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How to Handle Emergencies While Traveling
An ankle goes over on a wet cobblestone street in Lisbon. A child spikes a fever in a Bali hotel. Someone in the group reacts to seafood at a beachside cafe in Phuket.
Travel emergencies are rarely dramatic in the cinematic sense. They are small, sudden, and almost always happen in a place you do not yet know well.
The difference between a manageable problem and a stressful one is preparation, not luck. Knowing what to do in a travel emergency mostly comes down to a basic kit, a clear head, and a short list of contacts set up before you left home. Being unwell in a place where you do not speak the language is disorienting in a way the brochures never warn about. Preparation is what gives you a foothold.
Before you go: the prep that actually matters
Register with Smartraveller before you leave. It is free, it takes about five minutes, and it means the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has your itinerary if something major happens in your destination. During natural disasters and political incidents over the last decade, Australians abroad have been contacted directly through this register.
Travel insurance is non-negotiable. Read the policy for two things specifically: medical evacuation cover and the pre-existing condition exclusions. A standard policy covers a clinic visit. A good one covers a helicopter off a mountain, an air ambulance back to Australia, and continued treatment once you land.
Carry a small travel first aid kit. Not the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink version, just the basics: adhesive dressings, antiseptic, paracetamol, antihistamine, gastro tablets, blister plasters, a triangular bandage. The most common phone calls we take in November and December are people building or restocking a travel kit before they fly. Our outdoor and travel first aid kits are sized for cabin luggage and built around what people actually use on a trip.
If you take regular medication, pack double, split it between bags, and travel with a copy of the prescription. Some countries restrict medicines that are routine in Australia. Codeine-containing products are the obvious example in the UAE and Japan. Check the destination's medication import rules before you fly.
Travelling with kids: pack their medication with the same double-and-split rule. Add each child's full name and date of birth to your insurer's emergency line before you fly, so a clinic ringing to confirm cover does not get held up on identification. Two minutes now saves an hour in a hotel lobby later.
Know the local emergency number
Australians are wired to dial 000. Almost nowhere else uses it. The European Union has its own number (112), most of Asia uses different codes again, and the UK and US run their own. Add the local emergency number to your phone before you land, plus the address and number of the nearest hospital to where you are staying.
What to do in a travel emergency: the first thirty seconds
If something happens, the first thirty seconds is not about doing anything dramatic. Look at the person: are they conscious, breathing, bleeding visibly? Then decide if you can handle this with your kit and a couple of paracetamol, or if you need help. Most travel incidents fall into the first category.
The ones that fall into the second category are usually obvious. Severe bleeding, loss of consciousness, breathing problems, chest pain. When in doubt, call for help.
Minor stuff you handle yourself
A small cut, a graze, a blister, a mild stomach upset, a low-grade fever, a headache. All of this is what your kit is for.
Clean a wound with bottled water if the local tap is not safe (much of Southeast Asia and parts of Central and South America). Better still, pack a small saline ampoule: thirty years in operating theatres taught me that the cleaner the start, the better the wound heals. Bottled water buys you time. Saline gives the wound a proper start, costs a few dollars, and weighs nothing in a kit.
For gastro, hydrate harder than you think you need to. Add a sachet of oral rehydration salts to bottled water and sip it constantly. If diarrhoea continues past 48 hours, has blood in it, or comes with a high fever, that is medical care territory.
When to see a doctor or go to hospital
Anything you cannot confidently handle yourself with the kit. That includes deep wounds, suspected fractures, severe allergic reactions, persistent fever above 38.5 degrees, chest pain, severe abdominal pain, or any breathing difficulty.
Australia has Reciprocal Health Care Agreements with eleven countries: the UK, New Zealand, Italy, Malta, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Slovenia, and Ireland. These cover medically necessary care while you are there. They do not replace travel insurance and they do not cover everything. Carry your Medicare card if you are visiting any of these countries.
In other destinations, pay upfront and claim it back through your insurance. Keep every receipt and a copy of any medical notes. Hotel receptions often have a list of English-speaking doctors and clinics they use, and that is usually a faster path than searching online from a hotel bed.
Serious emergencies: who to call first
For anything serious, the call order is: local emergency services first, then your travel insurer's 24-hour emergency line, then your travel companion or family at home. The insurer's line is the one most people forget. They authorise evacuations, direct payments to hospitals, and arrange interpreters. Program that number into your phone before you leave home.
The Australian Embassy or High Commission can help in genuine emergencies: lost passports, deaths, serious incidents involving Australian citizens. They cannot pay your medical bills or get you out of trouble for breaking local laws. Smartraveller has the full list of what consular assistance can and cannot do.
Coming home
If you have been treated overseas, see your GP within a week of returning, especially after a hospital admission or any infection. Bring all the documentation: discharge summaries, prescriptions, imaging. Tropical illnesses can take days or weeks to show up after exposure, and you want them recognised early.
Quick reference: travel emergency contacts
Save these before you fly:
- Smartraveller registration confirmation
- Australian Embassy or High Commission in your destination
- Local emergency number (not 000)
- Your travel insurer's 24-hour line
- Your GP back in Australia
- The address and phone number of the nearest hospital to where you are staying
A travel emergency is rarely the disaster it feels like in the moment. A small kit, a registered itinerary, a working phone with the right numbers in it, and the calm to use them well puts you ahead of most travellers. The rest is luck, and luck favours the prepared.
Three things to do before you fly:
- Register your trip with Smartraveller. Five minutes, free.
- Save your insurer's 24-hour emergency line in your phone, along with the address of the hotel you are staying at first.
- Pack a kit you would actually use. Our outdoor and travel first aid kits are a good place to start.
Related articles
- Beyond the Trail: Mastering Outdoor Safety for Unforgettable Hiking Adventures
- Be Prepared for Snake Season: Your Ultimate Snake Bite First Aid Kit
- Best Marine First Aid Kits for Safe Boating in Australia
For more on outdoor first aid generally, our hub page is First Aid in the Australian Outdoors.