Has anybody got a good strategy for traveling in Europe for 6 months without getting into Schengen troubles. I found a good Schengen tracker: http://adambard.github.io/schengencalc/ to keep track of my actual days in the zone but I'm wondering about actual itineraries that take me in and out of Schengen countries that don't involve crazy plane or train trips.
Thanks for your help!
Pretty simple - spend a total of 3 months in UK, Croatia, Turkey, Morocco, etc. All of that time outside of Schengen does not count. I met some fellow travelers in a train station in Slovenia who had been backpacking 5 months by popping into the Balkans and back.
Croatia became a Schengen member as of Jan 1, 2023
You could easily fly Turkish Air with a stop in Turkey, then on to Tirana and then work your way north and east until you have seen the Balkan states, Romania and Bulgaria (most not in Schengen); then cross over into Hungary and start your tour through Western Europe; ending in the UK (also out of Schengen). I suspect that could be well planned to work. I know a company that might be able to do the planning for you.
I am in Europe now and running a bit tight on my Schengen time so I am using that as an excuse for a return trip to Romania in about 2 weeks. My second choice was to take a discount flight to Istanbul for a few nights. In the spring or summer the choice would be easy, the Balkan states for fishing.
The Schengen calculator you found might be great, I use this one: https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/visa-calculator/
So, Schengen includes:
Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France,
Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania,
Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal,
Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
Which means you need to duck into one of these countries to cover yourself (or get out of Europe all together)
Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria
Cyprus, Georgia, Ireland, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro
North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom (UK)
I'm not sure what conditions are like in the various parts of Turkey, post-earthquake.
In calculating your Schengen time, don't forget that both your entry day and your exit day count.
There is also an official calculator at: https://ec.europa.eu/assets/home/visa-calculator/calculator.htm?lang=en
Andorra and Gibraltar are also outside Schengen, but are not places where you'd want to spend a week.
As for an actual itinerary, there are endless possibilities.
Note...OP has two posts both with the same link and never returned. Spam? Reported to webmaster.
Never returned? They were only put up 8 hours ago.
Andorra will not work for avoiding the Schengen limit because you will not be stamped/recorded as leaving the zone when you cross the border from France or Spain. I don't know about Gibraltar.
Frank II, If you are right, then:
If you are wrong, it's not a warm welcome.
To the topic, Acraven is correct on two counts. For instance, my quick trip to Romania is 5 days, but Schengen counts the day I leave and the day I return, so I only pick up 3 days. Best to break the trip into 3 parts; 1/3rd out of Schengen, 1/3rd in and 1/3rd back out. Might be easier connecting the thirds with a discount airline and make it like 3 trips. Just an idea.
I checked the Schengen tracker she posted and it it looks pretty innocuous - no one is making any money off of it that I can see.
