Going on vacation this summer? Here are a eight suggestions that may help you avoid a nightmare to remember.

FIRST: Determine the incidence of criminal activity,terrorism and, yes, pirates at your selected destination and avoid all three.

SECOND: Read the fine print in the brochures and travel contracts that you enter into and act accordingly. Typically, this will mean determining the risks involved, responsibilities disclaimed and the need to obtain appropriate insurance.
Contractual clauses seeking to disclaim liability for the torts of independent contractors are nothing new and unless prohibited by statute are, typically, enforced. On occasion the courts may find liability shifting warranties of safety and assumptions of duties in brochure language. Recently, however, there has been an explosion of new travel contract clauses, e.g., requiring mandatory arbitration of disputes, allowing the filing of lawsuits in a selected and distant forum,
applying foreign law, and seeking to limit recoverable damages.

THIRD: Be very selective in the local sports activities (e.g., zip-lining, para-sailing, snorkeling and scuba diving) you participate in during cruise shore excursions or at foreign resorts. Typically, these services are provided by foreign companies not subject to the jurisdiction of U.S. courts,and which may be uninsured, unlicensed, insolvent,irresponsible and, worst of all, the cruise line or resort that recommends the local service provider and earns a commission doing so, may disclaim all liability for any injuries you sustain.

FOURTH: If you cruise, do so on a cruise ship that touches a U.S. port since you are protected by U.S. Maritime Law1 which, inter alia, requires that each cruiseship/cruiseline be subject to The Center For Disease Control (CDC) sanitation inspections11 and must report to the FBI any incident involving "homicide, suspicious death…kidnaping, assault with serious injury (rapes)" and shall also "furnish a written report of the incident to an Internet-based portal maintained by" the U.S. Coast Guard and accessible to consumers. For those who cruise elsewhere, such as those
unhappy folks who sailed on the Costa Concordia early last year, your rights and remedies may be governed by the Athens Convention or by foreign substantive and procedural law, not nearly as accommodating as that of the United States.

FIRTH: Avoid flying on foreign air carriers, intra-country, since you may not be protected by the Montreal Convention1and your recoverable damages, if any, may be very modest, indeed. In addition, many foreign air carriers are on the European Union's "Blacklist" which you should consult before you book.

SIX: If you sustain a serious injury, avoid using the medical facilities on cruise ships (which have consistently avoided liability for the malpractice of the ship's doctor). In addition, a cruise ship may involuntarily disembark you and transport you to a local medical facility with an uncertain outcome. Travelers may assume that when they travel abroad they are protected by the same safety standards and medical care available in the United States. The reality, however, is quite the opposite.
In many foreign countries the safety standards may be much lower; e.g., the plate glass in a Greek hotel lobby may be very thin; the windows in a Russian hotel may be less secure; a gas stove in a hotel may explode.

The quality of medical care may be much lower; e.g., a diabetic tourist may be misdiagnosed at the hotel and in a local hospital; a hotel guest may die from a heart attack because of a delay in calling for medical assistance. Best bet, use your evacuation insurance, get on a plane and fly home to the United States as fast as you can.

SEVENTH: Think very carefully about entrusting your children to the day care centers of foreign resorts or hotels. In Flanagan v. Wyndham International,27 guests entrusted their child to the "Kids Klub day-care program at the Wyndham Sugar Bay Resort in St. Thomas" only to have her molested by an employee later convicted of sexual molestation. Taking your mother-in-law or another family member with you to watch after your children may be the best approach.

EIGHTH: Travelers need to behave in accordance with the laws and customs of the destination country. For example, "In Singapore, which places a high value on order, prostitution is legal but careless disposal of chewing gum can invoke fines up to $500. Jaywalking and spitting result in similar fines.
On the bright side, Singapore saves canings for more serious offenses, such as vandalism.
Sensitivity to another country's values is important, as Raffi Nernekian, a Lebanese tourist visiting the United Arab Emirates learned when he was arrested for wearing a skin cancer awareness T-shirt depicting Posh Spice in her birthday suit. Nernekian spent a month in jail. And Ireland, the land of creative invective, just passed a blasphemy law making it a 25,000-euro ($37,000) offense to say or print anything 'grossly abusive or insulting' about any subject held sacred by any religion."