We’ve long been on the lookout for some of the travel industry’s bests and worsts. Take this business class layout with “coffin seats” or this first-class meal choice as prime examples. This week, however, we’ve uncovered the contenders for the world’s most dangerous travel destinations.
You can always count on Reddit to provide a wide array of travel tales told with unashamed honesty, and that’s exactly what we got when someone took to the famous r/AskReddit page to ask: ‘Which countries DON’T seem dangerous, but really are?‘ We guarantee that the top-rated answer will surprise you — it certainly took us off guard…
Which countries DON’T seem dangerous, but really are?
byu/Catwinky inAskReddit
While many people took to the comments reeling off places that are undeniably dangerous but, if we’re being honest, you’d probably expect to be there — warzones and politically unstable hotspots being the most common contenders — the top comment called out somewhere that’s actually renowned for its peaceful vibe but, it turns out, has a hidden dark side…
“Norway! Each year quite a lot of tourists die here because they underestimate the nature. People come here to get some amazing pictures like they’ve seen online and then don’t realize that you need appropriate clothes/gear and that you should probably not take a selfie at the edge of a giant drop.”
f*ckingdontmatter
Another top-rated answer followed a similar theme and, for us as a proud Aussie publication, definitely rung true. Remember folks, we have the most dangerous beaches on earth, and that only gets the tone for the rest of the place…
“Australia. I’ve met plenty of European tourists who have wanted to just drive through the outback while being woefully underprepared. Just basic stuff like not knowing what to do in an emergency and not having enough water. It’s not a joke. People die out there all the time and it’ll be 40C+ and hundreds of kilometres before you see someone again if something goes wrong.”
bw8081
And next up was Australia’s long-underrated neighbour. Rather than honing in on the heat or the life-threatening animals, it called out a little-known planetary face that only affects this corner of the world…
“New Zealand, we don’t have any animals, insects or snakes etc that will kill you. But we got the most amazing hole in our O zone layer. White people will get sunburnt within 30 minutes in the summer unprotected. I get sunburnt within 15. If I spent a whole day in the sun without protection, I’d be interested willing to bet I’d still be sunburnt/peeling a month later.”
brankoz11
If anyone reading this has ever been backpacking to South East Asia or braved the roads as part of a longer tour of the region, this will land with you all too well…
“Traffic in Thailand and Vietnam. One of the highest rates of traffic fatalities in the world.”
TypicalPenalty410
And to round out proceedings, we had to go with a couple of funnier ones. While this potential injury doesn’t sound pleasant, its off-the-wall perpetrator did make us laugh. Talking about the beautiful nation of Sweden…
“A møøse once bit my sister.”
KitchenCanadian
Finally, we had to turn to our Northern European friends once more. This time, it’s not the nature you need to look out for, but the folk themselves…
“Scotland. We’re f*cking lethal…”
PureDeidBrilliant
Where’s the most dangerous place you’ve ever travelled? Does it feature on this list, or do you want to expand our database of danger? Let us know.