Safety in Country

Preparing Participants for Safe Travel

• Before the ship's arrival in each port, all participants are required to attend a mandatory pre-port briefing. Briefings cover travel logistics, immigrations and customs procedures, and health and security information.

• At the pre-port briefing, all participants receive a green sheet providing critical information (duty deans, port agent, hospitals, consulate or embassy) in case of an emergency.
• Upon arrival in each port, a representative from the local U.S. Embassy or Consulate boards the ship and is invited to share information on safety, local conditions, currency, and travel. Participant attendance is mandatory.
• We intentionally appoint international faculty, interport lecturers, and international students who have expertise in each port of call and who can speak to a variety of safety issues from a host country national's perspective.
• We select tour operators who are known for quality in the travel industry and for providing good services to travelers in their country. We send each operator a statement that outlines our expectations of their role in the safety of Semester at Sea participants.
• In the event of an accident or medical emergency, the Institute makes available to all participants a premium insurance policy that includes emergency medical care as well as emergency medical evacuation coverage.