These days, it can be easy to watch and read the news and decide that travelling is far too dangerous and you’re better off staying at home where you can avoid the risks associated with travelling overseas.

But this means you’ll miss out on the many rewarding experiences waiting for you on the road. Instead, I’ve got some tips to help you achieve #MySenseOfSafe:

Be Street Savvy

Unfortunately, while wandering the streets and soaking up all the local colours and flavours is one of the best parts of travelling, there are many different hazards to watch out for. In many major tourist destinations like Barcelona, Florence, and Rome, you’ll hear about numerous travellers getting their purses snatched or their pockets picked. Don’t ever carry your wallet in a back pocket, and make sure you have extra money on you in the event that someone does snatch your purse.

While you may decide to use a money pouch, thieves have known about these for years and won’t hesitate to cut it off in a crowd. Make sure it’s not visible underneath your clothes.

Be Careful at ATMS

Just like at home, be careful when you’re entering your PIN number. Don’t let anyone see your code or “help” you. Keep in mind that while most people are generally helpful, you should watch out for red flags if they’re offering your help when you haven’t asked for it.

Before you put your card into an ATM, give the entry point a tug. Often, criminals will put their own sleeves in the socket, blocking your card from being read. Then thieves can watch you enter your PIN and the sleeve will keep your card.

Watch the wifi

Public wifi makes it easy to stay connected with people at home, and it’s great for checking train schedules or comparing accommodation options. But you should never be entering your credit card details or logging into online banking on public wifi. If you have a local SIM card, use this to tether to your computer for a private network or get your own portable router.

Protect your phone

Most people use their phones for pretty much everything. It stores sensitive information like email access and even bank or credit card information if you use bank apps or Apple Wallet. But many people aren’t adequately protecting their smartphones, which makes it easy for thieves to steal the phone and access that information.

Not only should you have a strong password set up for your device, but you should also regularly change that password. You should also download an app like Prey which allows you to track your phone and wipe it remotely if it’s ever lost or stolen.

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