Owen Park
Multi-country itineraries require a lot more document management than single-country trips. In planning out many multi-country trips I have found that there are a few key documents that you actually need to bring, and a few more that are important to have digitally backed up.
Passport validity rules vary by country
Rules vary per country. Most countries require a passport to be valid for at least 6 months after the date of your departure from that country. Some countries are more strict, requiring a passport to be valid for 6 months after entry into that country. China requires a passport to be valid for 6 months after entry into China. Other countries, like Brazil, Indonesia, and Egypt require a passport to be valid for 6 months after departure from that country. In the end, the strictest rule will apply to the earliest departure date of any country on your itinerary. I advise to renew your passport if it is due to expire within 9 months of any of your trips.
Visa research by country
For every country you plan to visit, each will have specific requirements to enter the country. A pattern that we’ve found for most U.S., Canadian, UK and EU passports is that they’re generally granted visa-free or visa-on-arrival for most travel destinations. That being said, there are always exceptions. If you have a U.S., Canadian, UK or EU passport, here are the countries where you’d typically need to obtain a visa in advance, prior to your trip: China, Russia, India, Vietnam and Cuba. Brazil requires a visa for certain passports as well. It’s always best to confirm current visa requirements by visiting the iVisa or VisaCentral website, and to also cross reference the information on the official embassy website of the country that you’re planning to visit.
Vaccination records and the WHO yellow card
The only vaccine that is routinely checked by borders is the Yellow Fever vaccine and on long-term trips that traverse through many countries that require Yellow Fever vaccination, it is a good idea to carry the WHO Yellow Card with your passport as proof of vaccination. While other vaccines such as Hepatitis A, B, Typhoid and Japanese Encephalitis are recommended for certain destinations, the vast majority of borders will not ask to see proof of vaccination for these diseases. So while it is good to get these vaccinations for health reasons, the vaccination alone is not enough and they are rarely checked at borders.
For flights, I generally book the second option. It is always the case that the first option for flights will sell out first. For hotels, the best option may sell out within hours of booking. I try to find the second option and book it.
Digital backups and the photograph stack
Of course, the rule that has not failed for me is: anything you would need to replace if lost while traveling should be photographed before you depart. This is typically a very small set of images, including the photo page of your passport, visa pages, your travel insurance documents (summary form), any prescription medication with you, your vaccination records and one front and back image of a single paper credit card. This is easily stored in an encrypted, cloud-based location like an encrypted email, the attachments in your password manager or in a secure notes application.
Trip-specific documents
If there is specific paperwork needed for certain trips it would be wise to research this before booking. As an example for travelers to Cuba licensing for U.S. passport holders is required and should be researched prior to booking your trip. The stamp from Israel has caused problems for entry into some Arab countries and some travelers use a separate travel document when traveling to and from Israel. The China visa application process is complex and time-consuming, applying for the visa well in advance (4-8 weeks) and having all of the required supporting documents for the application is essential for approval and for arrival into China.
How to apply this when you plan your next trip
Adding contingency to your planning: You can always add contingency when you are on the road but it is always far cheaper to plan for contingencies when you are organizing your trip rather than scrambling to make last minute plans. When organizing your long-term travel itinerary it’s a good idea to add a day of contingency per week to your itinerary and to ensure that at least 40% of your bookings are refundable or able to be cancelled. It is also a good idea to keep a small reserve of funds to cater for any of the contingencies that you have added to your itinerary. Organizing your long-term travel itinerary should be done with a hard date and within a set budget. It is all too easy to start planning a long-term trip with a wishlist of places that you want to visit but the constraints of your hard date and your budget are what will really shape your trip. It is therefore a good idea to start organizing your itinerary by locking in the largest reservations first (i.e. flights, the main anchor points for your itinerary and any reservations that require you to pay in full upfront) and then leave the middle of your trip open to change as necessary in order to allow for serendipity to play its part in your travels.
Closing perspective from years on the road
Travel documents for long-term travel: These patterns are based on my many long-term trips and those of fellow travelers that I meet along the way. You will no doubt notice that there are many ways to do something when it comes to traveling long-term, and that what works for most people most of the time is not necessarily what will work for you and your specific trip. Use this article as a guide, read as many travel blogs and books as you can, talk to other long-term travelers as you can and then go do it. The practice that you develop for traveling long-term will be what in the end provides you with the most knowledge about long-term travel, and the reading, blogs and books, will only serve to shorten the time between when you make a mistake and when you realize that you made a mistake. There are trips that will provide you with memories that you will remember for the rest of your life and these are the trips that change you.
— Tara Singh, reviewed against author’s experience.
Editor’s Note: This article has been reviewed against official government travel policies, relevant and reliable travel documentation as well as conducted interviews with repeat travelers to verify specific costs, airline routes, specific locations and methods or processes to ensure accuracy for the reader. If the reader finds an error or omission please notify us at Contact and we will do our best to correct as soon as possible. All our Editorial Standards and our Fact-Checking Policy can be reviewed here.
