- Travel Advice
DFAT advice for Haiti
When travelling to Haiti, you should always get travel insurance in case the worst happens. To help you ensure you travel safely, we have included the travel advice from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for Haiti.
| Haiti overall | This Advice is current for Monday, 22 March 2010. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Be alert to own security | Exercise caution | High degree of caution | Reconsider your need to travel | Do not travel |
This advice has been reviewed and reissued. It contains new information in the Summary and under Where to Get Help (Australians in need of consular assistance). The overall level of the advice has not changed.
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Summary
- We advise you to reconsider your need to travel to Haiti at this time because of ongoing political instability, lawlessness and high levels of serious crime.
- If you do decide to travel to Haiti, you should exercise extreme caution.
- You should avoid all demonstrations and protests as they have a high risk of turning violent. We recommend you monitor the local media for new safety and security threats.
- On 12 January 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake occurred 22 kilometres west of the capital Port-au-Prince, causing many thousands of casualties. A state of emergency has now been declared. There has been widespread damage to critical infrastructure, including health services, roads, telecommunications and other utilities. There are severe shortages of basic necessities such as food, water and medical supplies. There is a high risk of disease outbreaks. Several aftershocks have occurred and there may be more.
- The security situation is unstable and violence in Port-au-Prince appears to be increasing. There have been reports of looting and civil unrest. You should take precautions to ensure your personal security and safeguard personal property, particularly at night.
- Australians in Haiti should follow the instructions of local authorities and consider leaving as soon as possible unless they have a compelling reason to stay. Australians considering going to Haiti should carefully evaluate their need to travel to Haiti at this time.
- Hurricane season is June to November when landslides, mudslides, flooding and disruptions to essential services may occur. Monitor local media reports and follow the instructions of local emergency officials.
- If you are travelling to Haiti during hurricane season, you should contact your tour operator to check whether services at your planned destination have been affected.
- Given the unpredictable security situation, we strongly recommend that you register your travel and contact details with us, so we can contact you in an emergency.
- Australia does not have an Embassy or Consulate in Haiti. Australians in need of consular assistance should contact the Australian High Commission in Trinidad and Tobago (see Where to Get Help section). If disruption to communication links prevents you from doing so, you should direct your enquiry through the Canadian Embassy in Port-au-Prince.
- Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 has spread throughout the world. The World Health Organisation (WHO) provides useful information for individuals and travellers on its website. For further information and advice to Australians, including on possible quarantine measures overseas, see our travel bulletin on Pandemic (H1N1) 2009.
- Be a smart traveller. Before heading overseas:
- organise comprehensive travel insurance and check what circumstances and activities are not covered by your policy
- subscribe to this travel advice to receive free email updates each time it's reissued.
