Travel Smart
Honest, sourced guidance so you travel confident. Most of any country is calmer than the headlines suggest.
Safety
Countrywide advisory (Government of Canada)
Exercise increased cautionExercise a high degree of caution
Source: Government of Canada · Verified 2026-07-26
Malabo and Bata
Exercise increased cautionMajor cities are relatively safe; standard precautions required. Petty crime exists but violent crime is less common than in other Central African capitals. Night security is maintained; police presence is visible.
Avoid: Poorly lit areas at night; certain suburbs; unmarked areas.
Common scams: Taxi overcharging, pickpocketing in markets.
Source: US State Department · Verified 2026-07-06
Bioko Island rural areas
Exercise normal precautionsOutside the capital, Bioko is quiet and safe; the island is small and well-organized.
Avoid: None major; normal precautions apply.
Source: US State Department · Verified 2026-07-06
Rio Muni mainland
Exercise increased cautionSparsely populated; basic safety for travelers who stick to main towns and organized tours.
Avoid: Remote areas at night; poorly marked roads.
Source: US State Department · Verified 2026-07-06
4 zones rated separately against Government of Canada, US State Department. Oldest check on this page: 6 July 2026.
Emergency Contacts
Policia Nacional
police
UK FCDO gives these two mobile numbers for police rather than a short code, and warns that emergency numbers and emergency response in Equatorial Guinea are unreliable and that help can be limited in places that are hard to reach. The number 114, which circulates for the national police here, is not what the Foreign Office publishes.
SourceAmbulance
ambulance
The ambulance number published by UK FCDO, with the same warning that emergency numbers here are unreliable. The Foreign Office publishes no fire number for the country at all.
SourceLa Paz Medical Centre, Malabo
hospital · Malabo
No phone number is given here because none could be verified from a page that could be read directly. UK FCDO names La Paz in Malabo as the one exception to medical facilities it otherwise describes as generally poor, but publishes no number for it, and the Foreign Office maintains no medical facilities list for Equatorial Guinea the way it does for most of the continent. Ask your accommodation or your employer to make contact, and note that the Foreign Office says serious treatment normally requires evacuation to Europe. For an ambulance, 3101 is the number the Foreign Office does publish.
Source