Slovakia declared safe for US tourists

The US Department of State wants to provide travellers with clear, timely, and reliable information.

Slovakia is a safe country and people travelling there need only take normal precautions. This stems from the recent update of how the US Department of State shares information with US travellers on January 10th.

“These improvements will provide US citizens with clear, timely, and reliable safety and security information worldwide,” the US State Department reported on its website.

Under the new system, every country will have its own Travel Advisory, providing levels of advice ranking from 1 to 4.

Slovakia is in the Level 1 category, which means that travellers should exercise normal precautions.

“This is the lowest advisory level for safety and security risk,” the State Department informed. “There is some risk in any international travel. Conditions in other countries may differ from those in the United States and may change at any time.”

As well as Slovakia, Australia, Canada, Austria and the Czech Republic are in this group.

What is the new system like?

The Travel Advisories for each country replace previous Travel Warnings and Travel Alerts.

“While we will issue an overall Travel Advisory level for every country, levels of advice may vary for specific locations or areas within a country,” the US Department of State clarified.

Level 2 in the new system means “Exercise Increased Caution”. The State Department recommends travellers to be aware of heightened risks to safety and security. Currently, countries like Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and Spain are listed here.

The Level 3 category indicates that people should “Reconsider Travel” and means that travellers should avoid their journey due to serious risks to safety and security. The US Department of State lists Honduras, Haiti and Turkey in this category.

The Department of State does not recommend travelling to Level 4 category countries. They have the highest advisory level due to the greater likelihood of life-threatening risks.

“During an emergency, the US government may be limited in their ability to provide assistance,” the Department of State wrote, adding that it advises US citizens not to travel to such countries or to leave as soon as it is safe to do so.

This category includes countries like Iran, North Korea, Iraq and Syria.

11. Jan 2018 at 21:31 | Compiled by Spectator staff