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'Schengen visas' (a.k.a. the uniform schengen visa) are granted in the form of a sticker affixed by a Member State onto a passport, travel document or other valid document which authorises its holder to cross the borders of the Schengen Area - whether their voyage through Europe is just a journey, or an adventure.

The Schengen Area is a group of 26 European countries that have abolished passport and immigration controls at their common borders and have a uniform visa policy. It functions almost as a single country for international travel purposes, which, while still allowing member countries to add special provisions of their own with regard to residency and local visa types, ensures that some visa types are universal, and that an individual with a residency in one Schengen country does not need a visa to visit or transit another Schengen country - in this sense it comes very close to being a common European Union immigration policy (The United Kingdom and Ireland are part of their own separate agreement called 'the common travel area' and hence Schengen rules do not apply there, even though they are both part of the European Union. It is also with noting that the Schengen Area also includes countries that are not members of the EU.).