How many of the world’s 50 most violent cities have you been to?

Brazil doesn’t sound like a very safe place to visit.

The Mexico Citizens Council for Public Security have published their annual list of the world’s 50 most violent cities and it doesn’t make pleasant reading for anyone visiting South America any time soon. The list is based on the number of homicides in cities of more than 300,000 residents not affected by war. Caracas was determined to be the world’s most violent city, with 119.87 homicides for every 100,000 residents in 2015. 41 of the cities in the list are located in Latin America. It doesn’t look good from Brazil’s point of view, with 21 cities appearing in the top 50, although none of those made it into the top ten. Gang and drug-related violence are believed to responsible for a large proportion of homicides in Latin American countries, although there has been a dramatic fall in the number of homicides in cities such as Medellin in Colombia and Juarez in Mexico in recent years. Food for thought if you’re planning holidays in the near future.

The 50 most violent cities in the world (50-1)

Obregón, Mexico Maracaibo, Venezuela Macapá, Brazil Johannesburg, South Africa Victoria, Mexico Pereira, Colombia Curitiba, Brazil Porto Alegre, Brazil Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa Durban, South Africa Campina Grande, Brazil Campos dos Goytacazes, Brazil Aracaju, Brazil Recife, Brazil Vitória da Conquista, Brazil Tijuana, Mexico Gran Barcelona, Venezuela Kingston, Jamaica New Orleans, Louisiana Vitoria, Brazil Teresina, Brazil Goiânia y Aparecida de Goiânia, Brazil Detroit, Michigan, United States Feira de Santana, Brazil Belém, Brazil Guatemala City, Guatemala Cumaná, Venezuela Manaus, Brazil Cuiabá, Brazil São Luís, Brazil Barquisimeto, Venezuela Baltimore, Maryland, United States Maceio, Brazil Culiacan, Mexico João Pessoa, Brazil St. Louis, Missouri, United States Salvador, Brazil Natal, Brazil Fortaleza, Brazil Ciudad Guayana, Venezuela 10. Cali, Colombia 9. Cape Town, South Africa 8. Palmira, Colombia 7. Valencia, Venezuela 6. Distrito Central, Honduras 5. Maturin, Venezuela 4. Acapulco, Mexico 3. San Salvador, El Salvador 2. San Pedro Sula, Honduras 1. Caracas, Venezuela