"The problem is that looking on the UK Foreign Office website there are
lots of warnings about travelling to Asia, especially to Malaysia,
Indonesia and the Philippines. For this reason I am thinking of
completely changing things around and forgetting about these countries.
Are things really that bad over there. Would I be safe?"
Indonesia and the Phillipines are large countries, and the security
risk depends a lot on exactly where you plan to go. I wouldn't hang
around in Jakarta right now, but some parts of Indonesia are fairly
safe for visitors. The same goes for the Phillipines, where the
violence is mostly in the South.
To keep risks in perspective, the most common cause of death of
tourists is motor vehicle accidents rather than crime, disease, or
terrorism. Considering the hundreds of thousands or millions of
visitors who visit many of the countries on the risk list, the chance
of being killed by a terrorist is actually extremely low in most of
them except in some of the world's most dangerous places (e.g. Iraq,
Afghanistan, Colombia) In most of Asia, speeding bus drivers and
overcrowded ferries are far greater risks than terrorism.
Instead of Malaysia, Indonesia and the Phillipines, have you thought
about spending significant amounts of time in India and/or mainland
China? And maybe adding Laos and Cambodia to your itinerary?
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