Stealth Tourism and Travelling Under The Radar

Don't Miss The Special Report Further Down The Page "How Dangerous Is Africa"

We take pride in our flexibility and our ability to travel as locals. These two attributes allow us to call ourselves stealth tourists. "What are stealth tourists?" you ask. Well, maybe this will explain it a little better:

Stealth Tourism is people taking a lower profile when travelling, and with good reason! Tourists have been targeted in Thailand and the Caribbean, drug violence in Mexico, bombings in Bali, Egypt, Spain and England. Plus, there is the ever-present threat of predatory thieves and price gouging found in every tourist hot spot around the globe. It’s easy to see why Stealth Tourism is on the rise…

Stealth Tourism is travelling beneath the radar, so to speak, fitting in among the locals and avoiding the throngs of tourists who stand out like fat sheep in wolf country. To do this, the stealth tourist utilises a number of tools:

The number one item in the stealth tourist's handbag is knowledge. It is difficult to look like a local when you don't speak the language or know little about the culture in which you are travelling.

A second item is attitude. A humble, low-key attitude will keep you from being targeted. Also, attempting to utilise the local language, even for simple pleasantries, will endear you to the people.

A third thing is avoiding the places where tourists congregate. This is impossible if your goal is to see the great monuments of tourism but can easily be achieved when one realises there are equally beautiful and fascinating places to visit that have yet to be discovered by the masses.

Again, don't travel in large groups. Nothing says tourist more than a pack of people wearing fanny packs and toting cameras. Travel 2 Culture specialises in Stealth Tourism because it is our preferred mode of travel. For more information or advice on travelling stealth, contact us.

Security & General Tips

The following is sound advice on security, laws and customs from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office can help you stay out of trouble while you are abroad.

Security

Be security conscious and take sensible precautions

Be alert to unattended baggage in public places

Look out for people acting suspiciously near ‘Western’ institutions or gatherings

Avoid political and other demonstrations or gatherings

Check cars and other vehicles thoroughly for explosive devices before use; especially if the vehicle has been left unguarded for any time

Vary your route if making regular journeys

Avoid unlit streets at night

Carry only the minimum amount of cash that you need for the day

Leave your valuables and spare cash in the hotel safe or other secure place

Do not flaunt your (relative) wealth

Never resist violent theft

Check your guidebook, with your hotel or tour guide for warnings on local scams

Should you lose your Hotel Room Key Card, bear in mind that information stored on it may include your name, partial home address, hotel room number, check in and check out dates and credit card number and expiry date.

Keep abreast of the local and regional political scene in the media

Obey the law

Find out about local laws and customs.

Remember that the laws and procedures which apply are those of the country you are in, not the UK’s. However, in the case of sexual offences against children, extra territorial legislation can be used to prosecute offenders in the UK, under UK law, even when the sexual offence has been committed overseas. For further information on combating Child Sex Tourism see ECPAT UK and World Vision UK websites.

Do not overstay your visa. You can extend your visa in most places; if you do not you can be imprisoned or fined.

Do not work illegally. You can be deported, fined and imprisoned if you do. You may also be prevented from entering the country again in the future.

Hobbies that involve the use of cameras and binoculars (like bird watching and train or plane spotting) can be misunderstood (particularly near military sites). If you are not sure, don't do it – it is not worth the risk of being wrongly arrested for spying.

Try to be aware of any locally endangered animals and plants within your destination. Be careful when buying wildlife souvenirs so that you don’t unwittingly purchase souvenirs made from endangered plants or animals in which trade may be regulated or banned.

Drugs

Obey local laws. Penalties are often severe and include massive fines and long prison sentences in grim conditions. You can receive the death penalty in some countries. We cannot get you out.

NEVER carry packages through Customs for other people.

Do not sit in anyone else's vehicle when going through Customs or crossing a border – always get out and walk.

Always pack your own baggage and never leave it unattended.

If driving do not lend your vehicle to anyone else.

Do not give medicines prescribed for you by a doctor to people you meet on your travels.

Alcohol

Be aware of the local laws and attitudes to alcohol.

Do not try to import alcohol into a country where it is prohibited - penalties can be severe.

Public drunkenness is frowned on wherever you are.

Driving

DO NOT drink and drive.

Make sure you know the driving laws, licence requirements and driving conditions specific to the country you are visiting.

Make sure your UK driving licence is current and valid. Some countries require you to hold an International Driving Permit (IDP) with your UK licence.

If you are staying for an extended period of time or for any reason other than tourism check what the driving licence requirements are.

Be aware that in many countries there are on-the-spot fines for traffic offences. Exceptions are not made for foreigners.

If there is a natural disaster or trouble flares up:

Contact your family and friends to let them know that you are safe and healthy.

Do this even if you are not near the area – remember family and friends will not know exactly where you are but they will worry if they think you are in potential danger.

Money & Credit Cards

Use a money belt or secure inside pocket. If you have to carry a lot of money ask your partner or a friend to carry some for you.

Don't carry all your cards with you – leave at least one in the hotel safe. If you lose or have your credit card stolen cancel it immediately by phoning the relevant 24-hour emergency number.

Change money in banks or legal foreign exchange dealers. It is often illegal to change with unauthorised persons, and you run the risk of receiving fake currency and arrest.

Keep all exchange receipts, as you may have to prove you obtained your local currency legally.

Ensure your credit card bills are paid and kept up-to-date whilst travelling.

Consider where your money goes. Try and put money into local people’s hands; try local drinks rather than imported brands; stay in locally-owned accommodation and try to eat in locally-owned restaurants.

Travel documents

Keep your passport in the hotel safe and carry a photocopy with you.

Keep your travel tickets in a safe place.

If you have anything stolen:

If your money, passport or anything else is stolen report it at once to the local police.

Obtain a police statement about the loss: you will need one to claim against your insurance.

Theft of money – phone your bank at home to transfer money or to cancel your credit card using the relevant 24-hour emergency number.

Theft of traveller's cheques – contact the issuing agent.

Theft of tickets – see your tour representative or airline agent.

Respect the local Environment:

Think about what happens to your rubbish e.g. take biodegradable products and a water filter bottle to cut down on plastic waste.

Help preserve local wildlife and habitats by respecting rules and regulations. Be aware that buying any wildlife souvenirs or products is highly risky – If in doubt don’t buy! See the UK Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) Souvenir Alert! Campaign, which highlights the pitfalls of buying wildlife souvenirs abroad and also Trade Hotspots.

Customs throughout the world confiscate illegal souvenirs and in the UK you could face a criminal prosecution and unlimited fines.

Cultural Awareness

Get a good guidebook. This will tell you about the country you are visiting. Find out about local laws, customs and culture.

Take a phrase book and try speaking the local language.

Respect local customs and dress codes. Think about what you wear and how you fit in. Ask your tour operator or guide if you are unsure.

Be discreet about your views on cultural differences and behave and dress appropriately, particularly when visiting religious sites, markets and rural communities.

Particular care should be taken not to offend Islamic codes of dress and behaviour with regard to sexual relations, alcohol and drugs.

Always ask an individual’s permission before you take a photograph and respect their reply. In some cultures you should not attempt to photograph women.

Don’t haggle too aggressively. In most countries where haggling is the norm, it is done with good humour and not for too long. Although prices are usually inflated for tourists, it’s also important to remember that the discount you are haggling over could be a few pence for you but a significant means of income for a seller.

It is always best to err on the side of caution. Behaviour that would be regarded as innocuous elsewhere can lead to serious trouble.

How dangerous is Africa?

This question must be on the mind of many prospective tourists following the bomb blasts that rocked Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Shamel Shiek, Luxor, and Taba, Khartoum and Cape Town, not to say the escalation towards full-blown civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. And even if you put these recent events aside, you don't exactly hear much good news out of Africa. Another war, another famine, another crisis....

How dangerous is Africa? Before attempting to answer that question, two simple points ought to be made. One refers to the nature of Africa, not, as many people seem to imagine, a cohesive entity, but an amalgamation of around 50 different countries which together cover an area several times greater than that of Europe. Some of these countries are very dangerous - that much is true of any continent - but to let, say, the war in the Congo influence your decision to visit an unaffected African country would be as misguided as cancelling a trip to France on the basis of events in Ireland or Croatia.

The second point relates to the international media, which is disinclined to report on events that show Africa in a favourable light (South Africa's first democratic election in 1994 and the Clinton tour of Africa in 1998 were rare exceptions). And if news coverage of Africa focuses on crises, then a 'Bad News out of Africa' syndrome becomes somewhat inevitable. How many of Africa's 50 countries regularly make international headlines? Of those that do, how many will slide back into media oblivion the moment that the newsworthy crisis is resolved?

When addressing the question of safety in Africa, we should exclude those countries that are embroiled in civil war - few people would book a holiday to somewhere like Sudan or Angola without knowing the associated risks. There is no call to be concerned about becoming involved in a coup or guerrilla action in any reasonably stable country - and, really, there are plenty of these in Africa.

Many of the other 'dangers' commonly associated with Africa belong more-or-less in the realms of fantasy. No movie about Africa would be complete without the hero having a tense run-in with a venomous snake or spider, but the likelihood of this happening to the average tourist is about as great as a visitor to Britain eating one Big Mac and picking up Mad Cow disease.

Nor, unless they are extraordinary unlucky or wilfully stupid, is anybody going to be stampeded by buffaloes or eaten alive by lions. It has happened, of course, but so have people been knocked down by buses on the streets of England. The risk is negligible.

Another thing that gets many prospective tourists in a flap is one or other exotic disease. In reality, provided that you have all the appropriate shots, you are sensible about what you eat and drink and you don't indulge in unprotected sex with members of high-risk groups, the only significant health risk to tourists in most parts of Africa is malaria. A disease like Ebola may hog the headlines, but on the basis of current evidence you are as likely to catch it in most parts of Africa as you would be if you took a holiday in Cornwall.

Malaria, by contrast, is a real killer, and widespread in tropical Africa. It is also reasonably preventable, and my advice to anybody visiting Africa is to focus their mind on one simple aspect of heathcare: the mechanics of malaria prevention.

Am I saying that Africa is, by-and-large, as safe as anywhere else? Yes and no. While it is true that many of the dangers you might associate with Africa are barely worth consideration, there are other risks attached to African travel. The critical point is that by ignoring what is unlikely to go wrong, you are better placed to take precautions against what might. On a recent trip to Lake Malawi, one of Africa's worst malaria hotspots, I reckon that half the tourists we encountered at night were wearing shorts and flip-flops. This, I'm afraid, really is courting danger.

The thing I fear most when I travel in Africa is being involved in a fatal road accident. It would certainly take a great many more bomb blasts for me to see terrorism as a concern comparable to the dangers attached to using Africa's roads. When I travel by public transport, I no longer use minibuses or other light vehicles unless there is absolutely no alternative, since the drivers tend to be maniacs and they are often drunk. When I drive myself, I go more slowly than I would at home on a road of comparable quality, and I slow down at the slightest sign of an irregularity on the road ahead.

Most tourists will be ferried around by professional drivers who are experienced in African conditions, greatly reducing the risk of an accident, but if you happen to be allocated a maniac, then trying to convince him to drive more slowly would probably be the single most important precaution you could take during your trip.

The other genuine area of concern is crime. Again, it is the more sensational crimes that tend to make the papers, but safari groups being held up at gunpoint and the like is comparatively unusual. Far more of a problem is urban crime, something that's generally an inconvenience rather than life-threatening.

The danger is that many African cities have the superficial trappings of their Western counterparts, more so perhaps than the average tourist would expect. This can lull one into a false sense of security. You might think that if you can wander freely around New York or London, then you can certainly handle yourself in Nairobi or Johannesburg. Wrong, wrong, wrong! No matter how street-wise you are at home, it is naive to think that you won't stick out like a sore thumb in an African city.

An experienced traveller will know that 'handling yourself' in any unfamiliar city means asking local advice about what is and isn't safe, making liberal use of taxis, and not carrying more cash on your person than you need for a particular excursion. And this applies in reverse: if I ever visit New York, I'd be a fool to think that my experiences in African cities would stand me in much stead there.

do not think that Africa as a whole is a more dangerous continent to travel in than most, provided that you take a few simple precautions and apply a degree of common sense. My wife often guides tours around South Africa, where walking around most cities carries a high risk of being mugged, certainly if you carry valuables such as jewellery, a camera, an external moneybelt or a bulging wallet. On every tour, my wife explains this carefully to her tourists. Every time her warnings are shrugged off by a few of the more nonchalant members of the group, who say they have crime at home too. And almost without fail, one of the rebels gets mugged.

Anybody can be unlucky. Anybody can be in the wrong place at the wrong time. But in Africa, as elsewhere, the biggest dangers of all are ignorance and arrogance. The remedies are this: visit a good tropical health clinic before you travel, book direct through a reputable operator with local knowledge, buy an up-to-date travel guide, and listen to local advice.