Passport is a symbol of freedom, whole new travel
possibilities, something to be proud of. While certain countries’ passports
give more freedom of movement cause of their level of visa exemptions, there is
another reason to appreciate a few of them even more for their looks.
Here are the top 10 best looking passports in the world to
be envy of.
10. USA:
United States passport is
simple cover is quite eye catching the blue background with the government seal
of an eagle holding 13 arrows in its left talon and an olive branch in its
right talon with simple inscriptions ‘PASSPORT’ on top and ‘United States of
America’ on the bottom. The beauty of this passport lies in its simple design
and its insignia. The 13 arrows representing the 13 original British colonies which
are the founding settlement states of North America and collectively they later
formed the United States of today now with 50 states stretching from coast to
coast. The olive branch itself has 13 leaves and 13 olives, it’s interesting
that for a country where number 13 is considered bad luck it has been widely used
in its symbolize. The olive has another meaning as well it represents the Olive
Branch Petition adopted in 1775 to avoid a war between the original 13 colonies.
9. India:
Indian passport is of a deep dark blue
cover with inscriptions in Hindi and English and Emblem of India at the center.
On the top is the inscription ‘पासपोर्ट’ followed by its translation ‘PASSPORT’ and on the
bottom ‘भारत गणराज्य’ (Bhārat Ganarājya) followed by its translation ‘REPUBLIC OF INDIA’. The
emblem is the most beautiful aspect of the Indian passport symbolizing power,
courage, pride, and confidence as four lions facing the four directions, which
is why you only see the three loins in the front. Below the four lions is the
Ashoka Chakra which is also at the center of the Indian flag along with a horse
on its left and a Bull on its right. The emblem is adapted Lion Capital of
Ashoka placed on top one of the Ashoka pillars erected by the great Emperor
Ashoka of the Maurya Dynasty. Also in the center right below the Emblem is the
national motto ‘सत्यमेव जयते’ (Satyamēva jayatē)
which can roughly be translated as ‘Truth Alone Triumphs’. The golden color of
the inscription and the emblem gives it a royal look.
8. Russia:
Russian Federation has two
passports one is the internal passport as identity proof and international
passports for travel, they both look almost the same with a few minor
differences. The red color passport of The Russian Federation has the coat of
arms of the Russian Federation at the center with the inscription ‘РОССИЙСКАЯ
ФЕДЕРАЦИЯ’ (Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) and ‘RUSSIAN FEDERATION’ on the top with ‘ПАСПОРТ’
(Pasport) and ‘PASSPORT’ at the bottom. The coat of arms depicts Gules, a crowned
double-headed Imperial Eagle grasping the imperial sceptre in the dexter claw,
and an imperial orb in the sinister claw. The double headed eagle has a long
history of being associated with many great empires throughout history, notably
with the Byzantine Empire and the Holy Roman Empire and is presently also used
by many other countries on their coat of arms like Coat of arms of Albania and
Coat of arms of Montenegro.
7. Palestine:
Palestinian passport is
one of the weakest passports to travel with as only 36 countries grant visa
free or visa on arrival access on this passport. Palestine itself is not fully
recognized as a country as of October 2014 there are 135 countries that
international recognize it. The dark green color passport with gold inscription
in both Arabic and English has a mystic touch to it. On the top is the
inscription is Arabic ‘السلطة
الفلسطينية’ (As-Sulṭah Al-Filasṭīniyyah) with its
translation ‘THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY’ below it and on the bottom is the
inscription ‘جواز سفر’ (Jawaz Safar) with its translation
‘PASSPORT’ followed by the English text ‘TRAVEL DOCUMENT’. On the center is the
symbol of an eagle with a shield at the center, the slant shape of this eagle
gives it a Middle Eastern appeal. This eagle is the Eagle of Saladin but unlike
Russian coat of arms it’s not double-headed, here this symbol represents Arab
nationalism.
6. Venezuela:
Venezuelan passport of maroon color
has the inscriptions in gold at top ‘República Bolivariana de Venezuela’ (Bolivarian
Republic of Venezuela) and at bottom ‘PASAPORTE’ and ‘PASSPORT’. At the center
is the coat of arms of Venezuela which has a shield divided into three parts in
the tri-color of the national flag, the bottom part takes up the whole bottom
of the shield in an arch shape with a horse running free that represents
freedom. The upper half is vertically divided into two parts on the left side
has a stack of wheat representing the union of the states and the wealth of the
nation, while the right side has three lances with two national tri-color flags
and a sword and a saber which represent power and triumph. On the top of the
shield are two horns pouring out wealth and at the sides there is an olive
branch on the left and a palm branch that tie the ribbon at the bottom of the
shield. On the ribbon is inscribed at top left ‘19 de Abril de 1810’ (April 19,
1810), center left ‘Independencia’ (Independence), top right ‘20 de Febrero de
1859’ (February 20, 1859), center right ‘Federación’ (Federation) and at the
bottom ‘República Bolivariana de Venezuela’ (Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela).
5. Switzerland:
The Swiss passport is
of the red color with inscriptions in five languages, four of the official
languages of Switzerland which are German, French, Italian, Romansh along with
an English inscription. These five inscription are on the top right side
arranged vertically from top to bottom 'Schweizer Pass' (German), 'Passeport
suisse' (French), 'Passaporto svizzero' (Italian), 'Passaport svizzer'
(Romansh) and 'Swiss passport' (English) followed by the Swiss cross. But the
most distinguish feature of the Swiss passport and attributes most to its
beauty is the pattern of raised Swiss crosses done through relief printing on
the front cover. This is an extremely
simple yet beautiful design the raised crosses are arranged in circular
succession in multiple arcs. This is probably one of the most simple design
passports that look so good, as this whole pattern with minimalistic text on
one corner presents itself with elegance. Since Swiss coat of arts is just a
simple Swiss Cross they didn’t have a lot to present unlike the other
countries’ passport in this list but still they presented a case of taking the
simple things you have and present it beautifully.
4. Norway:
While the Old Norwegian passports have
nothing remarkable the new redesigned passports are quite extraordinary. The
old passports were just simple and boring without much to present but the new
passports created by Neue Design Studio these are still in the process of replacing
the old design passports. The new passport is of a lighter maroon color with
the Norwegian coat of arms of the top left side which consists of a shield that
has a crown on top, at the center of the shield is a standing golden lion
bearing a golden crown and holding an axe. At the left bottom side are the
inscriptions 'NORGE' 'NOREG' 'NORWAY' 'PASS' 'PASSPORT' in that sequence. But
the most attractive feature is not on passport but inside the passport, the
pages of the depicts a daytime Lakeside Mountain view on an double page spread
which when placed under UV light transform into a nighttime view of the same
with the purple and blue northern lights glowing in the sky and a few security
text that can’t be read otherwise.
3. New Zealand:
The passport of this former Dutch colony is of black color
and silver inscriptions that alone set it apart from other passports and give
it a distinctive and elegant look. The silver ferns dominate the design as they
are embossed on the right edge of the cover, they vary in size as they grow
bigger from top to the bottom. These silver ferns on the edges of both front
and back cover give its most beautifying feature. On the front there are the
inscriptions 'NEW ZEALAND PASSPORT' and 'URUWHENUA AOTEAROA' which is the Maori
translation, below them is the coat of arms of New Zealand. Other great thing
about this passport is on the back cover, aside from the silver ferns on the
left side there is an embossed impression of the country’s map and the inscription
‘NZL’. Everything combined it makes a beautifully crafted passport that
combines most of the nationalistic symbolism from the black background and
silver ferns to the outline of the country itself.
2. Maldives:
The small island nation of Maldives has a stunningly beautiful
passport everything about it fit very well together to make an excellent work
of art. The deep blue color of the cover reminds of the ocean water with the
schools of raised fishes printed in the middle. On the top right side is the
inscription in Maldivian Dhivehi written in Thaana script ‘ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ’ followed by the English translation of it ‘REPUBLIC
OF MALDIVES’ followed by the Maldivian National Emblem which consists of a palm
tree at the center with two national flags on both sides and an Islamic
crescent above a ribbon with the motto inscribed on it in Arabic ‘الدولة المحلديبية’ (Ad-Dawlat
Al-Mahaldheebiyya) in the middle. Below that is the PASSPORT inscribed in Maldivian
Dhivehi written in Thaana script and English. All this gives it an Islamic feel
as well as a tropical appeal and it represents the country beautifully.
1. Portugal:
In the first place is the
Portuguese passport as this deep red colored and golden print is a royal
looking passport and has the best balanced and overly appealing look. On the
top left is the coat of arms of Portugal which consists of a shield on an armillary
sphere between two olive branches bounded together at base by a ribbon. On the
shield are seven castles and five blue escutcheons azure. Right alongside the
coat of arms on the right is the inscriptions ‘UNIÃO EUROPEIA’ (European Union)
below that is ‘PORTUGAL’ and ‘PASSAPORTE’ and the most distinguishing feature
is a semi circle of interwoven branches on the bottom right edge. It gives the
passport a unique appeal the golden print of this semi circle of a branch that
is growing upwards is quite eye catching. Another thing about this passport is
the invisible print which is visible under UV light.
