The 22 travel destinations Australian travellers are being warned to avoid in 2025
If you're dreaming of an international holiday in 2025 and aren't sure where to go, there are more than 20 destinations you can strike off the list immediately.
Smartraveller keeps an updated record of travel advisories for countries around the world based on information from embassies, high commissions, consulates, the Australian intelligence community and the National Threat Assessment Centre in ASIO.
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If you're dreaming of an international holiday in 2025, avoid these locations. Getty
Each country is given an "overall advice" level, which ranges from "Exercise normal safety precautions" in the safest locations to "Do not travel" for the destinations where the safety of Australian travellers is most at-risk.
Heading into 2025, Smartraveller has 22 destinations listed as "Do not travel" due to ongoing safety issues, from the threat of terrorism and violent crime, to strict laws and "uncertain security situations".
Three European destinations made the list: Belarus, Russia and Ukraine.
All three have been flagged due to the "volatile security environment" caused by Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine, which has threatened to spill into neighbouring Belarus.
Australians have also been warned not to travel to Russia because of the "dangerous security situation" in the country, as well as the risk of arbitrary detention or arrest.
Three Asian nations are also listed as "Do not travel": Afghanistan, North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), and Myanmar.
Terrorism and kidnappings are common in Afghanistan and foreigners are regularly targeted, hence why Australian travellers are strongly advised against travelling there.
North Korea's borders are effectively closed to Australians, so travel there is limited to begin with, but tourists are warned to stay away as the laws in North Korea are very different and there's a high risk of arbitrary detention or arrest.
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North Korea's borders are effectively closed to Australians, so travel to cities like Pyongyang (pictured) is limited. Getty Images/iStockphoto
In Myanmar, violence, detentions, and trafficking are widespread and Aussies are urged not to travel there.
Only two destinations from the Americas are listed as "Do not travel": Haiti and Venezuela - both due to overall security risks, the threat of violent crimes and shortages of basic necessities like food, water and fuel.
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In the Middle East, five locations currently have "Do not travel advisories": Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen and Syria.
The ongoing military conflict between Israel and Lebanon and the Occupied Palestinian Territories has caused tensions across several nations in the Middle East and Aussie travellers are warned not to travel to any of these locations for their own safety.
This photo of a beach in Yemen may look peaceful, but Australians have been warned to stay away. iStock
Africa is the continent with the most countries listed as "Do not travel" by Smartraveller, with nine destinations currently flagged: Burkina Faso, Somalia, Libya, South Sudan, Sudan, the Central African Republic, Chad, Mali and Niger.
Most of these nations have been flagged as dangerous for Australian travellers due to the high threat of armed conflict, terrorism, kidnapping and violent crime.
