Where to go for official advice

According to a recent survey conducted by Redfern Research, only 1 in 4 travelers consult government advice when they are researching their trips. What are you missing, and where can you find it?

According to Redfern, one of the reasons so few people consult government sources is that they are not aware of the services and information governments have started to provide in the past few years. Government advice is well-researched and reviewed, and contains the information that travelers need to know, such as current issues, travel warnings, country information and visa requirements.

For English-speaking travelers, here are the main advice sources:

• Smartraveller.gov.au (Australia Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade)
• Voyage.gc.ca (Canada Foreign Affairs and International Trade Office)
• Safetravel.govt.nz (New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade)
• Foreign & Commonwealth Office (United Kingdom)
• Travel.state.gov (United States Department of State)

While you should always check your government's advice for your travel destination, it never hurts to compare the content with other governments. Different countries have access to different levels of information based on diplomatic relations and geographic proximity.