last updated: 23 January 2019

It requires a lot of mobility, but it can be done

Gaining entry to any European country and staying for a reasonably long time — usually 90 days — is generally straightforward for Americans and, with very few exceptions, does not require a visa. (To skip straight to the details, see the clunky but comprehensive table I’ve compiled that lists visa and maximum stay information for Americans for every country in Europe.) You’ll need a US passport with enough validity left on it to cover your entire trip, plus at least six months to be on the safe side.

For the purposes of this article, I’m going to focus exclusively on tourist travel and tourist visas, especially for Americans like me who want to live in or travel through Europe for long periods of time. If you’re lucky enough to be studying abroad in Europe, or you got assigned to a job there, or you’re a diplomat or soldier stationed there, bully for you. But even Americans without any institutional ties to Europe can stay on the continent (but not in the same country) indefinitely, if, again, they have plenty of validity left on their passports, and if they play their cards right.

So many little countries, so little time

Aside from the titanic, globe-girdling colossus that is Russia, European countries come in three basic sizes: small (Spain, Sweden), tiny (Belgium, Albania), and microscopic (Andorra, San Marino). And there are nearly 50 of them. However, there are a number of pan-European umbrella institutions that cover many or most of these countries, particularly in the western and central regions of the continent.

The most familiar of these to Americans is probably the European Union (EU). Its 28 member states include all of the major powers of Western Europe (France, Germany, Italy, and, for now anyway, the UK), plus all sorts of other intriguing destinations. But a country’s EU membership status has little or no impact on American travelers. Two other bodies are much more significant.

The first is the Eurozone. Contrary to popular American belief, not every country in Europe uses the euro (€). If you try to spend that fistful of euros you got from the ATM in Munich in a store in Prague, you will be frustrated. (At least until after you pay a visit to the money-changer around the corner.)

But money is a topic for another day. What matters most to you, the intrepid American globetrotter, is how you get permission to enter the European country of your choice, and how long you can stay there.

The Schengen Area

The Schengen Area comprises 26 European countries that have done away with immigration checkpoints on their borders with one another. This is convenient for Europeans and American visitors alike, since you can cross many national borders without going through customs and immigration. Flying between Schengen countries is like taking a domestic flight in the US. You’ll still need your passport as a photo ID, but you won’t have to wait in a long line to clear immigration and get that exit stamp.

(Along certain land borders between Schengen countries, the old border infrastructure is still visible although no longer in use. When I crossed overland from Spain to Portugal in May 2019, my bus passed the old, empty buildings that used to be the immigration and customs processing facilities on both sides of the border. Other countries haven’t yet completed the post-Schengen infrastructure. Train travel from Olomouc in the Czech Republic to Kraków, Poland involves getting off the train at the last village on the Czech side of the border, taking a short bus ride across to the first village on the Polish side, and then resuming the journey by train, because the two countries still haven’t linked up their passenger rail systems.)

But there is a down side to Schengen for Americans who want to stay in Europe for the long term (over three months). Americans are allowed to stay in any or all of the Schengen countries for up to 90 days in a 180-day period without a visa. So if you want to spend two months in France, followed immediately by two months in Italy, you’re out of luck. You need to fly back to the States, or to some other non-Schengen country, and cool your heels for three months before you can come back.

This tripped me up on my most recent visit to Schengen member Poland, where I intended to spend the winter and spring of 2018-2019. I planned to max out my 90 days in-country, then visit non-Schengen member Romania for a week, and immediately turn around and come back to Poland for a second 90 days. Luckily, a friend pointed out the 180-day rule to me during my first 90 days. Otherwise, I could have ended up getting denied re-entry, or, worse, getting deported shortly into my second 90 days.

For the true nomads among us, this is a bitter pill to swallow, since the Schengen Area encompasses so many of Europe’s most appealing countries. The 180-day rule means that, unless you’re a student at a European university, or you found a job in Europe (easier said than done), or you’re a diplomat, etc., you can’t put down roots in any one place. (Which, of course, from the European perspective, is the whole point of this rule. One man’s digital nomad is another man’s digital illegal immigrant.)

Still, a resourceful and highly mobile American with a shiny new passport with years of validity left on it can stay in Europe indefinitely, if he or she is willing to pull up stakes every (just under) 90 days. Ireland, the UK, Bulgaria, Romania, and Croatia are all outside of Schengen, are all lovely places to visit, and all allow Americans to visit visa-free for 90 days at a stretch. Work a few of those into a rotation with your favorite Schengen country or countries, throw in a return trip to the States every so often — if for nothing else, to renew your passport — and there you are.