As boring as it is, your parents taught you ‘safety first’ for a reason. Nothing will ruin a trip faster than having your phone nicked, or just generally feeling on edge wherever you go. If you want your next holiday to be stress-free, it might be worth heading somewhere known for its safety.
But short of trawling through recent crime statistics, it’s not easy to know where visitors do and don’t feel secure – that’s where insurance company Berkshire Hathaway Travel Protection (BHTP) comes in.
Every year, it polls loads of people on where they’ve travelled to in recent years, and how safe they felt in each place; particularly if they are women, part of the LGBTQ+ community, or members of another marginalised group. Then, it combines those findings with stats from the Global Peace Index and other similar indexes, and calculates exactly where on Earth travellers can rest easy in 2026.
Iceland knocked off the top spot
Last year, Iceland came out on top, but this year it has been relegated to fourth place, with the Netherlands taking its place. This is particularly impressive because the Netherlands came 14th overall last year.
🛌 Check out the best Netherlands Airbnbs.
BHTP said that the nation’s secret to success was simple: ‘It’s a peace-loving place’. Women, LGBTQ+ people, and people of colour all reported feeling very welcome by the Dutch, and rated its healthcare measures highly. Your biggest safety concerns will probably come from rogue cyclists or rowdy tourists.
In second place, holding its position in last year’s ranking, was Australia. They’ve got things sorted out down under, with great healthcare for visitors and low rates of terrorist activity. According to the Aussies, it’s all because of ‘a stable political system, low crime rate, and strict biosecurity and gun control laws’.
This was Austria’s first year involved in the study, and it made a pretty impressive debut, taking the bronze. The Central European nation earned its place for its strong performance in multiple external peace indexes, including Numbeo and the Global Peace Index.
The safest countries for travellers in 2026
Here are the 15 safest countries to travel to in 2026, according to research from Berkshire Hathaway Travel Protection:
- Netherlands
- Australia
- Austria
- Iceland
- Canada
- New Zealand
- United Arab Emirates
- Switzerland
- Japan
- Ireland
- Belgium
- Portugal
- France
- United Kingdom
- Denmark
You can read the study in more detail here.
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