As of 2010 the United Nations acknowledges that 195 independent countries exist in the world today. If you throw in Taiwan (which I think deserves its own status separate from China) there are 196. Wikipedia states as of 2010 there are a total of 223 countries in the world (with a less political definition of country). It appears the number of countries and territories that exist in the world today are up for debate. People take their own personal interpretation, which is what I have done here. I know this is a hot topic, one which gets people arguing (from the fact that Hong Kong may not be considered independent from China or that you have to factor in the number of days or time spent in a country to make it legitimate).
My personal list reflects my travel philosophy that I have only ever visited a county if I have gotten to know the culture in an intimate way. For the most part this means I’ve been in a destination for over 3 days. Destinations which I have technically “visited” such as Samoa (where I had a 6 hour layover) are not included in this list as I did not have a chance to experience their culture, other than the washroom at their international airport…
Eat Well. Travel Hard. Live Better.
1. Canada
2. United States of America
3. Costa Rica
4. Trinidad and Tobago
5. The Bahamas
6. The US Virgin Islands
7. England
8. France
9. Spain
10. Portugal
11. Norway
12. Sweden
13. Denmark
14. Germany
15. Holland
16. Belgium
17. Luxembourg
18. Austria
19. Slovakia
20. Hungary
21. Italy
22. Switzerland
23. Liechtenstein
24. Scotland
25. South Korea
26. North Korea
27. Japan
28. Philippines
29. Malaysia
30. Singapore
31. Cambodia
32. Vietnam
33. Thailand
34. Laos
35. Hong Kong
36. Maccau
37. Indonesia
38. Australia
39. New Zealand
40. Fiji
41. Chile
42. Argentina
43. Uruguay
44. Bolivia
45. Peru
46. Ecuador
47. Mexico
48. Belize
49. Guatemala
50. Panama
51. The Galapagos Islands
52. Iceland
53. Finland
54. Russia
55. Latvia
56. Estonia
57. South Africa
58. Ireland
59. TBD…
Two countries on your impressive list stick out like a sore thumb to me.
1) England – I’m English, so what did you think of my country?
2) North Korea – Firstly, how the hell did you get in (and out)? Secondly, what’s it like? I want to learn as much about the DPRK because it is just so secretive.
I’m also English my family moved to Canada two generations ago and I’ve been to England many times. North Korea is crazy. You should watch the National Geographic Special “Inside North Korea” with Lisa Ling its so interesting. Before 2008 (when a South Korean woman got shot on her trip to the North) they had over a million tourists travel to North Korea (through the south korean militarized zone). The tours were three days and involved a lot of mountain hikes.
You should watch the Departures episode (you can watch it on Citytv online) where they go to DPRK you will learn lots about it.