Keeping pickpockets from lightening your (monetary) load is neither complicated nor difficult. The simplest way to keep your money safe is to hide your “real” cash and credit cards in a safe, secure spot (like a zippered security pocket), and use a dummy or decoy wallet for routine purchases.
The “Mighty Wallet” pictured below center is my decoy wallet. In it I store two canceled credit cards, an old hotel room key, a bunch of receipts from a previous trip, a bus pass and similar items, and between $10 to $60 worth of local currency. I sometimes put a couple of $20 U.S. bills in it as well. This wallet is what I use for small, routine purchases. I usually keep it in a front pocket or zippered rear pocket.
My “real” wallet is in the upper right hand corner of the picture: a “Bandit” wallet with two credit cards (1 Visa, 1 AmEx), and between $100 and $200 worth of local currency. The only other item I might include is a driver’s license or Passport Card. This wallet (or money clip, or rubber band, or whatever you prefer) is secreted away in a zippered security pocket. I retrieve it only when I can do so discreetly, and obviously only use this for larger purchases.
If someone manages to steal the decoy wallet, no big deal. If I were to get mugged, I’d produce this wallet and toss it past the thief… and run. At first glance, they’d think they’d done well, given the presence of the credit cards.
Beyond this simple tactic, there are a few other basics worth remembering:
- Crowded touristy areas (train stations, bus stations, tourist attractions, crowded buses, open air markets, and yes, ATM’s) are the most likely places for encountering thieves. Be alert, and put your wallet in a front pocket (with your hand in that pocket) or your purse in front of you. Don’t flash a lot of cash. Act and move purposely, as though you’ve done what you’re doing or gone where you’re going hundreds of times before.
- If you’re carrying a camera, keep it in a generic bag (not a camera bag) or (better) use a compact camera and put it in a pocket or purse.
- If you’re be using public transport (best example: buses or bus routes that cater to tourists – think Bus 64 in Rome, the Circumvesuviana, or the underground in Paris) and/or will be visiting an area or neighborhood that’s a bit dodgy, do NOT wear an expensive watch, flashy jewelry, or hang a $1000 camera around your neck. You are inviting pickpockets and thieves to target you if you do so. Simple, comfortable clothing that’s not ostentatious or dressy is best. Watch how locals dress and try to mimic it as best you can. This is a great reason for purchasing a couple of clothing items locally.
- Avoid the temptation to pat your pocket or check your wallet frequently… you’ll just be tipping off thieves as to where your valuables are.
- When using public transport, buy a local (language) magazine or paper – perhaps you can even use it to hide a map!
- Instead of using a backpack or (god forbid) a fanny pack, get a plastic bag from a local supermarket, and use it to carry rain jackets, books, and the like.
- Don’t carry a travel guide book. If you must bring one along, bring excerpts – see this post: Don’t get weighed down by travel guidebooks while on the road
Using a little bit of common sense, along with these guidelines, ought to keep you – and your valuables – safe from prying hands. How about you? Do you have any surefire ways to foil pickpockets and thieves while traveling? If so, please share by commenting.
The Fine Print: I have no connection to Mighty Wallet or Bandit
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- The Naples – Sorrento local train: a Circumvesuviana review
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July 2nd, 2010 at 9:20 AM
Whenever I travel outside my hometown area, I wear a money belt. My preferred style is the “hidden pocket” type that has loops for my belt. It then hangs inside my pants leg. Very comfortable. In it are my passport, credit cards, tickets, etc. I never access this in public.
I also carry a Pacsafe Wallet. In it are a day’s supply of cash, perhaps one credit card and an ATM card for the times I need to get money. This has a chain that attaches to my belt. This wallet is for leisure trips.
For business trips, I carry a similar wallet without the chain as the chain one would look tacky.
Both wallets are carried in a front pocket.
All of the daybags I carry have zippers that can either be locked or fastened together. In these bags I carry cellphone, Ipod, camera. Not an easy mark for a pickpocket. I’m probably going to switch to a Pacsafe Messenger bag that could be used for both leisure and business travel, and has numerous theft prevention features.
If I use the ATM, I try to find a restroom as soon as I can afterward to access the money belt. In it goes the ATM card and the excess cash I removed from the machine.
On days I need a passport, I also have a neck wallet that goes under my shirt. The passport, boarding pass, train ticket, whatever, goes in that and it stays under my shirt until needed. Once no longer needed, they go back into the “hidden pocket.”
I also follow many of the ideas in Kevin’s post. Good job.
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July 2nd, 2010 at 10:43 AM
A dummy or throw away wallet is also your “ransom.” Good idea to keep enough money in there so the thief is not p.o.’d. $50 should do. Don’t go all Rick Steves on him and include a note saying “fooled you, you big moron!”
Yes, muggers in the ‘hood will sometimes take a quick look to see what they got and beat up people for not carrying enough money and wasting their time.
LOL
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July 2nd, 2010 at 12:06 PM
Thanks for the mention. Hope you find your Bandit Wallet useful!
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July 2nd, 2010 at 4:02 PM
Bras are handy for hiding the main stash of cash. Sorry guys.
If you’re concerned with a folded stash being secure enough not to pop out or if it might make you look lopsided, it’s easy to whip stitch in some pockets from scraps of fabric. On the inside next to the skin. More than one pocket makes it lay more evenly and you can create stashes easy to keep track of in different amounts.
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July 2nd, 2010 at 6:30 PM
When traveling in the third world I carry an inside pants pocket attached to the belt like Buzz describes. Works well and is big enough to stow a passport. Money belts are not practical, I find. Plus they often look less than nice, which is not a concern in the third world where you want to dress down anyway.
When traveling through India many years ago I had my shoemaker install a hidden compartment in my Birkenstocks. I thought I was smart. Until I realized that I had to leave them at the entrance of all the temples I visited. :) I just left the CC in there and nobody ever took my German sandals. LOL!
Otherwise, I don’t worry too much about getting robbed. Material things are replaceable most of the time. Although I still get a bit angry when I think of the rare Issey Miyake trench that was stolen from a friend’s car in Hamburg. They wanted the leather jacket next to it and got the trench that they probably don’t even know how special it is. :(
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July 3rd, 2010 at 6:03 AM
You failed to mention how you carry your passport or train/plane tickets. They wouldn’t fit in either of your wallets. A passport card isn’t valid outside of North America.
I use a money belt and decoy wallet.
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Kevin Reply:
July 3rd, 2010 at 5:11 PM
Andy:
Right, wrong, or indifferent (and I’m probably wrong), I don’t carry a passport on a daily basis when traveling internationally. I usually leave it in the hotel safe. I have imaged my passport and those images are on my (password protected) BlackBerry, which is always with me. In addition, my wife carries a photocopy of our passports in her purse.
And yes, you’re right – a passport card is an alternative for entering the U.S. from Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, and the Caribbean.
Thanks for your comment!
kc
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July 3rd, 2010 at 1:55 PM
TRUE STORY – Mighty Wallet saves the day :
August 13, 2008 at 11:20am -”Hi Terrence. Hope all is well. I was just rehearsing with Andrew, here in DC, and he pulled out his wallet and it was the Airmail wallet. I said “I know the designer”.
He said to pass on a message that he was mugged and had his Laptop stolen and when the muggers said “give me your wallet” he pulled out the Airmail Mighty Wallet and said “I only have this letter from my grandmother in my pocket” and they let him go.
He said that he was grateful that the design saved him from having his wallet stolen. It was a present from his girlfriend. I thought you’d like to hear that. best, Kid”
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July 5th, 2010 at 5:16 AM
My twopence.
No cash in wallet. Actually I rarely wear a proper wallet. In it I have just one credit card, along with an Atm card, a couple of rechargeable debit cards and National ID. Another document is *nearly* always somewhere else – I say nearly, as last weekend I forgot all my IDs in my brother’s car, so I had to go through Switzerland “illegally”, but I managed to do it! ;-)
To avoid misuse of a stolen credit card, I have a text message on my mobile phone each time one of my cards is used. This is a great service which saved my sister a lot of problems and hassle once.
I suppose it doesn’t exist everywhere, though…
My piece of advice is: have more than one item for each purpose (ID and passport for ID check, more than one credit card etc.).
Kevin:
You need to have at least one proof of identity with you all the time all over the Schengen Area, here in Europe (That was the reason why I was illegal in Switzerland). And in Russia, you need your passport – if you get caught without it’s big trouble… Sometimes the police tries to keep your passport and ask for a ransom for it and there are plenty of fake policemen around trying to do the same. So I suggest you have and show a photocopy first – both of the passport and of the visa – this at least in Russia but, why not?, even in other countries.
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Kevin Reply:
July 5th, 2010 at 7:58 AM
Adriano,
You’re right… I should carry the passport. If I got into a dispute and the police were summoned, or an accident… I should have it with me. …and the image on my BlackBerry would be handy in dealing with the US Embassy, but would do nothing in terms of proving when I entered the country.
Thanks.
kc
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July 9th, 2010 at 12:52 PM
A missionary friend of mine taught me that it should always be a 3 step process to get to your money. A pickpocket can do 2 steps with ease, but the 3rd step introduces enough complexity and delay that it really raises the chance that they will get caught. Most pickpockets try for an easy snitch, and will abandon their attepmt if it gets too hard. Hence a wallet attached to a clip (step 1) inside of a zipper (step 2) inside of a pocket (step 3) is safe. If said pocket is under a shirt or coat, that adds step 4. Also, keep the wallet in non-standard places. If in pants, in the front pocket, not the back. If in a coat, on the right hand side, not the left.
I almost always wear clothes with a zippered security pocket. I then take bias tape (found in sewing stores) and sew down the end of a 1 foot long strip of the tape. On the other end of the tape I sew in a clasp (available from sewing stores or craft stores). I then clip the clasp to my working wallet. This tether gives me enough leeway to pull the wallet out of my pocket and get some money, but will cause a problem with pickpockets. The passport, credit card, and big bucks are stored separately in a money belt that hangs down my leg.
I also use S-biners or clasps to close my purse/backpack. These are like mini-carabiners. They are easy to open, but cause delays for casual theft. I bought my s-biners at REI
For passports, I heard a great idea from Beth Whittman. She carries multiple paper copies of her passport. If someone asks that she hand over her passport her statement is: “My country’s government asks that I do not hand over my passport. However, I have made a copy of it and will be happy to give you that.” This allows her to comply with requests but maintain control of that precious document. There is never a need to surrender a passport – only a need to show it to the true authorities.
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Adriano Reply:
July 19th, 2010 at 11:37 AM
Cindy says
“There is never a need to surrender a passport”
This is not always true. In Italy, when you check in in an hotel, you are asked to leave your passport for the compulsory registration…
Another 9/11 side effect? Not really, the law prescribing this dates back to 1932…
Moreover the passport is also asked as a guarantee, for ski / bike rental and such.
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Cindy H Reply:
July 22nd, 2010 at 1:59 AM
If you have taken a photocopy of your passport then it has all the information needed for compulsory resistration (Name, Passport number, Date of issue/expiration, etc.) No legal need to surrender the actual passport. They don’t want the actual passport, but the information on it.
As far as a guarantee goes, that is the operator trying to make sure you bring the bike/skis back. I have found that a financial deposit does the same thing… just make sure you get a receipt for the deposit. Again, no legal need to surrender the passport.
If an operator demanded that I surrender my passport as a condition of rental, I would seriously think twice about it.
I have found that many times people state something is “required”, when really it is “more convenient for me if you do this”.
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Cindy H Reply:
July 23rd, 2010 at 3:52 PM
PS. I did not pick the ugly picture. I have no idea where it came from. I would prefer a different picture, please!
Kevin Reply:
July 23rd, 2010 at 4:58 PM
Cindy:
Sorry. The site was using computer generated Wavatars; if you clear your cache, it should be gone. If you ever want to use a custom avatar (picture or illustration) for when you comment on blogs, you can do set one up at http://en.gravatar.com/ This is why some of the comments on the site (including mine) are accompanied by a small photo or custom icon.
Kevin
Adriano Reply:
July 23rd, 2010 at 4:58 PM
Cindy says
“No legal need to surrender the actual passport”
Yes and… no. At least in Italy, according to article 109 of the so called TULPS law (http://www.sanzioniamministrat.....oc81310837)
According to this article no one can sleep in an hotel and similar if without a proof of ID.
There is also a part dedicated to foreigners. Here is a rough translation
“(for registration) of non-EU citizens it is enough to show the passport”
According to some forums I read, registration needs to be done during check-in, before getting the keys.
The real passport needs to be shown (a photo-copy could be… photo-shopped!).
According to privacy law, the reception isn’t allowed to make any copies of it. So there are two options:
1- the guest waits until the registration takes place – the right way, but quite a long time, when reception is full of people
2- the guest leaves the passport at the reception, relaxes in the room and then comes back to sign the registration form and get back the passport – not so right, but more comfortable.
Please note that different rules apply to groups.
As of passport for guarantee, yes, a deposit works fine most of the times… Except when the rental shop doesn’t want to have too much cash in their till, with a very high risk of getting robbed. A possible solution? Credit card pre-authorization!
Please note that you aren’t asked to show your passport everywhere. In Germany it seems not compulsory, whereas in France you are allowed to use pseudonyms – this at least until until not long time ago!
July 9th, 2010 at 1:06 PM
Another thing – all of my bags, be it purse, backpack, side bag, have inside pockets. I carry the expensive things (such as a camera) stored in the inside pocket. They can slash the bottom or back of my bag, but the only thing that is going to fall out is my water or a snack. They will have to go through 2 layers to get the the expensive stuff.
I am also a big fan of deep pockets. Sometimes I will open up the bottom of a pocket and extend it by adding more material. It makes it harder to get things in and out, or for that matter, for things to fall out. In fact, you could easily make a security pocket this way from a normal pocket. Open up the bottom of the pocket and add in the extension. Stitch in a velcro closure strip where the bottom of the pocket used to be. Now you have a pocket in a pocket. If you do it carefully, it looks like a normal pocket.
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Kevin Reply:
July 9th, 2010 at 4:54 PM
Cindy,
THANKS! Tremendous comments – very helpful, with clever ideas. Thx. for helping my readers!
Kevin
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July 19th, 2010 at 2:40 PM
Is there someplace on the web to go and check the “always carry” passport requirement for each country? I know that when I was in Cameroon our host took our passports to make copies and have the copies stamped by the gendarmes so we could carry that and leave our passports in a secure place. Otherwise we had to have our passports on us at all times and risk being pulled over and detained if we didn’t have them. I’m sure most “Western” countries are more lenient, but I’m curious about the rest of the world.
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Adriano Reply:
July 19th, 2010 at 2:46 PM
Well the home office website could help…
I use this: http://www.viaggiaresicuri.it but:
1- it gives information valid for Italian citiziens,
2- it’s in Italian ;-)
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Kevin Reply:
July 19th, 2010 at 6:40 PM
K-eM:
A decent start is the U.S. State Department site: http://travel.state.gov/index.html
Select the country you’ll be visiting, and then visit the Entry/Exit requirements: it may spell out what you need to do.
Another option is to simply Google something along the lines of “need passport all times in (country name)” – you’ll usually find reliable information this way, but may need to search for it a bit.
Perhaps someone else can chime in on this topic.
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September 1st, 2010 at 5:13 PM
I never thought to have a decoy to give to thieves, what a great idea.
I keep my passport and a chunk of money in a zip bag in a money belt tucked into my pants. I keep spare American currency in my Eagle Creek All Terrain Belt and only have my spending money for the day in my bag.
If I need more money, I simply go to a restroom and in the privacy of the stall, I transfer the money from my money belt to my bag.
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Michael W. Reply:
September 2nd, 2010 at 8:45 AM
Not only a decoy, ransom. I’d rather lose $100 in small notes in “ransom” than a couple of teeth or wake up with a concussion. Also called a “throw down” wallet because you throw it down and run. That’s why it can’t be empty – you don’t want them p.o.’d and running you down in a fine example of urban persistence hunting.
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October 25th, 2010 at 8:44 PM
If you want a ridiculously easy wallet to use that is thin and secure, try The Xband. Check out the site http://www.thexband.com Just another great alternative.
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