While some of the world’s most remote destinations are often associated with extreme luxury due to how difficult they are to access, isolation often comes with its own dangers in the form of either attacks or health emergencies.

The U.S. State Department recently updated its travel advisory for the Asian island nation of the Maldives to say that remoteness of specific islands “can lengthen the response time of authorities,” while similar wording has also been used for countries and territories like The Seychelles, Tahiti, French Polynesia, Easter Island, and Papua New Guinea.

On October 7, the U.S. government updated its advisory for Equatorial Guinea. A tiny country on the west coast of Africa, the nation quickly joined the list of the continent’s wealthiest after oil was discovered there in the 1980s. But due to the rampant inequality between the general population and the country’s uber-wealthy elite, the State Department travel advisory focuses on petty crime and police response.

“Risk of crime, health, and arbitrary enforcement of laws”: State Department

Despite its small size, Equatorial Guinea is made up of both a mainland and five separate islands; the capital of Malabo is located off the mainland on the Bioko island.

“Exercise increased caution in Equatorial Guinea due to risk of crime, health, and arbitrary enforcement of laws,” the updated advisory reads. “[…] Petty crime is common throughout the country. Local police may lack the resources to respond effectively to reports of crime, even serious crime.”

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Equatorial Guinea remains at the Level Two “exercise increased caution” rating also assigned to countries such as Italy, France, and China. The latest update tweaks some of the language around specific risks — petty crime and health facilities in case of emergencies — but does not alter the safety level itself.

The advisory suggests always keeping one’s identity documents on hand during travel throughout the country and remaining alert when out in the cities alone and especially at night.

Equatorial Guinea is made up of both a mainland and five separate islands.

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“Make sure you have medical or travel insurance that includes medical evacuation”

“Medical services in Equatorial Guinea are limited,” the travel advisory reads further. “There are no adequate trauma or ambulance services. Even minor health issues may require medical evacuation at the traveler’s expense. Be sure to bring enough prescription medications to last the entire duration of your trip. Make sure you have medical or travel insurance that includes medical evacuation.”

The State Department periodically issues updates for countries without changing the overall ranking based on current events or specific situations at the destination. A full change in advisory ranking, meanwhile, is usually preceded only by an outbreak of military conflict or significant shift in diplomatic relations with the U.S.

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In September, the U.S. Embassy in Peru published travel advisories about transportation disruptions due to ongoing protests around the popular UNESCO site Machu Picchu and the border zone between Armenia and Azerbaijan that most governments treat as a no-go zone, despite the fact that both countries are both seen as very safe destinations on their own.

“Past military action has occurred near the Armenia-Azerbaijan border and there is potential for armed conflict in the area,” the update issued on Sept. 17 now reads.

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