The World's Most Dangerous Places

The World's Most Dangerous Places

Author	Robert Young Pelton
Language	English
Genre	Guide book, War tourism
Publisher	HarperResource
Publication date	1st edition 1994 4th edition (May 30, 2000) 5th edition (April 1, 2003)
Publication place	United States
Media type	Print
Pages	1088
ISBN	0-06-001160-2
Followed by	DP Professional Strength

Robert Young Pelton's The World's Most Dangerous Places is a frequently updated handbook written by Pelton and an unusual crew of contributors. Although it is not meant to be used as an actual travel guide, like Frommer's, the book's advice to staying alive and the facts about the world's most dystopian countries is still unique in the publishing world. It continues to be the only non-aligned, apolitical, on-the-ground guide to high risk regions. It is as much a primer on political science as it is a humorous book about the impressive ability for apparently rational humans to routinely plunge their world into chaos and violence.

Breakdown

The first edition came out in 1994 and has gone through 5 editions. The next edition is in development along with a new television series.

The thousand page book is divided into three basic parts. The intro is a primer on the basics of staying safe in war zones and high crime areas.

Section	Notes
What is Dangerous	General travel statistics that help tourists assess their travel risks and put things into perspective.
What Danger Awaits the Weary Traveler	Teaches you about the safest mode of transport statistically, including third world airplanes, buses, trains and taxis.
Making the Best of Nasty Situation	Including dealing with terrorist territories, thievery, impoverished countries, political upheaval and more.
Business Travelers	Dangerous places for business travel and dealings with gangsters.
Tourists	Dangerous places for tourists.
Bribes	When to, when not to and how to.
Dangerous Diseases	Covers STDs and AIDS, malaria, worms, Hepatitis AB and C, the fevers, old fashioned diseases and more.
Drugs	Covers cocaine, heroin, cannabis and dangerous drug hotspots.
Dangerous Jobs	self-explanatory.
Getting Arrested.	self-explanatory.
Guns	covers different types of weapons.
Intelligence	Safety information for journalists ad writers as well as the traveling public.
Kidnapping	Security resources and kidnap, rescue and extortion insurance.
Land Mines/UXO	A chapter about landmines and unexploded ordnance.
Mercenaries	Hiring them, using them and surviving them
Military and Paramilitary Organizations	dealing with military rule.
Terrorism	Staying as safe as possible in terrorist situations.
Adventure Calls	Adventures

The second section is essentially a chapter by chapter list of what Pelton considers to be the most dangerous places. Each nation or Autonomous administrative division(s), such as Kurdistan, have one chapter about them. Each of the chapters are in alphabetic order by the first letter of each country. There are varying numbers of countries included in the Dangerous Places section, depending on the edition. Which are then broken down to a rating of 5 stars to 1 star, or five hands to one hand, depending on the level and type of danger. Countries with "hands" instead of stars, such as North Korea, and Myanmar generally have International sanctions on them.

The final and third element of this book (besides web links, addresses and even cell phone numbers for terrorist and rebel leaders) are the stories of what it is like for Pelton and his band of DP'ers to be in the middle of some of the planets most brutal events. They freely tell the reader how they got in, whom they met and many of their failures. The book is a favorite of correspondents, military, NGO's, the US State Department, and is used by a number of intelligence agencies due to its access to the world's rebel groups.

Bibliography

• Robert Young Pelton. Licensed to Kill, Hired Guns in the War on Terror (Reprint edition (August 28, 2007) ed.). Three Rivers Press. p. 368. ISBN 1-4000-9782-7.
• Robert Young Pelton. The World's Most Dangerous Places (April 1, 2003 ed.). Collins. p. 1088. ISBN 0-06-001160-2.
• Robert Young Pelton. The Adventurist, My Life In Dangerous Places (June 19, 2001 ed.). Broadway. p. 268. ISBN 0-7679-0576-8.
• Robert Young Pelton. Hunter Hammer and Heaven, Journeys to Three World's Gone Mad (January 1, 2002 ed.). The Lyons Press. p. 320. ISBN 1-58574-416-6.
• Robert Young Pelton. Come Back Alive (June 1, 1999 ed.). Main Street Books. p. 304. ISBN 0-385-49566-8.
• Robert Young Pelton. Hired Guns (June 28, 2007 ed.). Constable and Robinson. p. 320. ISBN 1-84529-590-0.
• The Best American Travel Writing
• Best Adventure and Travel Stories
• Robert Young Pelton; Mark Bowden; Tracy Kidder; Philip Taubman. Nate Hardcastle; Clint Willis (eds.). American Soldier: Stories of Special Forces from Iraq to Afghanistan (First Edition (October 27, 2002) ed.). Da Capo Press. p. 364. ISBN 1-56025-438-6. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters: |laydate=, |separator=, |month=, |laysummary=, |chapterurl=, and |lastauthoramp= (help)
• Boots on the Ground
• Robert Young Pelton. Fielding's Hot Spots, Travel in Harm's Way (December 1997 ed.). Fielding Worldwide. p. 256. ISBN 1-56952-166-2.
• Robert Young Pelton. Fielding's Borneo: The Adventurous Guide to the Island of Borneo Covering Brunei, Kalimantan, Sabah and Sarawak/1995 (Fielding's Borneo) (June 1995 ed.). Fielding Worldwide. p. 704. ISBN 1-56952-026-7.
• Robert Young Pelton. Three Worlds Gone Mad: Dangerous Journeys through the War Zones of Africa, Asia, and the South Pacific (First edition (December 1, 2003) ed.). The Lyons Press. p. 320. ISBN 1-59228-100-1.

External links

• Come Back Alive website with list of the most dangerous places in the world