The competitiveness of a smart tourist destination is based on its natural and cultural attractions, its tourism infrastructures and facilities, and the quality of the services it has to offer. These services include security and safety, both of which are key elements in the tourist’s choice of destination. The aim of this paper is to analyse the elements that make up the concepts of security and safety in tourism. Then, a review of the existing literature on security and safety is carried out and a risk classification is presented. A distinction has been made between territorial, socio-economic and political risks as well as the action measures to fight them. In addition, the key factors that influence the tourist’s perception of security have also been addressed. Beyond the personality traits of an individual, other factors such as the visibility and tangibility of how dangerous the risk is, the information about security or the public administration’s capacity to address risks has also been considered. Furthermore, the evolution of security and safety issues in the tourist context has been studied up until the current, unprecedented, situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, together with the importance of knowing how to address new management challenges when faced with health risks. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.