Recently, Reddit user Catwinky posed the question, "Which countries DON'T seem dangerous, but really are?" to the people of AskReddit. And their responses may actually shock you. Check it out:
1. Norway — "Each year quite a lot of tourists die here because they underestimate nature. People come here to get some amazing pictures like they’ve seen online and then don’t realize that you need appropriate clothes/gear and should probably not take a selfie at the edge of a giant drop. Also, since it’s regularly asked in r/Norway: No, you can’t just go hiking in northern Norway in the winter without skis/snowshoes, especially not in avalanche-prone areas."
2. The Netherlands — "When I was in Amsterdam, I had a drug dealer following me. He told me all the drugs he was selling, and I said no thanks. He followed me for around six blocks constantly repeating all the drugs he could sell me. I turned into a hotel, and he still followed me until I loudly said I don’t want your fucking drugs. He bolted out of there."
"You’d be surprised about the amount of human trafficking that happens here."
"Fun fact: The most active Mafia/criminal group that is involved in importing drugs in the EU is not the Italian Mafia or the French Mafia like most people would expect, it's the (Dutch and Belgian)-Moroccan Mafia (also called the Mocro Mafia). They control Europe's biggest port (Rotterdam) and have significant influence in other major ports such as Amsterdam and Bruges (Belgium). The drugs are routed from South America to the EU through Dutch former colonies and overseas territories. While drug trafficking is their main activity, they are also involved in arms, human, and stolen car trafficking."
3. Vietnam — "The traffic. One of the highest rates of traffic fatalities in the world."
4. Canada — "In the more touristy areas of Western Canada there's an ongoing problem with tourists putting themselves in awful situations and sometimes paying for it with their lives. If you're hiking in the mountains on a remote trail, then DON'T leave the path, DON'T take a 'shortcut,' and DON'T underestimate how long it will take to find you if you get lost and how harsh the elements are if you're delayed/injured for any reason and don't have appropriate gear. Also, wild animals are WILD ANIMALS. Just because a beaver is cute doesn't mean it's not scared of you, and if it's scared of you and you corner it, it WILL attack you to defend itself, and since it's capable of cutting down trees with its teeth, it won't have much trouble biting through your leg."
"Canada is inverse Australia. In Australia, everything looks terrifying, but if you keep your distance, most of it just wants to be left alone, and most of the time, it's just as terrified of you (except for the birds, they're just jerks). In Canada, everything looks adorable, very little of it is afraid of humans due to habituation to direct contact because no one respects the danger, and all of it will absolutely rip your throat out."
"That beaver can chew through a maple tree in minutes, do you want to know what the overgrown lake rat will do to a femur? That moose can walk away from a collision with a semi-truck, weighs more than a small car, outrun you, and will not think twice about turning you into an antler ornament. The deer will not think twice about eating you if you happen to get gored to death. I'm going to say that once again. The Deer. Will Eat. You."
5. Australia — "I've met plenty of European tourists who have wanted to drive through the outback while woefully underprepared. Just basic stuff like not knowing what to do in an emergency and not having enough water. It's not a joke. People die out there all the time, and it'll be 40 degrees (celsius) and hundreds of kilometers before you see someone again if something goes wrong."
6. New Zealand — "We don't have any animals, insects, or snakes, etc. that will kill you. But we have the most amazing hole in our Ozone layer. White people will get sunburnt within 30 minutes in the summer unprotected. I get sunburnt within 15. If I spent a whole day in the sun without protection, I'd be willing to bet I'd still be sunburnt/peeling a month later."
7. Sweden — "It's all sleek design and meatballs until you stumble into a moose traffic jam."
8. Ireland — "Has a strong and growing antisocial behavior problem that is not being sufficiently addressed."
9. Trinidad — "The capital has some of the most dangerous places on earth."
10. Jamaica — "I've been all over the Caribbean, and while you might worry about getting ripped off on the other islands, Jamaica is where I worry about being robbed, or worse."
11. Nepal — "Climbing the world's highest mountains is a big seasonal tourist draw, but a certain percentage always die trying."
12. Denmark — "Many Germans go to vacation on the western coast of the Jutland peninsula. Too many of them don’t know that you do not fuck with the North Sea. Riptides are somewhat common and scary as hell. The current and waves can be more violent than expected if you’re not used to the sea. You can go swimming pretty safely, but don’t be an idiot and definitely don’t go out on an inflatable mattress that will float halfway to England before you realize what’s going on."
13. Thailand — "I backpacked Thailand and had many scary instances. Tourism is number one there, and any incident is swept under the table. I saw someone pull a gun on a tourist in a restaurant. I was stung by a box jellyfish and couldn’t feel my legs. I went to the hospital and was told by a doctor that a tourist had died that very same day on the very same beach. No signs or warnings at the beach. The beach was full. I would never have known if I didn’t go to the hospital. A tourist was bartering with a seller. The seller pulled out a knife and threatened the tourist. The tourist took off. Everything continued as normal."
14. Belgium — "I've never traveled outside of Europe, but I've never felt as unsafe as I did in Brussels. Charleroi wasn't that great either. However, Flanders was super nice and clean."
15. Japan — "It is certainly not dangerous in the grand scheme of things, but I think the 'omg it’s so safe' thing is dramatically overhyped. The fact is that 'incidents' in Japan simply do not get reported to the police. As an American who lived there for four years, I encountered a fair bit of sketchy situations…drunken, violent misbehavior, outright physical abuse in families/couples, blatant theft, stalking, etc. Not one of those incidents was reported to the police. You won’t ever get shot or mugged in Japan, but you certainly should maintain situational awareness."
"If you're trying to enjoy the nightlife, you have to watch out for shady promoters/scammers who will try to pull you into their bars and then steal your money."
16. Iceland — "The earth can crack apart, swallow you whole, and create a new volcano anytime."
17. United Arab Emirates — "Those guys can lock you up and throw away the key and are by my estimate around 500 years off from developing the concept of 'due process.'"
18. Belize — "Walking through downtown Belize City from the ferry to the bus station, buddy on a porch yells at me, 'You don't go down this road, man. You go back where you started and take a taxi.'"
19. Finally, the United States — "Europeans don’t quite understand the sheer scale of our nature and wildlife. Backpacking here isn’t taking a paved trail between quaint mountain chalets without any wildlife worse than a grumpy badger; it’s being the only soul for miles of rough wilderness with no cell service and potentially mountain lions and grizzly bears. If you really want the true American wilderness experience, I’ve heard Gates of the Arctic National Park is that to the extreme. You may have to fly into the park on a bush plane."
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.