ItalyLove

I've been reading previous posts advising not to take fanny packs, or anything except a hidden money belt to keep valuables. But what about your camera??? where do you keep it?? I'm looking for a bag, or anything that I could take my camera and may be other small things. Any comments?

Maire

I have no experience traveling in Europe, but I just bought the CitySafe Handbag (made by PacSafe) from Magellans to keep my small digital camera and other things in. It has security features like tamper-proof zippers, and slash-proof panels. (They make a larger shoulder bag, also.)

Two other posters on another thread got this bag, also, and liked it.

bag: http://tinyurl.com/qse5h
fodors thread: http://tinyurl.com/rrzrn

grsing

I keep mine in my pocket; it fits, but without a great deal of room to spare, so I'd notice for sure if someone tried to grab it. If yours won't fit in your pocket/you don't have pockets, just keep it in whatever bag you carry around, and keep the bag closed and in front of you (preferably not a bag with an easy velcro opening, or an easy zipper, it should be a little difficult to open).

blackduff

Although it's not exactly where to put a camera, this is a good story to remember.

The first time I went to Milan, I was sitting in a cafe and having a drink. There was a commotion and people started to chant - Ladro, Ladro. A young guy was running down the street with a camera in his hands. A couple of minutes later there's a chunky tourist running down the same street and was calling "Thief" and puffing as he went to the same direction of the young guy.

About an hour later I saw the young guy hanging around the Domo plaza, I guess he was waiting for the next tourist to pluck.

Take care of your camera. It's easily stolen.

Blackduff

Maire

Good advice, Blackduff.

zootsi

I keep my tiny digital in a zipperd canvas holster that my belt goes thru. It's positioned on my hip right by my wrist, so it's pretty theft proof.

michellen

I just kept mine in a pocket of my over-the-shoulder purse.

L84SKY

I keep mine in my purse. It’s a small bag that is meant to be carried across my body. I have a digital with a 10X zoom lens so it needed a little more room than some of the digitals I looked at. I took the camera with me when I went shopping, I shopped for a bag that had a comfortable strap, had little pockets in the inside for batteries and the sd card and was a heavier leather than I might usaully chose incase it got bumped.
I found two actually, one is a black leather Fossil bucket style that is quite roomy and the other is just a brown leather purse I found at TJ Max both are perfect.

L84SKY

And both have zippered closings.

annhig

in Rome, we kept our camera in a zipped pouch in a backpack or on a strap in my pocket. I don't think thieves are interested in everyday stuff unless you leave it around, asking for it to be nicked. Be sensible, and don't worry.

isabel

The chance of being pick-pocketed/robbed while on vacation in Europe is pretty slim. Of course it happens, but it's not like everyone who goes to Europe gets robbed. The precautions should be in relation to the value of the items. It is very difficult to get your passport replaced and you can't get home without it. IF your credit cards are stolen a theif can charge hundreds of dollars in a few minutes. Those items should be safely guarded (I always wear an under the clothing money belt for them).

But cameras, while they do get stolen are not high prioirty items, and are easily replaced if they do get stolen. So unless you are carrying aroud cameras worth thousands of dollars I would just take normal precautions. A front pocket, a zipped bag, etc. are probably enough. You need to watch your surroundings, be street-smarth - but don't be paranoid either.

JennaZ

I agree with Isabel. A stolen passport can result in much hassle and lost vacation time. Missing credit cards can leave you in a money poor situation that can be painful to resolve. A lost camera, while distressing, doesn't have to ruin your vacation. Sure you might not have all the photos you took previously, and a nice camera can cost a bit, but you can still pick up a disposable and continue on your trip without a problem. If your camera is so valuable that its loss would be unbearable, I'd think twice about bringing it.

I just keep my camera in a regular (cheap) purse, along with a day's worth of cash and other miscellaneous non-valuable items. Credit cards, passport, and large bills stay in the moneybelt. I like a bag with a strap that can be worn across the chest, and as I would anywhere, I guard it carefully in crowded areas. However, I personally don't feel the need for anything impenetrable, because I don't keep anything in it that I consider really important.

perth2europe

I arrive at Rome totally paranoid after reading and hearing many warnings about pick pockets. After 4 days over one of the busiest periods (Easter weekend), I realised it's not really that bad after all.

Granted we are of Asian descent so perhaps we don't look as worthwhile a target as some rich Americans would. But we did have a camera each and my husband had his Nikon SLR around his neck most of the time but with one hand always holding it firmly.

What helped was perhaps a number lock for our small daypack. When I had to put the camera into the daypack, I had it locked and left the lock hanging obviously. It survived through crowded buses and metros and after 30 days, we came back with both cameras and everything else we went with. Of course we were always vigilant and more so when your instinct tells you, but realised we didn't have to be as paranoid as we thought we'd have to be.

swagman

perth2europe

On another thread, you mentioned you brought an external hard drive with you on your trip, how much did you pay for it? Assuming you live in Perth given your screen name, you may quote in $A as I live in Sydney.

I am off to Tuscany Saturday week for 2 weeks, do you have any suggestions given I am also a keen photographer, I'll be bringing my D70 with 18-70mm lens with 2 512Mb CF cards, will be shooting in 'Fine' mode.

S

perth2europe

My husband got it off ebay in the $A120-150 mark. We didn't go for the fancy stuff (some play music too like an ipod) and there are many brands out there.

You won't regret it as long as it can read CF cards and any other card that you may have (we brought a point-and-shoot along as well so that I could take mini video clips, no regrets doing this as it was so much fun watching some shots with sound!); does not require a PC; is rechargable; and can be fitted with larger hard disk drives in the future (you'll probably want 40Gb in the future for whatever reason).

Enjoy!

travelfunky

We just got back to Rome and had no problems when we were there. I carried a purse across my chest with camera, wallet and other goodies, hubby had his wallet in front pocket. We kept our hand on our valuables when we walked into large groups or super touristy areas but never even felt like someone was watching our stuff. I took a money belt- never used it.

suze

How big's the camera? I just carry mine in my purse. Right next to my passport (see other threads -lol).