We don’t know whether the idea of a world without boundaries will ever come true but as long as we’re separated by borders, passports are going to stay important. So, while issuing passports to its citizens, a few governments across the world decided to get creative. And it’s no exaggeration to say that their new passports are an impressive piece of art, apart from being the most important travel document.
While the designs are a part of the security measures to prevent the passport from being forged or faked, they indeed make it look beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. Here are 10 of the coolest passports that will definitely make you feel envious if you don’t hold one.
1. Finland
The Finnish government’s idea to make the passport secure is uniquely interesting. Their passport pretty much doubles up as a flip-book, which shows a walking moose if you quickly turn the pages.
2. Norway
The Norwegian passport is a piece of excellent artwork depicting the country’s natural landscapes in pastel shades. The pages, when exposed to ultraviolet light, show the magnificent view of the northern lights in the night sky. The northern lights are the bright dancing lights caused by collisions between electrically charged particles from the sun that enter the earth’s atmosphere. And Norway is one of the best places to see this phenomena.
3. Australia
The travel document of the Australian government features the world’s first colour floating image. When you tilt the document, you can see 10 holographic-styled kangaroos, appearing to float or sink. The passport pages also depict the natural beauty of the country and its major attractions.
4. Canada
The Canadian passport is also one of the coolest travel documents, which represent each of the country’s important features including the Niagara falls, the Bluenose, and the Parliament building. The artwork, when seen under black light, gets illuminated, making everything look like a festival.
5. China
Shifting from the standard passport design, the Chinese government re-worked on its travel document, and featured the popular Chinese icons such as the Great Wall Of China, which brightens up when seen under ultraviolet rays. Sheer beauty!
6. Indonesia
The Indonesian passport is also a creative genius with every unique feature and tourist attraction of the country being displayed on it. Some of the designs featured in it include Komodo-the largest lizard on earth, Rafflesia-the largest flower on earth, and Badak Jawa- a single-horned rhino.
7. Philippines
Upgrading its security features and adding a little beauty to their travel document, the Philippines government has rolled out a new design which carries beautiful drawings of popular national landmarks, including the wings of Philippine Cockatoo in national colors, metro Manila skyline, the Mayon volcano of Bicol, and the Ifugao rice terraces of the Cordillera region.
8. Austria
The Austrian passport features the coat of arms, a unique heraldic design consisting of shield, supporters, crest, and motto, which is unique to each of its province.
9. New Zealand
The passport of New Zealand is based on the concept of navigation and evolution of the country from a place of discovery to a destination. The artwork on the pages inside depict navigation tools used by explorers of New Zealand throughout the ages.
10. United Kingdom
Britain keeps updating the security features of its passport and launches a new design every five years. The beautiful designs on the inner pages represent the national landmarks such as Houses of Parliament, the London Eye, Titanic Belfast, and Shakespeare’s Globe theatre.