A man who has visited all 197 countries around the world shared the top five places he felt ‘most unsafe’ being in.
Drew Binsky is known for his travel content on YouTube, having spent the best part of a decade seeing it all. So, it’s fair to say he’s done the work to have a go-to opinion where to visit and where to absolutely not bother.
From the best in the world having ‘everything you could want’ to the country that’s the ‘worst’ in Europe, Binsky has even been to places we’re warned not to enter. And so, he’s put together a whole list of the places where he ‘felt the most unsafe as a traveller’.
To be fair, given the state some of these were in, it’s not all totally surprising.
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5. Tripoli, Libya
Ranked in fifth place, Binsky said he had found it ‘really hard’ in the Libyan capital.
“I will say I heard it’s safer in the last few years,” he explained, “but back in 2018, I was falling asleep to the sound of bombs in my hotel room.”
The creator added that his bed frame would be ‘literally shaking’ as hotel staff seemingly brushed it off as ‘five miles away’.
He added that it was ‘very hard’ walking outside with police asking him questions as they weren’t used to tourists.
“I heard nowadays it’s easier to go to Libya and it’s more open without civil war, so I hope to visit again,” Binsky said.
The UK Foreign travel office currently advises against all travel to Libya and all but essential travel to the cities of Benghazi and Misrata.
4. Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Some might say he was looking for it, but Binsky entered a ‘gang-controlled area’ near to the airport with a guide and was told at times to put his camera away.
“It was just total chaos,” he recalled. “Thugs that were controlling this area – I had to pay them off.
“Gangsters with big guns in their pockets taking me around.”
Binsky said he ‘thought he was going to get kidnapped’ there as he said his guide and another YouTuber were after he left.
The FCDO currently advises against all travel to Haiti, adding there is a high threat of criminal kidnap in Port-au-Prince.
3. Kandahar, Afghanistan
The founding city of the Taliban, Binsky saw the ‘barbwire complexes’ and described felling the ‘tense air’.
He did say the markets were ‘really cool and traditional’ as he said: “It’s a very ancient city but there’s this layer of intensity; having to look over your shoulder where you walk.
“I love Afghanistan but I just got to admit, Kandahar definitely the most unsafe place. But the situation might be different now.”
The FCDO also currently advises against all travel to Afghanistan.
2. Conakry, Guinea
Binsky said this is his ‘least favourite place’ in West Africa.
In his video at the time, he said within 10 minutes of walking around he had been stopped by police twice.
“I was caught in a coup,” he recalled, describing the whole thing as a ‘complete mess’.
Oh, and the creator also found the city ‘boring’ in general, with ‘nothing to do’ – although, I’m not sure that’s a priority of the people in Conakry.
The FCDO currently says the situation in Guinea is ‘changeable’ and travellers should ‘remain vigilant, avoid demonstrations and monitor local media’.
1. Mogadishu, Somalia
“This place has no rules, no laws,” Binsky said as he noted that the ‘offshoot of al-Qaeda’, Al-Shabab, is present.
He explained that whenever he left his hotel, he had to have a convoy in front and behind with ‘four bulletproof vest military guys’ sat on the beds of each truck with ‘huge AK-47s in their hand’.
Binsky added that he finds it ‘very, very scary and very unfortunate’.
Currently, the FCDO advises against all travel to parts of Somalia.
Topics: Travel, YouTube, World News, Community
Jess Battison