I never travel with my passport on my person and I don't put it in the hotel safe either. I just mix it in with my dirty clothes or "hide it" elsewhere in my luggage. I've never had a problem. I sometimes carry a copy for identification purposes in case I'm ever hit by a bus, but not always.

I'm not recommending that you do this, however. Just saying that in traveling to 40 countries--many of them more than once--I have never had a problem. Do what feels comfortable to you. There is no right or wrong answer.

Always keep you passport on your person, preferably in undergarmants, etc. Never give up your passport to anyone at a hotel.

maitaitom, an international incident will just result in making you a Grumpy Traveler, so be careful!!
Enjoy your Two for the Road trip~

I carry our passports in my wallet, in my bag, slung across my chest, I dare some thief to get his hands on it ~ (the chest or the bag or the wallet)

I carry my passport and extra credit cards in my money belt...I feel much better this way and i dont worry about forgetting in the hotel's safe.I have been doing that for many years now,I must admit that,sometimes the money belt can be a nuisance ,especially in hot weather,but for me is the only way to travel..

I always leave mine origional passport my in-room safe (along with my airline tickets & my 'home use' credit cards, if an in-room safe isn't available then I use the hotels save).

I then carry a photocopy of passport, along with a photocopy of my airline tickets & my 'travelling' credit card a 'classic' (re: free) VISA card from my bank that has a much lower credit limit than my 'home use' ones (less credit 'exposure' if something still goes 'wrong' & still have the 'home use' ones as a backup).

I also keep a 2nd photocopy of my passport & airline tickets in my luggage (sort of a 2nd backup and if someone does happen to 'look' through my luggage & finds only photocopies they'd be less prone to 'look harder' for the origionals).

And aside from border crossings, the only other time I've been asked for my passport was at my hotel in Indonesia.

As for a money belt, I wore one in Bali and Kenya but with the prevalance ABMs & credit card use even in fairly remote locations there I now only carry a little cash and skip the money belt.

Z

I stay in budget locales, so I tend to keep it on me in my money belt.

Except when I go out knowing I will have a bit to drink. I realize it makes me sound like a kind of a lush, but I am always afraid I will leave it behind somewhere and not realize it! So when I go out, I do the "hide it in your bag" thing.

You need a moneybelt even though you PLAN to use the hotel safe.

Hotel safe is useless on the day you are travelling from one place to another.

Not all the small inns have safes.

I use the hotel safe if there is one and if it is not my travel day. I carry a copy mostly so that in a remote event that content of the safe is gone, I have a copy to simplify reissue.

Uh jor, I respectfully disagree with you. You've got to give it up at the hotels in Italy. And if you ever start worrying about receiving it back, maybe you ought to really worry about your choice of hotels.

Definitely agree with greg, passport stays in hotel safe until the day I have to travel to another hotel, where it then goes into my moneybelt.

hey Tom, with your penchant for libations and "souped-up" Euro cars, maybe you shouldn't carry your "real" passport on you?

For you my friend, I'd recommend leaving it at a local Amex office. In your case, I say better to trust someone than yourself!

Enjoy them mai tais!

Pickpockets can access any pocket without notice. Many hotel operations are less than secure. Even moneybelts or inner pockets are accessible to determined thief. Muggings/robbery do happen. Many assaults are preplanned based on some observation of victim, perhaps drawing funds from ATM or seeing wallet contents in a shop purchase. Years ago my wife in Miami wore an old coat to bank and carried purse under it. Bank could only be entered if customer was recognized. Many European shops employ same system. Good travels!

Hi MD,
The definitive answer is "YES".

Ah, thank heavens we're all in agreement. Maybe I can ask a better question here. I do not have a money belt. Can those that have one you like please post a link to it?

Hi MD,

I don't use a money belt. My wife and I each have a travel wallet that is attached to a long cord.

I loop mine over my belt and let it hang down a pant leg. My wife puts it around her neck and under her dress.

I keep a photocopy of the passport in my luggage; I have a friend at the US State Dept. who says it is a piece of cake to replace a passport if you have the photocopy in hand.

I will not travel anywhere outside teh US without the passport on my person. Why? I once got out of the Metro in Paris and walked up the stairs unknowingly into a raucous demonstration near Ecole Militaire. I was stopped and questioned by police, showed my passport and was let go while others (Americans included) were herded into a pen on the side of the road for questioning. That was enough for me. NEVER AGAIN will I be without my passport! I tend to think a photocopy would've done squat for me in that situation.

mdtravel, have a look at www eaglecreek.com
They seem to have the most choices. I like the leg stash.

I never use the hotel safe, even if there is one, because I'm sure I would manage to forget it there until I'm miles away...

I guess maybe it's a 'control' issue - I prefer to be in control of my passport at all times, and prefer not to leave it in the hands of anyone else. Also, never a worry about going off without it (getting older, and travel concerns are sometimes frazzling enough without adding this possibility to the mix).

My husband and I always carry them on us in our moneybelt. It is impossible for anyone to get to them since it is under your clothes.

If your passport is left at the hotel you are definitely taking a risk of someone possibly taking it (however slim the possibility). For us, it was a risk not worth taking.

Moneybelt. That's my definitive answer, anyway. I've never had a problem using one. I do everything possible each day to minimize the necessity of getting into the moneybelt while I'm "out & about," so don't draw attention to the fact that I'm wearing one. Fanny packs seem to me to be an accident waiting to happen...I see no reason to "trust" hotels with my passport once they've returned it to me following check-in.

While I carry only the photocopy on my person, I scan the front and back pages into my compter then email them along with all my other travel stuff to my email address. When they arrive I just leave them in my inbox and can pick them up and print them out at any internet connection. But the passport and tickets stay somewhere in the hotel room or safe...

I just carry the photocopies on my person,leave the original in the hotel safe (not in your locked suitcase by the way, if there's going to be a room theft, that's usually what will be taken)
I use the photocopies if the store is taking care of a VAT refund--they need the passport number.