Asia is a fantastic continent, full of many wonderful places to see and incredibly rich and rewarding experiences with a vast diverse culture. Whether you’re planning on visiting the ancient temples of Bangkok, or taste the cuisine of Cambodia we want to ensure that you have a fantastic experience, and most importantly travel safe.
On this page you can find a wealth of information, including links to travel guides and information around the continent, whether it’s considered safe – areas we would, and wouldn’t recommend, along with common scams to be aware of and finally some tips and tricks.
Table of Contents
Find the latest travel guides, news and information to stay safe, and make the most out of your travels!
Is Travelling in Asia Considered Safe?
Asia is actually considered an extremely safe continent to travel to, for the most part. Obviously this varies depending on the specific destination and as always there are still things to look out for – but we’ll touch more on those later. The best demonstration of this is to look at serious crimes, and the general crime index for the top 10 most popular countries to travel to in Asia.| Country | Homicide Rate (per 100k) | General Crime Index | Safety Assessment | Source Attribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇯🇵 Japan | ~0.2 | Very low | ✅ Very safe | UNODC, OECD, Numbeo |
| 🇰🇷 South Korea | ~0.5 | Low | ✅ Very safe | UNODC, Numbeo |
| 🇸🇬 Singapore | Negligible | Extremely low | ✅ Ultra-safe | Singapore Police Force, Numbeo |
| 🇲🇾 Malaysia | ~0.72 | Moderate (~44–47) | ✅ Safe | UNODC, Numbeo |
| 🇮🇩 Indonesia | ~0.5–0.6 | Moderate (~46) | ✅ Safe | UNODC, Numbeo |
| 🇻🇳 Vietnam | ~1.5 | Moderate (~40.8) | ✅ Safe | UNODC, Numbeo |
| 🇹🇭 Thailand | ~2.6 | Moderate (~44–48) | ✅ Generally safe | NationMaster, Numbeo |
| 🇮🇳 India | ~2.9 | Higher (~445 per 100k) | ⚠️ Caution | NCRB India, UNODC |
| 🇵🇭 Philippines | ~4.3 | Moderate | ✅ Safe | UNODC, Philippine Statistics Authority |
| 🇨🇳 China | <5.6 (est. global avg) | Likely moderate | ✅ Likely safe | UNODC estimates, limited transparency |
Data sources:
- UNODC: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (https://dataunodc.un.org)
- Numbeo: Community-sourced crime data index (https://www.numbeo.com/crime/)
- OECD: Crime indicators for developed nations.
- NCRB India: National Crime Records Bureau of India.
National stats authorities: Country-specific police or statistical offices.
General crime obviously varies per region, and we would always recommend you research the specific location you are travelling to and compare it to your local statistics. Generally speaking, as you can see in the table, most of Asia is considered safe, and in fact Singapore, South Korea and Japan rank amongst some of the safest places in the world to travel.
Just so you are aware, in the above India has a notably higher crime rate so travel with caution and the data on China is a lot less transparent but is reported and estimated to be low.
Most Common & Recommended Destinations
Asia has some fantastic and diverse places to visit, it’s almost impossible to narrow down a list of destinations to recommend to our readers… but we’ve done it! Here’s a list of some of the top destinations that we would strongly recommend, with a few must see areas and the type of📍 Kyoto, Japan
The former capital of Japan and its cultural heart, Kyoto is a beautiful city home to well over 1,600 Buddhist temples. Surrounded by natural forested hills and charming traditional streets, blended with modern life - it really feels like a once in a lifetime experience.
- Why should you go? Fantastic experience of traditional Japan, a once in a lifetime opportunity to visit an amazingly picturesque city.
- Expense rating: Moderately
- $100-180 per night for a mid-range hotel
- Must-see’s: Fushimi Inari Taisha, Arashiyama Bamboo Grove & the Gion District
- Best for travellers who love: History, culture and peaceful surroundings
- Types of travellers: Great for families, couples & solo travellers
📍 Hoi An, Vietnam
An ancient and beautiful town full of riverside cafes you can enjoy in the lantern lit nights. Not only does it offer exceptional value it has a very charming, UNESCO architecture as well as offering diverse options from shopping, to beaches and even countryside - it has a bit of everything!
We almost guarantee you’ll travel here, and want to come again.
- Why should you go? It offers a unique charm at budget prices, packed with culture.
- Expense rating: Low
- $30-60 per night for a mid-range hotel
- Must-see’s: The Night Market, Chùa Cầu & An Bang Beach
- Best for travellers who love: Backpackers, wellness & creative photography types
- Types of travellers: Budget travelers, couples & backpackers
📍 Bali, Indonesia
It’s beautiful, affordable and offers an infrastructure basically built around tourism - which makes it an extremely popular destination for all the right reasons. It’s a wonderful trip for wellness seekers and beach lovers, whilst also being common with digital nomads.
It’s a fantastic mix of volcanic mountains, spiritual culture, temples, beaches, and an amazing food scene.
- Why should you go? It’s got something for pretty much everyone, and predominantly, it’s so relaxing!
- Expense rating: Medium
- $40-90 per night for a mid-ranged hotel
- Must-see’s: Ubud, Tegalalang Rice Terraces & Tirta Empul
- Best for travellers who love: Nature, spirituality and relaxation
- Types of travellers: Solo travellers, families, couples & wellness seekers
📍 Bangkok, Thailand
It’s an incredible place with high-energy, packed with culture and ancient temples amongst the hustle and bustle of a busy city - oh, and there’s some fantastic roof top bars to enjoy. It’s a wonderful destination if you want a place to experience variety, from the grand palaces, to the legendary street food and giant malls.
- Why should you go? There’s always something diverse to do
- Expense rating: Low to Medium
- $40-90 per night for a mid-ranged hotel (but food is very cheap, about $3 for a meal)
- Must-see’s: Grand Palace, Wat Arun, Chaophraya River Cruise & Asiatique the Riverfront
- Best for travellers who love: Food, history, culture and shopping
- Types of travellers: Nightlife Lovers, Couples, First timers in Asia, Shoppers & Solo Travellers
📍 Seoul, South Korea
A modern yet historically rich city that provides a great contrast of experiences, it’s an incredibly stylish and safe city to visit and suits just about every traveller. It offers the fantastic tech of Tokyo but the more traditional routes of Kyoto, which is why it made the list.
- Why should you go? It offers a fantastic mix of high end tech, fashion and innovation, but within distance of some great hikes and buddhist temples.
- Expense rating: Medium
- $60-120 per night for a mid-ranged hotel
- Must-see’s: Gyeongbokgung Palace, Bukchon Hanok Village & Dongdaemun Design Plaza
- Best for travellers who love: Design, Aesthetics, Pop Culture, Technology and History
- Types of travellers: Solo Travellers, Couples & Fans of Culture
Although parts of Jaipur are undoubtedly worth visiting, we would recommend choosing an alternative location to travel. The area is particularly rife for scams, pickpockets, ticket touts and harassment, as well as other more serious crimes.
The main reason we advise against travelling to the city has to be the scams, and if you are set on going you need to be aware that you are likely to encounter some, the UK Government offers a pretty indepth foreign travel advice guide on what to watch out for in India, and Jaipur is the main offender, it doesn’t take much research to find some horror stories and our experience wasn’t too fabulous either!
Manila at the moment is a pretty dangerous place to travel, and on top of that it’s quite dirty, overcrowded and noisy - it’s overall, from our experience, just not a pleasant place to visit.
The area is rife with terrorism, scammers, overcharges and pickpocketers to name but a few of the issues. The Australian Government are also warning to exercise a high degree of caution due to the high threat of terrorism and kidnapping.
Some specific areas of Myanmar we would strongly advise to avoid, there are active conflicts between armed groups across many of the states and regions. We would recommend staying away from the northern parts of Shan State, any of the border regions and Kachin Southern Chin - but please always do your research with your local government before travelling as the areas often change and with it, travel advice.
Most Common Asia Travel Scams To Avoid
Just like with anywhere else in the world, but perhaps more commonly in Asia, there are scammers and grifters looking to take your hard earned money – and it can often happen straight from the airport, in several locations. There are a few common scams that you should be aware of that occur across Asia, so here are a few things to what out for, how they work, and how to avoid them.Travel (Taxis or Tuk-Tuks)
This is by far and away the most common scam that you’ll come across, and it can be prevalent even in marked taxis - it’s common in Thailand, Vietnam, India, Indonesia and Philippines.
What To Watch For:
- The driver may not turn on the meter when you get in the car, most meters offer genuine rates and you should always ensure this is turned on.
- The meter is turned on, but going up much faster than it should be. If this is the case, settle the bill and ask to get out.
- The driver might take the scenic route, often driving you in circles to increase the bill.
How To Avoid It:
- Where possible, use Uber, Grab or Bolt apps as these give you a pre-arranged price.
- If it’s a Tuk-Tuk, which won’t have a meter, make sure you pre-agree a price. A great additional tip here is to use an app like Uber, Grab or Bolt, to see how much the price of the journey should cost.
- Always keep Google Maps open and ensure you are going on the best route to your destination.
Gem, Silk or Tailoring Scams
Another common type of scam is local trades shops that sell silk, gems or tailored suits, but it may also have branched to more goods. It’s common particularly in Thailand, India and Vietnam.
What To Watch For:
- A person approaching you in the street trying to entice you into a shop by offering cheaper priced goods.
- The deal will often seem good for the quality of the product, have you heard the saying “too good to be true”? This applies! They will often swap out the product for an inferior one, and you’ll pay massively over the odds.
How To Avoid It:
- Don’t allow people to entice you into specific shops from the street, schedule your shopping visits beforehand.
- Always do your own research on the shop, you can usually do this by searching on Google and reading that shops specific Google Reviews.
The [LOCATION] is Closed Scam
This is a common scam in a lot of areas of Asia, and it’s typically when someone outside a specific location like a temple or hotel will tell you that it’s closed. They will then either try and sell you overpriced tickets for another place, or sell you fake tickets all together.
What To Watch For:
- Often in front of busy tourist destinations you’ll be approached just before the main entrance.
- If it’s a hotel, then similar will occur and they may strike up a conversation to find out where you are staying.
How to Avoid It:
- Well it sounds simple, but don’t fall for it! Always check yourself if the place is actually closed before trusting someone outside, no matter how official it looks.
- Check online, or with someone you trust, such as your hotel, whether it’s going to be open.
Fake Ticket Touts & Tours
This is another scam that is unfortunately across all of Asia, fake tickets, and it’s not just exclusive to people you may meet on the street and it can actually happen online with fake websites.
What To Watch For:
- People approaching you trying to sell cut price tickets.
- Websites that are selling tickets but with little to no reviews.
How To Avoid It:
- Research reviews and the area before you visit, find out where you can buy official tickets.
- Book tickets at train stations or certified travel desks.
- Make sure you use official websites or your hotels recommendations, it isn’t worth it to your hotel to ruin their reputation.
Temple Donations
As you may very quickly find out if you visit any of the wonderful temples that Asia has to offer, you may get asked for donations, and sometimes it can be fairly aggressive. These are usually fake “monks” of some kind, and they simply keep your money.
What To Watch Out For:
- People of religion, such as monks, don’t tend to directly ask you for money. There may be a donation box of some kind within or just on the outside of the temple itself.
How To Avoid It:
- You just have to politely decline and keep walking away.
The Damage Scam (Hired Vehicles)
This can occur when you rent pretty much any vehicle, but it’s more common with lower cost vehicles like scooters or jet skis. Although it can happen anywhere in Asia, it’s particularly common in Thailand, Bali and Vietnam, and it happens when you return a vehicle, and they claim that you’ve damaged it.
What To Watch Out For:
- Small and cheap beach stalls or street vendors.
- Lots of vehicles with pre-existing damage, as it can be very hard to document all this prior to taking the rental.
How To Avoid It:
- Research the company online before you rent with them, there are a lot of small suppliers that have no online footprint and it’s extremely risky to rent from those.
- Take loads of photos and videos before accepting the rental.
Fake Police or Authority Figures
This one is pretty shocking, and it most commonly occurs in India, Indonesia and Thailand. It’s when a person impersonates a police office or ticket inspector.
What To Watch Out For:
- The “fake” police asking to see your ID, visa or ticket - they then try and bribe you to get them back.
- If a policeman asks for your documents but adds urgency, threats or further claims.
- If they ask for any documents or details that seem strange, like to pay a fine on the spot.
How To Avoid It:
- Before handing over any documentation make sure you ask for their ID and insist on travelling to the police station.
- Carry copies of your legitimate documents and keep the originals to yourself.
Our main recommendation to stay safe and avoid scams is to use common sense, if something sounds out of the ordinary it probably is. Don’t feel guilty walking away, and always ask people the price upfront are two sound pieces of advice to live by when travelling.
🛂 Visa
You might require a Visa, depending where you are travelling from. This depends where you are travelling from, and too. There’s a really nifty tool on Passport Index that shows whether you need one once you put your passport country and travel destination - but with that being said, we would always recommend researching your local government website.
💵 Cash Can Still Be King
If you’re like me, then you might have given up on cash a fair while ago - but in a lot of Asia there are many places that will only accept cash so always carry at least a small amount.
🌧️ Weather
Monsoon seasons are serious, and you may well want to avoid them when planning your trip.
- Thailand (Main Island) - May to October
- Thailand (Islands) - Opposite seasons per coast
- Vietnam (North) - May to September
- Vietnam (Central) - September to December
- Vietnam (South) - May to November
- Cambodia & Laos - May to October
- Myanmar - May to October
- Malaysia (West) - May to October
- Malaysia (East) - November to February
- Indonesia - November to March
- Philippines - May to October
- India - June to September
- Nepal - June to September
- Sri Lanka (SW) - May to September
- Sri Lanka (NE) - October to January
- Bangladesh - June to October
- Japan - Early June to Mid July
- South Korea - June to July
- Taiwan - May to September
- China (South) - May to September
🙏 Etiquette
The etiquette varies wildly depending on which country you are in. There are often certain rules, here are just a few of the most common that you may want to research before your trip.
- Shoes off indoors: Often in temples but sometimes even in homes and restaurants.
- Dress modestly: This is common in Muslim-majority areas.
- Don’t display affection publicly: This can be frowned upon in a lot of Asian cultures.
- Respect elders: Especially in Japan, Korea and China.
- Don’t point your feet at people or Buddha: Considered disrespectful in a lot of Southeast Asia.
💉 Vaccinations
It’s recommended to get some vaccinations when travelling to Asia, including Hepatitis A & B, Typhoid and Tetanus.
🚰 Food & Water
In a lot of Asia you should avoid the tap water as it’s not safe to drink, you should also be wary of food as safety standards are often lower than Western countries - there’s no strict advice we can give on this other than to trust your eyes and nose, eat where the locals eat!
🧍♀️ Solo Female Travel
This can obviously be a great experience, extremely rewarding and we don’t want to put anyone off doing this! But there are a few countries you should take extra care of like India, and parts of Southeast Asia as you may face more attention. If you visit nightlife areas then just always ensure that your drink is guarded and you’re within a trusted and safe group.
💸 Tipping
If you come from a culture where tipping is the norm, don’t just expect it when travelling. It may be seen as appreciated, but in some countries in Asia it’s actually seen as rude, such as South Korea and Japan. It’s generally never expected.
📶 Keep Connected (eSIMs)
The introduction of cheap eSIMs is a god send in Asia! You can activate a local data plan by just using an app, and it’s relatively cheap, just make sure you activate them before you leave a Wi-Fi area. Some great companies we would recommend include:
📱 Download Essential Travel Apps
I know, I feel like I’m forever downloading apps too, but there are a few fantastic apps that you should have in a little travel folder which can be extremely useful:
- Grab / Gojek / Bolt – Ride-hailing in Southeast Asia
- Google Maps & Maps.me – Offline navigation
- Google Translate – Use camera mode for menus & signs
- Rome2Rio – Regional travel logistics
- 12Go Asia – Book buses, trains, and ferries
- Agoda / Booking.com – Local-friendly accommodation platforms
🧼 Hygiene & Health
There are a few health tips that are gospel when travelling in a lot of places in Asia, here are some of our main ones:
- Carry tissue/toilet roll: It’s not always available in public bathrooms!
- Wet wipes & sanitisers: These are an essential
- Bring rehydration: Whether that be in the form of electrolytes or rehydration, a lot of Asia can have extremely hot and humid climates
How long should I spend in Asia?
It depends on where you’re going, but we would recommend a minimum of a week to 10 days, it’s quite easy to fill.
When is the best time to travel to the continent?
Again it kind of depends where, we have a guide on monsoon seasons and you should try avoid them if possible. The dry seasons tend to be between November and March, but if you go to Japan or Korea for instance we would recommend March to April for the cherry blossoms.
Will I face significant language barriers?
In more rural locations, definitely. In our experience however, in the bigger cities you can definitely get by as basic English is generally widely spoken.
Edit Log
- 08/06/2025 – First published by Mathew McCorry, content checked in accordance with Editorial Guidelines.
- 15/06/2025 – Finalised content and formatting.
