What about security and safety for your stuff while you travel? [closed]

What about security and safety for your stuff while you travel? [closed] - Home key and moto key on rope

What about security and safety for your stuff while you travel (money, credit cards, camera, laptop, e-reader/tablet, etc.)? Any tips would be really useful!



Best Answer

Very broad question. Fortunately we've never had a serious incident (in 100s of trips through 30+ countries).

  1. Phone/wallet: I by and large do the same thing as I do at home. Jacket or pant pocket with zipper or Velcro. Not so much for theft protection, but for preventing them to fall out or get lost.
  2. Passport: In a special pocket in my backpack or hotel safe. My wife likes to keep them in a money belt. Doesn't seem to make a difference.
  3. Electronics: Backpack or hotel room. I sometimes throw the smaller stuff (phones, tablets) in the hotel safe, but it's about 50/50.
  4. Cash: avoid using as much as possible. In many countries these days you can get by with plastic quite well. That has the added benefit that it's much easier to track a budget (if you care). Use ATMs to get cash locally in smaller amounts (2-3 day's worth). ATMs these days are very widely available. Use a Debit card, not a credit card.
  5. Credit/Debit Cards: make sure always have two or three different ones and keep them in two different places. Most issues that we had were related to the bank being stupid (shutting off the card, despite setting a travel alert), so redundancy here is a good idea
  6. Frequent checks: whenever I leave somewhere I quickly pat myself down for wallet and phone (if passport, if applicable). Not because I'm particularly worried about safety but because I'm scatterbrained and prone to lose stuff. Doesn't harm though
  7. Keys: Card keys wherever it's convenient. If you lose them, they will just give you a new one. Physical hotel keys at the lobby/reception. Car keys: same as home.
  8. Checked luggage: I couldn't care less. If someone gets a thrill out of my old underwear, knock yourself out.
  9. Boarding passes, reservations etc.: No special treatment. They can always be reprinted or recovered. I make sure that I have the airline/hotel/booking app on the phone and I sometimes have electronic copies as PDFs as well.
  10. Don't be stupid: Do a bit of research up front. Figure out what may be a risk and keep an eye on your surroundings. If you go into a place that's famous for pick pocketing, just take a small amount of cash or one piece of plastic. If it looks sketchy to you, avoid it. Chances are it's not sketchy at all and I had wonderful experiences in sketchy looking areas, but its always good to err on the side of caution.

So in general we found, that whenever works at home tends to work in other countries as well. The "risks" associated are often over stated by the media.




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