and taking a local fishing boat is treacherous due to the pirates, terrorists,
war and immigration from both the Omani coast, and then again on the Yemeni side.” He tried bribing officials at land borders,
tried a cargo boat, and then a charter flight, but all those failed. That was in 2016, is it any easier now? Not really, because you need a visa, and if
you are American, you won’t get a Yemeni visa in the U.S. The Canadian government tells us, “Yemeni
authorities do not issue visas at ports of entry.” Hmm, so you must apply, but as we said, some
countries just won’t issue you a visa. Well, some people do get lucky. We found this post on the Lonely Planet website,
“I went to the Yemen border with Oman yesterday and paid $100 US for a visa. I hired a local guy to help me do this trip
to Yemen. I’m an American and I have attempted three
other trips to Yemen and all failed.” It seems others have also crossed from Oman
for 100 bucks, so again, not impossible, but very hard. 6. Nauru
This island country in the South Pacific Ocean is tiny and only gets about 150-200 tourists
a year. There aren’t many places to stay if you’re
a tourist, so you’ll need to book well in advance, pay a lot of money, and you might
even need a letter from a local sponsor. You will also have to apply for a visa unless
you are from a handful of nations. Don’t think once you’ve arrived on the
one airline that you’ll just be able to get a taxi, there is very little public transport,
or infrastructure for that matter. What we are trying to say is this trip takes
a lot of planning, months before you go, will cost you an arm and a leg, but will likely
be worth all the cost and hassle. 5. Eritrea
We are told visiting this northeast African country is not easy as it’s not always welcoming
to foreigners. You’ll need a visa, and from what we can
see online, many people just get refused. Foreign journalists are certainly not always
given the red carpet as politically the country is quite secretive. If you do get the visa you’ll need more
permits to visit anywhere outside of the capital. One permit for each place, or site, which
could mean applying for tons of permits. Sometimes called “The North Korea of Africa”,
that website The Unusual Traveler says it has to be in the top five for the hardest
places to get into in the world. The website says what others said, in that
it is very likely you will be refused the visa on your application. But the writer got in, saying, “I found
Eritrea to be the most fascinating and the underrated country in all of Africa.” The visa application itself can take months
as you’ll have to be approved by the government in Eritrea. The good news is that there are some flights
right in from a number of nations, but the bad news is that if you don’t have those
permits you won’t be getting on any public transportation that can take you outside of
the capital. “When visiting Eritrea, you will experience
a bureaucratic permit nightmare like nowhere else in the world,” said one writer. 4. Libya
Recent information posted online tells us getting a visa to Libya is incredibly difficult,
too, and if you are not invited to do business, are on some kind of diplomatic mission, there
is every chance your visa will not be issued. If you’re American, you can get a tourist
visa, but we are told that if you don’t have a sponsor or a letter from someone with
some clout inside Libya, you are almost guaranteed to fail. “Tourist visas are often rejected at all
embassies without being a part of a tour or applied for on behalf of a Libyan tour operator,”
said one travel website. Another travel blogger said the same thing,
but he also said that he found a travel company inside the country that would help him get
his visa. The only problem with that is you will have
to go everywhere with that company, to only the places on the tour, and it will cost you
a lot of money. The good news is that flying in isn’t much
of a problem, if indeed you are allowed in. 3. Saudi Arabia
This is a place that has made some huge changes in the last few years, in that Saudi Arabia
was not long ago pretty much closed to anyone just wanting to visit not on some kind of
business. That has changed, but we should still say
that you will only be issued a tourist visa for certain events inside the country. Lots of expats work in the nation, but you
still won’t find many tourists just going anywhere they want in Saudi. You might also do well to remember to follow
local laws, lest a bottle of beer lead to your backside being flogged. We should also add that if you are a woman
under 25 it might be hard, or impossible, to get a visa, if you are not going with a
husband, or at least a male chaperone. 2. South Sudan
We found a journalist online who said that getting a tourist visa for this place is very
hard. He got a press visa and so was lucky, but
he needed a letter from an employer inside the country. As a visitor you might get yourself a visa
if you also have a letter from someone inside, but it seems without an invite you might have
problems. We are not sure if this is exaggeration, but
one well known travel website said that this area of the world is so violent that visiting
is incredibly stupid. U.S. embassy staff travel in armored vehicles
and never go out on the streets alone. Just about all governments of developed nations
say just don’t go here, and we can find hardly any information written by people who
have been there. One guy called Ramblin’ Randy did just that,
writing on his blog, “I was shocked to see three or four gringos and a couple Asians
on my flight into Juba; what were they going to South Sudan for?” He said he had not been able to find a guide
or a fixer before going, but was told by a hotel manager that he would be taken care
of once he arrived. He managed to see a lot of things, but he
was always with a local person and it sounds like he wouldn’t have done much alone. It seems the country will give you a visa
if travel plans are booked ahead, but once there you best follow some rules, and those
include not taking photographs. North Korea
This is the last place on our list, but believe it or not, it’s actually not that hard to
visit compared to some of the paces on this list, and it is by no means dangerous if you
don’t break any laws. We’ve included it only because everyone
is fascinated with this country and you probably want to know how to get inside it. So, you can get in, but there are catches,
lots of catches. First of all, you will have to book your trip
through a travel company that works with the North Korean tourism ministry. Ok, step one done. What this means is that your entire trip will
be a tour, and don’t think you can just say see ya to your guides and go and explore
for yourself. You’ll probably have two of these guides
with you throughout your trip. The good news is that your visa will probably
be issued, but it might take anywhere from one week to six weeks. As the website World Nomads tells us, “If
you choose not to travel with a tour group, you will still need the services of a local
guide, and won’t be able to leave your hotel, sightsee or travel on public transport without
one. Defying these regulations will result in punishment
for you and your guide.” The good news is that the world’s most secretive
nation will let you surf the net, take photos, make phone calls. The bad news is that the U,S. just extended
a ban on its citizens visiting the country. Most people, however, can get the visa, go
to China, and then on to North Korea. Some of the hardest countries to visit also
make it really hard to browse the web freely. Luckily Dashlane and its powerful but easy
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10% off a premium subscription today! Have you been to any of the places we have
talked about today? Which place would you like to go? Can you think of a harder country to visit? Tell us in the comments. Also, be sure to check out our show Smallest
Country In The World. Thanks for watching, and as always, don’t
forget to like, share and subscribe. See you next time.
