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Travel Safety

ROUND THE WORLD PLANNER

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3-IN-1 SAFETY DEVICE

This gadget is a smoke detector, a distress alarm and a powerful LED torch

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Your safety worries

Will I be safe?

It's pretty easy for those of us who've 'been there, done that' to say 'of course you'll be safe - no problem'. But if you've yet to 'go there and do it' yourself, this is little consolation. Many see travel as dangerous; stories of accidents and scary moments are rife. As this section explains, however, this is hardly a fair picture.

Before we press on though, a quick thought. Would we be sitting here persuading all you guys to set off on gap years if we thought you'd never be seen again?

First, a short quiz:

Question 1:
Rumours, stories and anything that starts off with the sentence 'I've heard that ... '. What do they have in common?

Question 2:
Suppose a gap year organisation had a survival rate record equivalent to that of Ghengis Khan's enemies on a particularly bad day...

a) ...would they still be operating?
b) ...would you go with them?

Question 3:
War-torn countries can be dangerous places.

a) Would you go there anyway?
b) Would gap year organisations send staff or volunteers there?

Question 4:
If a mugger with a knife trapped you in a corner and demanded cash, would you:

a) Remember page six of 'How to Kill like an Assassin', disarm the guy, brush down your clothes and head off for a beer?
b) Hand over your cash and do a runner?

Question 5.
About this quiz you're reading...

a) Have you got the message by now that people make up scare stories, exaggerate tales they've heard and take out of context snippets of information they hear from people they hardly know?

b) Is it fair to say that if you don't walk into dodgy situations and ask enough questions of people who know the score, you won't end up in the middle of Chechnya staring down the barrel of an AK47, sweating a little as 'Vlad the Rusky' tries to relieve you of your dollars?

Being safe overseas

Travelling allows you to see amazing places, meet great people and, at the risk of sounding corny, find out about yourself. You'll learn how to look after yourself, too.

Your awareness and ability to judge situations will improve quickly so that you learn to avoid potentially dangerous or risky situations. There's really nothing to it - just use your common sense. Britain has a fairly high crime rate and you cope here, don't you?

Common sense
It all comes down to common sense. Sure, there are specific things we could tell you about how to deal with a snake bite in Bahrain or a mugger in Manhattan but each situation is different. So you'll have to tackle each problem in your own way using your common sense. You'll learn this on the road, through experiences and from other people you meet.

Remember, the great backpacking trail and the thousands of travellers around you will help to look after you. Don't be fooled, though. Not every fellow backpacker is a reliable type and it pays to make friends with and learn from locals, too. If you are with a supported placement, life is easier. In effect you're paying someone to look after you.

Travelling alone
The prospect of travelling alone can be the most daunting of all. Despite all the assurances and examples you will be given, you'll still worry about being lonely, looking after yourself and, of course, being safe. Solo female travel is often frowned upon yet, in our experience, it can actually be a very safe and rewarding form of travel. Looked after by others and respected as an individual for who they are and what they're doing, solo female travellers generally return home brimming with confidence and lugging an address book crammed full of names.

Yes, there are issues surrounding solo travel, most of which are covered in The Virgin Student Travellers' Handbook. However, it all boils down to common sense. Thousands of us have done it. You ain't the only one...

Independent travel
You'll rarely be alone when travelling. Over a million people travel the world each year. Sometimes it will seem like you've met them all! Right now, independent travel may seem scary. This is, quite naturally, a fear of the unknown. Do you remember how you felt when learning to swim? After your first week, you felt like you'd been doing it for years.

Safety in numbers
Unless you're going way off the beaten track, you'll become a part - even unwittingly - of the travellers' community. People will look out for you and you'll learn from others. Popular haunts such as Bangkok, Sydney and Kathmandu are filled with Westerners, and are good places to find your feet.

Staying in Touch
If you are worried about safety issues then staying in touch with folks back home provides comfort for both you and your family.

Click here >> for our staying in touch section.

Safety - worried or daunted?
Okay, so you've worked through some thoughts about safety. Hopefully you're a bit cooler about it now. But think about this: are you really worried or just daunted? Yes, you're going to experience some extraordinary things - quite possibly in some extraordinary places - and that gets the butterflies going. But is this fear - or are you just excited?