World Safety Map

Is Holguín safe?

Cuba · North America · data updated 2026-09-04

67.8High · rank 3703 / 6,168
safer than 40% of ranked cities

Holguín is a city in Cuba, home to about 312k people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 3,703 of 6,168, with a safety score of 67.8 out of 100, placing it clearly above the global midpoint.

Emergency Ambulance 104 · Fire 105 · Police 106

  • UK FCDO advises against all but essential travel to this countryOfficial UK government travel advice, updated 2026-07-16.

No official source names specific areas to avoid here: travel advisories for Cuba are country-level, and no published dataset covers neighborhood-level crime - so this briefing does not invent it.

How safe is Holguín really?

No published homicide figure exists for Holguín itself, so the national rate stands in: Cuba recorded 4.5 homicides per 100,000 people in 2019 - close to the global city median. The city itself may be safer or more dangerous than its country's average.

What the travel advisories say

The US State Department currently rates Cuba at level 2 of 4 - "Exercise increased caution" (updated 2025-05-06). The UK Foreign Office advises against all but essential travel to this country. Both advisories are country-level: no official source publishes verified neighborhood-level crime guidance for individual cities, which is why this page reports named areas only where an official source names them.

What to watch out for in Cuba

Terrorism in Cuba · Political situation · Protecting your belongings · Fake taxi drivers · Vehicle crime · Illegal drugs penalties · Using cameras in restricted areas · LGBT+ travellers · Risk of detention · Money · Road travel · Motorcycles and scooters · Taxis · Road conditions · +2 more

Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for Cuba — country-level, not specific to Holguín. Read what each one says →

The numbers

Homicide rate
4.5 /100knational rate, 2019
Conflict deaths
0within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
Income inequality
no datacountry,
Human development
HDI 0.762country, 2023
Income
no dataGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
Population
312kurban centre · 8,919/km²

Country context for travelers

Road deaths
8.9 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
Political stability
71/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
Rule of law
46/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
Corruption perceptions
40/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
Natural-hazard risk
3.5/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Women, Peace & Security
no dataGeorgetown WPS Index · 0-1, higher = better
Air quality
9.4 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
Safely managed drinking water
no dataof the population · WHO/UNICEF JMP
Healthcare capacity
9.5 doctors /1k4.3 hospital beds per 1,000

Natural hazards in Cuba

Cyclone
8.0/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Earthquake
5.0/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Drought
3.7/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Tsunami
3.3/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier

Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe Cuba as a whole, not Holguín specifically.

Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Cuba (as of 2025).

All country-level figures shared by every city in Cuba; none of them affect the safety score.

How the score works

Low homicide40%46
Peace25%100
Equality25%no data
Development10%76

One fixed, calibrated mix for every city: 40% homicide · 25% peace · 25% equality · 10% HDI. Homicide and conflict deaths are measured outcomes; income inequality carries the structural share because it predicts real city violence far better than national income (which is shown above but scored at zero). Each factor maps to 0-100 against fixed anchors, missing data drops out and is never estimated, and cities with data behind less than half the weighting get “no data” instead of a score. For Holguín that gives 67.8/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →

Holguín compared with Bayamo

The nearest ranked city of comparable size. Green favours Holguín, red favours Bayamo.
MeasureHolguínBayamoDifference
Safety score67.867.8±0.0
Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate4.5 /100k4.5 /100k±0.0 /100k
Conflict deaths within 100 km00±0

Differences are plain arithmetic between the two stored figures — nothing is modelled. Both cities are in Cuba, so they share every country-level figure and only the city-level ones are listed. Full report for Bayamo

Nearby cities

See Holguín on the interactive map → · Safest cities in North America · Full travel briefings →