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I was there at this time as well. Egypt was VERY safe then. It was a horrible place for Egyptians to live. But it was very safe. (Police with machine guns on every street corner tend to make for a very ordered society.)
There is no way I would set foot in the Muslim world in 2015. Kidnappings of US travelers are on the rise with the ransoms being used to fund terrorism. I'm also avoiding much of Latin America for the same reason. I'm very glad I knocked most of those countries off my travel list when I was young. I don't see them being safe to visit for years -- perhaps ever again.
That is a ridiculously overbroad view. Jordan, Morocco, Kuwait, Tunisia, Egypt, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Gambia, Malaysia, UAE, Albania, Kosovo, Senegal, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Oman, much of Bahrain, parts of Algeria, parts of Pakistan, and--yes, Iran, are safe for visitors.
There are some parts of the Muslim world that are unsafe for tourists, but they are parts that are pretty obviously off the list: Iraq, Syria, much of Lebanon, Libya, Yemen, Niger, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Somalia, Afghanistan.
You are likely safer traveling in Jordan, Tunisia, and Kuwait than you would be in western European capitals.
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Originally Posted by timberline742
Not a great resource. Look at it, but don't be dependent on it. Lots of the listings are warnings are either overly cautious or more directly and honestly, they're political in nature.
US State is certainly over-cautious--you will find that one or two high-profile incidents can cause State to issue a warning about an otherwise safe country. Sometimes State warnings are more specific about regions, and other times they are broader, failing to provide the type of granular information that is useful.
I agree with the poster who mentioned that State Department warnings have gotten better recently. This Mexico travel warning is actually quite good, though it is certainly over-cautious in parts: Mexico Travel Warning
You have to take particular precautions if you are gay, yes, and they are onerous. Non-Muslims, however, are welcome in each of those countries.
Amman has a gay neighborhood, and, per Wikitravel, "Most Jordanians adopt a "don't ask, don't tell" approach to ***** lifestyles, and Jordan is still a culturally conservative country. Public displays of affection are absolutely off-limits (this is true for straight couples too), and may draw nasty remarks."
Gay people sadly cannot be open in Morocco or Tunisia.
Last edited by TheCityTheBridge; 01-13-2015 at 12:11 PM..
how would anyone know you are gay on a trip? It is not like the gay people have the mark on their forehead.
like someone said, PDA is not appropriate anywhere, straight or gay.
how would anyone know you are gay on a trip? It is not like the gay people have the mark on their forehead.
like someone said, PDA is not appropriate anywhere, straight or gay.
I have been told people got stopped at Kuwait airport for wearing a pink shirt and skinny pants.
I have been told people got stopped at Kuwait airport for wearing a pink shirt and skinny pants.
Could be. If you go in looking or acting very gay that could be an issue. But if you just dress modestly and behave sensibly, they will never know what your preferences are unless you're officially registered to some homosexual organization or something. It seems unlikely that they'd ask you, but I suppose they could so you might need to be prepared for that. Military, political, and certain religious affiliations are different because it's a matter of public record which could represent a big problem, as we have seen in the news.
Just so you know, there is a Travel Alert page by the US Department of State and it lists all of the alerts and the places unsafe for U.S. travelers. It is updated immediately anytime there is a threat.
Also, if you go on TripAdvisor and type in a country (Ex: Iraq), you will see bright red font appear: TRAVEL ALERT: SAFETY AND SECURITY CONCERNS
I stopped reading these reports, after I dared to visit the most dangerous country in Central America, El Salvador, and never felt unsafe there, even riding the chicken buses around that country. Made an additional 2 trips, later!
In any of the so-called dangerous 3rd world countries, I always feel safest being around the poorest of that country!
My fears rise when I get around the more upper-middle class areas of the big cities down there.
Dangerous to me is climactic effects! Heat and humidity, along with insects, can be a killer to me!
As a female, India. I went there when I was 18, but wouldn't go now. Not even with my husband.
Indeed, the white people in India (especially in non-touristic places) become objects of great attention, especially single women.
But if you go there with her husband - then no one will molest you. Hindus will perfectly realize that you already have a man.
I was in India three times, the most memorable was motorcycle trip across the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Despite the fact that it's quite a dangerous place (territorial disputes between India and Pakistan, you know), and there's a lot of military, I felt no fear.
Uh, not really. I have one relative who was briefly abducted in the Middle East. They let him go when they realized they had the wrong person. There's nothing quite like spending a few days of your vacation in a room, tied to a chair with a sack over your head.
Where in the Middle East did this occur? The "Middle East" is a HUGE area with total opposite extremes in levels of safety.
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It is not like the gay people have the mark on their forehead.
