10 DANGEROUS travel MISTAKES and how to avoid them (keep your belongings SAFE!)

[@EricandSarah]

We hope this video gave you confidence on how to keep yourself and your belongings safe on your next trip! We’d love to hear other things you do to stay safe👇 This is TIPS FOR TRIPS 4/10 so watch the rest of our tip videos here if you haven't already: bit.ly/3FbFZ4z Happy travels! ✈

[@SkyeBleuOfGreenAcre]

Attitude is always good protection. Act like you belong and know what you're doing.

[@arthurmoura3485]

Amazing tips! I'm nomad with my wife and we always do a lot of this tips. I just wanna add one more bonus tip: share your location with a friend ou relative - a lot of apps do it. Especially when you are moving to another country or a new city, a lot of bad thing can happen on the road. If you just don't show up, they at least know where to start looking - creepy, but true.

[@EricandSarah]

That's a great suggestion!

[@DessertcrazyEcuador]

Your first point is true even at home. I just had a neighbor killed. He refused to give up his car in a carjacking, two blocks from my home. He carried a gun, so he pulled it out to save his car. The three 15 year old kids who were jacking him then pulled out their guns. In the ensuing shootout, my friend was killed, and one of the kids was seriously injured. He could have gone home to his wife and kids that night and talked about the worst day he’d ever had, when his car was jacked. Instead, he’s dead, and his wife now has to raise their kids as a single mom. No object is worth your life.

[@Jetmab04]

Oh, so sorry to hear this. Stay safe!

[@EricandSarah]

That is very sad. Sorry to hear this. Thanks for sharing.

[@jeffreyszcinskiii5181]

Looking up common scans and arriving during daylight. SMART!

[@sherryschumacher1881]

Great info! I always wear a money belt under my clothes with my passport, some cash and credit cards. This is deep storage and I don't go into it while I'm in public. Other cash (and I don't take as much to Europe as I used to since credit card acceptance is so high) is stored in the safe in my hotel room. In my crossbody bag, I will keep a very small amount of cash as well as the credit card that I plan to use that day. My crossbody bag doesn't come off at all while I'm out. Another suggestion is to wear a small whistle around your neck. I have a semi-attractive whistle that I found on Amazon and pair it with one of those little squeezable flash lights. It made me feel more comfortable when I was travelling solo this past summer to have it around my neck for the few times that I was out after dark.

[@EricandSarah]

That’s a great strategy! Thanks for sharing! 😊

[@bodvargregersen5161]

All ten safety tips were practical and protective. Your examples of scams and petty thievery were enlightening! Thanks a bunch!

[@EricandSarah]

Glad you found it helpful Bodvar! 😊

[@divinaflamingarrow9556]

Again Thank you!😀

[@EricandSarah]

Happy to help!

[@djk5v]

My parents thought it was worth investing in a bag like Pacsafe, where the straps and bottom are protected from someone trying to slash your bag. Unfortunately, my family and I have learned some of these tips the hard way through our own experiences or through those of friends. Even in your own country, someone could snatch your phone, so it’s sometimes better to have things like paper maps. And we have had scenarios where our guard was down, and people stole things. One was when we were looking at a map on the sidewalk, and the other was at a gas station at night rearranging things in the car and a motorcycle zoomed by and swiped a bag.

[@victoriaaletaaustria2817]

Even in hotel accommodations, I was past using hostels in my later trips since I prefer privacy and got more funds, I never used the room's safety box because the hotel staff can still open it. I divide my money with what I need to bring out, some I put in small envelopes inserted inside folds of my neatly packed, unused clothes, and placed at the 2nd to bottom, or inserted in my clean socks but still near bottom, and make sure my suitcase is always locked even if the room is just my own. As taught by my late Dad, go home when night is about to set in, because the bad elements are going out. Since I'm a solo traveler, and I'm really not after night life, I prefer to be inside my room relaxing after exploring the sights. Anyway, there's not much to photograph at night which I prefer to catch during the daytime. Also, before I leave, to minimize time buying train tickets, bus tickets (if possible like my train tickets from Glasgow to Carlisle, there were bus tickets around town included), local tours, I had them bought already. Anyway, I already made an itinerary with specific number of dates (constraint of visa granted) in each country, hotels booked so travel dates are already scheduled, and what great savings if train tickets are bought earlier on (done online, good thing my trips were long before the pandemic). Knew what sights are free entrance, where to eat great but cheap, where to buy souvenirs that are not expensive, and never took a wrong ride. It's like having a travel agency fixed my trip (but I did it), I just followed it, the actual trip is like the test, how well I know. So I can do travelling around in my own time and pace, no hurrying like in a tour package. Researching in Google & patience are the keys, so when I returned home, budgets get redeposited to the bank for next travels. P.S. I'm just a person who wants things arranged and minimized stress as much as possible, because that"s the reason I travelled - to relax, be in a new environment, forget in a while the busy work (which funded my travels).

[@Amit.Pustake]

Nice information

[@nfaz92]

Thank you so much for the tips! ❤️

[@lb3659]

Load a map to your destination before getting into a cab and show them that you know where they are supposed to go. Also pick cab companies that are legitimate. Sometimes there will be one or two well maintained companies and the rest are scams. They just drive you a really long route and charge you a ton of extra money.

[@EricandSarah]

Yes great advice!!

[@ruscalma3403]

Great tips! thanks for sharing. I just want to know who would you recommend for guides in Ecuador for the places you went to.

[@EricandSarah]

We didn't use guides most places... only in the Amazon, Galapagos and a few day trip activities. Info to any guides we did use are always in the description of our videos ☺

[@Jetmab04]

Thanks again for good tips as always And, as someone else also write here, also at home.

[@EricandSarah]

Yes very true! Safety tips for wherever you are :)

[@yorgunsamuray]

Even if you try your best to arrive your destination during daytime, delays can be inevitable. I remember once arriving at an Indian seaside town in Goa with a blackout and street lamps not working. With my phone battery dying and my hostel a bit away from the bus stop. (I had to change three buses on the way to get there, there were no direct ones). So there I was, trying to walk in pitch dark, juggling between my Google maps and the flashlight of the phone, which was warning me the whole time about its battery...and lots of howling dogs running at me. I still cannot believe I wasn't mauled. The dogs were running at me barking and then suddenly running back I finally found the hostel but that road was scary.

[@k_and_m8745]

When in an area where petty theft is prevalent make sure your windows are up when in traffic jams. We took down one pickpocket and she is now in jail, haha, not because we called the police but because she is an addict and days later was found wondering the streets with no clothes on.

[@EricandSarah]

Wow yeah that’s great advice. Just in general, not having your belongings or valuables on your lap in a traffic jam. This is mostly applicable in big cities.

[@Amelia-vk4jt]

I have the problem where I unnecessary put myself at risk when I first moved country I still had bad insomnia and would go out walking at night, the person I lived with kept telling me that I'd get murdered or raped one day and I kept doing that untill an incident happened and learned not to. I grew up in a safe place, never felt unsafe walking 5k home at 4am and thats good but that's not a normal thing in the vast majority of the world.

[@Bodneyblue]

In some countries I believe you need to have your passport on you...Like in Japan..you can use it in some shops to get tax free goods...You have to show passport to get the discount.

[@EricandSarah]

Hmm interesting! I’m sure that is true in places… but always best to confirm in each country and only carry it when necessary :)

[@Qallunaat59]

The thing I do is carry 2 wallets : one well hidden, the one with big money or credit card, and another one in my pocket, with 10-15$ max and coins, the one I’ll give to the person who would come to me with a knife or more. They know you have money, give it to him and he will go away quickly and won’t search you for another one

[@EricandSarah]

We do the same! Always a smart idea :)