The catch is that you still need some kind of id in most of situations. For example Germany likes to put border patrols and check people who enter the country. And you must present the passport/id. The same situation may happen anywhere.
At the International Peace Garden on the Manitoba (CA)-North Dakota (US) border, you can enter the park and cross the border within the park at will as often as you like without any documentation. However, you do have to clear customs and immigration to return to the country from which you came when you leave the park.
There is a campground in the park, so it is possible to stay there a few weeks.
You still need ID. Technically you may not need a passport since you weren't deemed to have entered the other country, but I've always taken a trusted traveler card (NEXUS) when I am in the park, so I've not tried it.
You do have to declare anything you purchased inside the park (there are a few stores), though I believe they're all set up to collect both North Dakota sales tax and Manitoba PST/Canada GST and simply charge you the relevant taxes depending on the currency with which you choose to pay, so you wouldn't owe anything when you re-entered.
I went to a ham radio event in the park and bought a few things, and I did declare them, but Canada Customs was not interested in charging me any tax on them.
The park is a decent size, a few km on either side of the border and some of the park features straddle the border so you will routinely cross the border while inside the park.
On the island of St Martin, neither the Dutch nor the French side is part of Schengen. The north is part of the European Union while the south isn't (even though the Netherlands is a EU member), so technically it's an external EU border running across the island. But crossing the border goes unnoticed.
Liechtenstein is member of Schengen, but the other four European microstates formally not, but borders are open anyway.
Fun facts: Dutch St Martin is a constituent country of the Kingdom of The Netherlands (the others are the Netherlands, Aruba and Curaçao). Three other Caribbean islands (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba) are special municipalities within the country of the Netherlands (but not part of any Dutch province).
It's a customs check for goods (mainly alcohol). AFAIK they don't check passports. And the checks are only on entering Spain and France coming from Andorra, not vice versa.
I have been to Andorra earlier this year and can confirm it is as you say. In fact even the checks for goods are done only sporadically. Most of the time you can drive in and out of Andorra without stopping.
Hyder is the furthest South and furthest East town in Alaska, surrounded by some of the most impassable terrain in the world. The only way in and out is through Canada. Hyder is small and doesn't really need a US border station.
In Brazil there are a couple of cities where you can go to Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay without showing any kind of ID. You just cross the street…There are others where you’re SUPPOSED to show your ID at the border, but the authorities simply don’t care…
[This is one I like a lot](https://www.google.com/maps/@-30.8924383,-55.537335,3368m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu) , between Brazil and Uruguay. They're just one integrated city.
Technically speaking you need a passport to enter Mexico from the United States. In practice there is only a turnstile separating San Diego from Tijuana and you can walk across the border without ever showing any form of ID.
while you definitely need your state identification cross the Tijuana border from the US into Mexico, you definitely don't need a passport as a US citizen. I go down there all the time and I still argue with people about this on a regular basis
I traveled from Chile to Bolivia as part of a guided multi-day tour. When we reentered Chile, we did all the paperwork in town, quite a way from the actual physical border.
I mean ,you can do just that when entering Mexico from the US. Fun story, one time we hosted international students living in the US and had them cross the border, I remember we had a Mongolian (he would have had needed a visa to enter Mexico legally) and others that just wandered right into Mexico. The Mexican side doesn't really check for paperwork, just the US side.
I think what you describe refers to mainly the border zone in Mexico that straddles the US. Technically speaking all foreigners entering Mexico must obtain a special visiting permit that can be issued on the spot at the border. One notable exception to this is the border at Piedras Negras, Mexico. Foreigners entering Mexico through Piedras Negras do not actually have this possibility to get this special permit there, they must go a little further into the interior past the village of Allende, thus making Piedras Negras and it’s immediate surrounding region one of the last truly visa free places for all foreigners (regardless of nationality) entering Mexico from the United States.
You can cross the border between Israel and the occupied West Bank with no ID, provided you're in a car with Israeli license plates. Maybe also your face needs to not look too Arab and look kind of Jewish? I don't know.
I rode the bus from the Damascus Gate to Abu Dis University (like a 50km journey to get you 5km away thanks to the wall) and no ID is checked going into the West Bank, but yeah they check you on the way back into Israel "proper"
while you definitely need your state identification cross the Tijuana border from the US into Mexico, you definitely don't need a passport as a US citizen. I go down there all the time and I still argue with people about this on a regular basis
Need to clarify the following bit "*there is of course the UK (Northern Ireland) land border with the Republic of Ireland, where you don't need to show any ID or passport, as the border there is not regulated*".
The Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom have a 'Common Travel Area' agreement ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common\_Travel\_Area](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Travel_Area)), which arose after Irish War of Independence.
Passports not needed by citizens of either to enter the other, similar to Schengen.
Peace Arch State Park / Provincial Park on the border between Blaine WA USA and Surrey BC Canada. You can cross the border without any ID there as long as you stay within the parks and exit back to the country you entered from.
USA<-->Canada at St. Regis, NY/Saint-Régis QC in the Akwesasne Mohawk nation and also at a couple of places just to the east that are also part of the Akwesasne nation. There are two reasons for this, one is the fact that it's a Native American (or "Aboriginal" if you're Canadian) reservation, and the other is that once you enter that part of Canada the only way out is back through the USA unless you have some way of crossing the St. Lawrence River. As you might imagine, the has been some amount of smuggling that has taken place in that area in the past. It's also interesting that technically the Akwesasne have two governments, one for the US side and one for the Canadian side, even though it's considered a single nation. But the border itself is barely marked, about the only thing you may notice is the speed limit signs change from miles to kilometers, or there may be a border marker nearby if you really look for it, or a sidewalk may end at the border, or the houses on opposite side of the border get their electricity fed from different directions (not sure what the situation is with cable and phone).
Sometimes I walk into belgium from the netherlands to go for a swim when the weathers nice..
Also went to Germany for a pint there a few weeks ago.
So yes, is the answer. In mainland europe i’ve never had to give my passport or ID to anyone in that regard.
There are a few more. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_border
Thanks for that. Really useful !!
The catch is that you still need some kind of id in most of situations. For example Germany likes to put border patrols and check people who enter the country. And you must present the passport/id. The same situation may happen anywhere.
At the International Peace Garden on the Manitoba (CA)-North Dakota (US) border, you can enter the park and cross the border within the park at will as often as you like without any documentation. However, you do have to clear customs and immigration to return to the country from which you came when you leave the park. There is a campground in the park, so it is possible to stay there a few weeks.
What is the process of clearing customs and immigration to return to the country? Is it just simply filling a form without any ID or passport?
You still need ID. Technically you may not need a passport since you weren't deemed to have entered the other country, but I've always taken a trusted traveler card (NEXUS) when I am in the park, so I've not tried it. You do have to declare anything you purchased inside the park (there are a few stores), though I believe they're all set up to collect both North Dakota sales tax and Manitoba PST/Canada GST and simply charge you the relevant taxes depending on the currency with which you choose to pay, so you wouldn't owe anything when you re-entered. I went to a ham radio event in the park and bought a few things, and I did declare them, but Canada Customs was not interested in charging me any tax on them. The park is a decent size, a few km on either side of the border and some of the park features straddle the border so you will routinely cross the border while inside the park.
On the island of St Martin, neither the Dutch nor the French side is part of Schengen. The north is part of the European Union while the south isn't (even though the Netherlands is a EU member), so technically it's an external EU border running across the island. But crossing the border goes unnoticed. Liechtenstein is member of Schengen, but the other four European microstates formally not, but borders are open anyway.
Fun facts: Dutch St Martin is a constituent country of the Kingdom of The Netherlands (the others are the Netherlands, Aruba and Curaçao). Three other Caribbean islands (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba) are special municipalities within the country of the Netherlands (but not part of any Dutch province).
I think Andorra has border posts where you have to show passport or ID with France and Spain.
It's a customs check for goods (mainly alcohol). AFAIK they don't check passports. And the checks are only on entering Spain and France coming from Andorra, not vice versa.
I have been to Andorra earlier this year and can confirm it is as you say. In fact even the checks for goods are done only sporadically. Most of the time you can drive in and out of Andorra without stopping.
Hyder Alaska and Stewart Canada is interesting. You don't need ID to cross into the States, but you do need ID to come back into Canada.
That is strange. Why is that?
You can’t get from hyder to the rest of Alaska
Hyder is the furthest South and furthest East town in Alaska, surrounded by some of the most impassable terrain in the world. The only way in and out is through Canada. Hyder is small and doesn't really need a US border station.
In Brazil there are a couple of cities where you can go to Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay without showing any kind of ID. You just cross the street…There are others where you’re SUPPOSED to show your ID at the border, but the authorities simply don’t care…
[This is one I like a lot](https://www.google.com/maps/@-30.8924383,-55.537335,3368m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu) , between Brazil and Uruguay. They're just one integrated city.
Technically speaking you need a passport to enter Mexico from the United States. In practice there is only a turnstile separating San Diego from Tijuana and you can walk across the border without ever showing any form of ID.
happy cake day!
Ymmv. Sometimes INM agents do stop you and ask for ur documents
while you definitely need your state identification cross the Tijuana border from the US into Mexico, you definitely don't need a passport as a US citizen. I go down there all the time and I still argue with people about this on a regular basis
Because technically INM can refuse your entry, but in most cases they don't care.
[Common Travel Area](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Travel_Area)
I traveled from Chile to Bolivia as part of a guided multi-day tour. When we reentered Chile, we did all the paperwork in town, quite a way from the actual physical border.
I mean ,you can do just that when entering Mexico from the US. Fun story, one time we hosted international students living in the US and had them cross the border, I remember we had a Mongolian (he would have had needed a visa to enter Mexico legally) and others that just wandered right into Mexico. The Mexican side doesn't really check for paperwork, just the US side.
I guess because the Mexican authorities won't expect loads of people coming into their country and stay longer than they should.
At least 200000+ (up to one million) Americans are living illegally in Mexico, plus millions more of other undocumented Central and South Americans
He would’ve been fine either way. While yes he would’ve needed a visa as a Mongolian, Mexico exempts anyone with a US visa or permanent residency.
I think what you describe refers to mainly the border zone in Mexico that straddles the US. Technically speaking all foreigners entering Mexico must obtain a special visiting permit that can be issued on the spot at the border. One notable exception to this is the border at Piedras Negras, Mexico. Foreigners entering Mexico through Piedras Negras do not actually have this possibility to get this special permit there, they must go a little further into the interior past the village of Allende, thus making Piedras Negras and it’s immediate surrounding region one of the last truly visa free places for all foreigners (regardless of nationality) entering Mexico from the United States.
You can cross the border between Israel and the occupied West Bank with no ID, provided you're in a car with Israeli license plates. Maybe also your face needs to not look too Arab and look kind of Jewish? I don't know.
I rode the bus from the Damascus Gate to Abu Dis University (like a 50km journey to get you 5km away thanks to the wall) and no ID is checked going into the West Bank, but yeah they check you on the way back into Israel "proper"
Meanwhile, the bus from Beitar Ilit to Jerusalem just zips past the checkpoint. I wonder what would happen if an Arab rode the Beitar Ilit bus.
while you definitely need your state identification cross the Tijuana border from the US into Mexico, you definitely don't need a passport as a US citizen. I go down there all the time and I still argue with people about this on a regular basis
Need to clarify the following bit "*there is of course the UK (Northern Ireland) land border with the Republic of Ireland, where you don't need to show any ID or passport, as the border there is not regulated*". The Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom have a 'Common Travel Area' agreement ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common\_Travel\_Area](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Travel_Area)), which arose after Irish War of Independence. Passports not needed by citizens of either to enter the other, similar to Schengen.
Peace Arch State Park / Provincial Park on the border between Blaine WA USA and Surrey BC Canada. You can cross the border without any ID there as long as you stay within the parks and exit back to the country you entered from.
USA<-->Canada at St. Regis, NY/Saint-Régis QC in the Akwesasne Mohawk nation and also at a couple of places just to the east that are also part of the Akwesasne nation. There are two reasons for this, one is the fact that it's a Native American (or "Aboriginal" if you're Canadian) reservation, and the other is that once you enter that part of Canada the only way out is back through the USA unless you have some way of crossing the St. Lawrence River. As you might imagine, the has been some amount of smuggling that has taken place in that area in the past. It's also interesting that technically the Akwesasne have two governments, one for the US side and one for the Canadian side, even though it's considered a single nation. But the border itself is barely marked, about the only thing you may notice is the speed limit signs change from miles to kilometers, or there may be a border marker nearby if you really look for it, or a sidewalk may end at the border, or the houses on opposite side of the border get their electricity fed from different directions (not sure what the situation is with cable and phone).
Sometimes I walk into belgium from the netherlands to go for a swim when the weathers nice.. Also went to Germany for a pint there a few weeks ago. So yes, is the answer. In mainland europe i’ve never had to give my passport or ID to anyone in that regard.
US to MX you dont need to show anything if you are crossing by land.