Travel Tips and Travel Advice: Safety and Security  During  Travel  at  Home and Abroad

Key Articles

Buy a money belt and be prepared to use it  The best protection for your passport, credit cards, ATM cards, tickets, cash, and travelers checks is to keep them in your money belt.  Read our article for recommendations on selecting and using a money belt.

Car safety and security while traveling   If you will be renting an automobile while on vacation, read our  recommendations help secure your vehicle.

Lodging and security recommendations  Follow our guidelines for personal safety inside hotels to help ensure that your hotel stay is non-eventful.

Make a list of those important numbers   No, not your telephone numbers!  A list of your credit card, ATM, traveler check, passport, and other important numbers that identify you  should be kept stored in your money belt, in case of emergency.  Find out what to record and why.

Pickpockets   "Dips" are out there everywhere, waiting to lift your wallet, purse, or whatever they can remove.  Read our review and avoid the most common techniques used by pickpockets. 

Recognizing and avoiding con artists and scams  Tourists often stand out in crowds and are often easy targets for criminals.  Con artists have a great spiel and seem so friendly.  Read our recommendations on how to avoid these rascals and keep yourself safe on vacation.

Safety and security when using ATMs   ATMs, generally, do not provide any reasonable security for their customers.  Read our article to find what you need to know to keep yourself secure during ATM use at home and abroad.

Safety guidelines for travelers  In this article we provide the key recommendations gathered from our safety and security articles. It is likely that these are prohibitions that you know, but reviewing them before a trip is good preparation.

Safety recommendations for using taxis, trains, and buses  We provide recommendations aimed at keeping you safe when  using public transportation.

Some thoughts on terrorism and travel   Many would-be travelers decide that travel is too dangerous and  prefer to stay close to home.  We examine the terrorist threats and conclude that travel should be based on a "calculation" that compares travel to the other risks that surround us.  Ultimately, YOU should make the travel decision.

Street smarts     We provide some common sense guidelines for avoiding "trouble" when you travel.

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Good to know

Conduct a "house check" before you depart   Make sure you have secured your house before you leave on vacation.  We provide a checklist containing both safety and security related items.

Copy your Passport Identification Pages   No one plans on losing their passport, but it happens.  Make sure to make copies of the Identification Pages from your passport.  Doing so will help limit the inconvenience if you should lose your passport.

Identification security  When traveling, create identification that links you to your local hotel, so that lost items can be returned or your party can be contacted if something unexpected should happen to you.  Follow our recommendation on the use of short-term tags to identify you and your belongings.

Protect your luggage by keeping an eye on it  Luggage thieves target  travelers at international airports.  Find out what you can do to protect your luggage.

Money security  Most people carry more currency and cash when traveling than they do at home.  Avoid losing your money by observing a few, simple security precautions

Public transportation and terrorism concerns  We find public transportation the best way to move around cities in Europe.  Recent terrorism may cause travelers to reconsider the use of public transportation.  Read our article for some perspectives on this important issue.

Secure your transportation tickets   Airplane, bus, and train tickets can have a significant cash value.  Don't leave them hanging around your hotel room or stuffed in your pocket.  Secure them as you would any "negotiable" document.

Take good care of your passport   Your passport is in constant use when traveling internationally.  You will need it at airports, hotels, exchanges, and other locations.  We provide some recommendations for the prudent use of your passport

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May be of interest

Carry both an ATM and credit card    You need multiple forms of money while on vacation.  Read our recommendations on where and when to use ATM's and credit cards.

Create an itinerary to help others help you   If something goes during your travels, you might need a lifeline.  Read our article to find out how an itinerary can be a good safety net for travel.

Safety information from the U.S. Government     The U.S. State Department, through its Bureau of Consular Affairs, provides a number of publications related to travel security.  Read our review of the most important documents.   

Traveling alone?  Single travelers need to exercise more caution than those traveling with groups.  We provide several recommendations that might be of interest to the single traveler.

Wallet and purse security   We hope that you take our recommendation and buy a money belt,  but we suspect that you will still keep valuable stuff in your wallet or purse.  Well, "OK", but at least read our recommendations on how to secure your wallet or purse.

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