This article has been translated from English to Gen Z Slang.
Schengen Area is basically a no-border zone where a squad of 26 European countries decided to yeet their internal borders, so you can vibe and wander freely. 😎🌍
It's got 22 European Union (“EU“) gang members and a squad of four other countries rolling with the European Free Trade Association (“EFTA“), which are Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, and Lichtenstein. 🎒🗺️
What are the Countries in the Schengen Area?
The Schengen area squad consists of these fam: Austria, Belgium, 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. 🎉✨
Lowkey, even though 22 out of 27 European Union fam members clicked "join," Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, and Croatia are still waiting for their invites to the Schengen party. 📩🙅♂️
The Republic of Ireland is that one EU bro that didn't RSVP to the Schengen bash, especially before the 2004 shindig. 😅
Meanwhile, Ireland and the UK created their own lil' Common Travel Area for passport-free chillin’ with their citizens and the three British Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey, and the Isle of Man, which aren't part of the EU squad. 🇮🇪🤝🇬🇧
Are European Microstates Part of the Schengen Zone?
Even though places like Monaco, San Marino, and the Vatican City are super chill with no border drama next to Schengen countries, technically, they ain't on the official Schengen list. 🤷♂️🏞️
Monaco is basically BFFs with France with zero border stress, while Vatican City and San Marino are tight with Italy sans border issues. 👫
Andorra isn't on the Schengen VIP list yet, still flexes its border game with both France and Spain, but they vibe with Schengen visas. 🎫💬
And then there's Liechtenstein, who’s been on the Schengen squad roster since 2011, but they don’t do visas themselves. They’re like, "Yo, hit up another Schengen country if you need one." 😂✈️
Territories of Schengen States Outside the Area
The Canary Islands, Azores, and Madeira are repping the Schengen Zone slogan but are off doing their thing outside Europe on their island time. 🏝️⏰
The European Union's territories beyond the European zone have got this whole exemption thing going on. 🇪🇺🚫
Like, the French overseas squads such as French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, Reunion, and Saint-Martin are proudly part of the EU fam but prefer to pass on the Schengen invite. 🇫🇷👌
The six Dutch Caribbean territories and the Danish hangouts in the Faroe Islands and Greenland are also outside both the European Union and the Schengen Area. 🌊🇳🇱🇩🇰