Where is the danger of dying the greatest?
on a surfing vacation in Portugal,
on a city trip to Berlin
on a flight to Australia or
simply at home?
Are people afraid to travel because of Corona, terror threats or crime? Whether this fear is misplaced and where you should avoid which place most likely, this article will answer and of course, where most people die.
If you tell your loved ones that you are taking part in a Mediterranean cruise, flying to an all-inclusive club in Turkey or going on a city trip to Paris, you are sure to get countless tips about the best things to do there, in addition to envious looks and congratulations. Rarely, if ever, does anyone associate these trips with risk.
However, if you tell them that your next trip is a motorcycle trip to the Balkans, a backpacking trip to India, or a hiking trip to South America, you'll be lucky to get only a few puzzled looks. In most cases, you have to endure dozens of reasons and opinions why you should refrain from the trip. Whether one is not afraid of being attacked, robbed or even killed? And surely then everyone knows someone who knows someone who knows someone who has had food poisoning or a terrible experience with these "savages".
So travel is fraught with risk? Maybe it would be safer to stay at home - in your own four walls - after all?
There is indeed a lot going on in the world and daily we are confronted with horror news from all corners of this planet. So there is a lot of noise about the dangers of or dangers associated with travel.
Only, unfortunately, people are generally bad at regulating the volume. How scared you are or aren't is a feeling, not a statistic. As fans of horror movies will attest, risk and fear are two different things. In the battle between gut instinct and reason, gut instinct usually wins.
Crime and terrorism are dangers that immediately come to everyone's mind and are also the most loudly reported. But there is a surprising silence about other risks. A natural death abroad from a heart attack or a car accident barely manages to make any noise.
In addition, we classify some areas on this earth as safer than others although statistically everything speaks against it. For example, 4 cities in the USA are among the 50 cities with the highest murder rate per 100,000 inhabitants, but not a single one from Asia or Europe. Despite this fact, people are much more likely to be warned against traveling to Asia than to the US.
If you choose to stay home, however, keep in mind that this comes with its own risks. Sports, the daily commute to work, and especially work itself are statistically highly dangerous activities. One of the most dangerous places in the world, by the way, is your own home. It is so dangerous that the Federal Statistical Office in Germany lists the types of deaths in several categories. In 2015, for example, 1,271 people were killed by falls on or from stairs. So many, in fact, that this type of death is listed as a separate category in the Federal Statistical Office's statistics - with a breakdown by age group and gender, by the way. Here it could be said - alluding to an American comedy - "There are a million ways to die at HOME".
On my travels, I have found that in no part of the world are you immune from being warned by other people about the risks of travel. Most of them mean well, but most of the time I am happy to dispense with these outpourings. If in Austria concerns tend to be expressed about our neighbors to the east and southeast, in America it's more of a south-to-north issue. If you only go far enough in each direction, you're sure to eventually fall from the end of the world into nothingness (for some, the world is still flat) and die anyway.
One is always reassured that it is safe in the respective counterpart, but one should beware of the respective other area, as it then becomes "really" dangerous there.
But one thing almost all "warners" have in common. They were mostly never really in one of these countries or areas before they warn so urgently and of which they know so much bad to report, or have deeply thought about these areas. And if they have actually been there, these often result from the way many tourists travel. Bad experiences with "locals", (bad food, cheating on bills, pushiness) I have experienced so far only in areas where there are many tourists and not only in one country. So one can say that one thing in common is: Not different countries are the problem, but too many tourists on a pile.
People who know the respective countries almost always tell a different story. If one is warned then before an area, one should take this serious. These are usually very limited areas in a country (a certain neighborhood in a city, a certain district) but never a country or rarely an entire region. Recently in Mexico, for example, a local woman on the Baja peninsula warned us urgently about the dangers that lurk everywhere. Especially at night, it would be extremely dangerous in remote areas. Free-roaming cows and horses are not to be trifled with, and - in addition to accidents due to poor road conditions - there are also very frequent accidents involving animals. Sounds almost like Austria's mountain pastures and the German "Badeschlapfentouristen" who come every year to find the purple Milka cow.
So is travel safe and are there no dangerous areas?
Of course, every trip involves risks and the risks vary massively from area to area. As a traveler, no matter where you go, you should do your homework and adapt your behavior accordingly to the region and know what is or is not appropriate there.
Is it in the far north of America the sheer endless expanse and sparse population that can leave you without a way to get help in the event of an accident. And help, if you can call for it, won't arrive until hours or days later. One should avoid nighttime trips to unfamiliar neighborhoods in unfamiliar major cities in some parts of the world, and it is better not to present one's valuables in public. Sometimes it's just cultural differences that, if you don't know, can be perceived as a threat. One thing usually always helps: treat other people with respect and an honest smile - and even a major lapse is usually forgiven.
But one thing all areas have in common according to my experience so far: 99% of the people, especially in "poorer" countries, are friendly and helpful and mean you no harm. You should beware of the remaining one percent everywhere.
So what can you do as a traveler to make sensible choices?
Can you "learn" to travel safely and make the right decisions? Yes, definitely! But just don't overdo everything right at the beginning. One way is to try the method of small steps. On your next trip, just look for restaurants off the beaten tourist path (tip: the best restaurants are the ones where there are lots of locals) and familiarize yourself with other conditions. In case of communication difficulties, a smile and, if necessary, Google will always help. You just have to try!
Another option is to bring your gut feeling to "reason" through accurate information - admittedly: something easier said than done! But researching the culture, customs and traditions, or reading other travelblogs often put your mind at ease!
There is, however, one thing you must always fear. It is fear itself. Even if, after careful consideration, you've concluded that the risks of traveling are low, but you're still so afraid, consider staying home. Not because of the risk to your health, but because of the certainty that you will be too nervous to actually enjoy your travels and jump over your shadow.
However, if traveling allows you to openly engage with other countries, cultures, and most importantly, people, travel is actually highly dangerous. - It presents a massive danger to prejudice and simple "black and white" thinking!
Where did you last feel really unsafe?
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