british passports - jumbo or standard? (1 Viewer)

[a-m-e-e-e]

I'm in the process of applying for a british passport and I need to decide if I want a jumbo 48 pg one for $360 or a regular one with 32 pgs for $290.
I'm working as an au pair in Germany for 9 months this year and will hopefully travel a lot..... so anyone know how quickly passport pages get used up in Europe?

 

[Tulipa]

I'm fairly sure most European countries don't stamp passports anymore... it's more electronic these days.

I'd recommend just getting a standard one. There's room for about four stamps on each page and with 32 pages I'm pretty sure you'll be fine.

 

[Lizakith]

The standard should do you fine. When we travelled around Europe, most places stap you either coming in or leaving, I think only England actually stamped us both ways.

And yeah, more than one stamp can go to a page.

 

[iamsickofyear12]

Last time I went overseas I don't think I got any stamps at all.

 

[cem]

A standard passport will be fine.

I got mine in 2001 and in 2002 spent 15 weeks in Europe visiting, in order, the following countries (where multiple entries to a country they are listed separately to show my point) - Britain, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Britain, France, Spain, France, Monaco, Italy, Austria, Leichenstein (sp), Switzerland, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium and back to Britain.

My passport was stamped on entering Britain, entering and leaving Poland, Belarus and Russia and re-entering Britian after the first trip and on leaving Britain to come home.

My standard passport still has heaps of pages left and since that trip I have been to China, Japan, back to Britain, back to Italy and Samoa.

Australia doesn't even stamp your passport every time you leave anymore - you have to ask (I do as I can claim some of my trips on tax).

 

[NRuus]

Yeah standard is definately fine. I just spent a year in Europe and the only times I got my passport stamped was leaving Australia, entering and leaving Russia, Czech Republic and Estonia and in Vienna aiport.. I haven't quite worked that one out.

But I was in Finland and travelled Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Monaco, Italy, Austria, back into Germany, to Czech Republic, back into Germany again then back through Denmark and Sweden.

 

[cem]

The reason for this is that in Europe there is something called the Shengen Passport whereby entry to any country that is a signatory to that agreement gives you entry to the other countries without having to rego through passport checks. The Shengen Passport includes most, if not all, countries in the EU. I think that Switzerland is either about to join this system or has already done so.

 

[Hippy La-Laa]

I travelled on my British passport through Sweden, Norway, Iceland, France, Finland, Germany and Spain and the only place that stamped my passport was when I stopped over in Dubai. British passports are pretty well a ticket to any EU country and it's unlikely you'll get stamped.

 

[1harkina]

if travelling within europe on a british passport they wouldnt even stamp it.
the only time you would get your passport stamped is when u leave or enter australia. I have been to the uk 7 times in the past 5 yrs and travelled thru europe on a british passport and i only have 16 stamps
the big ones are for say business travellers and pilots who go to all these random places also for thier visas which can take up a whole page and they would need one for most countries they stay over in

 

[Jezzi]

My mum is from Scotland so I have an Eu passport and they don't get stamped b countries in the EU or part of the Schengen Agreement. Even Australian passports don't get stamped in the countries that are part of the Schengen Agreement (The Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Demark, Finland, Greece, France, Iceland, Norway, Luxembourg, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Sweden) Therefore you would only need a standard passport. Switzerland is not part of it but when we stopped at the border they waived us on and we didn't have to show them.

 

[1harkina]

i was born in scotland too

 

[ZabZu]

The standard should do you fine. When we travelled around Europe, most places stap you either coming in or leaving, I think only England actually stamped us both ways.

I just got back from Europe and im on an Australian passport. I went to the Netherlands and UK. Both only stamped me once.

However, i when i got a connecting flight in San Francisco in da USA, i got stamped even though i didnt leave the airport. I didnt get stamped in Thailand though.

 

[chicky_pie]

uh i got stamped when i went to europe last yr

 

[xeuyrawp]

The reason for this is that in Europe there is something called the Shengen Passport whereby entry to any country that is a signatory to that agreement gives you entry to the other countries without having to rego through passport checks. The Shengen Passport includes most, if not all, countries in the EU. I think that Switzerland is either about to join this system or has already done so.

Yeah, I think the Swiss are about to join it. Not that they really care about it anymore, as long as you have your stuff ready, they'll pretty much always let you pass without looking at it.

The exception for having small passports is if you're going anywhere in the Arab world or north Africa; everything takes up at least a full page.

 

[Riet]

You don't need to get it stamped going between EU countries so just get the normal one.