How do you keep yourself safe and your home secure when traveling? If you travel, you definitely want these essential tips for travel safety and security.
Top Things You Need to Know for Travel Safety and Security
These are vital tips to help you keep you, your loved ones, and your property safe and secure while traveling.
Situational Awareness: Why and How You Need It!
What is Situational Awareness, and why do you need it? “The ability to identify, process, and comprehend the critical elements of information about what is happening around you.”
Situational Awareness does not mean profiling.
- Pay attention to your surroundings (not your phone), keep your head up. Make eye contact, but don’t gaze.
- Prepare for the known and unknown.
- Identify what threats are out there, & learn how to recognize them before they can do you harm.
- Manage exposure to threats, and do everything possible to avoid a tragedy.
- Don’t be loud
- Lean a few important questions in the language of your destination.
- ATM Scams
The Best Clothing for Travel for Travel Safety and Security
- Dressing like a tourist
- Don’t carry your wallet in your back pocket.
- Money belt
- Your purses need to be zipped, strap over one shoulder and under your other arm, holding it in front of your body.
- Keep different denominations in different pockets.
- If you need a backpack, consider the PacSafe backpack I described in episode 24
- Pack a 1st aid kit. (be mindful of local regulations)
Always Purchase Trip Insurance!
- Be prepared for the unexpected
- “peace of mind”
- Protection against identity theft ????
- Why? Accidents, weather, illness, terrorism, natural disasters
Crucial Social Media Tips for Travel Safety and Security
- Don’t advertise that you’re away and your home is unoccupied.
- Control the privacy of your posts or wait and post when you get home. You can still check in to locations afterward.
- Don’t do stupid things for photos, (hurt yourself, lose your phone)
How to Protect Your Home While You’re Away
- Don’t advertise that your home is unoccupied.
- Have the post office hold your mail
- Inform your bank of your trip.
- Purchase local currency in advance (get small denominations)
- Cancel subscriptions
- Get a house sitter
- Home won’t be empty
- Can water your plants, feed your pets and bring in your mail.
- Keep a few friends and family posted where you are.
Hotel Considerations: I Bet You’ve Never Heard These
- Watch what you say at check-in
- Use the Do Not Disturb Sign
- Lock ALL locks when inside
- Shut the curtains
- Stay on floors 2 – 6 ( Do not way on the ground floor)
- Get a room that is not near or over the lobby
- Room cleaning concerns
- Electronics in the room
- Cover the peephole (bandaid or tape)
- Don’t write your name on the door hangers outside of the room (food orders)
- Room security devices: Door stoppers, alarm, cameras)
Transportation Considerations: How to Arrive Safely
- Vetted car service
- Uber/Lyft
- Hotel car service
- Watch for ATMs
- Important advice about your PIN!
- Taxi, train, other public trans (not recommended
- Country dependent
How to Keep Yourself and Your Phone Safe
- Avoid public wi-fi, especially if it’s not password protected. Consider using a VPN
- Prepared maps in advance. Save locations, have a general idea of directions.
- Take photos of important documents.
- Keep trip details in notes (reservation numbers, contact for trip insurance claims)
- Don’t walk around staring down at your phone.
- Talking is better than texting. Don’t be loud. Monitor your surroundings while you converse
- Share your location (fellow vacationers, family/friends back home)
Destination Considerations for Travel Safety and Security
- Share your itinerary with loved ones back home so they know where you should be and when. Have check-in times.
- Try to not arrive at a destination late at night. Maybe try to avoid rush hour.
- What to do when you get lost or separated? (Meetup places.)
- memorize your phone number.
- ID Bands
- Recognize cast members and get comfortable talking to them (PIN Trading)
- Bright-colored clothes/hats
- Invest in local tours from reputable companies.
- Don’t give too much info to strangers.
- Stay sober
- Don’t drink the water. (dive restaurants have the best food, but be careful. Research before you go).
- Have queue cards (or store them on your phone) that describe your allergies in local languages.
How do you keep yourself safe and your home secure when traveling?
Please let us know in the All Things Travel Podcast Facebook group!
Start Making Your Magical Memories!
Ryan and Shayne are both Travel Advisers with Creating Magic Vacations, an authorized Disney Vacation Planner. Feel free to reach out to us for a free quote and to start making magical memories.
- Contact Ryan at DisneyTravelDad.Com.
- Contact Shayne at Shayne.fun.
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Next on All Things Travel, Episode 36: So you want to go to Disney World. Now What?
Previously on All Things Travel, Episode 34: Universal’s Endless Summer Resort – Dockside.