A new global safety survey by the financial site HelloSafe has named the Philippines the most dangerous country in the world — an unexpected twist for travelers planning their summer trips. The Southeast Asian nation scored an alarming 82.32 out of 100 on the travel safety index, primarily due to “high levels of violence within society.”
This revelation is a stark warning for the 5.4 million foreign tourists who visited the tropical paradise in 2024, unaware of the risks lurking beneath its idyllic beaches and lush landscapes. The survey evaluated countries based on 35 criteria across five categories: frequency of natural disasters, societal violence, involvement in armed conflicts, quality of health infrastructure, and levels of militarization.
Each nation received a score from 0 to 100, with higher numbers indicating greater danger. The timing couldn’t be more relevant as summer travelers begin finalizing their international vacation plans amid rising global tensions.
Unexpected Dangers In Popular Tourist Destinations Like The Philippines
Colombia and Mexico secured the second and third positions on the danger list with scores of 79.21 and 78.42, respectively. Both countries continue to struggle with high crime rates and kidnapping risks, prompting the US State Department to issue travel warnings for specific regions like Michoacan and Sinaloa in Mexico. These warnings highlight the stark contrast between these countries’ picturesque tourist attractions and the very real safety concerns travelers might face.
India ranked fourth with a score of 77.86, a position influenced by recent escalating tensions with Pakistan over the disputed Kashmir region. Russia completed the top five most dangerous countries with a score of 75.65, an unsurprising score given the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict that recently saw one of Putin’s largest airstrikes on Kyiv since the war began in 2022.
The United States ranked the 14th least safe country for travelers, with a concerning score of 59.47. This ranking comes despite reports of declining crime rates in major American cities, suggesting that other factors in the methodology significantly impacted America’s standing in the global safety hierarchy.
Safest Destinations For Worry-Free Travel
Europe dominates the list of safest destinations for travelers seeking peace of mind. Iceland tops the safety rankings with an impressive score of 18.23, followed closely by Singapore at 19.99 and Denmark at 20.05. Austria and Switzerland round out the top five safest nations with scores of 20.31 and 20.51, respectively, offering travelers numerous options for secure vacation experiences.
Hellosafe emphasized that their index “is not intended to reflect the tourist attractiveness of a country, but rather a global index of security and safety based on the largest possible number of objective criteria.” This methodology provides travelers with valuable data beyond typical tourist information, enabling them to make more informed decisions when selecting international destinations.
