Is it safe to bring/wear jewellery?
 

I have a very beautiful diamond ring that I received for a special anniversary a few years ago. I wear it every day here at home, but was advised just today that I shouldn't be taking it with me to Italy, because it may attract unwanted attention from gypsies and other undesirables.

I don't know what to think about this. When we went to Prague a few years ago I left all my rings save my wedding band at home, but in three trips to Paris I brought it (winter so wearing gloves most of the time).

Am I inviting trouble to wear it (if I did I wouldn't take it off to leave in a room), or being unnecessarily cautious. My preference is obviously to wear it, as I feel naked without it, but I'm not about to invite trouble either.

What to do? BTW - leaving in about 14 hours.

You will probably be OK, but why risk it? It should not hinder your trip to leave it behind.

I've worn my diamond solitaire and wedding ring on every trip for more than 30 years. In a couple of situations/places over all those years, I did turn the stone around to the inside of my hand.

The rest of what I wear are cheap costume pieces, so I'm certainly not a walking advertisement for fine jewelry. I wonder, would your diamond anniversary ring be in addition to your wedding ring with possibly more diamonds?

If you do wear the ring on your trip, I wouldn't take it off anywhere for any reason because it's just too easy to forget it when you're not in your own home, following your usual routines. If you would want to remove it, then I'd leave it at home.

Agree with jean. If you ever take off your ring to bathe, shower or sleep, I would not bring it. It is easy to forget details like jewelry when you are disoriented, jetlagged, in an unfamiliar place. Why have the worry?

I always wear my diamond and emerald wedding ring. Like Jean on the tube or metro I'll often turn it to the inside of my hand. I do take my ring off at night but loop it thru a bracelet and my watch then throw it in my purse. Might sound strange but after being in 2 hotel fires over the years. I hang my purse on the room doorknob each night!

My American sister-in-law has some large diamonds. When she asked her British husband if his relatives would think her ostentatious if she wore them in England, he replied - correctly - that they would assume they were not real. That is if they even noticed them.

I leave my engagement ring at home, but that's because i take it off when I am hot/washing my hands/sleeping etc and I worry that I'll lose it. I doubt that you will be assaulted for one piece of jewellery, but I could be wrong.

I didnt take my engagement ring the first time I came to Europe from Canada because I was nervous as you are. Now that I live in London however I never remove it for travel. I sleep/shower etc with it on so rarely take it off anyways. But I have travelled extensively in Europe and never think to leave it at home now. And obviously I wear it in London every day.

I think, to a certain degree, it depends on exactly where you are and who/what you are.

For example, I have a 22 carat gold very heavy and large chain link bracelet which I rarely, if ever, take off. I've worn it to many places in Europe and elsewhere on many trips and have never had any difficulties. Those places INCLUDE Barcelona and the infamous pickpocket-ridden Metro and also Rome with the "undesirables" as you have described them.

But I am a 6'2" tall man and that makes a big difference sometimes.

Woman in Italy wear beautiful, expensive jewellery all the time. Your jewellery is no more likely to get stolen there than at home (unless you happen to be from a town with zero crime). My wife wears her jewellery including her diamond ring and wedding band all over Europe (including Prague, Barcelona, and Italy) and has never had a problem.

First of all Italy is the biggest manufacturer in the world of quality jewellry (and furs) so people wear it more than many other countries.
However, for anyone it depends where you are travelling - in the major cities and in the safe areas - major shopping areas, business districts etc you are generally safe. I would exclude Naples though.
You say nothing about your insurance policy - have you extended your cover?

In the past few years I've taken to wearing "faux"jewelry...and many costume pieces that I buy in our ports.. As for the diamond...I would wear the diamond if you must turned around. It's not about insurance.. it's about sentiment. As for watches I wear the (don't laugh) the $10.00 cruise watches. I have "fake" large diamond ring, tennis bracelet, earrings and a beautiful "fake" tanizite cocktail ring.. Bu the fun part is my wearing parrot themed jewelry, beads, etc. I've picked up in the little shop along the way.. all seem to be conversation pieces..,

I just returned to Italy and wore my engagement ring along with other fairly expensive pieces of jewelry and never once thought about needing to turn the stone to the inside of my palm....we were in Rome, Florence, Chianti, Naples, Capri, and Sorrento and did a lot of walking/train traveling.....

Just returned *from* Italy, that is...

My worry is not theft but sheer carelessness; I speak as someone who accidentally threw away a pair of favourite earrings in Paris.

I am one who takes off my ring often. I leave my diamond ring and other good pieces at home as I know myself, and I have jewelry off more than on.

At home, my ring sits in my jewelry box unless I go out and I cannot sleep with any jewelry on nor do I wear in the shower or when doing housework.

I have a ring I wear on my wedding finger when I travel but the good stuff stays home.

I do have insurance on it, and I wear it on my right hand. We only pass through Naples train station on the way to Sorrento.

I take off my rings and my watch at night, and when travelling keep them in a small red box at night. Avalon, I'm going to start putting that box into my purse - good idea.

<<because it may attract unwanted attention from gypsies...>>

I'm so tired of this.

I had insurance on earrings and necklace that were very expensive and were stolen from my safe at a B&B in Florence 7 years ago along with a pair of Oakleys. The management denied it could happen and the police - whom I insisted they call as I needed documentation for my insurance- refused to issue a police report since the owners told them that none of their employees would ever steal from a guest. They sided with the owners of the B&B and without the report, my insurance would not cover the loss.

Bottom line is that I lost two of my best jewelry items and that was the first and last time I ever traveled with the real thing. I have been unable to afford to replace them and never will.

Well I don't drag a lot of jewelty around - don;t even own a lot. And I don;t travel with anything I'm afraid to lose that I ever take off. But if you wear the ring al the time you should be OK. (The potential issue is loss due to jet lage or ultiple packing and unpackings, not theft.)

Unless it's the Koh-i-noor I don't think wearing it in europe will be problem.

The only thing I have/wear that I think would get someone excited is my engagement ring, which I usually leave at home, no matter where I go, more through fear of forgetting it than anything else. I wore it on my last trip to Ireland, as we were staying in a relative's home, and I was less concerned about losing it.

I lost my wedding ring on a trip one time. I take it off all the time, in fact hardly ever wear it in the summer time due to a skin condition that is agravated by the heat. I forgot to put the ring on before leaving the hotel one day and when I came back, it was gone.

As a result, I don't take any jewelry on trips that I would be particularly upset to lose.

Don't take anything that you can't replace. I worry more about misplacing/forgetting things than being robbed.

I always wear my engagement and wedding ring when I travel (they rarely come off my finger), but I leave all other fine jewelry at home. I bring a few costume jewelry pieces to liven up my wardrobe, but it's not worth losing and/or having fine pieces stolen.

Hey M,

How would you feel if it were stolen?

((I))
We always eave the Coronet with matching necklaces at home.

I have a VERY expensive 22 K gold bracelet which I have worn in Europe in the past without problems but I agree that if you are at all concerned I would leave stuff at home. Getting a RING off your finger is going to be a lot harder to do that ripping off a purse or pickpocketing a wallet. Theft from a hotel room depends on what you leave IN the room, obviously.

If you are in doubt I would leave stuff behind and make sure wherever you leave it is also safe.

Rings attract little attention from thieves unless they clear out your room. It's more likely you'll misplace it or forget it somewhere. What thieves want is money and credit cards plus saleable items such as cell phones, iPods and expensive cameras, and snatchable items like gold chains. Don't take anything that you would be upset to lose - not necessarily of monetary value. A friend of mine went to Spain with his address book - every contact he'd every made over the past 50 years and it went as "collateral damage" when his briefcase was stolen.

http://www.bella-toscana.com/pickpocketsinitaly.htm

if you are asking then I would say leave it. I wear a pretty diamond band (from HSN or some other fake outlet) and that is it. I figure it is just one thing less to keep up with.

This is a 3 year old thread; most likely topped by an advertiser.

Hi DNM,

Yes, but like an old sea chart, still useful.

I had this conversation earlier with a relative who was making her first trip to Italy. A neighbor of hers told her not to wear her 'good' jewelry. She does wear a few flashy pieces. We talked about it and in the end she left the 'big' ring and necklace at home. My jewelry is more modest, but I think I would not bring/wear anything easily ripped from my neck or large enough to draw attention to me. I think my cousin had a very enjoyable trip with the flashy stuff locked up safely at home.

An advertiser for what? Anti-Gypsy spray?

I was in the Kempinski in Berlin when I found a diamond ring on a sink in the restroom. I'd been in the lounge and had seen a woman leave the room and then come back, so I thought she was probably the owner of the ring.

I went to her and asked if she'd lost something, and she looked at her hand and cried, "Mein Diamant!" I returned it to her.

It's pretty easy to lose a ring that way. I think it's as well to leave it at home.

"An advertiser for what? Anti-Gypsy spray?"
---

When you see an old thread; then you see this:
<i>Comment has been removed by Fodor's moderators</i>
and then a bunch of new replies, years later...one can almost always, safely presume that the thread was topped by ad. Pretty sure a savvy poster like knows this...

"An advertiser for what? Anti-Gypsy spray?"
---

When you see an old thread; then you see this:
<i>Comment has been removed by Fodor's moderators</i>
and then a bunch of new replies, years later...one can almost always, safely presume that the thread was topped by ad. Pretty sure a savvy poster like knows this...

Markland was leaving in "14 hours"... 3 YEARS ago (lol)!

Peg, that's my fear, not that jewellery will be torn from my neck or weist, but that I'll leave it behind in a hit room.

A friend of ours recently left a ring in a uot room in Italy. The staff found it and arrangements were made to return it to our friend who had unfortunately left Italy by the time the loss was noticed. $400 later it was couriered back to their home in Australia

I hit the yellow triangle on the poster that resurrected this thread. Although I didn't open the link in the comment, the web address looked like a jewelry store/company located in Australia.