Just how effective is a money belt against pickpockets? Is it a better strategy to use, in addition to a money belt, a wallet with nothing in it as a decoy so the pickpocket concentrates on trying to steal the worthless wallet??
Posts: 116 | Location: Irvine, CA | Registered: 13 February 2008
Good question! I have tried wearing a money belt and I found it so darned uncomfortable and, well...rather obvious! So, I packed it away and have never worn it since.
Here's my strategy... I don't carry a lot of $$$ with me on any given day, plus I take 2 ATM cards and one VISA with me. The cash is usually in an inside zippered pocket of my jacket and the cards are also in zippered pockets, but not together with the cash.
There are lots of people here who use moneybelts and neck wallets, so they must work for many. I just find them really uncomfortable and awkward to wear.
"Most travel is best of all in the anticipation or the remembering; the reality has more to do with losing your luggage." ~ Regina Nadelson Brenda
It works for me. When in Europe I use ATM when I travel in Asia and Middle East I use it - cash can get a lot done. Depends on how careful you are with your money, how to pay attention to whats going on around you and where your going.
I always wear one when I travel. If you put your cash and papers in a ziploc bag inside the money belt, then they don't get damp when you do. I wear it at the back so it doesn't look bulge-y at the front.
I wore a neck pouch for 26 days in a row under my jean jacket. The buttons are so darn difficult to unbutton that I feel totally safe with my money and passports.I don't allow for a lot of slack so the pouch rests on the upper part of my chest. I have done this on other holidays too and it is NOT uncomfortable.
The point of a money belt isn't to carry everything. But it's the place to put most of your money and the little needed important stuff like your passport.
You've still got a wallet. Think about it do you really want people seeing you dipping into a money belt every 15 seconds? It's going to attract muggers.
I used a very slimline money belt last year. I wore it at hip level under my pants instead of under my top because with the kind of tops I like to wear in hot weather, the money belt was just too obvious if I wore it like that. When worn under my jeans, I didn't feel the money belt and it was completely invisible.
In the money belt I carried our passports, credit cards, and any larger sums of cash we were going to need (i.e. to pay for accommodation). I then carried my regular wallet in which I had enough money for the day - I sure didn't want to fumble inside my pants for money every time I bought something!
I used a very slimline money belt last year. I wore it at hip level under my pants instead of under my top because with the kind of tops I like to wear in hot weather, the money belt was just too obvious if I wore it like that. When worn under my jeans, I didn't feel the money belt and it was completely invisible.
Thanks for this idea, Annika! This just might work for me. When I tried wearing the money belt around my waist, the band invariably bunched up and rode higher and higher on my rib area, so I was constantly tugging it back down into place around my waist...nothing more obvious to anyone looking for an unsuspecting victim than that! So, after a few attempts, I gave up and packed it away. A skinny waist and narrow rib area allows the body wallet a free ride, I guess!
I'll give it another go on our next trip, and see if this way works better for my body type. Thanks, Annika!
I can also wear a neck pouch with no problem, as long as it is made of a thin fabric and not that bulky canvas-type material that I've seen.
Why is it that we are the ones who have to find ways to foil the thieves, and the thieves are the ones who spend their days figuring out innovative ways to trick the unsuspecting victim? Seems something is backwards here...
I think that the perfect solution is a shoulder bag with all of the money, passports, ATM cards, VISA/AMEX cards, chapstick and other necessities on the bottom of the bag, and a few preset mouse-traps sitting on top of our stuff, waiting, waiting...
"Good company on the road is the shortest cut." ~ Italian Saying Brenda
As for the original question: Has anyone ever had their money belt that was worn under their clothes stolen or rifled?
The first money belt I had was made out of leather and that was uncomfortable. All the money belts that I have had were worn under your pants. The ones I have now breathe and much more comfortable. The money does get sweaty/damp in there, but it dries out quickly when you remove it. I keep a photocopy of my passport and my credit cards in there also.
If you keedp that stiff, large passport in the money belt under your pants in the money belt that is uncomfortable.
Posts: 3594 | Location: St Paul, MN | Registered: 10 February 2006
I have used a belt and found that I was more comfortable with it on "backwards" . I never try to access it in public. I use a plastic bag to keep the stuff from getting damp.
For daily expenses, I carry a only enough money for the day in a slim billfold and in a coin purse. I also use a Hidden Pocket for other money and other credit and ATM cards.
As for the original question: Has anyone ever had their money belt that was worn under their clothes stolen or rifled?
In my experience I have never had anything stolen from my money belt nor do I know of anyone who has. Using the money belt as a safe place to carry your cash and credit cards (as opposed to leaving them "locked" in your luggage) is the main idea. You have what you think you're going to need for the day or a particular outing in your outer bag and you are not constantly dipping into the money belt, thus drawing attention to it.
I know that "Rick Steves" is a put off to a lot of people, but the one that I used was indeed a Rick Steves silk money belt and it was truly comfortable. It has a long pocket that is already lined with plastic, then 2 smaller zip pockets in the front. It was washable and dried really fast.
Has anyone ever had their money belt that was worn under their clothes stolen or rifled?
I haven't. Maybe I should say haven't yet.
The best defense is to be very cautious and suspicious of anyone close enough to touch you. The pickpockets are VERY good, but they have to be near you to get your stuff.
Metro, buses, crowds at tourist places and at gelateria are the most likely places to be picked. The first time it happened to me was on the Metro on my seventh trip to Italy...I had gotten complacent, I suppose.
The pickpocket, a middle-aged female, pushed against me on the metro and got my billfold out of my buttoned shirt pocket as she looked me in the eye (really only a glance) I never felt it. She was the only person that got close enough that morning to have done it. She had to have working with someone who saw me put it in that pocket at the metro turnstile, (which is why I try to NEVER access a money belt in public.)
(which is why I try to NEVER access a money belt in public.)
There is not much point in wearing a money belt if you are never going to access it in public. How do you get at your money to pay for anything, if you are not going to access it? Keeping your money/credit cards in another more accessible spot means that that money or card could be taken by some clever pickpocket. All I keep in my bag is a 20 euro note and coins.
Even if you carrying an ATM card, if you get the maximum out of the ATM which is 250 Euros, that is something like $382. In my mind this is not chump change that I cam going to carry around in my back pocket.
Posts: 3594 | Location: St Paul, MN | Registered: 10 February 2006
Many years ago when we started traveling, we used money belts of several different kinds. Then we tired of them and found them an inconvenience that we could do without. It has been years now since using them. When we realized that we never considered belts or whatever when traveling within the US it seemed strange to do so in other countries. After all, we are certainly not a country without crime.
In the years since, we have used the same precautions in foreign countries that we use in NY, SF, Los Angeles and points in between. If in a crowded area anywhere, I sling my purse across me turned in and go on my way.
Clearly, not everyone is comfortable with this way of doing things, but, for those of you with questions, think about it.
dragonpat, Think of a moneybelt like a safe in the back room of a store. It is out of sight and unknown to thieves. Your wallet or purse is the cash register that takes care of the days business.
Yes, if you get your purse robbed you will be pissed off and out a few hundred but that is not a vacation killer. If you have back up credit and ATM cards and one set is in the moneybelt the vacation can go on.
When we realized that we never considered belts or whatever when traveling within the US it seemed strange to do so in other countries.
The thing that most concerns me is not so much money as my passport, which isn't something I need to worry about at home. I don't generally carry a lot of cash, and Mike and I can split up the ATM and credit cards. But having once lost my passport to a thief (fortunately before 9/11, when travel was easier and it wasn't so hard to get home again without it), I am now extra careful.
Instead of a money belt, when I'm out and around, I almost always wear a travel vest with an inside breast pocket. I keep a cloth zipper bag (actually a money belt without the belt) pinned to that pocket, with my passport, an extra credit card, and a cash reserve inside. We almost never travel in hot weather, when the vest might be uncomfortable, and I don't particularly care about making a fashion statement, so that solution works for me. I also keep a wallet (I use a men's type trifold wallet) in the other inside vest pocket with cash, ATM, and my main credit card. Then in my purse I carry non-valuable stuff (guidebooks, coin purse with a few bills, hand cleaner, etc.) If I really want to be hands-free, the purse is optional.
Mike likes to wear T-shirts with pockets, so he can reach inside his outer shirt to get at things he wants to keep protected.
My son was really worried about getting his IPod touch stolen. Normally we wouldn't take valuables along with us but we were using this device to communicate via email to our family.
My friend who is an awesome seamstress sewed an inner pocket with velcro to form a rectangle. It was a perfect fit for the IPod touch and it was sealed at the top too. Of course he zipped up his jacket too. This was just one more precautionary step we took to keep safe.
There is not much point in wearing a money belt if you are never going to access it in public. How do you get at your money to pay for anything, if you are not going to access it?
There are different levels of "in public": sitting at a restaurant table or inside a store versus in the street. I have a pouch that loops around my belt and holds my main wallet and passport comfortably, while I have a more accessible wallet with just the cash that I expect to need on that outing.
What it comes down to is that there are many styles of travel and everyone has a different story. Sometimes you need to experiment to see what is most comfortable for you.
Neither one of us has ever worn a money belt, or neck thing. I generally do like Jane, have a travel bag that I will turn around and sling it across my chest so that the opening is against me. I also travel with much less than I usually have in a wallet at home (only one or two cards, no extra stuff) - simplifies everything. I think David has been lucky so far, because he is rather casual about where his wallet is. That said, we also don't do a lot of public transportation (I would rather walk in Rome than take buses), in part because I don't like crowded places and in part because I worry about the pick-pocket thing. I never put my bag on the back of a chair in a restaurant.
I think Jane's comments above are quite true, and something we really don't address. Any precautions we take when traveling abroad should be equally taken when at home; crime is crime.
I use a money belt when I travel and I have no easy way of replacing key items (so it depends on the trip not the location).
I wear it very low (as previously suggested so it isn't really at my waist and I actually can forget about it. I carry my passport, one backup credit card and one backup ATM card in it. I have a scanned copy of my passport available securely in an internet spot so it is accesible on line to me if I have to have a copy. I use my drivers licence for photo ID when needed. I keep my cash in my wallet in a messenger type bag which I carry over my shoulder but across my chest, but I also carry small bills and change in my pockets so I don't get my wallet out all the time. I'm not so worried about losing my cash - and if my credit card gets lost or stolen, I can deal with that. What I don't want to deal with is a lost passport and absolutely no resources.
I think if you are travelling with one other person, that in and of itself is a safeguard because hopefully one of you will be ok and have access to cash and credit.
I travel a lot by myself and so I take precautions because there is no one to help.
