10. Belarus
Eastern Europe’s outcast, The Republic of Belarus, is known as “the last Soviet republic” and seems to have made the firm decision to avoid integration with the rest of the continent at all costs. Visas to visit Belarus are needed by almost everybody except for tourists coming from CIS states, Cuba, Macedonia, Montenegro, Qatar, Serbia, Turkey and Venezuela. A daunting list of requirements to acquire a visa, from invitation letters to medical insurance and an obnoxious visa processing fee plus the additional inconvenience to register at the Belarusian Ministry of Migration if the visitor’s stay exceeds three days, added to an underdeveloped service industry and widespread homophobia undermine the country’s efforts to attract foreign visitors. The visa can cost up to $420 for U.S. citizens, more expensive than a roundtrip ticket to any other eastern european destination. Belarus offers a beautiful landscape of cornflower fields, thick forests and charming villages and its isolation lies at the heart of its appeal.
