As winter approaches, many Canadians think about travel to tropical countries.
Most tourist hot spots are safe, particularly in resort areas, but it is a good idea to check out the latest advisories before planning a trip.
The federal government maintains a Travel Advice and Advisories page to help travellers make informed decisions and travel safely outside Canada.
They analyze trends and incidents affecting international travellers, monitor world events and collect updated reports from different sources.
Here are some of the tropical countries with updated travel advisories:
Costa Rica
Risks: Crime and dengue.
Reasons: Petty crime, such as pickpocketing and purse snatching, occurs frequently. Tourists are common targets for theft because they are perceived as being wealthy.
House burglary, theft from cars, and vehicle theft are frequent. Passport theft is also extremely common and increases in frequency during the peak tourist seasons, from November to May and from July to August.
Costa Rica has a new …