Continued growth and resilience in global travel is taking place amid heightened geopolitical tensions, and growing potential for sudden disruptions caused by conflicts and threat actors using innovative means to target their victims. This calls for individuals and companies to ramp up travel security and focus on preparation and response.
The global travel landscape in 2025 continued to show resilience and steady growth, building on the post-pandemic recovery seen in the last several years. With the travel industry recording over 1.5 billion international arrivals and 9.8 billion air passengers in 2025, surpassing record levels reached in 2019, the industry shows no apparent signs of slowing. Correspondingly, projections for 2026 and beyond signal continued optimism for travel across business and leisure, with the World Travel & Tourism Council predicting annual real growth of around 3.5 percent for over the coming decade, outpacing the International Monetary Fund’s expectations for overall global economic growth of around 3.1 percent for 2026. However, the steady growth in travel is taking place amid growing geopolitical and security challenges. The desire for travel places ever increasing impetus on individual travellers and businesses to closely monitor travel security trends – and there is no shortage of developments to track.
Certainly, if 2025 is anything to go by, the global travel security landscape will continue to grow in complexity and become increasingly interlinked with domestic security and geopolitical dynamics. Whether because of the impact of sudden insecurity and conflict, such as the those seen in the Middle East and South Asia; new and innovative methods that criminal groups use to extort people and businesses; or increasingly interventionist government policies, travellers are not only impacted by real-time events such as hybrid warfare tactics disrupting airports, but also by the desire for some governments to align the control of borders with their geopolitical principles and goals. Meanwhile, the use of technology is impacting kidnap for ransom as well as hijacking dynamics, allowing threat actors to become bolder and more able to disguise their tracks. These are just some of the important themes we explore in this year’s Travel Security Special Edition Bulletin.
As the desire for travel continues to grow, so must the efforts for preparation; whether through ongoing review of crisis management plans, or tailored travel assessments and threat monitoring, good intelligence is key, and preparation for the unexpected must become routine.
Crossing borders in 2026: Travel security threats amid global tensions
Rising geopolitical instability has resulted in a ripple effect across the global travel landscape. In many parts of the world, such as in the Middle East, South Asia and Europe, military tensions have resulted in regional airspace closures, diverted flight routes, and in some cases triggered evacuations. Elsewhere, the regulatory landscape has resulted in new visa requirements and travel restrictions, making travel more onerous and challenging for many. Read the article
Preparing for the worst: Expert perspectives on political evacuations
Drawing on expertise from S-RM’s industry-leading Crisis Response team, Paul Padman, Deputy Head of Crisis Response, is interviewed about recent trends in evacuations, and how best to prepare ahead for high-risk and volatile situations. Paul shares his views on the challenges of managing evacuations in rapidly changing environments, drawing on his team’s recent support for clients across the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and Asia. Read the article
The tech offense: The virtual and physical manifestations of tech-enabled kidnappings
The proliferation of social media, digital currencies and artificial intelligence is increasingly shaping kidnapping and extortion dynamics. The availability of advanced technology has seen threat actors improve their capabilities for conducting virtual and in-person kidnappings, with a wider range of individuals and businesspeople targeted globally. In 2025, for example, kidnappers targeted high-net worth individuals and businesspeople in kidnappings involving crypto ransom demands and escalated ‘wrench attacks’ involving physical violence to gain access digital wallets. Read the article
Critical corridors at risk: Hijacking trends and hotspots
Hijacking for the purposes of kidnapping and cargo theft is an increasingly prevalent concern for businesses and travellers alike. The combination of elevated black-market demand, cyber-facilitated opportunities, and continually adapting criminal tactics will sustain the threat of hijacking worldwide. Read the article
Shelter in place: Navigating the unknown of active assailant incidents
Active assailant attacks have become a notable part of the travel security landscape globally. While attacks remain difficult to predict, a review of incidents over the last year – often focused on educational, religious and commercial premises – suggests the growing use of easily accessible improvised weapons, which will sustain the threat of attacks to travellers as well as the general public in 2026. Read the article
