Landlocked Countries — The Complete List

Nestled between France and Spain, Andorra has no airport — visitors arrive by road through the Pyrenees mountains.

Home to Mozart, Beethoven spent much of his life here, and Vienna hosted the world's first purpose-built concert hall.

Belarus has more than 11,000 lakes and is sometimes called the 'Lungs of Europe' for its vast forests.

Czechia has the highest beer consumption per capita in the world — a title it has held for over 20 consecutive years.

Hungary is home to Lake Hévíz, the world's largest thermal lake, which stays warm enough to swim in year-round.

Kosovo declared independence in 2008 and is one of the world's newest and most recently recognised countries.

One of only two doubly landlocked countries on Earth — surrounded entirely by countries that are themselves landlocked.

Luxembourg has the highest GDP per capita in the European Union and one of the highest in the entire world.

Moldova is home to Mileștii Mici, which holds the world's largest wine collection — over 1.5 million bottles underground.

Mother Teresa was born in Skopje in 1910. The city's international airport is named in her honour.

San Marino claims to be the world's oldest surviving republic, founded in 301 AD — making it older than most nations by over a millennium.

Belgrade is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Europe, with settlements dating back over 7,000 years.

Slovakia has more than 180 castles and castle ruins — one of the highest concentrations of medieval fortresses in Europe.

Switzerland has maintained political neutrality in international conflicts since 1815 — longer than any other country in modern history.

The world's smallest country by both area and population. It sits entirely inside Rome and receives millions of visitors each year.

Home to the Okavango Delta — one of the world's largest inland river deltas and a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Its name literally translates as 'Land of Incorruptible People' in two local languages — Mooré and Dioula.

One of the world's most densely populated landlocked countries and home to Lake Tanganyika, the world's longest freshwater lake.

Contains one of Africa's last great rainforests and is home to western lowland gorillas and forest elephants.

Lake Chad — once one of Africa's largest lakes — has shrunk by over 90% since the 1960s due to climate change and irrigation.

The most populous landlocked country on Earth. Ethiopia is also the only African country never colonised by a European power.

One of the world's last absolute monarchies. Formerly known as Swaziland, it was renamed in 2018 to honour its pre-colonial identity.

Entirely surrounded by South Africa — a country completely enclosed within another country. Its lowest point is the highest of any country on Earth.

Lake Malawi contains more species of fish than any other lake on Earth — over 1,000 species, mostly cichlids found nowhere else.

Home to Timbuktu, which was one of the world's most important centres of Islamic scholarship and the trans-Saharan gold trade.

Over 80% of Niger's territory is covered by the Sahara Desert. It is also one of the world's largest uranium producers.

Rwanda has the world's highest percentage of women in national parliament — over 60%. It is also one of Africa's cleanest and most organised capitals.

The world's youngest country, having gained independence from Sudan in 2011 after a referendum where nearly 99% voted to separate.

Home to half of the world's remaining mountain gorillas. The source of the White Nile — the longer branch of the world's longest river — lies within Uganda.

Victoria Falls — one of the world's seven natural wonders and the largest waterfall by combined width and height — sits on Zambia's southern border.

Home to the ancient city of Great Zimbabwe, built between the 11th and 15th centuries from granite blocks without mortar — an engineering marvel.

One of the world's most mountainous countries. The Hindu Kush range covers over three-quarters of its territory.

One of the world's oldest countries. Armenia adopted Christianity as its state religion in 301 AD — the first nation to do so.

Baku sits 28 metres below sea level — making it the world's lowest-lying national capital city.

Bhutan measures national success by Gross National Happiness rather than GDP — the only country in the world to use this metric officially.

The world's largest landlocked country — bigger than all of Western Europe combined. It borders both Russia and China.

Home to one of the world's largest natural walnut forests in the Fergana Valley — a forest that has been harvested for over 2,000 years.

The most bombed country per capita in history. More bombs were dropped on Laos during the Vietnam War era than in all of World War II combined.

The least densely populated country on Earth. Mongolia has roughly two people per square kilometre — and more horses than people.

Home to eight of the world's ten highest mountains, including Mount Everest — the highest point on Earth at 8,849 metres.

Over 93% of Tajikistan's territory is covered by mountains. It contains the Fedchenko Glacier — the longest glacier outside the polar regions.

Home to the Darvaza gas crater — a burning natural gas pit nicknamed the 'Door to Hell' that has been on fire continuously since 1971.

The other doubly landlocked country — any goods leaving by sea must cross at least two international borders. It is also home to the ancient Silk Road cities of Samarkand and Bukhara.

Bolivia still maintains a navy despite having no coastline — based on Lake Titicaca. It celebrates a national 'Day of the Sea' each year, mourning the coastline lost to Chile in 1879.

One of only two landlocked countries in South America. Paraguay's flag is unique — it has different emblems on each side, making it the only national flag that differs front to back.