Generally there are only three important items that you can't afford to leave behind: passport, money and tickets.
Use money belt
Remembering to take important documents and money with you is merely enough. You also must make sure to pack them safely.
Never carry money, credit/ATM cards, travellers' cheques, tickets and other important documents in a day pack. Pack them in a good quality money belt, which is thin enough to wear under your T-shirts. Bulky money belts worn over the T-shirt are not a good idea since they attract even greater attention from potential thieves and they are relatively easy to snatch.
Photocopies
Make photocopies of your passport and all important documents and carry them separately from originals. In case your passport gets stolen having a photocopy can help in getting a replacement faster. Also, some hotels will keep your passport at the reception. In this case always carry a passport photocopy with you - just in case you are stopped by the police. Having a photocopy is better than not having any form of identification at all.
Cash, credit cards or travellers' cheques?
Bringing cash is very convenient regardless of the destination, as it is generally very easy to exchange to local currencies.
Unfortunately the convenience of carrying cash can turn into a traveller's nightmare in case it gets stolen. The chance of getting the cash back is zero.
Credit cards and ATM cards are being increasingly accepted around the world, which makes them convenient method of payments during the trip. Compared to cash they are more secure in case they get stolen as you can always ring your bank and cancel them immediately. However, they pose different type of threats that every traveller should be well aware of.
When using ATMs to withdraw money, always make sure to use ATMs within banks or in safe public places such as shopping centres or airports rather than in dark side lines. Not only that you minimise the risk of being robbed right after you take out the cash in this way - you also lower the chance of your card being cloned. It's easier to install illegal card readers and cameras to ATMs out of the way than to those inside banks. Nevertheless, when keying in your PIN number, you should always use the other hand to cover the keypad - in this case your PIN code cannot be caught on camera.
When paying by credit card, make sure that your card never gets out of your sight. Watch carefully what is happening to your card – employees in some shops and especially restaurants and bars might try to clone your card or to impose additional charges. Generally it is OK to pay by credit card in better hotels and department stores. In small private shops and restaurants/bars however it is advisable to pay with cash.
The last threat regarding the usage of credit/ATM cards abroad for withdrawing money doesn't come from criminals, but rather from your own bank. It is called commission. Check thoroughly with your bank what is the commission for withdrawing cash from an ATM abroad to avoid any unpleasant surprises on you bank statement upon returning home. Some banks' commissions are exorbitant.
Carrying travellers' cheques is one of the safest methods of carrying your travel funds. If they get stolen you can easily cancel them and receive new ones. However, in some countries it might be very difficult to change travellers' cheques to local currency, especially in smaller places. Also, some banks and moneychangers charge much higher commission on travellers' checks than on cash and you generally also pay a commission when buying travellers' cheques. Make a thorough research on accepting travellers' cheques at your destination before buying them.
Deciding about what form of funds to bring ultimately depends on the destination. We usually bring a combination of credit/ATM cards and cash.
Travel documents & money packing list
- passport with necessary visas
- passport-size photos for visas on arrival and other documents you might
make locally
- travel documents (e.g. air/bus/rail tickets)
- cash
- travellers' cheques
- credit/ATM cards
- phone number of your bank/credit card company (for cancelling stolen
cards)
- travel insurance policy
- photocopies of a passport, visas, travel documents, travellers' cheques
receipts and insurance policies
- a photocopy of marriage certificate (might be useful in Islamic countries)
- a guidebook (bring only photocopies of the pages you actually need to
save weight)
- maps
- hotel reservations confirmations
- money belt