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Travel Safety

Travel Safety
Articles on safe travel for millennials, including trip planning, vaccinations, local laws and customs, travel security, travel health and travel updates.
last updated:
9 September, 2024
A Hong Kong watchdog has urged travel platforms to appoint staff to ensure they comply with privacy regulations. Photo: Elson Li
Hong Kong society

Editorial | Travel sites should respect Hongkongers’ user data

Customers have a right to know how their personal information is being retained and how AI is being used to leverage it.

Hong Kong politics

Beijing’s foreign ministry arm in Hong Kong slams US travel advisory ‘slander’

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Travel news and advice

The riskiest places to travel in 2025 because of war, crime and more

Wellness

Explainer | Methanol poisoning, its symptoms and why it is so deadly

The deaths in Laos of six foreign tourists who had methanol-tainted drinks was a reminder of how lethal the industrial alcohol can be.

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Methanol is a toxic alcohol used in industrial and household products. Unscrupulous producers sometimes add it to alcoholic drinks to make them more potent. Methanol poisoning recently killed six tourists in Laos. Photo: Shutterstock
Crime in Hong Kong

Hong Kong police arrest man over theft of HK$4,300 on board flight from Malaysia

Passenger from mainland China detained after two other travellers said cash taken from their luggage mid-flight.

Hong Kong transport

Cathay Pacific flight from New York to Hong Kong diverted due to geomagnetic storm

But a meteorological expert plays down concerns about the weather event’s impact over Hong Kong, citing the city’s low latitude.

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Asia travel

Death by shark? It happens way less often than you think, so calm down

Some people have a queasy feeling when swimming – and others will not even go into the sea. Is Jaws to blame for our fear of sharks?

Some people have a queasy feeling when swimming – and others will not even go into the sea. Is Jaws to blame for our fear of sharks like this sand tiger shark? Photo: TNS
Thailand

5 Hong Kong tourists believed dead in Thailand plane crash

No survivors were found at the site where the aircraft went down with nine people on board, including two pilots.

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Trending in China

China passenger turfed off plane after argument about storage of luxury handbag

A woman on a domestic flight in China was so attached to her US$3,000 Louis Vuitton bag that she would not let it out of her sight, creating a chain of disruptions.

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Cathay Pacific

Editorial | At last, a refreshing new air safety video, from Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific

Cathay’s latest production features the usual instructions against a colourful backdrop of the things that make Hong Kong great.

Cathay Pacific Airways’ new inflight safety video interweaves protocols with cultural landscapes. Photo: Cathay Pacific
Hong Kong weather

Super Typhoon Gaemi may trigger No 1 standby signal in Hong Kong

Observatory says Gaemi expected to stay 600km from city as it moves across Taiwan and hits Fujian province on Thursday.

Super Typhoon Gaemi has brought hot weather to Hong Kong. Photo: Sam Tsang
Accidents and personal safety

Toilet door comes off during 16-hour Cathay flight from Hong Kong to New York

Photographs of incident show female flight attendant seated in cabin crew seat with her hand holding detached door.

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Hong Kong transport

Hong Kong’s Cathay probes video showing staff member throwing luggage

Video shows worker wearing Cathay Pacific vest repeatedly throwing suitcases from staircase.

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Trending in China

Rookie China flier sparks evacuation after mistaking emergency exit for toilet

A first-time flier in China caused panic and chaos on a flight when she opened an emergency exit she thought was a toilet door.

A first-time air passenger in China sparked chaos when she opened an emergency exit after mistaking it for a toilet door. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/Douyin
Aviation accidents

Boeing CEO apologises to families of those who died in 737 Max crashes

Dave Calhoun also acknowledged the planemaker’s shortcomings after a mid-air blowout in January, as he faced questions from US lawmakers.

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Zipporah Kuria (centre) becomes emotional as she holds a photograph of her father, Joseph Kuria Waithaka, and stands with other family members of those killed Boeing plane crashes during a US Senate subcommittee hearing on Tuesday. Photo: AFP
Singapore

Explainer | Severe flight turbulence and how to stay safe - a visual explainer

A visual explainer of what causes severe turbulence, which of the world’s flight paths were the most affected in 2023 and how travellers can stay safe.

Asia travel

Terrorist killing of tourists threatens future of Afghanistan tourism

Tourism in Afghanistan will be over if there is another attack soon, a tour agent says after terrorists kill Spanish tourists. Another says terror threat has always been there yet visitors have still come.

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Japan

Drunk Japan Airlines pilot causes flight cancellation after US police warning

The airline’s decision to cancel the flight stemmed from the need to assess the captain’s physical and mental well-being, according to reports.

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A Japan Airlines passenger jet takes off at Tokyo International Airport. Photo: AFP
Indonesia

Deadly train crash in Indonesia

Hong Kong weather

Rain and thunder continue to lash Hong Kong despite passage of storm Koinu

Public advised to remain vigilant amid showers, even after forecaster lifted all tropical cyclone signals on Tuesday afternoon.

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Consumer protection in Hong Kong

Hong Kong consumer watchdog warns travellers against high data roaming charges

It also finds terms and conditions for mishandled baggage across airlines to be inconsistent.

Hong Kong’s consumer watchdog has warned of unclear sales terms in phone contracts. Photo: Shutterstock
The Philippines

Philippine US$3 billion airport project has 3 more potential bidders

India’s GMR Group joins the San Miguel corporation and a Manila consortium in recent bids to upgrade the ageing Ninoy Aquino Airport, ranked among the world’s worst.

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An Air Asia Airbus prepares to land at Ninoy Aquino International airport. Photo: AFP
Middle East

Lebanon seeks to reassure Gulf, Germany, UK after travel warnings amid violence

Lebanon’s caretaker premier Najib Mikati said on Saturday there was no cause for ‘concern or panic’ about his country’s security situation. At least 13 people have been killed in fighting in Ain el-Hilweh between mainstream faction Fatah and hardline Islamists.

Hong Kong tourism

Explainer | Holiday hell? Travel advice for Hongkongers stranded abroad

Industry insiders dish advice on what to expect from flight cancellations and the usefulness of insurance.

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Ukraine war

Russia tells stranded Crimea tourists to drive home via occupied Ukraine

After an attack on the bridge linking the peninsula to Russia, holidaymakers were asked to take an alternative 400km (250-mile) route that could take them through areas seriously affected by fighting.

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People relax on a beach in the resort town of Alushta on the Crimean peninsula in June. Photo: AFP
Hong Kong

Letters | Cathay emergency evacuation: penalise those who took their bags

Readers discuss the importance of following safety protocols during an emergency, the MTR’s handling of passenger anxiety during unexpected events, and the dangers of deep-sea expeditions.

Eleven passengers on a Cathay Pacific Airways flight were injured while evacuating via emergency slides on June 24 when the aircraft abruptly aborted its take-off at Hong Kong International Airport. Photo: Handout
New Zealand

Air New Zealand ranked best airline in the world; Singapore tops first-class

A study cited the airline’s new Skynest economy beds and its safety record as two reasons for the top ranking.

India

Yet again, a drunk passenger has peed on a fellow traveller on a US-India flight

It’s the third time in recent months that a passenger has been accused of urinating on or near someone else on a flight from New York to New Delhi. In all cases, they were reported to be drunk.

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