Seven Tips To Safely Travel The World •

7 Tips To Safely Travel The World

Heather Markel, Writer, Speaker, Photographer, Traveler, Business Strategist

Whether you’re traveling full time, part time, or for vacation, safety is likely to be high on your list of considerations. These days, safety can take on some new definitions. So, here are seven tips to travel safely.

1. Trust Your Intuition

The most powerful resource you have is your intuition. The key to using it, to stay safe, is to learn not to doubt it. When you have one of those moments where your innate sense tells you to leave, but you look around and everything seems fine, you have to learn to leave anyway. Figure out how your body informs you something is off; often it’s a queasy feeling in your gut, or your heart just feels off. When you get that feeling, stop what you’re doing and listen.

2. Consider A Travel Check-In Buddy

For my fellow solo travelers, having a designated person whom you let know when you move locations, and tell them you arrived, is a great step to take. This way, someone has an idea where you should be, and if they don’t hear from you, knows to be worried. Ideally, you exchange some contact info for loved ones, in case they need to be alerted. Hopefully it’ll never be necessary, but it’s a good step to follow.

Asian lady sits on sofa at home, texting and talking with buddy,

3. Add Yourself To Your Country’s Safe Travel List

If you’re American, we have the STEP program. Many other governments have something similar. The idea is, you provide your email address, and list of countries you’re going to (which can be updated any time) and you’ll receive emails from the in-country embassy any time there’s an event or issue you should know about. These range from embassy functions to demonstrations and dangers they become aware of.

4. Never Drink With Strangers

Especially if you’re a female, solo traveler, you don’t want to find yourself either drunk, unsure where you are or how to get home, or with people you recently met that, at best, won’t look after your safety, and at worst, may take advantage of you if you’re drunk or drugged, etc. I don’t drink a lot when traveling, unless I’m meeting with friends I know, there’s a bar in the lobby of the place I’m staying, or I bring a bottle to my room. Either way, I don’t drink much, to be sure that I have my wits about me to get back home.

5. Learn Your Surroundings

Wherever you go in the world, I advise asking two questions:

“Is it safe for me to walk back alone, at night?“

“Are there any areas I should avoid?“

If there is any hesitation on the answer to the first question, I take that as a “no” and get myself back before dark. For the second question, if there is a place to be avoided, heed the warning.

Finally, knowing your surroundings includes understanding whether you’ll stand out as wealthy if you wear fancy jewelry, carry expensive camera equipment or have the latest smartwatch on your wrist.

6. Take Advantage Of Safety Apps

There are many of them, and you need to make sure to find one that works in the region you’re in. Uber offers a feature where you can notify up to 5 people of every ride you take. If Uber is available where you’re traveling, this is a handy feature to use. Other apps like GeoSure give user feedback on how safe they felt around the world.

7. Consider Medical Care

During the pandemic, you might be worried about medical care in other places. So, doing your research, ahead of time, for expat hospitals that might be available where you’re going could be reassuring. This is a website that might offer a good starting point.

The more you travel, the more you’ll learn your own rules that keep you safe. And, you’ll also feel safer as you do it! Join my free training to get started travelling full time.