One Visa, 27 Countries: Your Schengen Adventure Starts Here

Sometimes a bit of magic in the European way: sipping hot chocolate in a Parisian café on one sunny morning; next day, cruising down the snowy trails of the Swiss Alps; and then through the weekend, tapas basking under the Spanish sun – barely noticing that the frame or borders are missing. 

For Indian travelers, however, much less wear and tear of a storm of passport and visa stamps is what makes this dream a reality-the Schengen visa.

There is a small sticker in your passport that allows you to enter not just 1 nation, but  for this in Europe you will be able to enter 27 nations. Whether it’s the art-infused streets of Florence, the medieval castles of Germany, or the postcard-perfect canals of Amsterdam, the Schengen visa is not only for sightseeing, but it’s your ticket into the smoothest travel experience you ever had to visit your dream country.

Why Everyone Wants a Schengen Visa

Few continents have captivated the imagination like Europe. Particularly for Indians, it is super difficult to resist the charm of Europe when Bollywood supports images of snowy Swiss peaks, Instagram explodes with sunsets in Santorini, historians obsess over museums in the ruins of Rome, and European travel seems to engulf all social media sites. But why is such a visa so desired to have? With a simple stamp of a visa in your passport, one can travel to 27 different countries, travel to hot spots like France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, Greece, etc. There is no need to complete a mountain of documents, no long line at border checks (for the most part), and we can freely travel through most of Europe.

A quick Schengen 101

The Schengen area consists of 27 European Countries that have enacted legislation in order to abolish border controls between them. Therefore, when you are inside Schengen – it is as easy to travel around and navigate in Schengen states as travelling from Delhi to Mumbai with no passport control in between.

Every Indian will require the schengen visa for travelling to all schengen areas for any purpose. The Schengen visa is a short stay visa (90 days in any 180-day period). It is important to remember this is not a long stay visa.

Understanding the Schengen Visa Process for Indians

Let’s take this one step at a time:

1. Determine your Main Destination

This is what I want to stress: You have to apply to the Embassy/Consulate of the country where you are going to spend most of your time. (So if you are travelling for 10 days in Italy and 5 in France, you apply for Italy.)

2. Fill out the Schengen Visa Application Form

You can get this either via the embassy/consulate website or a VFS centre.

3. Gather documents you require

• Valid Passport (with 6 month balance)
• Filled application form + signed declaration
• Recent passport-sized photos (from Schengen specification requirements)
• Flight bookings (for both departure and return)
• Accommodation booking or invitation letter from the host
• Travel insurance (with minimum cover of €30,000)
• Proof of Financial Means (bank statement, ITR, salary slips etc)

4. Book An Appointment

Most of the Schengen Area countries use VFS Global centres in India.

5. Proceed To Biometrics & Interview

You will need to provide fingerprints, provide your picture and provide an in person interview where applicable.

6. Wait for your Processing

In general processing can take at least 15 working days and it will take longer during busy holiday periods.

Categories of Schengen Visas

• Tourist Visa – if you are traveling for leisure.
• Business Visa – for meetings, conferences or events.
• Transit Visa – when you stop at a Schengen country to layover.

The majority of Indian travelers apply for Tourist Visa.

How much money does an Indian need for a Eurotrip?

This is what every traveler wants to know about budgeting. Europe has many countries and while there are many cheap ones (Portugal, Hungary, Greece) there are also many money-emptying ones (Switzerland, France, Scandinavia).

This is a budget by season for a trip of 2 weeks across 3-4 countries in the Schengen, it would look something like: 

Flights 

• (India – Europe return): INR 55K – 95K

Accommodation:

• Hostel INR 2,000 – 3,500 / night
• Mid range hotel INR 7,000 – 12,000 / night
• Luxury hotel INR 15,000+

Food:

• Street food & cafes INR 1,000 – 1,500 / meal
• Sit down restaurants INR 2,500 – 4,000 / meal
• Fine dining (Roi) INR 6,000+

Local transport:

• Eurail pass (25K – 40K INR – good deal; can hop countries on it)
• Local metro / tram: 200 – 500 INR per  ride
• Budget flights (Ryanair, EasyJet): 3000 – 8000 INR for each ticket, it will be afforable

Attraction entrance fees.

• Eiffel Tower entry ~2000 INR,
• Vatican museum ~ 1800
• Gondola ride in Venice ~7000 – 9000 INR (yes here is super expensive, but worth it.)

So in general a two week trip to Europe for a comfortable Indian traveller would be in the range of INR 3.5-6 Lakhs, depending on your style of travel.

Must See Sites for First time Visitors to the Schengen Zone 

1. Paris– Tons to see and do in Paris, the Eiffel Tower, Louvre, and croissants.
2. Rome– So many sites to see here, the Colosseum, it’s own city (the Vatican) and gelato on every corner.
3. Amsterdam– Lots of canals, you can cycle on for hours, and quirky cafes.
4. Barcelona– Lots of Gaudi monuments, and beaches on the Mediterranean Sea.
5. Lucerne– Swiss Alps, boat cruises on lake, and chocolate. 
6. Prague- A magical city with gothic towers, and cheap beer.

Helpful Travel Tips to Open up Travel to Schengen for Indians

• Book Early – Visa slots fill up quickly, particularly prior to summer (May – August). 
• Get Insurance – It is compulsory, but even more so to insure yourself when luggage is lost.
• Make Sure to Carry a Forex Card – Safer, and is being accepted globally nowadays.
• Use Public Transport – The train and tram system in Europe is incredibly reliable, and scenic.
• Dress Smartly – Particularly in France and Italy, these are two countries where dressing up and the overall concept of intelligent design are quite graceful.

Why Schengen is a Good Choice for Indian Travellers

• Ease of Travel – With one visa you can travel to a number of different countries.
• Food Variety – You can easily find Indian restaurants from  Berlin to Brussels. 
• Indian Community – There are millions of NRIs all over Europe.
• Bollywood Connection – From DDLJ in Switzerland, to Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara in Spain, Europe has always been India’s favourite location for film locations.

How OneVasco Will Help You Get There

Let’s be real, the Schengen visa application process is not an easy one. Deciding on which consulate, making and booking appointment timeslots, gathering the documentation and doing it all correctly takes time and energy.

That is where OneVasco comes in! OneVasco, with years of experience working with Nigerian citizens on visa applications, is able to provide to you:

• Assistance with proper documentation
• Assistance in applying properly
• Assistance in preparing to attend the interview
• Help and updates to each step

Rather than stressing about the application, you could be planning your café hopping in Paris or your mountain hiking in Austria.

Final thoughts: Your Euro story begins with a visa.

Europe is like one hundred worlds crushed into one continent. With every train journey, you enter into a new language building, new foods to eat, and a new culture. Schengen is such a magic that for Indian travelers, what seemed like a distant dream becomes something very actual. Whether it is wine toasts in Italy or chasing the northern lights in Finland, or dancing hard at Tomorrowland in Belgium-Germany has a story waiting for you. Now, less anytime-to-dream, Onevasco is there for you. 

So put on your shoes, check your bucket list, and, one country at a time, be amazed by Europe.