Overseas travel is a highly enjoyable experience, but that doesn’t mean it is without its risks. Tourists are prime targets of petty crime in many large cities, and women traveling alone can face unwanted attention and harassment. On the other hand, you shouldn’t allow unwarranted fear to put a damper on your overseas vacation. By following a few simple steps, you can ensure that your travels abroad will be both rewarding and safe.
Instructions
- Make copies of important documents like itineraries, passports and plane tickets before your departure. Leave one copy with a trusted friend or family member and keep a second copy with you. In the event that an important document is lost, it will be far easier to replace if you can provide a copy. Research your destination and consult friends who have traveled there previously, often other travelers can provide helpful first-hand overseas safety tips.
- Shortly before departing the states or soon after arriving overseas, make sure to register with the US State Department. Travel registration allows you to record information about your trip abroad that the State Department can use to assist you in case of an emergency. You can register on the State Department’s website. US Embassies and Consulates can assist Americans who encounter serious legal, health or financial difficulties while traveling abroad.
- After checking into your hotel, stash anything of value, including travel documents, into the safe in your room. Unless you must attend a formal function, it is better avoid wearing expensive jewelry while traveling abroad. Be especially cautious at and around popular tourist sites—pickpockets often lurk around tourist attractions and strike when a traveler is distracted. Men should never keep wallets in back pockets and women should keep purses closed and zipped. Avoid carrying large amounts of cash—it is safer to travel with credit cards, which can be replaced and will often reimburse you if unauthorized charges are made.
- Dress to blend in with the locals. Avoid wearing shorts and sneakers, which are dead tourist giveaways and can compromise your safety overseas. Dress fashionably, but modestly, particularly if you are female. Ultra short shorts and micro minis may look sexy at home, but can also result in unwanted harassment by overzealous local men abroad. While most of these overtures are harmless, they are best avoided to begin with. If you are bothered despite your efforts to blend in, usually ignoring these lusty lotharios will do the trick. Otherwise, a firm “no” in the local language will usually put them in their place.
- Stick to well-lit, heavily trafficked areas when out at night. Avoid late-night subway rides, particularly in empty subway cars. Convey confidence and look as though you know where you are going, even if you don’t. If you get lost after dark in a foreign city, often it is a lot safer to grab a taxi back to your hotel room, rather than wandering around back alleys trying to find your way. When it comes to staying safe overseas, common sense is your best bet.
Tips & Warnings
- Carry a local cell phone with you and program the country’s emergency numbers into it, so that help overseas will be just a speed dial away.
- If you feel you are in a genuinely threatening situation, do not hesitate to walk into a store or hotel and request help.
- Consider purchasing travel insurance before you depart abroad. There are a variety of plans to meet your needs that will give you an added sense of security.
(By gisellebe – eHow.com)
