Train Baggage Security
 

Travelling for three weeks and taking a large backpack so I have two hands free for Mom's 22" roller and her hand. When on the train (from Rome to Vernazza and then to Varenna, Venice, Siena and Rome), I am sure the backpack will not fit in the overhead rack and be stored in the area away from seating. Should I cable lock the backpack? Or just zip-tie it to the railing?? In the end, a potential thief could simply cut the backpack and walk off with it.

Actually, depending on the type of rolling stock used, those overhead racks can handle pretty large items...I have frequently goteen a 29" hardsided roller into them without difficulty..also some of the cars are laid out like the ones seen in the US..with a centrqal aisleway and you can often store your luggage within eyesight even if not over your seat. The one exception that comes to mind is on Italian Eurostar services which have larger storage areas at the ends of the car.
I always carry a locking (combo..not keys..one less thing to worry about losing) bicycle brake cable for my hardsided and for my backpack I use one of the expandable "Pacsafe" heavy-duty enclosures. I've never had a theft and both of these items are easily criied and stored.

Intrepid is correct. Also, anxiety and fear about luggage theft is hyper insecurity and paranoia. It's so not necessary. Just use common sense.

Thanks Intrepid and NYFoodSnob. Not insecure, per se. More at anxious. To NYFS...Intrepid made two points; one being that the luggage racks would hold the backpack, the other being that if it did not, that the use of a cable lock was used. When you say Intrepid is correct, are you referring to the luggage rack or the cable lock.

I'm always anxious when I have to travel by train which is why I avoid it. Getting my bags to the train isn't the problem. I almost always have to ask a stranger to lift them onto the train and then lift them overhead. With camera equipment, they're just too damn heavy.

My bags are pretty large. I've never had a problem storing them in overhead bins. A cable lock would not appear on my list of things to pack

Let me qualify my remarks further. I always travel with the cable lock and the PacSafe. I've only felt the need to use them a couple of times and that was when my bags were, in fact, out of my direct line of sight. When I haven't used these devices I have not had a theft but that MAY have been because I could see the bags.
I have traveled on many, many European trains over the years and I don't actually worry about theft all that much. Unfortunately, sometimes it does happen. Recently when I was on the quick train ride from Amsterdam Schiphol into Centraal Station I was sitting in one of the vestibule seats and my bags were on the floor, pretty much at my feet and next to the doors. The train stopped at an intervening station and another passenger warned me that on occasion folks would wait on the platform and reach in and grab unattended bags and dash off. Kinda spooky but I think if you are alert you needn't worry too much.
If anything, I suspect thieves would target smaller, easy to handle bags since they would be easier to move around with...I knew there was a good reason that I tend to "travel heavy"!!!
Again, enjoy your trip.

Grazie millie, Intrepid and NYFS. If I was on the train, NYFS, I would lift your bags for the help (and spirited replies) you offer.

We cable-locked our bags on the trains, and felt more at ease. On the Eurostar trains there's room between the seats for a bag, too. I mean behind your seat. The back of your seat and the seat behind you form an a-frame with a bag-sized gap at the bottom.

What is a "pacsafe"? I don't think I am familiar with this. Thanks.

That was very sweet of you, baymtnman. You deserve a delicious kiss. I must say I am lucky. I've never encountered someone who wasn't willing to help with my bags. I do prefer to not rely on others, though, which is why I usually rent a car.

Like Intrepid, I wish to be clear, too. I'm not suggesting to "not" lock your luggage. The moment you let your guard completely down will most likely be your moment of doom.

On the other hand, New Yorkers have this guard thing built-in, especially if you've beat the streets as long as I have. I feel much safer in Italy, on any Italian train, than I do anywhere in NYC. Plus, like Intrepid, my luggage is heavy. If some crook is stupid enough to want to cart it off, I say let him have it. My insurance policy provides a certain sense of security, too.

It is a really heavy and almost totally unnecessary steel mesh fish net that surrounds your back pack. With all respect, I have lived out of a back back for months at a time is some of Europes most notorious areas and have never seen the need for such cumbersome security. Keep your valuables on you (even on the trains) do not take anything that you could not replace easily (leave the jewels and irreplaceable items at home)and don't make it easy for items to be stolen. Thiefs are cowardly opportunists so a loose purse, dangly fanny packs, and people who reveal their financial capabilities in public (dont pull out your money, credit cards, etc in a public place) become tagets. Relax and enjoy, you can easily ruin a trip if you spend your execess time fretting about security instead of dreaming about vino rosso.

Theft happens. I've seen three incidents where some low-life grabbed a bag as the train was pulling away from the station.

But, hey - if your luggage is stolen, just call NYCFoodSnob and ask that she replace the items since she advised you not to worry about security.

Get a cable lock and use it.

Most train passengers do not use chains and padlocks to keep their luggage secure. If you do use them, you're telling any potential thieves that you're trying to protect something valuable. Reading some comments here gives the impression that European trains are full of gangs of thieves and that anyone is lucky to complete a train journey without being robbed. I've been all over Europe by train on many trips over the past 25 years and never had any luggage stolen - I've known more people whose luggage has been lost by airlines. I rarely even lock my bag because I want people to know that I have nothing worth taking. Look around any railway carriage and you'll that most other people just put their luggage on the racks without worrying about security devices. In France and Britain, some trains now have the luggage racks in the middle of the carriage so that paranoid people can watch it during the journey, but there really are more interesting things to do.

We had the sort of rolling luggage where the top small one would attach to the larger. On trains in Italy, these easily fit in the racks on the compartment style FCs. On Eurostars (2nd class), the small ones went on racks or behind a seat within our sight and the large at the large luggage storage at the end of the car. When we approached a station, one of us would go to that rack by the door and "stand guard" over the big stuff while the other stayed at the seat & watched the small stuff. No big deal angst or special effort about it. Just being alert to possibilities & doing what seemed to make sense. Fortunately, we had no theft problems.

Interesting how some posters can label somebody as paranoid for having a reasonable concern about safety.

Just because something has not happened to you doesn't mean it will not happen to somebody else. Sure the risk is small, but its huge to the poor guy that has a bag stolen.

"I've seen three incidents where some low-life grabbed a bag..." Yeah, and my hair is naturally blonde. ChubNuts needs to learn how to read and tell true tales. I'm sure I've been on many more European trains than her in the last 28 years and I've NEVER witnessed such a thing. She's just desperate for attention.

NYCFoodSlurp, please stop the stupid personal atacks. It makes you look petty and desperate for attention. Can you do that, honey?

First you say you avoid train travel and then you trumpet the number of trains you have ridden - get your made up stories straight.

chatnoir, bag theft is a common enough problem to warrant concern. The risk of a car accident is also low, but that doesn't mean its not smart to drive defensively.

Ignore the personal attacks and the pond scum that make them. They are the ones who seek attention and conflict. Its an internet sickness where they create a make believe life and feel free to act ugly.

chat Noir, for what its worth - I've seen pickpockets at work and a bag snatched in the subway in Paris. I expect others have also.

Your advice is sound. The personal attack on you is unwarranted. That person thrives on conflict so just let it go.

They might be trying to provoke you and get you suspended. Petty people often do underhanded things like that -cheap thrills to bring a little twisted excitement to otherwise boring lives.

I have been taking trains all my life, and never had any problems, never used a cable to lock my baggages either.