Last year, 16 percent of Australia's parade trips, or about 3 million trips, were to countries that issued travel warnings to Australia's government. (photo by Australian News Network)
According to an analysis of immigration data conducted by Finder, the Australian news website, 16 percent of Australians travelled to parade last year, or about 3 million trips, to countries that issued travel warnings to government.
It is understood that while Smartraveller, the Australian government travel advice website, issued travel warnings to 15 of the 18 countries in the Middle East and North Africa region, more than two hundred and seventy thousand Australians went to those regions between November 2017 and November 2018.
Based on the Australian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) 's risk assessment of more than 170 tourist destinations, Smartraveller provides four levels of tourism advice. The lowest level of warning is "take general precautions," level 2 is "stay vigilant," level 3 is "rethink travel demand," and the highest level is "Don't travel to the local area."
Among them, Zimbabwe, because of the risks of crime, civil strife and political violence, Australia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade called on tourists to remain vigilant.
Jordan has a risk of terror and other violence and is also listed as a level 2 warning. In addition, Australians were asked to reconsider the need for tourism near the border between Syria and Iraq.
Last year, 16 percent of Australia's parade trips, or about 3 million trips, were to countries that issued travel warnings to Australia's government. (photo by Australian News Network)
But more and more Australians are traveling to risk countries, according to Finder.
Since 2012, the number of Australians traveling to Pakistan has increased by 92%. The Smartraveller's tourism warning for high-profile countries is level 3, which calls on tourists to "reconsider tourism demand."
In addition, Lebanon was listed as a Tier 2 tourism warning, but the number of Australians heading to the country increased 82 percent. The number of Australians in Nepal, Mexico and India, also listed as Tier 2 travel warnings, rose 59 percent, 54 percent and 51 percent, respectively. The number of Australians heading to Egypt, which is listed as a Tier 3 tourism warning, rose 53%.
Browne (Kate Browne), a personal finance expert at Finder, said tourists need to be aware that travel insurance does not necessarily apply to countries that are included in travel warnings. Tourists can still buy travel insurance if they want to go to a country where officials warn of tourism risks, but in the event of a claim, the insurer can refuse to pay compensation. So before you go to a risky destination, it's best to make sure you compare all your insurance policies and choose the broadest range of travel insurance.