Stay Safe Traveling The World
Being a victim of a crime can happen at anytime, anywhere and to anyone not just when you’re traveling the world.
As an outsider when you’re traveling you can easily be a target for theft, you can do many things to minimise the chances of this.
By being cautious you can avoid a large percentage of unpleasant things happening to you. When I say “cautious”, I mean just be aware but not paranoid.
Have in mind that you are leaving your country and stepping on foreign soil that probably won’t resemble anything like the country you are used to.
It may sound quite obvious but there are people that are a little naive and tend to behave exactly like they would do at home, especially when it comes to trusting people.
Here are my 6 steps for keeping safe whilst traveling the world.
– Make The Money Belt Your Best Friend
A fair amount of travelers have smartly surrendered to use money belts. It may not be the prettiest thing to wear but it is very handy and keeps your hard earned cash away from any opportunist pick pocketers.
– Don’t Carry A Large Amount Of Cash
Money belts play an important role on keeping your money safe but whenever possible don’t carry a lot of cash either. If you are in particularlly sketchy cities carry plenty of notes but low value ones. This is done so that in the the worst case senerio of a mugging you can hand over what looks like a large wad of notes. In this situation do not refuse, hand over the cash immediately.
If you do have to carry a lot of cash, at least be discreet when handling your money and try not to show the world how much you’ve got on you.
– Travel In Groups
If you are in a different environment and still don’t know how safe the place is, always make friends with someone from your hostel and visit places together until you feel secure enough to wander around on your own.
– Travel With A Local
A local always takes you to the best spots you may not find out without their help. As well as this they can inform you of where the dangerous areas are or if there are any well known local scams plus how to avoid them.
– Do Not Flash Your Valuables
Don’t go out looking like you have valuables worth stealing. Don’t take your camera around your neck, your Mp3 player in one hand, a videocamera on the other and a very expensive watch on your wrist. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t bring them in your bag just be mindful of your belongings and keep them out of constant view of the public when possible.
– Wear Plain And Simple Clothes
In some countries you might be able to blend in with the locals but depending on where you go you are noticeably a foreigner. A foreigner in many locals eyes can mean cash, sometimes you can actually see dollar signs in their eyes. Try to wear plain, simple clothes to step out of the spotlight and play the budget traveler, leave the logos and expensive clothes at home.
Do you have any safety tips to share with us that might be helpful on the road? Let us know in the comments below.
