Note: in this post, I’m talking about places where you may fear for your physical safety and well-being, generally due to increased crime rates in the area.
Bad things can happen anywhere – we had felt very safe when we were almost mugged in Puerto Rico, and I have friends who have had purses and wallets swiped in some of the biggest cities in Europe. These instances are scary, even more so because they are unexpected. If you feel comfortable in a spot, you likely aren’t “on guard” and you become a much easier target.
However, we also found the opposite to be true when we booked our flights to Fortaleza, Brazil. We got a Scott’s Cheap Flights alert that tickets out of Orlando were super cheap, and before jumping on the deal, we did some research. Did you know that Fortaleza is consistently ranked one of the most dangerous cities in the world? According to this USA Today article, Fortaleza was the 9th most dangerous city in the world in 2019 (the year we visited).
Did we really want to vacation in a place like that?
After a lot more research, we decided that yes, we did – but only with a lot of precautions taken to help us feel more at ease. These precautions included:
- Start with a short trip. We opted to only stay in Fortaleza for four days, even though the flights were the same cost for a seven- or nine-day trip. If we felt unsafe while we were there, we wanted to make sure we weren’t “trapped” for a week or more. We figured four days gave us enough time to get a feel for the city and decide if we wanted to come back in the future.
- Prepare for the worst. Before we left, we purchased Egnaro silicone rings to wear instead of our wedding bands, and I didn’t bring any additional jewelry with me to avoid being too “flashy.” We also packed our old cell phones with us so, in the event our phones were taken, we would still be able to communicate with our families (and check in for our flight home).
- Research reputable service providers. Normally, we’re very comfortable staying in an Airbnb or hailing a cab, but we spent extra time researching reputable service providers in Fortaleza to keep us from being caught unawares. As it turned out, it’s most reliable to use Uber in the area, so that’s what we did throughout our trip. We stayed at the Hotel Gran Marquise based on its excellent reviews, and it was perfect for us. It was also incredibly helpful to have the staff (fluent in many languages) as a resource!
- Create a “bubble.” The first day we were in the city, we created a small “bubble” around our hotel where we felt comfortable walking around. Initially, this involved being able to see the hotel from wherever we walked, but when we found the biggest “concern” to be people beckoning us into their restaurants, we gradually expanded our distance. By our last day, we were catching Ubers and traveling a few miles away.
- Be aware. Everyone says this because it’s true, but keep your wits about you. This was especially important for us because we don’t speak Portuguese, but it applies to traveling anywhere. Don’t sling your purse across the back of your chair or leave your phone on the table. While I normally keep my phone in my back pocket, I spent our entire trip with it in the front, never carrying more than it, my ID, a small amount of cash and one credit card.
Ultimately, we had a great experience in Fortaleza, meeting many very warm and welcoming people; our most uncomfortable moment stemmed from needing to chat with a hotel concierge who didn’t speak English (we got through it with a Spanish-Portuguese hybrid). It didn’t hurt that everything we bought – the hotel room, Ubers, food and drinks – was very inexpensive when compared to the US!
While we had prepared to feel uneasy a lot of the trip, because of the precautions we took, we actually had a great time in one of the world’s most dangerous cities. Just because an area has generally been considered “unsafe” doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy it; you just have to prepare accordingly.