Go, but pay attention.
Zambia’s safety score rose to 77 today, and all major government advisories remain at the lowest level of 1. Watch for the global measles notice before you book your flight.
Governments, one trip
What they're telling their own citizens about Zambia
The real score
The breakdown
See it from your perspective
Go, but pay attention.
The general Sketch Score, unweighted for any specific traveler.
Don't fall for it
Scams to know
Street money-changer groups
Groups of men on the street offering currency exchange are likely running a scam. Use banks instead.
Don't do this
Laws that jail tourists
Nighttime curfew
There is a 10PM curfew throughout most of the country. Being on the street after this time risks arrest.
Police report fees
Corruption is endemic and you must pay to log a police report for insurance purposes.
Staying healthy
What to watch out for, health-wise
Active notices
- • Global Measles
Vaccines
Recommended:
From people who've been there
Local know-how
Staying safe
- •Women should avoid going to bars alone. Furthermore, men should avoid purchasing drinks for Zambian women they meet casually in bars; this is an invitation to spend the night.
- •There is a 10PM curfew throughout most of the country. Avoid being found on the street after 10PM or risk being arrested.
- •As the Kwacha has been declining, it often takes fistfuls of cash to purchase items. Be careful about flashing money.
- •While it's possible to get a good exchange rate from an individual money-changer on the street (although you really should use banks if you can), you should avoid changing money with groups of men.
- •Generally, Zambians are friendly people.
- •Carjacking is also a potential risk while driving after dark.
Staying healthy
- •Drinking tap water in the cities is potentially risky, unless either (a) you have a strong stomach, or (b) you are at a restaurant or hotel that caters to foreigners.
- •The HIV infection rate among older teenagers and adults was estimated to be 11.6% in 2017 – and even higher among younger women. Do not have unprotected sex.
- •Zambia is a highly malarial country.
- •In practice, yellow fever is not a problem in Zambia anymore, except perhaps in the extreme west along the Congolese borders.
- •Typhoid and Hepatitis B vaccines are advised for all travelers entering Zambia.
Adapted from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA — edited by travelers, not us.
Pack this, know this
The little things that trip people up
Plug & voltage
C / D / G · 230V
Driving side
left
Emergency
police: 999 / ambulance: 999 / fire: 999
Show the receipts (10 sources)
- us-state — observed 2026-07-12
- uk-fcdo — observed 2026-07-12
- ca-gac — observed 2026-07-12
- worldbank-political — observed 2026-07-12
- worldbank-policeTrust — observed 2026-07-12
- cdc-health — observed 2026-07-12
- wikivoyage — observed 2026-07-12
- unodc — observed 2026-07-12
- acled-hdx — observed 2026-07-12
- lgbtq-legal-wikipedia — observed 2026-07-12