MedAire blog

The official Chinese New Year holiday starts on 4 February and ends on 10 February. 

Known as the world’s largest annual human migration, the Spring Festival travel season (“Chunyun” in Mandarin), will likely see more than 400 million people travel during the long holiday. 

Along with those lucky enough to be visiting or staying in China for the celebrations, anyone attending Chinese New Year celebrations in cities around the world, such as New York, London or Sydney, should also take health and security precautions. The popularity of the celebrations worldwide inevitably result in large crowds, where vigilance is recommended, and incidents, from petty crime to attacks can occur, as well as the risk of illnesses need to be considered.

MedAire and International SOS offer the following Hotel Safety Checklist for travellers over the holiday season.  

1. Choose hotels that have…
• Surveillance systems in lobby and around the grounds.
• Well-controlled access to the main entrance.
• Security guards.
• Resilient communication capabilities.
• Multi-lingual staff, particularly if you don’t speak the local language.

2. Choose a hotel room that is…
• Away from lobby or public areas.
• Near an emergency exit.
• Equipped with a keychain, deadbolt and spy-hole.
• Without interlocking doors.
• Located on 2nd – 6th floor.

3. Location:
• Research the area surrounding the hotel: avoid areas associated with high crime and protests.
• In areas where there are significant threats from conflict or terrorism, choose a hotel away from main roads and government or diplomatic buildings.
• Consider the timing of your trip to avoid potentially disruptive events or protests.

4. Be vigilant throughout your stay
• Check that the locks on doors and windows work inside your room—and use them.
• Familiarize yourself with emergency evacuation plans and routes.
• Don’t share your room number.
• Pack and use a door stop.
• Have a grab bag of essentials including your passport, water, and phone charger prepared in advance.
• Leave the light on so that you can easily check that the room is secure on returning. If a room key card is required to keep the electricity on, request an extra one.

MedAire provides travel safety advice and assistance services for aviation clients around the world. For more information, please visit www.medaire.com.