All United States State Department travel advisories are not created equally. The agency, for example, has given Haiti its highest-level travel advisory, a Level 4 "Do Not Travel" warning.

It spells out what that means on its website.

"Since March 2024, Haiti has been under a State of Emergency. Crimes involving firearms are common in Haiti. They include robbery, carjackings, sexual assault, and kidnappings for ransom. Kidnapping is widespread, and U.S. citizens have been victims and have been hurt or killed...Kidnapping cases often involve ransom requests. Victims' families have paid thousands of dollars to rescue their family members," it shared on Sept. 18.

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That warning has led to a lot of Royal Caribbean passengers being concerned when they see Labadee, Haiti on their cruise itinerary. The reality, however, is that Labadee is a fenced-in, guarded section of Haiti that's nowhere near a population center.

There are no excursions outside the protected area in Labadee, and if an angry mob did decide to head toward Royal Caribbean's private beach destination, the cruise line would have plenty of time to evacuate passengers and staff safely.

So, just because the State Department issues a warning about a destination, that does not mean you should not go there. It is, however, important to read exactly what the U.S. government agency is worried about so you can follow that advice.

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The U.S. State Department uses a four-level warning system and only destinations it only tells travelers not to visit a location when it issues a Level 4 warning. The four levels are:

All four are warnings, but you can see that Level 3 and Level 4 are very severely worded. In nearly all cases, cruise lines would not stop in those ports.

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On Nov. 7 and Nov. 8, the State Department issued new or revised warnings for three destinations that major cruise lines call on. That includes one, El Salvador, where the warning has been downgraded from Level 3 to Level 2.

Carnival's Holland America Line and Princess Cruises stop in El Salvador on Panama Canal crossing sailings, as do Norwegian's Oceania and Regent Seven Seas brands.

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Located on Africa's west coast, Togo may not be the first place Americans think of when cruising, but it's a popular stop that's called on by Regent Seven Seas, Oceania, and Carnival's Seabourn brand.

Its level has been downgraded from a Level 1 warning to a Level 2 due to "terrorism, crime, civil unrest, and kidnapping, according to the State Department.

Lastly, the State Department has added some more information to its Level 2 warning about travel to South Africa to reflect new information on kidnappings.

Cape Town, South Africa, is a port for Norwegian Cruise Line, Seven Seas Voyager, Seabourn, Princess, MSC Cruises, and a number of niche cruise lines.

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