With summer bookings ramping up, Global Affairs Canada (GAC) published an updated list of countries carrying elevated travel-risk ratings on 30 April 2026. The advisory warns Canadians to “avoid all travel” to Kuwait—and maintains the same level for Afghanistan, Iran, Libya and several Sahel states—citing fallout from the widening Middle-East conflict and volatile fuel prices. Mexico, Ecuador, Djibouti and Algeria are now listed under “exercise a high degree of caution with regional advisories”, while Spain and the Netherlands receive the lesser “exercise a high degree of caution” designation. Japan, Uruguay and Zambia remain in the lowest “take normal security precautions” tier. GAC highlights the knock-on effect of Middle-East airspace restrictions, which are forcing carriers onto longer routings and pushing up ticket prices. Travellers are urged to confirm flights 48 hours before departure, carry contingency funds, and purchase insurance that covers war-related disruptions. For corporate travel managers, the advisory may trigger duty-of-care reviews. Companies should verify that journeys to newly listed destinations comply with internal risk thresholds and that evacuation plans account for fuel shortages and limited consular support. Because several popular leisure markets (Spain, Mexico) are affected, organisations with “bleisure” or remote-work policies should remind employees that official advisories can invalidate standard travel-insurance policies if ignored.
Source: Time Out Canada
