VISA requirements european countries

[#1]

A question for the travelbugs.. As an south-african passport holder planning a first time trip: Arriving at Amsterdam traveling through Belgium, France and departing from Zurich Switzerland. Does the "Schengen Visa" hold universally for all the countries or do I have to obtain a seperate visa for every country? tnx

[asylum]

the schengen visa is good for all those countries, heres a link to the french emabassy, scroll down to where it says general schengen visa requirements ( its printed in red) and it will open a list of all the countries that it covers. LINK: http://www.ambafrance-rsa.org/Visa-applications.html

[#3]

I was gonna add that you must ensure your passport is the real thing. Many of these places do not accept temp passports (emergency style documents, unless you can provide a real emergency proof - death of family etc) so be careful. But the link says that already. Good luck and enjoy the trip.

[#4]

Thanks guys, one more thing I need to clear: applying for a visa you need proof of a hotel booking and some say proof of suffiecient funds for the period staying... I suppose I have to contact the embassy...

[breakout]

Just another input - applying for a Schengen visa involves different levels of pain depending on which country you make the application through. Usually you apply through the country where you'll spend most time...but if that is Germany...then watch out. Painful..we had to resubmit the biometric photos (taken by a professional) 3 times because something was "wrong"...but used the "bad" photos first time at the Dutch Embassy the next time. Rather "forget" where you'll spend more time and go to the most convenient EU embassy and one that is efficient and not difficult - in your case...as Michael Caine says in Austin Powers "The Dutch".