Dhaka: With the summer travel season fast approaching, the United States has issued updated travel advisories warning of the risk of terrorist violence in several popular European destinations.

The U.S. State Department’s alerts cover the five European countries that typically see the highest number of American visitors: the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Italy.

Spain—experiencing a sharp rise in popularity among U.S. tourists—has also been included, alongside Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, and several other nations across the continent.

The advisories are based on the State Department’s four-tier travel alert system, which ranges from Level 1, “Exercise Normal Precautions,” to Level 4, “Do Not Travel.” Level 4 advisories are rare in Europe but are significant, often enabling travelers to cancel bookings and claim reimbursement through insurance.

Travelers are urged to remain alert, follow official guidance, and stay informed about conditions at their destinations.

Although the most popular destinations have been rated Level 2, the majority remain at Level 1, including countries towards the east of the bloc, such as Austria, Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia – which all sit comfortably at a Level 1 advisory at the time of writing.

At the west, Andorra and Portugal too are Level 1 nations. Interestingly, although the risk of terrorist violence in Northern Ireland is mentioned on the UK’s Level 2 advisory, Eire (the Republic of Ireland) is at a Level 1.

-B