Visas
Visas were one of the more difficult topics to try to plan ahead. Our resources consisted of government embassies, private travel agencies, and online research. But there were times when information from different sources were conflicting. There were certain countries that we had to figure out the entry requirements along the way and other countries that were straight forward.
We both hold dual citizenship (US – El Salvador, US – Colombia) and used both passports depending on which one was more convenient in a particular country. For example, Russia requires an extensive visa application for US citizens, but do not require any visa for Colombia or El Salvador citizens. See our journal section for any stories on how this may have turned out.
Of the many countries that required us to have a visa prior to arriving, the only ones that we obtained prior to leaving Los Angeles are India and China. India conveniently offered a multiple-entry five or ten year visa to US citizens, which worked out with our flexible schedule. China offered a one year multiple entry visa that will also work with our schedule. The others, as mentioned above, were obtained on the road, as required.
See our extensive visa research (pdf) to get a better idea of the work it entailed and to see the visa requirements for certain countries. At the top of the document you will see a list of our online resources. Please note that this was an on-going research and cannot be completely depended on. If it is used for your own travels, use it at your own risk.
