Travel Brave: The Ultimate Guide to Safe Travel in 2016
Travel is an enriching and awe-inspiring part of life, and it’s important to continue travelling bravely.
When you travel preparedly, you can move forward confident that you have all of your bases covered. It means that in the event something did happen, you know what to do. This sense of security means that you can move forward confidently — because the chances of anything happening are so small, but you don’t want travel anxiety to stand in the way of incredible experiences.
In 2016, the possibility of being the victim of a terrorist attack is minute, but given the precarious situation across the globe, it’s crucial to be prepared. Something that is particularly true when you’re travelling in a foreign country, far from home, and unsure of your surroundings.
Of course, no one imagines their dream vacation becomes front-and-centre of a terrorist attack, natural disaster, or perilous circumstance — and that’s because the chances of these things happening is so small. Feeling scared? Don’t be — not only are the chances of ill-fate befalling you so small that they’re borderline inconceivable, we’ve put together the ultimate guide to travelling safely in 2016, so you can travel brave all year round.
Do Your Homework
Sure, holidays are supposed to be fun, but that doesn’t mean a little early research might be necessary.
If you’re booking through a trip planning service, then they will empower you with most of the information you’ll need to know. That doesn’t mean it isn’t wise to research certain things beforehand as well — read up on the country you’re visiting, read up on the city, check out some super fun government websites. Here’s where you should be looking:
- Check government agencies: The US State Department, for example, releases warnings and advisories. If they release a warning, don’t ignore it. While travel alerts are published to keep travellers in-the-loop, unless you’re a fearless, experienced, and intrepid traveller, warnings should be heeded.
- Check out unbiased information sources: It’s hard to find news sources without an agenda, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find the information you need. Try and find information from local, or travel, bloggers, internet forums, guidebooks, and media from non-partisan sources.
- Get to know the area: Whether you’re staying in one place or travel from country-to-country, take the time to understand (or at least acknowledge) the area you’re staying in. In case of an emergency, it’s helpful to know where you are or where to go. This doesn’t mean memorizing every detail of Google Maps — just print a map, scan the area, and highlight the relevant places.
- Get to know the language: Learning how to read Sartre in its original text probably isn’t necessary for your two week jaunt to Bordeaux, but having an understanding of the most basic phrases will get you far. Make sure to dust off your language 101 book from the shelf, and try to commit some time to learning the essential phrases and vocab.
Plan, Plan, and Plan Some More
You know the old adage: Fail to plan, plan to… Be completely stranded in the event of an emergency. You need to know what you’ll do in an emergency, so make sure you have plans A, B, C, and D at the ready.
If you’re travelling with others, do you know how to contact them if you get separated? Do you have an emergency meeting place ready? If the ATM swallows your card, do you have cash? Do you know the emergency exits in your hotel?
Small things like carrying cash, having a hard copy of important information on you, printing out maps, and picking out an emergency meeting spot, will make all the difference in the world, and it stops a minor inconvenience turning into a bigger panic.
If you want to be hyper-prepared, you could even register with your embassy, and make sure you have the numbers and locations of the embassies and consulates closest to you. Realistically, you’ll never have to use them, but it’s anxiety-reducing to know that they’re there.
When you adequately plan and prepare, you become ready for whatever life may throw at you. Chances are, most of your planning will be laid-waste, but that’s the beauty of a well-conceived plan: You’ll probably never need it, but you’ll feel safer knowing it’s there.
Stay Connected
Pay attention to the aforementioned state department warnings. Christie Alderman, a vice president at Chubb Personal Risk Services, notes:
“The State Department issues travel warnings and travel alerts that outline concerns within a country … The warnings and alerts outline specific concerns and provide helpful guidance on ways travelers can protect themselves.”
Even if you know what the situation is beforehand, staying up-to-date with any changes is incredibly easy. If you’re a US citizen, you can enrol in the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program — you can receive direct updates on the current safety conditions of the country you’re in.
The free service was mainly created for citizens travelling to countries or regions with significant amount of unrest, but given how easy it is to enrol and how beneficial it can be, it’s prudent to sign-up irrespective of the potential of danger in the country you’re travelling to.
As well as staying connected to the relevant organizations, stay connected to loved ones. Like John Rendeiro, vice president of global security and intelligence at International SOS, says:
“It’s important to stay in touch with friends and family to ensure they your know whereabouts and how to reach you in the event of an emergency.”
It costs very little to buy an international prepaid sim card to use in your everyday phone, and it means that you’re able to call or text in case of an emergency, and it will give you internet access that allows you to utilize google translate, google maps, important websites, and social media.
Take the Road Less Travelled
Well, this is pretty much our ethos all the time, but if you’re looking to avoid potential danger, vacationing to a less tourist-heavy, more off-the-beaten-path spot is a sure-fire way to do it. Obviously, avoiding tourist hot-spots comes with its own set of issues, but in terms of vacation quality AND safety, it’s the winning thing to do.
Travel expert, Michael Brein, says: “My simplest advice is to avoid big crowds at busy times of days as well as major, public soft targets.” If you’re travelling with a company that knows how to avoid crowds, while still taking you to all the essential landmarks, then that’s ideal. (We’re talking about us, by the way…)
Taking the road less travelled requires a certain amount of extra-preparation or working with a company who knows the area well. The benefits of tourist destinations are, of course, that they’re easier to navigate because they’re more prepared for foreign visitors.
Be Careful
Sure, it’s not exactly new advice, but it’s still important. Ultimately, your chances of becoming embroiled in a terrorist attack are minute, but being careful abroad is something that will keep you safer from things more likely to happen to you — protect your belongings, be vigilant of your surroundings, respect local customs and culture.
In a simple contest of risk vs. reward, the possibilities safe travel affords you will win every time, so get out there, and see the world — it’s worth it.
