I needed a good laugh today and certainly got it:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/news/2023/05/15/jamaica-colombia-travel-advisory-state-department-warnings/70217969007/
Spent 5 days at the beginning of the month in Medellin and Guatape. Favorite country in South America and I’d put Medellin in my top 4 cities in the world I’ve visited. Maybe they want you to “reconsider travel” because the only risk I experienced was not wanting to leave Colombia.
I used to put a lot of stock in the State Department advisories, but I lost patience toward the tail end of Covid (2022?), when Canada and North Korea were listed as the same level of danger --- Level 4: Do Not Travel. I know it was because of Covid, but a lot of people were traveling internationally again by that time, and designating the whole world as Level 4 seemed pretty useless for making any kind of practical travel decision.
Turkey, a country where I have always felt safe, was Level 3 for years. They have set it back to Level 2 now.
I don't follow those. Is a bigger number or a smaller number worse?
Lowest number is 1 and is deemed “safe.” Highest I believe is 4 and means “don’t travel.”
@Nigel, under normal circumstances the State Department has 4 levels:
Level 1 - No travel warnings. As safe as it gets. Very few countries get this designation
Level 2 - Use normal precautions. You will probably be fine, but be aware of your surroundings. Most of Europe, for example, is Level 2.
Level 3 - Reconsider travel. Usually means there is a higher than normal chance of terrorism, etc. I will usually look at the specifics of the advisory before making a decision. Sometimes they will flag a whole country as level 3 when only one area is considered risky. (I traveled to Turkey several times while it was Level 3 and never had an issue.)
Level 4 - Do Not Travel. Really, just don't go there. North Korea, Syria, Sudan, Ukraine ....
My frustration is that they kept the whole world rated at Level 4 for much longer than I thought useful during the waning days of Covid.
