Solo Travel Safety Scorecards 2026: 10 Countries Scored on Safety, Transport and English, Plus the Best for Backpacking, Road Trips and Guided Tours

1. Japan — 73/100

Tokyo · 30,625 km of passenger rail · Numbeo Safety Index 77.2

Japan takes the index on two criteria and loses badly on a third. It scores 27 of 30 on safety, on a Global Peace Index rank of 10 and a Numbeo Safety Index of 77.2, and a full 25 of 25 on transport — the only country here to do so, on a 30,625 km network with a nationwide Japan Rail Pass that no other country in this set matches for coverage. Then it scores 2 of 15 on English: EF places it 96th, in the Low band, the worst position in this index by a distance. That combination is the whole argument of this page. A solo traveller who assumes the top-ranked country will be the easy one will find the signage excellent and the conversation hard. Affordability is the other weak mark, 5 of 15 at $137 a day. Practical detail: tap water is drinkable, the emergency numbers are 110 for police and 119 for fire and ambulance, and the best windows are March to May and late October to November. See our Japan Rail Pass guide before booking a pass you may not need.

2. Norway — 68/100

Oslo · 4,109 km of rail · EF English rank 5, Very High

Norway is the mirror image of Japan. It scores a perfect 15 of 15 on English — EF ranks it fifth in the world — and 15 of 15 on practical access, since an EU passport carries an unlimited stay and the tap water is drinkable everywhere. Where it gives ground is safety and money. A Global Peace Index rank of 33 and a Numbeo score of 66.7 put it at 19 of 30, well behind Slovenia and Japan, and $137 a day earns only 5 of 15. One detail that matters more for a solo traveller than for a couple: Norway does not run a single emergency number. It is 110 for fire, 112 for police and 113 for ambulance, and a person alone with an injury has to pick the right one. Transport scores 14 of 25 on a 4,109 km network with an Interrail one-country pass; the rail is very good and simply does not reach the fjord roads. June to August is the window. Our note on what Norway costs is blunter than this table.

3. Portugal — 66/100

Lisbon · 2,786 km of rail · Global Peace Index rank 7

Portugal is the best-balanced country in the index and the one that loses most to a single criterion. It scores 23 of 30 on safety from a Global Peace Index rank of 7, a full 15 of 15 on English at EF rank 6, and 15 of 15 on access. Then it scores 0 of 15 on affordability, because at $192 a day it is the second most expensive country here, ahead of Norway and behind only Ireland. That will read as wrong to anyone who has backpacked the Algarve, and the explanation is the budget source measures midrange travel, not hostel travel — which is exactly why Portugal still leads the backpacking cut below. Transport is 13 of 25 on 2,786 km with a Interrail one-country pass. April to May and September are the months. The buyer for this record is Turismo de Portugal.

4. Slovenia — 60/100

Ljubljana · Global Peace Index rank 4 · Numbeo Safety Index 75.5

Slovenia has the best raw safety data in this index and cannot show it in the total. Its Global Peace Index rank of 4 is the highest here — above Ireland, Portugal and Japan — and a Numbeo score of 75.5 gives it 27 of 30, tied with Japan. It then scores 0 of 15 on English, not because Slovenes do not speak it but because EF does not rank Slovenia at all, so we have no published figure and will not invent one. That gap costs it the second place its safety record would otherwise argue for, and it is the clearest example on this page of a score that moves the moment someone supplies evidence. Transport is 12 of 25 on 1,229 km, the smallest network here, which matters less than it looks because the country is small enough to cross in a morning. $126 a day, unlimited stay on an EU passport, 112 for emergencies, May to September. The Slovenian Tourist Board holds the record we could not complete.

Not scorable on this record: english coverage. That criterion scores zero until a verifiable source exists.

5. Ireland — 60/100

Dublin · Global Peace Index rank 5 · Numbeo Safety Index 51.0

Ireland is where the two safety measures disagree most sharply, and the disagreement is the useful part. The Global Peace Index ranks it fifth in the world, but Numbeo's Safety Index puts it at 51.0, the second lowest here and barely above Costa Rica. Those measure different things: national peace on one side, perceived street crime on the other, and Dublin drags the second. The combined mark is 17 of 30. English is a free 15 of 15 — EF excludes Ireland as a native-English country, so we award full marks and say so rather than leaving a hole. Affordability is 0 of 15 at $196 a day, the most expensive country in the index. Transport is 13 of 25 on 2,733 km with an Interrail one-country pass that does not reach the Atlantic coast most visitors come for. May, September and October. Tourism Ireland is the body that would want this record corrected.

6. Taiwan — 58/100

Taipei · Numbeo Safety Index 83.0 · 2,033 km of rail

Taiwan has the highest Numbeo Safety Index in this index at 83.0 — higher than Japan, higher than Slovenia — and ranks 42nd on the Global Peace Index, which is the lowest peace rank of any country in the top six. The index weighs both and lands on 24 of 30. For a solo traveller the Numbeo figure is the more directly useful of the two, because it is the one built from how safe people feel walking at night. Like Slovenia, Taiwan is unranked by EF and takes 0 of 15 on English as a result. It is the third cheapest country here at $114 a day, has a 2,033 km rail loop with a TR Pass, drinkable tap water and 90 days visa-free on an EU passport. October to November and March to April, outside the typhoon season. The Tourism Administration publishes the official record.

Not scorable on this record: english coverage. That criterion scores zero until a verifiable source exists.

7. Georgia — 52/100

Tbilisi · $26 a day · 365 days visa-free

Georgia is the outlier of this index and the reason the affordability criterion exists. At $26 a day it is a fifth of Japan's cost and takes a full 15 of 15, the only country to max that criterion. A 365-day visa-free stay on an EU passport is the most generous entry policy in the set by a factor of four. Against that, its Global Peace Index rank of 94 is by far the worst here and drops it to 11 of 30 on safety, although its Numbeo score of 73.8 is healthier than Ireland's or Uruguay's — a divergence worth understanding before reading the peace rank as a street-level warning. Transport is its real weakness at 1 of 25: 2,441 km of track and no tourist rail pass at all, so the marshrutka network does the work. EF rank 35, Moderate band, 10 of 15. April to May and September to October. The Georgian National Tourism Administration is the buyer here.

8. Uruguay — 43/100

Montevideo · Numbeo Safety Index 47.5 · Southern Hemisphere summer

Uruguay is the only Southern Hemisphere country in this index, which is most of its case: its season runs December to February, when everything else here is out of season. It scores 9 of 30 on safety, the second lowest, on a Global Peace Index rank of 43 and a Numbeo score of 47.5 that is the lowest of any country we scored. That is a real figure and we are not softening it. Transport is 1 of 25 — 2,900 km of track exists but no tourist pass does — so the coast is a driving proposition. $92 a day is mid-table, EF rank 34 in the Moderate band gives 10 of 15, and 911 works for emergencies, which is one fewer thing to learn than in Norway. Ninety days visa-free on an EU passport. The record is held by the Ministerio de Turismo.