Travelers are known to consume more alcohol than they normally would at home. Often amongst friends, drinking is a holiday pastime as it's often a great way to meet other people. Business travelers may also consume alcohol in hotel bars and restaurants.

The use of alcohol and drugs will invariably affect your judgement. Your ability to negotiate safe behaviours such as using condoms and lube will be impaired when you are under the influence of alcohol and drugs. You may feel hornier than usual or find other people more sexually desirable attractive than you otherwise would. You need to be aware of particular risks when taking ‘party’ drugs such as ecstasy, GHB and ice as they may increase your vulnerability to having different types of sex against your will, being forced to have unsafe sex or sexual assault.

In order to reduce your risk of contracting HIV and other STIs you need to use condoms and lube during sex. If you find that you are unable to manage this when under the influence you are strongly advised to limit your alcohol and drug use when overseas. Enlist the support of friends and colleagues to assist you in limiting your consumption of alcohol and drugs.

Injecting Drug Use

In Australia, people who choose to inject drugs have ready access to new injecting equipment via needle and syringe programs. This has led to Australia having an extremely low prevalence of HIV through injecting drug use. However in other countries, particularly parts of Asia, Eastern Europe and the United States, where access to sterile injecting equipment is very poor, there are very high rates of HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C amongst people who choose to inject drugs.

In many overseas countries, drug use and possessing injecting equipment is unlawful with varying harsh penalties for possession. Travelling with sterile injecting equipment and drugs is risky. The safest option from a health and legal perspective is not to take illicit substances at all when travelling. If you choose to use an illicit substance, then swallowing, inhaling or snorting is preferred to injecting. If injecting, it is imperative that you use sterile equipment, don’t share with anyone else, no matter how healthy they seem or how well you know them and never share spoons, tourniquets or other paraphernalia. Always used bottled or boiled water and dispose of used needles and syringes by putting them in a rigid container with a sealed lid.