Mission: Visit all European Countries
A very exciting travel goal for me is to visit all European countries. As you can imagine, when you google ‘all European countries’ there’s lots of conflicting information about how many there truly are. Some countries are excluded from certain lists due to having a large amount of their land mass within a separate continent and some are excluded due to being part of a wider combined country (e.g. England, Scotland and Wales are classed as United Kingdom within this list).
Therefore, the most fair way I decided to choose this list was by going with the list of European countries as stated and recognised by the United Nations. In total, this list comprises 44 European countries.
So, What countries are included and where have I already been?
I have been fortunate enough to visit 30 of the recognised 44 European countries and I can’t wait to visit more! I have highlighted the countries that I have visited in bold, with those in plain italics, being the countries that I am still yet to visit.
The full list of the 44 core Sovereign states, according to the United Nations is as follows:
Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Vatican City.
If you’d like to see where I’ve been so far, alongside countries within other continents that I have visited, you can check out my Visited Countries page. I’m excited to showcase you the best of Europe and I hope you’ll follow along on this journey, and maybe even find some inspiration for your own travel destinations!
FAQs
Below are the questions that I get asked the most often when I tell people that I’m aiming to visit all the countries within Europe. If you have any additional questions about this mission, feel free to email me and I’ll be happy to answer 😊
What inspired you to try to visit all European countries?
In my opinion, Europe is a continent that has it all! Rich culture, diverse food and incredible artistry throughout. Each European country is a haven to explore and I am really excited to visit as many as I can and see the differentiation between each country for myself.
Are there some listed European countries that you will not be able to visit?
I am constantly keeping an eye on border controls and safety updates of the countries that will naturally be more difficult to visit. I will try my best to visit all the European countries in my lifetime and I really hope to be able to visit as many as possible but it is also important that I do so safely and respectfully, therefore there may be a couple of European countries that I am unable to visit due to circumstances outside of my control. My main goal is to be able to visit all European countries that are safe to do so.
Are there any ‘European’ countries that aren’t part of the official United Nations list but you would still like to travel to?
Yes! Interestingly both Cyprus and Kosovo have not made the United Nations recognised European countries list and these are 2 countries that I will definitely be visiting anyway! Who knows, they may make an appearance on this list at some point of the future so I’m making sure I’m prepared✈️
Where did you find the list of European Countries recognised by the United Nations?
I did a lot of research into the range of European countries and learnt a lot about land mass, region location and how these things affect the status of a country. In the end I decided to go with the official United Nations list of European countries.
A very informative website about what is considered by the United Nations as a European country can be found below: https://www.worldometers.info/geography/how-many-countries-in-europe/
Are there any European countries you’re particularly excited to visit?
My answer to this will no doubt change throughout my travels when I’m lucky enough to visit more and more of Europe, but for now the countries that I’m most excited to visit are Bosnia & Herzegovina and Serbia. The reason for this is because I absolutely loved my time in Montenegro, which has in turn made me extremely excited to visit more of that part of Europe and Bosnia and Serbia are two countries that look equally as stunning as Montenegro.
How long do you think this mission will take you?
I haven’t necessarily put a time frame on this mission because there are a lot of things that could change due to borders constantly closing and re-opening throughout Europe. Whilst it’s difficult to give a set time, I am trying to prioritise European travel in the hope that I can complete this mission as soon as I can (depending on challenges/restrictions).