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Not so. A careful consideration of statistical tables
leaves me with the following conclusions:
- Commercial flying is the safest mode of transportation—
much, much safer than cars;
- Travel is as safe or safer than staying at home (particularly
if you avoid countries with frequent disturbances).
For an extra layer of safety, consider taking “the
road less traveled.” Look for places not on the Top Ten
Tourist Destination lists. Consider countries that are not
enmeshed in international conflicts, civil wars or bitter
elections. Like Canada. South America is looking good.
Vietnam. Botswana. New Zealand. Think about islands:
Caribbean, Galapagos or the Azores.
That said, something might have already happened
or could soon happen at any point on the globe. And
you shouldn’t feel guilty for worrying about international
travel. But you can worry less if you take some
precautionary steps and control what you can. Here are
some guidelines to help you feel prepared for international
travel in an uncertain age.
1)
Sign up with STEP (the Smart Traveler Enrollment
Program)
through the U.S. Bureau of Consular
Affairs. STEP helps an embassy or consulate keep
track of you and locate and help you in the case of
a terrorist incident. When you register travel plans,
they forward that data to the respective embassy. But
you’ll also get emails with any travel warnings from
the State Department. All in all, this is a simple and
quick cautionary step. I finished the registration in
only twenty minutes (and I always take extra time
because I never get the instructions straight for
creating passwords and such).
2) Research and purchase travel insurance.
Think
of your worst fear and insure against that, not just a
delayed flight or unplanned layover. Since having to
be evacuated after a medical crisis (whether from car
accident, heart attack or terrorist attack) is by far the most
costly expense any traveler could encounter, start with a
medical evacuation plan (I use MedJet Assist, endorsed
by AARP.) These are significantly different from the
limited protections of the website-generated “Do you
want to insure your trip?” kind of insurance (with a lot
of small print and exclusions). These are often annual
memberships vs. single trip coverage for individuals or