3 Safety Tips While Traveling
Traveling is my favorite hobby and passion. I always encourage my friends and family to travel in order to see new sights, meet new people, expand their minds and experience new cultures. I think traveling is one of the best forms of education. You get to learn a lot about yourself as well as the city and country around you. With that being said, safety concerns prevent people from traveling. Here are my 3 safety tips so that you can get the most out of your traveling.
- The Buddy System
The buddy system is a tried and true method. I remember using this system as a kid when I needed to go to the restroom, at my first job when presented with difficult decisions and now when I travel. The buddy system while traveling is a little more strict. Let me explain!
First, I would strongly encourage traveling with a partner. Ask your friends or family if they want to travel and try to coordinate a trip together. My first backpacking trip in 2015, my 2 friends from my hometown and I went to western Europe and backpacked for 1 month. We also met one of my European friends when we were out there. This is a great method especially for a first trip.
The more people you have, theoretically, the safer you should be and feel. 4 people walking down the street are a lot less likely to be messed with than 1 person walking down the street. Also, extra sets of eyes will always help you avoid catastrophe. I remember being in the subway in Paris and one of my friends motioned for me to look out for some guy near me. Perhaps nothing would have happened, but I made sure to put my hands in my pockets to avoid getting pickpocketed.
Another interesting event happened in Paris when we were sitting under the Eiffel Tower. It was getting late, and we made friends with one of the alcohol sellers there. I am sure it was technically illegal to sell alcohol there, but the police turned a blind eye, especially to people behaving. The alcohol seller started talking to us about all kinds of things. We discovered he was a Sikh man from India and was studying in Paris. He also told us that Paris is not particularly safe at night, but said we wouldn’t have to worry because there were 4 of us.
That was such a relief to hear, however, the point was taken. He mentioned that if it was just 1 of us, he wouldn’t recommend staying on the outskirts of the city too late at night.
The buddy system extends beyond traveling with a friend or family member. It is also an important system for making decisions and going places on your trip. It’s always better to have 2 brains over 1 when making a decision regarding traveling. This could mean making a group decision when figuring out where to eat or conversing about where to go out on a given night. With safety in mind and multiple people discussing your options, you will be able to stay clear of danger.
Finally, the buddy system must include going together during the trip. A trip is meant to be shared with other people. The vacation is always an unbelievable experience, but remembering and reminiscing the memories are what add to it.
Therefore, you should spend as much time together as your body and mind lets you. You should do bus tours, walking tours, pub crawls, going out to dinner, etc. together. This will also limit the danger you can get into. Whenever you have someone with you, predators or just people looking to pickpocket you will definitely have to think twice.
Some people may even use the restroom together as an extra precaution. So now we have the buddy system down. Let’s look at the other 2 safety tips.
2. Keep a Vigilant Eye
Keeping a vigilant eye can save you from the dangers of traveling. This would mean constantly scanning for danger. This doesn’t have to be something you do SO much, where you can’t enjoy your trip, however you should pay attention to your environment. Trust your gut feeling and your instincts and you are already more than halfway there.
Some things to observe while traveling might be loud noises, rowdy people and sketchy-looking individuals. While the chances of something bad happening to you are slim, we all have heard countless stories of horrific things happening to people in general. It is always the best option to use disdain when traveling.
Of course not all loud noises are an indicator of something about to go down, but they often can be. You might hear a loud noise on the subway, someone yelling or a loud thud. These are always events you should investigate with more caution. Simply turn your shoulder or head to see if that noise was something to be worried about.
Rowdy people are also something to pay just slightly closer attention to. In most cases rowdy people are just the drunk people at the bar or on the train that had a little too much to drink. Fair enough, we have all been there in some capacity or another. However, sometimes rowdy people can start violence. You surely do not want to be in the way or nearby when a fight breaks out.
Lastly, sketchy people should be observed with more discretion. Again, the chances of someone dressed sketchy actually doing something malicious are minimal, but they should be treated with more attentiveness. However, all people should be treated with some level of wariness. Pickpockets can come in all shapes and sizes. Having a vigilant eye for these people will significantly reduce your risk of being taken advantage of.
So now we understand more about having a vigilant eye. Down below is my last tip to help you travel safer.
3. Be Aware of Scams
Some countries are more known for scams than others, but knowing some of the most basic scams can make your trip much less stressful. Scams can be presented to you in many ways. In most cases they are after your money, but I am sure there are more intricate scams out there that are after you. So reading up on some of the most common scams will help you avoid danger.
Always be cautious when people come up to you trying to sell you something. While most just want to get a sale, some people want to get your money. Here is an example of a relatively innocent scam, but definitely designed to get your money. When I was in Spain, a lady was standing outside of a popular park trying to give people a small cute little flower. The size of these flowers would almost have you believe that she just wanted to spread love through her flowers. I was shocked to find out that she demanded money from passers byers AFTER they took the flowers from her.
It went something like this, this lady would go up to people that were either walking or standing near the entrance of the park and willingly give them flowers. Then, she would ask for money after they took the flowers. If they didn’t pay her, she would curse them. I don’t know about you, but I don’t really want to get cursed by an old Spanish woman.
These are very minute scams, but there are similar scams where the severity is increased. When my friends and I were in Greece, my friend took a little trinket from a man that openly gave it to him. When the man demanded money, my friend denied him. The sides intensified and a serious verbal altercation arose. That’s just it, these very minimal encounters can turn into something that no one expected. The best thing to do is avoid these at all costs and save yourself the curse, the money and the trouble.
The scams I presented above are very minimal. Most of the time the worst case scenario is you have to pay a couple bucks to get them off your case, but the scams can get much worse and much more creative. I am going to explain some of the 3 craziest scams later this week. So stay tuned.
So there you have it. Those are my 3 safety tips for traveling. Please check out my other articles in my profile for more traveling tips.
