10 Hardest Countries to Visit
If you have one of the most powerful passports in the world, traveling around the globe is a piece of cake. Just pack your bags and enjoy the weekend on some Greek island or in a club in Ibiza. But people from countries who need a visa to travel to almost everywhere know the hassles and the patience needed to fulfill your dreams. While many countries allow visa free travel or a visa on arrival, there are a few countries who are inaccessible by even the holders of the world’s strongest passports. Let’s have a look at the top 10 hardest countries to visit on Earth.
China
China is a much secluded country and is known for banning most of the social media sites like Facebook and Youtube. With most nationalities requiring a visa to travel to China, travelling can be troublesome with the Embassies getting increasingly strict for visa applications. Getting a visa for long stays is very difficult and you will have to provide long list of documents to get your passport stamped.
Iran
Visiting Iran has never been easy. The process of getting a visa for Iran requires you to get pre-approval from the Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs(MFA) so you can only apply through an official Iranian travel agency in Tehran. The application process can take months so you need to plan way ahead in advance.
Nauru
Nauru came to limelight a few years ago as the notorious Australian refugee detention centre. There is only one airline that flies to Nauru. What makes it impossible to reach is the fact that Nauru has only 10 embassies and consulates in other countries.
Russia
Russia is not really difficult to visit, but you need to plan way ahead in advance as a visit to this country is only possible with an invitation letter which can be arranged by the hotel you will be staying. It can also take some time for the visa to arrive and don’t be surprised if your application is given even further scrutiny on landing. On the other side, you don’t need a tourist visa if you’re staying for under 72 hours and arriving by cruise ship or ferry.
India
Getting a visa for India is considerably easy, but the whole application process is cumbersome. India has the Evisa facility which lets you apply for a visa online but the site is very unresponsive and confusing. Also, the only way to make payment is online and the payment gateway doesn’t accept payments many times which can be frustating. And the rejection rates for Evisas is very high, and you have to apply for a tourist visa in person at your nearest embassy if your Evisa application is rejected.
Turkmenistan
This country remains one of the most closed in the world. You can only get a tourist visa if you’re joining a tour or have hired an individual guide and booked all of your hotels in advance. While this might increase your travel cost, you can always apply for a transit visa for short stay in the country which is much easier to get and doesn’t require the above formalities.
Libya
With Libya still recovering after the death of their leader Mohammad Gaddaffi, many embassies will restrict you from travelling to this country. There are no direct flights to Libya, but Afriqiyah Airways flies from Istanbul to Tripoli or you could take a connecting flight through Tunis. The ancient Roman ruins of Leptis Magna (approximately 80 miles east of Tripoli) are meant to be stunning.
Somalia
Somalia has been struggling with international conflicts for many years and many foreign offices will warn you against travelling here. With very few embassies and consulates abroad, applying for a visa can be far fetched, but if you still want to visit, then you will have to travel to another country just to find the Somalian embassy to apply for a visa in person.
Nigeria
This visa requires a lot of paperwork. In addition to your hotel booking confirmation, you’ll need to provide bank statements and a letter of employment. You’ll also have to make three separate payments: the first to the Nigerian government (which is done online when you fill out your application form); the second to the Nigerian High Commission (which can be done only at the post office as a postal order); and the third to the visa application centre when your application is submitted.
Equatorial Guinea
This is a country many avoid because of state-oppression and a terrible record of human rights abuses. The hostility towards its own people extends to visitors and as a result Equatorial Guinea is a very difficult place to enter.Once there, getting around can be hard and the hotels are expensive when compared to neighboring countries.
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