Teenager traveling abroad alone. Was planning to keep Passport, ID, plane ticket, Euros, etc. in compartment in backpack. Now I'm thinking it would be better to keep it all on her person, to lessen chance of theft or loss. So . . . can you wear/carry a small document-carrier thru Security, or will she have to remove it & put it in a bin with everything else, thus creating an even higher risk of theft (since this would be a small item, and easy to "palm" & walk away with if she is held up at the scanner)?

I believe you have to remove everything and put it through the scanner. I know belts, sweaters/jackets, shoes, and scarves must be removed before going through the scanner.

I think there is little chance of theft at security. It takes a long time to scan each item so your daughter would be through the scanner before her things are. I think it's best to keep everything together in the back pack and then transfer her document carrier to her body after security.

I always carry my passport and boarding pass through security in my hand. I also wear a "money belt pouch" around my waist with any money I'm taking that I won't need in the airport. My other documents are in my carryon bag as well as a second set in my checked luggage. I also have a photocopy of my passport in both bags, just in case.

Yes you have to remove everything. But I definitely would NOT have her carry her passport, ID, money, etc. in a compartment of her backpack! That's a really bad idea.

You want something she can wear on her body (I use a small leather purse by Fossil, with a strap that can reach across my torso). You put it in the bin going thru security checkpoints but simply put it back on once you're thru. No one has a chance to "palm" & walk away with her stuff in that scenario. A money belt to be worn under the clothes (but taken off for security) is another method some people use.

You never let go of your travel documents from the time you check in until you get on the plane. You keep them in your hand - even through security - since you will have to show them several times - and in your hand you know exactly where they are.

As for putting your valuable through the belt on the security line- you stay on the outside of the doorway until your valuables have entered the scanner - so you know they can;t be interfered with by anyone behind you. (You will walk through faster than your belongings will be scanned.)

I tried to go through security in Athens, Greece with my money belt under my clothes & was forced to remove it so it could be scanned. I don't think documents in the hand were allowed, either. I plan to put my moneybelt inside my purse to go through security next times, & then put it on again in the nearest restroom!

I have been through security in some airports where they insisted you hand carry your passport and boarding pass through the metal detector, and I have been in other airports where they insisted you put it on the conveyor belt and through the scanner. In any event I think they would not allow you to carry the small document carrier through security, unless you are picturing something different than I am.

Same experience as Nikki here - in fact at CDG once I argued that I should be allowed to carry my passport through the metal detector but the agent insisted I could not carry anything and it had to go in the bin. The agent won, sort of - when she turned around I stuffed it in my pocket and passed through, so I was technically not carrying it in my hand. Nowadays I just put it in my pocket after ID and before going through the metal detector.

Agree the backpack is a bad, bad idea for carrying important documents. Even if the pack is not stolen, in crowded areas (like a metro car) thieves are quite adept at stealthily opening a compartment, removing the contents, and re-closing before the owner knows what has happened. The more brazen will even use a razor to slit it open and help themselves. I's one good reason to always wear a backpack on the front of the body.

A teen will likely see those neck cord document carriers as very nerdy, the travel equivalent of a pocket protector (actually, I do, too) and prefer something different. There are several alternatives available - check out the travel section at Target. She will have to remove and put it through the scanner at security, but that's not a problem.

Carry in hand. You have to show the ticket/boarding pass/passport about every fourth step you take.

Clarin--I think you are wise to ask this question.

I totally agree with above posters that every security post is different, so the best thing to do is to prepare for not being allowed to carry docs on your person.

I carry a small, flat purse--one that can accomodate passport, money, credit cards and cell--across my body, and yes, I take it off and plop it on top of the tray with my shoes through security.

I TOTALLY agree with the warning not to go through the machine until the belongings go into the tunnel. I've had security people yell at me, and I just smile and smile at them, watching my stuff until it hits the entry. Please make sure your daughter knows to hold her ground there--the fact remains that her walking through will not make her belongings go through any faster, so she's actually not holding up any line, no matter how impatient the person at the metal detector is. The line can't go any faster than the belongings getting to the other end!

There are several advantages to this small type of purse/wallet. First, it's so small and flat that most of the time, flight attendents don't even consider it a carry-on, so I can carry on a roll-on and small backpack in addition to it. Second, it's comfortable enough to keep strapped around me even mid-flight, so if I'm ordering a snack box or drink on the flight, I'm not bending down, digging under the seat for money, and I can also easily turn my cell off and on pre- and post-flight. Third, it doesn't look dorky like a money belt.

Excellent advice from everyone, which I so appreciate.

I can always count on the kindness of the "strangers" on this board to head me in the right direction. OK, so the search is on for a small, flat, crossbody purse, hopefully with a few zippered compartments.

It never occurred to me to not go through the detector until my tray items were out of harm's way! That is the best tip I've read in a long time, & I've already passed it along to my daughter. Naturally, she's concerned that the Security person will get mad at her...

Why can't your daughter take care of herself? Is she not planning her own trip or expecting mommy to do all the work. Or is it that you can't let go? Not to be a mean person, but she is an adult. Let her make her own mistakes or just live her life.

And if your airport has the new x-ray scanners, you have to remove everything, even stuff in your pocket has to come out. You raise your hands above your head with the fingers in a certain position so you can't be carrying your passport and boarding pass.

Cherrybomb, obviously you have never had a question in your life that you didn't know the answer.
Advising a teenager how to navigate foreign security (that can be at best at the whim of whoever is running it at the time) so they are not flustered, or make a really bad mistake that will delay or ruin their trip is hardly "not letting go". The teen will have plenty of other opportunities to "live her life".

cherrybomb, the poster is entitled to ask a question without being attacked - you are being a mean person. Maybe the TEENAGER (not necessarily an adult) is nervous about traveling alone and asked the question of her mother.

I love my Le Sportsac purse with a long adjustable strap that I wear across my body. They come in various sizes (and colors but I favor black) and have lots of zippered compartments.

Just got back from Athens, Greece, and EVERYTHING had to go through security. This was also true at CDG ( Paris).

I agree with the others who'd advised not letting your daughter carry her documents in her backpack. My daughter lived in Paris last year and always carried her documents in a separate zipped up "travel" document type of wallet. You can find these at most luggage stores. They are made specifically for traveling. I carry one, too. It helps when you do have to put everything through security because at least it is safely zippered away when you put it in the bins.

Good luck!

Clarin--I so understand about your daughter's being afraid that Security will get mad at her. My oldest, a born overachiever with an otherwise good head on her shoulders, was warned to "turn off the people-pleaser switch" when traveling alone. Sure enough, traveling alone at age 18, even though she had traveled many, many times with us, she almost ended up in a gypsy cab out of Newark (long story) until, as she said, she heard my voice in her head saying, "WHY are you listening to this guy?"

She later went on to navigate quite successfully many international trips on her own in some rather obscure and dangerous locations. When my youngest asked if she were ever scared she'd get through security in those places, her words of sisterly advice were, "Smile and play dumb, but don't BE dumb."

I couldn't have said it better!

The paranoia in this thread is regrettable, so I believe that I should add to it. Those of you who want to carry your passport in your hand, just think of how many razor blades you can hide between the pages. This will not set off the security portal (since wrist watches don't), but putting the passport through the X-ray machine will show them very clearly.

I would love to hear all of your anecdotes about robberies at airport security while you're at this subject.