RM67 wrote "Someone said they like to have their passport on them in case they need to 'leave in a hurry'. Would you really be going straight from the Louvre or the Trevi to the airport, even in an emergancy, without collecting your clothes etc from the hotel first?!"

It could happen. The police might be after me on account of my pickpocketing activity. All because I follow the dictum: when in Rome, do as the Romanies do.

But I do get bad feelings about throwing the baby. Some marks have bad co-ordination, and drop him. The baby rental agency charges extra if that happens.

At home I can much more easily apply for a new passport than if I were stranded in Europe.

Re the unfortunate case of hotel burning down with passport in the safe: Please have a photocopy of your passport on your person (and if you're carrying your passport, leave another in the hotel safe.) If you are abroad and your passport is stolen or lost or destroyed, the American consulate will immediately issue you another if you have that copy. (Possibly the one place where you can get a passport without a 10 week wait ...) The fastest way to clear up a missing passport is to have that copy ... fold one up and put it in your wallet, keep another in your baggage, etc. In fact, a great idea is to email yourself the image as an attachment, so you can print one up at any cybercafe by accessing your email.

As to the original subject: I live in NYC and don't wear a money belt, so I don't think it's a necessity for me - but I have one of the flat, zipped "wallets" with a loop to pass my belt through. This is then flipped over and worn inside the trousers (but not inside underwear). What do I keep in it? That photo copy of my passport, one credit/atm card that I will not use unless I lose the others, and a few euros or whatever local currency is, in case of emergency. That's it. I absolutely agree with those who say carrying lots of unnecessary cash is ... unnecessary. As my father used to say, What do I look like, a bank?

Just don't put a copy of your passport in your luggage when you check it on an airplane. That's not really safe.

And if the hotel burns down, I'll be thankful if it was my passport that was in it and not me.

You are right, Padraig, about the necessity of having your passport on you in case you need to leave in a hurry. When I worked in Iran, our instructions were to do exactly that if we were involved in an incident; drop everything and head for the airport.

One of our colleagues was involved in a traffic accident and spent six months in an Iranian jail cell before the company could get him out. I'm sure none of us would get involved in anything shady - but I'd like the option of being able to bail out, if necessary.

I wonder how many people have read the instructions in the passport.

Page 3 #4: ... Make two photocopies of your passport ID page. Leave one at home with family/friends. Carry the other with you in a place separate from your passport.
#5: Fill in the emergency information page of your passport. Leave a copy of your itinerary with family/friends at home.

I renewed my passport last year and followed these instructions. However, I had my previous passport for ten years and never noticed these instructions. Wonder if they are new?

"Wonder if they are new?"

FWIW those instructions are on mine that I got three years ago.

"Not so. You need a spare for when the first one is stolen."

If your money belt gets stolen, chances are your travel partner's money belt has been stolen too.

Bottom line - every city has pickpockets. Be aware of this and you will be fine.

...hmmm ...
I like the around the neck pouches ... but not to keep things safe ... I wear it over my clothes when doing things like going through airports and needing to keep my boarding pass, schedules, maps, etc handy.
If I wore jackets I wouldn't have to, but I don't wear them. And the fr..n shirt designers tend to design too many shirts without pockets.
I must look like a dweeb, but what the heh.

1. I leave my passport in the hotel safe. It's just too bulky to carry it with you.

2. Just came back from 4 days in Northern Italy. I bought a very comfortable wallet that hooks through the belt and is worn under your pants. I kept my money and credit cards in there. I brought a small purse with me with small sums of money and lipstick. If the purse gets stolen... no big deal.

http://www.best4travellers.com/produ...ieftasche.html

If your husband sweats, any money belt worn next to the body will get wet and its contents (passport, etc.) will get bent our of shape.

We have found it is more comfortable to carry valuables in a shoulder bag while traveling and to put them in a safe upon arrival at a hotel.

If he insists on a money belt, get the kind that loops over a belt and use it only for extra credit cards and currency.

(We are not targets for pickpockets in the USA or in European countries.)

We use waist money belts and we place the items into ziplock bags and thus no wetness on the items.

MnJ and others: Wetness can be a problem. We go one step further, or at least I do. I put the items in the thin sandwich baggies and then I take a man's handkerchief and wrap it around the bagged items. It keeps the belt from getting clammy/damp. I believe that it is Samsonite which has a waist belt with the back finished with some type of wicking material. i have one, but seldom use it, as it is thicker than the other one I have.

If one wears their $belt with the bag part toward the back, in the flat of the back, its bulk does not protrude above the stomach--which some people do not like. It is a bit more complicated to retrieve itms that way, but finding a restroom, a fitting room or a convenient corner had always made it possible.

I have carried my passport on numerous (say 15 trips or so) since 2000 and my passport is in very good condition. Of course, all of this is my own opinion. Ciao!!mhm

I prefer a shoulder holster
type. It easily fits a passport, credit cards and cash. It looks like one of the
holsters you see detectives wear.

I use a money belt. I think it is necessary, especially when you travel places where you don't feel safe leaving your valuable things at your accommodation. I always keep my passport with me when I travel alone. I'd rather have it safe in my money belt safely tugged away under my pants.

My money belt has 2 pockets. The biggest one holds my passport, in a Ziplock bag of course. I also have a small paper with important phone numbers (credit card company, bank, embassy, hotel numbers, and any other number I might need in case of emergency). The smaller one holds my money, along with my ATM card and credit cards. I also carry a small wallet in my purse. Depending on what I plan to do during the day, the wallet will hold my money for the day (never more than about 80$), bus pass or train tickets, and sometimes a credit card if I'll need it during the day. The wallet is always in a zipped pocket, not easily accessible for pickpockets.

One thing that always bothers me. I make photocopies of every important thing I have when I travel (passport, plane tickets, front of credit cards...). I'm always wondering if I should carry those in my purse (along with my little book where all my itinerary and travel information are). Any advice for that? All those photocopies are in my suitcase also. Could I be in trouble if anyone gets their hands on those papers?

I wouldn't leave the copies in the luggage for the reasons you mentioned.

Also I don't use a money belt when I'm in my home city also. Yet it is under different circumstances I'm in when I am visiting overseas, and that's the time I do use it.

Nessa,

I don't think keeping the copies in
your purse is such a good idea in case it's snatched. The copies in your luggage aren't secure either.

Why not scan your documents into a computer then save them on an encrypted USB thumb drive? A USB stick is small enough to stash in your pocket or moneybelt and in the event it's lost or stolen the info is encrypted so it's safe. You have the password so you only need put it into a hotel computer or at an internet cafe to retrieve your
info.

You could also leave scanned copies with a friend or relative to be emailed to you in the event of an emergency.

Rob

My husband and I have gone with the around-the-waist style, and like them. Decided against the around-the-neck, because they seem painfully obvious and especially during summer, hot!

Thought this article was a goodie - http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/moneybelt.htm
Gives a very good run down on what to PUT in the money belt.
Interesting that a lot of people don't carry their passports with them - you should, by international law, have it with you (on your person) at all times when in a foreign country.
I'm all for the waist money belt, concealed under your clothes.

Personally, I like wearing my money belt around my waist & like it to have an elasticized waistband so that it doesn't chafe. Hubby likes one that has a loop that matches his dark belt & wear it tucked into his slacks. Have heard about folks who have had their leg "felt up" in a crowded metro in Paris (some of those folks are getting pretty bold).

My hubby was constantly being badgered by gypsies in Rome until after several days of it, I was finally able to convince him to WEAR his moneybelt and leave his empty wallet in the hotel. After that, the gypsies who had been drawn to him earlier, thrusting screaming babies, cardboard, newspapers & what have you at him & the whole 9 yards, totally ignored him as being uninteresting. I had always worn a money belt and was not at all interesting to the gypsies.

It was in a London tube that I had my pocket picked. Fortunately, all they got was 10 or 20 pounds and my old theater ticket (the rest was safely in my money belt UNDER my clothes). I had no idea until after I got back to the hotel that it had been taken from me! Hubby & I were together in the tube the entire time and neither of us saw it and I didn't feel it at all!