Which countries are safest in Latin America?
I would love to spend my year abroad in Latin America. However, as a (very blonde, clearly British!) young woman going to a new country on my own, I'd love to know if there are any countries or specific places within countries that I should avoid. I am up for adventure but I don't want to spend my whole year abroad feeling unsafe.
This question was asked on 11th August 2014 and has been read 1984 times.
Answers (1)
Hello,
I'm not sure I would necessarily rank Latin American countries as simply as that because, inevitably, they range city to city and area to area, much like the UK. King's has had students going on their year abroad to Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Ecuador, Argentina, Chile and Cuba and I don't think I could highlight one over the other.
That said, a quick look at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website can give you some basic pointers about each country when it comes to travel advice. Their country pages are regularly updated and you can check crime levels and the like.
I think the fact that you're even thinking about how different you might be (as used to British tourists as they'll be) is a good sign that you're not going into this naively. If you go to Brazil, for example, and want to explore a favela, go with others, consider that these are areas of high poverty and consequently high crime, and so dress accordingly (including not wearing jewelry and the like).
Hope that's useful and consider using Third Year Abroad's search function to type in "Mexico" or "Chile" and see what students have said about these countries before.
All the best!
Tom
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