International borders you've crossed by land

[AM9]

On a 1963 school holiday:
Belgium to Germany by train (via Aachen & Liége)
Germany to Austria by train (via Salzburg)
Austria to Germany by train (via Passau)
Germany to Belgium by train (via Liége & Aachen)
Other border crossings:
Spain to Gibraltar by foot
Spain (Ceuta) to Morocco by Coach
Italy to Switzerland (Lugano) by service bus C10

 

[Gloster]

Most of mine were by train, but I have done France-Luxembourg and Luxembourg-Belgium by car. I have done France-Germany by local bus plenty of times as I used to go shopping in Freiburg once a month, and also Germany-Denmark on a local bus from Niebuell to Tønder. I did Finland-Sweden on foot, and also Denmark-Germany and France-Switzerland, although these were through the border posts at Flensburg and Basel, which I don’t think are on the actual border.

 

[Urobach]

Nothing particularly exciting for me.

By Bus
France - Belgium
Belgium - Germany

By Train
France - Belgium
France - Germany
Belgium - Netherlands
Netherlands - Germany
Germany - Luxembourg
Luxembourg - France
Switzerland - Italy

Have crossed England to Wales and Scotland numerous times by road and rail

 

[Acfb]

I think I've done hardly any apart from Germany-Austria numerous times at both Freilassing and Pfronten/Füssen.

In August 2002 due to rain/floods I had to get off the train at Freilassing and get on a bus the last bit to Salzburg.

 

[maniacmartin]

I've been a bit liberal with the definitions here. Some I've done in multiple directions:

Car:
France - Belgium
Belgium - Netherlands
Belgium - Luxembourg
Luxembourg - Germany
Germany - Netherlands
France - Switzerland

Motorcycle:
France - Belgium

Foot:
Hong Kong - China
Ireland - USA (if clearing immigration in Dublin counts)

Rail:
UK - France
UK - Belgium
UK - Netherlands
Belgium - Netherlands

Ferry:
UK - Netherlands
UK - France

 

[Acfb]

Ferry:
UK - Netherlands
UK - France

I wasn't sure whether to include the Dover-Calais ferry or not which I've only made one return trip on in 1996 as part of school exchange to France from Cambridge as I thought this thread was just supposed to be about land crossings.

 

[nw1]

Canada and USA quite a few times in both directions. Even been refused entry at USA land border and sent back to canada

What was that all about?

Mind you, in my experience I found the border guards on the Canada-US border on or near the I-5 (encountered on a Greyhound bus journey in 2004) very suspicious - and that is as a UK citizen, I would imagine they would be even worse with citizens of non-western countries.

They did let me in, but only after asking me exactly what my final destination was two weeks later (the hotel I was staying in that night would not suffice) and were not at all friendly.

I guess it was particularly bad then because it was during the Bush era. By contrast I found the US border guards at Toronto airport in 2011 (the setup was that you went over the 'border' before joining your flight) much more friendly and respectful.

But to answer the original question, I have crossed several continental borders on footpaths over the mountains, including Austria-Germany, Austria-Italy, France-Spain and France-Italy, just. No borders at all, just unspoilt mountain scenery.

Others, not mentioned yet:

UK-France (Eurostar, arguably that counts as 'land' because no marine transport is required)
France-Germany (road, in the 80s so still a hard border though it seemed to be just a case of show your passport, so easier than hard borders 2020s-style)
Germany-Switzerland (road and rail)
France-Belgium (Eurostar)
Belgium-Netherlands (rail)
Netherlands-Germany (rail)
Belgium-Germany (rail)
Germany-Austria (rail, bus)
Austria-Switzerland (rail)

 

[Magdalia]

All of my list are part of train journeys that started or ended in the UK using Eurostar to get to/from France:

France-Belgium
France-Germany
France-Spain
Belgium-Germany
Belgium-Luxembourg

My France-Spain border crossings were at Port Bou, and I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned this yet. Going to Spain I arrived on an SNCF train from Cerbere and crossed the border on foot to join a RENFE train on the other side of the station. Coming back from Spain I did the TALGO gauge change contraption on the Barcelona-Paris sleeper.

The only time I have crossed a land border in a road vehicle was going from Brussels to Lille in a rail replacement coach.

I have also visited Berlin, long after the wall came down, and crossed the old West/East Germany border several times. I'm a bit disappointed that this discussion hasn't generated lots of tales of passing through the "iron curtain" before the wall came down.

 

[52290]

All of my list are part of train journeys that started or ended in the UK using Eurostar to get to/from France:

France-Belgium
France-Germany
France-Spain
Belgium-Germany
Belgium-Luxembourg

My France-Spain border crossings were at Port Bou, and I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned this yet. Going to Spain I arrived on an SNCF train from Cerbere and crossed the border on foot to join a RENFE train on the other side of the station. Coming back from Spain I did the TALGO gauge change contraption on the Barcelona-Paris sleeper.

The only time I have crossed a land border in a road vehicle was going from Brussels to Lille in a rail replacement coach.

I have also visited Berlin, long after the wall came down, and crossed the old West/East Germany border several times. I'm a bit disappointed that this discussion hasn't generated lots of tales of passing through the "iron curtain" before the wall came down.

I crossed the Iron Curtain in 1973 on a journey from Cologne to Magdeburg. The train arrived at Wolfsburg, the border town and VW headquarters, behind a DB diesel hydraulic, which after close scrutiny of documents and notes made of all passport details by West German border officials, hauled us to Oebisfelde the DDR border town. Here there was even greater scrutiny of documents but we eventually were allowed to continue on our way behind a DR class 03 Pacific. I wasn't able to get a photo of it due to all the hostile forces but I did get one on the return journey after my tour of the DDR.
At the DDR border on the way back they did their best to ensure no one was trying to sneak over to the west by looking under seats and in toilets etc and sending fierce looking dogs under the length of the train.

I crossed the Iron Curtain in 1973 on a journey from Cologne to Magdeburg. The train arrived at Wolfsburg, the border town and VW headquarters, behind a DB diesel hydraulic, which after close scrutiny of documents and notes made of all passport details by West German border officials, hauled us to Oebisfelde the DDR border town. Here there was even greater scrutiny of documents but we eventually were allowed to continue on our way behind a DR class 03 Pacific. I wasn't able to get a photo of it due to all the hostile forces but I did get one on the return journey after my tour of the DDR.
At the DDR border on the way back they did their best to ensure no one was trying to sneak over to the west by looking under seats and in toilets etc and sending fierce looking dogs under the length of the train.

I think my memory was playing tricks there. Oebisfelde was the West German town and Helmstedt was the East German border town - DOH!

 

[Jamiescott1]

What was that all about?

Mind you, in my experience I found the border guards on the Canada-US border on or near the I-5 (encountered on a Greyhound bus journey in 2004) very suspicious - and that is as a UK citizen, I would imagine they would be even worse with citizens of non-western countries.

They did let me in, but only after asking me exactly what my final destination was two weeks later (the hotel I was staying in that night would not suffice) and were not at all friendly.

I am white British (not that it should make a difference), had held a us work permit 7 years prior and had been to the US quite a few times with no issues.

They refused my entry to the states as my Canadian work visa was close to expiring. The reason they gave was that I may not get back into Canada as my work permit was about to expire (!)

As I've been refused entry i can't travel with an esta. I need a visa to travel to the USA. I now have a 10 year multi entry holiday visa.sometimes I get pulled for secondary immigration,sometimes I dont (its the luck of the draw)

When applying for the first one, the person at the US embassy in London couldn't believe the reason I'd been refused entry

 

[nw1]

I am white British (not that it should make a difference), had held a us work permit 7 years prior and had been to the US quite a few times with no issues.

They refused my entry to the states as my Canadian work visa was close to expiring. The reason they gave was that I may not get back into Canada as my work permit was about to expire (!)

As I've been refused entry i can't travel with an esta. I need a visa to travel to the USA. I now have a 10 year multi entry holiday visa.sometimes I get pulled for secondary immigration,sometimes I dont (its the luck of the draw)

When applying for the first one, the person at the US embassy in London couldn't believe the reason I'd been refused entry

Good grief, what utterly ridiculous behaviour.

Whether you could get back into Canada or not was neither one thing or another, you would have had plenty of other countries to move onto after the USA!

I wonder whether this is policy or whether some border guards just have a severe attitude problem. I suspect the latter.

 

[cb a1]

The more interesting one was Guyana to Brazil. Needed an 'exit stamp' on my passport. Asked around and got directed to this random house in the village. Knocked on the door which was answered by a man wearing only a pair of shorts. Turns out that he was the 'immigration official' and proceeded to open a box on his kitchen table in which he had the official exit stamp (and presumably entry stamp) and I was able to head over to Brazil. There's now a bridge between the two countries with official immigration offices.

 

[D6130]

By rail:-

UK-France (Eurostar)
UK-Belgium (Eurostar)
Northern Ireland-Republic of Ireland (Newry/Dundalk)
France-Spain (Cerbere/Port Bou, La Tour de Carol/Puigcerda and Hendaye/Irun)
Spain-Portugal (Valencia de Alcantara/Marvao-Beira and Tui/Valenca do Minho)
Portugal-Spain (Barca d'Alva/Fuente de San Esteban-Boadilla)
France-Belgium (Tourcoing/Mouscron and Baisieux/Froyennes)
Belgium-France (Erquelinnes/Jeumont)
Belgium-Netherlands (Essen/Roosendaal and Vise/Maastricht)
Belgium-Luxembourg (Autelbas/Kleinbettingen and Gouvy/Bellain)
Belgium-Germany (Welkenraedt/Aachen)
Luxembourg-France (Bettembourg/Thionville)
Luxembourg-Germany (Mertet/Wasserbillig)
France-Germany(Forbach/Saarbrucken)
Germany-France (Kehl/Strasbourg)
Netherlands-Germany (Venlo/Kaldenkirchen, Zevenaar/Emmerich and Oldenzaal/Bad Bentheim)
Germany-Denmark (Flensburg/Padborg and Puttgarden-Roedby by train ferry)
Denmark-Sweden (Helsingoer/Helsingborg via train ferry)
Sweden-Norway (Ed/Kornsjoe)
Norway-Sweden (Narvik/Rijksgrensen)
France-Switzerland (St Louis/Bale, Frasne/Vallorbe and Bellegarde/Geneve)
France-Italy (Modane/Bardonecchia, Vievola/Limone and Menton/Ventimiglia)
Italy-Switzerland (Iselle di Trasquera/Brig, Como/Chiasso and Tirano/Campocologno)
Germany-Switzerland (Basel/Weil and Schaffhausen/Singen)
Switzerland-Leichtenstein-Austria (Buchs/Tisis)
Germany-Austria (Mittenwald/Scharnitz and Freilassing/Salzburg)
Austria-Italy (Brenner/o and Tarvisio/Arnoldstein)
Austria-Yugoslavia/Slovenia (Rosenbach/Jesenice)
Yugoslavia-Greece (Gevgelija/Idomeni)
Austria-Czech Republic (Hohenau/Breclav)
Germany-Czech Republic (Fuerth-im-Wald/Ceske Kubice)
Austria-Hungary (Nickelsdorf/Hegyeshalom)
Hungar-Croatia (Gyekenyes/Koprivnica)
Croatia-Slovenia (Savski Morof/Dobova)
Slovenia-Italy (Sezana/Villa Opicina)

By bus:-

Italy-France (Ventimiglia/Nice Ville - RRB due to French rail strike)
Germany-Belgium (Eilendorf/Welkenraedt -RRB due to security alert at Aachen Hbf)

On foot:-

France-Belgium (Tourcoing-Mouscron)
Belgium-France (Watou-Boeschepe)
Slovenia-Italy (Nova Gorica-Gorizia)

 

[Strathclyder]

UK (Northern Ireland) to (Republic of) Ireland by car in the summer of 2006, having crossed the Irish Sea on the P&O service between Troon & Larne. That's about as much as I can contribute to this thread lol

 

[Jamiescott1]

I didn't include Borders where there's no visible controls such as in the schengen.
Also
Gibraltar- Spain
Croatia- bosnia

 

[Ianigsy]

Good grief, what utterly ridiculous behaviour.

Whether you could get back into Canada or not was neither one thing or another, you would have had plenty of other countries to move onto after the USA!

I wonder whether this is policy or whether some border guards just have a severe attitude problem. I suspect the latter.

Would be interesting if the Canadians had also rejected you as an overstaying risk re-entering the country that late in your visa term!

In my case, nothing too exciting:

Denmark-West Germany
France-Belgium
Denmark-Sweden
Sweden-Norway
France-Italy
Italy-Switzerland
Switzerland-France
Germany-Austria
Austria-Czech Republic-Poland

I’ve also crossed on foot from Ontario to Quebec, for what it’s worth!

 

[Jamiescott1]

I’ve also crossed on foot from Ontario to Quebec, for what it’s worth!

I crossed that border at gatineau on foot a fortnight ago. One side of the bridge you can only buy beer in a liquor store, the other side in supermarkets, deps or petrol stations

"Bon cop, bad cop" is a good movie to watch about the border between quebec and ontario

 

[ac6000cw]

My 'non-flying' border crossings. Most both ways, some via multiple routes.

Rail:
Northern Ireland - Republic of Ireland
UK - France (both Eurostar and Le Shuttle)
France - Italy
France - Belgium
France - Monaco
Belgium - Luxembourg
Luxembourg - Germany
Germany - Belgium
Germany - Switzerland
Switzerland - Italy
Switzerland - Austria
Switzerland - France
Austria - Germany
USA (Alaska) - Canada (Yukon) (on the White Pass and Yukon RR, but only just over the border and didn't get off the train)

Road:
France - Switzerland
Italy - Switzerland
Croatia - Montenegro
Croatia - Bosnia-Herzegovina
Between the two parts of Cyprus, on foot.

Sea:
UK - France (multiple routes)
UK - Belgium (Oostende)
UK - Republic of Ireland
Canada (Vancouver, BC) - USA (Alaska)

 

[32475]

Just to be different:
Football- between France and Italy on the border line in the Alps
Badminton- on the border between Norway and Sweden

 

[MP33]

Crossing from West Germany to France by road just before the UK joined the EEC. We were waved through, however vehicles with German number plates were being given the third degree by French customs.

 

[A S Leib]

Greece-claimed Cyprus

Greek-speaking Cyprus, perhaps.

For me:
France / Belgium, Belgium / Luxembourg, Luxembourg / France, Germany / Belgium (train)
Luxembourg / France (foot)
France / Belgium (road vehicle)

 

[nw1]

Would be interesting if the Canadians had also rejected you as an overstaying risk re-entering the country that late in your visa term!

That would be bizarre, bit like the railways rejecting your season ticket because it's going to expire in a few days and, post-expiry, you "might" fare-dodge with it!

 

[zero]

They refused my entry to the states as my Canadian work visa was close to expiring. The reason they gave was that I may not get back into Canada as my work permit was about to expire (!)

Good grief, what utterly ridiculous behaviour.

Whether you could get back into Canada or not was neither one thing or another, you would have had plenty of other countries to move onto after the USA!

This frequently happens at UK ports of entry, and is why people such as students should not go on a short trip to the European mainland after they have finished their studies.

Anecdotally, it's often US citizens who get refused entry back to the UK.

 

[northwichcat]

Good grief, what utterly ridiculous behaviour.

Whether you could get back into Canada or not was neither one thing or another, you would have had plenty of other countries to move onto after the USA!

I wonder whether this is policy or whether some border guards just have a severe attitude problem. I suspect the latter.

Whether you could get back might be an issue if you planned a day trip to the USA and had left your stuff at a hotel in Canada.

Greece-claimed Cyprus

Greek-speaking Cyprus, perhaps.

I think there's officially the Republic of Cyprus (recognised as a country by all UN member states) and a defacto Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, that only Turkey recognises as a country. Based on Simon Reeve's BBC series it seems, while the people who live there generally have Turkish routes, a lot of them see the conservative Turkish government as outdated and don't want them implementing their policies there.

 

[Gloster]

Whether you could get back might be an issue if you planned a day trip to the USA and had left your stuff at a hotel in Canada.

Happened to a friend in pre-Schengen days. He was staying on the French Riviera and took a day trip to Italy. I think they just waved him through when going to Italy, but on the way back les flics were checking passports and his was…in the hotel. He was allowed to wait while a member of the family traveled to the border and handed it over, though technically he had committed an offence by not having adequate ID on him.

 

[Sun Chariot]

Greek-speaking Cyprus, perhaps.

Cyprus's Byzantine and Ottoman periods, reflect the various nations "claiming" it.
Greece and Turkey have, over the centuries, each claimed Cyprus is "their nation". Both have mounted invasions of it. The last hostile activity - during 1974, by Turkey plus Greek military junta - ended with the divided island we see today.

Both sides are pretty and both are accessible to the tourist. However, the tensions and the border are real.
A few miles away from Salamis (amazing Roman remains), I decided to explore the border of barbed-wire, stretching up a small hill, to a border guard cabin. It took no more than three minutes, before a white pickup, full of armed soldiers, pulled up and grilled me.
I won't try that again. But I got my photo!

Just to be different:
Football- between France and Italy on the border line in the Alps
Badminton- on the border between Norway and Sweden

This is genius! I now feel compelled to try starting a game of badminton/volleyball across the barbed wire border between Turkish & Greek sides of Cyprus....

 

[richw]

As a 12 year old we went by coach to Rhineland with school via eurotunnel.
We stopped at a services near Brussels is my only memory of the journey, so assuming:

France- Belgium
Belgium - Germany

England - Wales (to push my luck on whether it’s a true border)

 

[Calthrop]

I have also visited Berlin, long after the wall came down, and crossed the old West/East Germany border several times. I'm a bit disappointed that this discussion hasn't generated lots of tales of passing through the "iron curtain" before the wall came down.

I can submit my first visit to Poland, in 1980: involving crossing by rail -- a west-to-east long-distance working -- borders Netherlands / West Germany; West / East Germany; with Berlin "antics" (see onward); and East Germany / Poland. I posted about the Berlin doings on "International Transport" here, some years ago. This experience struck me as having to the fore, especially re Berlin, more in the sphere of comedy of a weird kind; than of the sinister. Though keen from an early age, on railways beyond Britain, my rail knowledge has always been patchy. On the run-up to my 1980 first venture into those particular parts, I -- unaware of the fullness of Berlin's rail intricacies -- had expected that: from a combination of Cold War wariness and mistrust, and wishing to avoid life's potential complications; trains (such as that on which I was to travel) running from Western Europe through East Germany to destinations beyond that polity's eastern border, would avoid West Berlin via the city's "circle" line. And that they'd serve East Berlin's Ostbahnhof, reversing as necessary.

Not so -- as I was to discover, the protocol of the whole business was more complicated. Our train's crossing of East Germany and passing through Berlin, was essentially at night-time. We crossed into West Berlin, called at Friedrichstrasse station, then carried on into East Germany once more, and onward further east. The elaborate personal-documents-related performance, already carried out at the W/E German border (Oebisfelde IIRC): was done afresh on entering West Berlin, and again on leaving -- repeated trips along the corridor by green-uniformed bods (in my then experience, very polite), meticulously checking and stamping.

With my vagueness as described, about the -- widest-context -- "political", and practical factors in the situation: I felt rather amazed at the thought of this happening as a standard and regular thing, many times day after day and night after night -- it had for me, something of a flavour of "perversely doing things the hard way". Thoughts were aroused in me, in my naivete, of the Cold War being perhaps less real than the public were led to believe -- maybe an element of conspiracy therein between the supposed adversaries, to carry on "theatre" of supposed security / bureaucratic paraphernalia: to create employment in assorted spheres, and to gratify people's liking for generally playing silly buggers. Of course, the scenario was real enough for many people to be willing to risk / lose their lives in trying to escape residence in the Soviet bloc; but this first venture of mine involving East Germany and the ramifications of Berlin, did impress me with the "bonkers" side of the whole thing.

 

[Jan Mayen]

Memorable ones for me are:
Albania to Yugoslavia (as was). Albanian coach to border, walk across, separate coach on the Yugoslav side.
Morocco to the Spanish Enclave of Melilla. Taxi on the Moroccan side, walk across.
By train into Serbia. Memorable because I was on a sleeper, it was late at night, foggy, and the couple in the compartment next to me were having a seemingly non-stop full on row. I was going to ask to be moved once border formalities were completed, but they were escorted off the train for some reason and they disappeared into the fog, escorted by armed guards

 

[Jamesrob637]

I once walked from Freilassing to and over the Austrian border. In similar vein, I walked from a village near Tournai (Belgium) over the French border, though probably only got 100 metres before turning back.