3 ms·

You need a passport (or other form of government issued-ID), you don't need a visa.

by 4ad 13y ago

david_p 13y ago
Any valid ID (free) vs. a Passport (86 euros, in France) makes a huge difference to many people I believe !
- 4ad 13y ago
  In Romania IDs are not free either :-). If you come from an underdeveloped country (precisely where the cost of a passport can pose a problem) you'll soon find out that many EU countries won't let you in only with a national ID; they want a passport. For Romanian/Bulgarian/etc citizens roaming through Europe without a passport is not a very smart move, even if you go to countries that accept only the ID.
TillE 13y ago
You may technically be required to carry an ID, but at least on the train nobody's checking it.
- 4ad 13y ago
  Depends on the country, try to travel to or from Romania or Bulgaria next time ;). Not only that they check the ID, but they sometimes check the baggage as well, and when they do that it's a sign that they will find something and cause you trouble unless you discretely pass them 25EUR...
  - Nux 13y ago
    As a Romanian national who has used the train extensively I cannot testify to that. Not once was I asked for an ID and the "25EUR" (usually much less) is for when you don't have a ticket; though I notice the "practice" diminishing.
darklajid 13y ago
I guess the biggest change is: Nobody's checking it. I travel without lining up in front of a police guy, showing my passport. A border is sometimes easy to miss. Took two girls from the US to the meeting point of DE, NL and BE after Fosdem a couple years back. It's .. boring. Taking a picture there seems .. worthless. Yes, more or less just a step away from each of these countries and still - so what? No one cares, you can cross freely. And boring is good for these things, in my book.
- Someone 13y ago
  That isn't that different from 40 years ago. The Dutch-Belgian border has been technically open since 1944 (the BeNeLux as a customs union dates from then; see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benelux http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benelux. In practice, the border will have opened a bit later, as World War II was still going on) The Dutch-German border was closed, but in practice, outside main roads, there were only roaming border controls. The tripoint of Germany-Belgium-the Netherlands lies on a hill without main roads, so one could cross the border freely there even in the 1960's.

You need a passport (or other form of government issued-ID), you don't need a visa.

by 4ad 13y ago

You need a passport (or other form of government issued-ID), you don't need a visa.

david_p 13y ago

Any valid ID (free) vs. a Passport (86 euros, in France) makes a huge difference to many people I believe !

4ad 13y ago
In Romania IDs are not free either :-). If you come from an underdeveloped country (precisely where the cost of a passport can pose a problem) you'll soon find out that many EU countries won't let you in only with a national ID; they want a passport. For Romanian/Bulgarian/etc citizens roaming through Europe without a passport is not a very smart move, even if you go to countries that accept only the ID.

TillE 13y ago

You may technically be required to carry an ID, but at least on the train nobody's checking it.

4ad 13y ago
Depends on the country, try to travel to or from Romania or Bulgaria next time ;). Not only that they check the ID, but they sometimes check the baggage as well, and when they do that it's a sign that they will find something and cause you trouble unless you discretely pass them 25EUR...
- Nux 13y ago
  As a Romanian national who has used the train extensively I cannot testify to that. Not once was I asked for an ID and the "25EUR" (usually much less) is for when you don't have a ticket; though I notice the "practice" diminishing.

darklajid 13y ago

I guess the biggest change is: Nobody's checking it. I travel without lining up in front of a police guy, showing my passport. A border is sometimes easy to miss. Took two girls from the US to the meeting point of DE, NL and BE after Fosdem a couple years back. It's .. boring. Taking a picture there seems .. worthless. Yes, more or less just a step away from each of these countries and still - so what? No one cares, you can cross freely. And boring is good for these things, in my book.

Someone 13y ago
That isn't that different from 40 years ago. The Dutch-Belgian border has been technically open since 1944 (the BeNeLux as a customs union dates from then; see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benelux http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benelux. In practice, the border will have opened a bit later, as World War II was still going on) The Dutch-German border was closed, but in practice, outside main roads, there were only roaming border controls. The tripoint of Germany-Belgium-the Netherlands lies on a hill without main roads, so one could cross the border freely there even in the 1960's.