A First STEP for International Travelers
Even in the best of times, the globe is a complicated and uncertain place, but lately there seems to be more chaos and potential for danger. Some of the places we travel frequently, like Mexico, have increased tensions, but even if you never go to a war zone or someplace where there’s civil unrest, you should take precautions. For example, my parents were recent traveling home from Asia through Dubai and departed the latter country just before their airport was bombed.
I’m not telling anyone to stop traveling altogether – I’m definitely not planning to do so – but you need to be careful and prepared. That might mean temporarily crossing certain destinations off of your list. It should probably also include buying travel insurance (and reading the fine print first).
But one simple and free thing that you can do is to register with the State Department’s STEP program (Smart Traveler Enrollment Program). It allows you to enroll your foreign travels so that you can get relevant, timely information and also so that a local embassy can contact and locate you in case of an emergency. That may facilitate a safe and prompt evacuation. Remember, if something awful happens, the normal routes of transport and means of communication may be shut down.
Here’s how you register:
Here are some other resources explaining the value of this simple program:
