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Lisbon is a beautiful city of landmarks, and we would have been happy spending the whole month there without leaving. That would have been a mistake. Two of Portugal’s must-see attractions are within easy reach of the capital, so see them we did. Sintra is a small spot jam-packed with…
February 3 – March 2, 2016 (End of winter) We’re still not sure whether Lisbon’s temperate winter beckoned us, or Penang’s sweltering one pushed us away. But this charming city on the edge of the European continent captivated us instantly. Old buildings and narrow streets felt cozy even on damp days,…
January 5 – February 2, 2016 (Height of dry season) The island of Penang sits in the Strait of Malacca west of Peninsular Malaysia, surrounded on all sides by water (as islands so often are). Only 600 km from the Equator, the climate is best classified as “sauna.” Because of…
December 8, 2015 – January 5, 2016 (Height of “cool” season) Contemplating our first stop as digital nomads, we had no idea where to begin. But after peeking around other travel blogs and online resources, one name quickly rose to the top of the pile: Chiang Mai. This mid-sized city in Northern Thailand…
Most countries have fairly straightforward visa (or visa-free) arrangements↗, where an entry stamp serves as permission to stay in the country for X amount of time. A month, 90 days, whatever. The Schengen Area↗ is different. Encompassing 29 European nations, the area abolishes most passport controls between the member countries. This means that, once a visitor has permission to enter one Schengen country, they can freely travel to any other as long as their visa is valid. It’s a common travel area. But there is a catch. The terms of the visa are more complicated than most countries, and make it basically impossible to repeatedly renew a travel visa (for example by visa run↗).
A Schengen visa permits guests to stay for only 90 days in a 180 day period. This means that a three month stay must be followed by three months away before a visitor will be allowed to re-enter the area. There are other configurations that could work (one month on, one month off, rinse and repeat), but for anyone considering a long-term nomadic lifestyle, these limits provide a challenging barrier to extended stay in Europe.
Alternatives that would allow longer stays (student visa, work & residency permits, etc) would require picking a country and settling down, so as long as we want to keep moving, we have to keep Schengen-hacking (which is a dorky way of saying we have to leave sometimes).
We are Kevin and Danielle (and Kieran) Tarchenski, a family of introverts that travel the world. Why? To save money, have fun, maybe learn a thing or two. We love to work from the road and write about our adventures. Most of all, we enjoy living simply: peaceful walks, homecooked meals, quiet nights in – wherever we make our home this month.
We are Kevin and Danielle (and Kieran) Tarchenski, a family of introverts that travel the world. Why? To save money, have fun, maybe learn a thing or two. We love to work from the road and write about our adventures. Most of all, we enjoy living simply: peaceful walks, homecooked meals, quiet nights in – wherever we make our home this month.
