backpack, visa

[soymakesyougay]

Yay I'm excited I found this community. The tags seem very helpful. I'm planing a 3-6 month Europe trip in a year or two. I'm looking into getting my backpack now, just for fun, and to use until then. So far the backpack I like the best is the Osprey Talon 22

Comments

[monkeedreamer]

What you have been told is absolutely wrong, and will get you kicked out if you're found out. You can stay in Schengen for 3 mos, and then you must be out of Schengen for 3 mos as well, before being able to return. The only way you can stay in Europe for longer, is by traveling to non-Schengen places either before or after your 3 mos within Schengen (not going in and out of it, because your 3 mos will be counting down from the date you first enter it, so you'd be wasting that time). For countries outside Schengen, you need to find the sites for their embassy and see what their regulations are for how long you can stay in them. In any case, there is no way to get a visa just to play tourist longer, you can only get visas for being a student, etc.

[soymakesyougay]

Yeah I figured that didn't sound right. Thanks for the info! I'm sure I can plan the trip so I will have enough time in each country I want to visit.

[inverse_spiral]

I think I'd go with something bigger- DSLRs take up a surprising amount of room (trust me on this one!). I have this pack for short trips: http://www.kathmandu.com.au/Travel_&_Commute/Packs_&_Bags/40381/Litehaul_Pack.html# (I know that's an Australian pack but it will give you an idea). It's built to the maximum size specifications for carry-on. How about taking your DSLR with you to the shop and seeing how much room you'll have left over?

[silentseanymph]

You could probably pull off a 6-month trip with a little bit of careful itinerary planning. Like, visit some non-Schengen countries for the first month or two, then enter the Schengen area and have your 90 days there, then leave again and do whatever Schengen countries you didn't do at the beginning. The European countries outside the Schengen area are the UK, Ireland, countries in the former Yugoslavia, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, and Turkey.

Incidentally, if you're an American citizen, you can stay in the UK for up to six months.

A packing tip: Unless you're planning on camping, I would reconsider the sleeping bag. Most hostels provide free linen these days, and a sleeping bag is a super-bulky thing to be carrying around if you're not going to get good, regular use out of it.

[monkeedreamer]

Of he EU, you left out Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, and Liechtenstein. You also left out the rest of the non-EU countries.

OP, these 25 countries are in Schengen: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland. All the rest of Europe is not a part of Schengen, and can be visited before/after your 3 months in the Schengen area.