So here’s something that may seem like a stupid question:
Should I heed the travel advisories posted on my country’s website??
I mean, obviously if the warning level says ‘DO NOT GO’, I won’t go, but what about the in-between threat levels?
For example, here are the warnings regarding Indonesia from:
Canada
http://www.voyage.gc.ca/countries_pays/report_rapport-eng.asp?id=130000
America
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_2052.html
Australia
http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/zw-cgi/view/Advice/Indonesia
Are some country’s warnings better than others? How does one ‘increase their vigilance’?
I’m more concerned with the grey areas here. I’m looking at India and Indonesia, but will these countries always be on the ‘maybe don’t go’ list?
as a fellow canuck, if a frog farts in botswana the canadian gov’t will post a travel advisory…“maybe exposed to gas in some parts”.fuck them, they don’t know shit.l…
I wouldn’t worry too much about Canada’s level two warning, which is basically just exercise caution. For levels 3 and 4, it is a good idea to check other countries’ advisories, and guide books. For example, Malaysia is also rated a 2, but it seems OK.
I’ve spent months in a place that was rated level 4 - avoid all travel - and in fact had a futher warning that any foreigners there should get out as soon as possible. (This warning was from Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and the USA; every guide book I checked said the area was too dangerous to go into, and that the authors had not done so for that edition.) But nothing happened. The potential was there, certainly, I have to admit - I had never seen bouncers armed with semi-automatic weapons at a bar before.
Bad things can happen anywhere, and even very dangerous places can be OK.
My dad is Indonesian Chinese from Jakarta. He said he wouldn’t go if he wasn’t visiting family or old friends who know the place around. Mind you, he was referring to Java (Jakarta, Bandung etc) so on other islands like Bali, YMMV.
Having lived for a decade and a half in a place that suffered through all kinds of stupid travel advisories, and some of the most inane restrictions on those in the foreign service that you can imagine…
I can truthfully say that travel advisories should be taken with a barge-load of salt. Many of the places that the US State Department calls dangerous, are actually safer than rural God-Bless-America.
However, I do suspect that Afghanistan and Somalia really are as bad as they say.
Thanks for the input, all. I think I’m just gonna go ahead and disregard the warnings.
I’ll just have to maintain my vigilance.