Hiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
The mind can get tired and forgetful on the Camino, so prefer to keep all valuables in a safe location which can be checked regularly, so inside chest pocket of a trail or light hoodie/jacket. Alternatively a silk undercover wallet would suffice.Hiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
How do you look after your stuff when you are walking around your home town? That should work.Hiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
I’ve had a theft occur in both Spain and France. Both related to Camino travel. All one needs to do is to look at crime stats in European countries being visited to know that thefts are a problem all over the world.The only place in the WORLD where I've had any problems with thieves is within the borders of the US.
Best to stop listening to the propaganda you hear at home, and enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the rest of the world.
Buen Camino
I agree with you - it's a one stop shop. Which is why for 35 years everytime I travel I spread the risk.She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
Excellent point! Couldn't agree moreSo I recommend you have your phone number and e-mail address (in case your phone is lost, too) on your bag / purse / passport / credencial etc.
People will do their best to reunite you with your lost items, but they'll need to know how to contact you!
Fanny pack worn cross-body. Everything is at your fingertips at all times. I like it so much that I’ve continued to do it after I returned home.Hiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
True, but rural Spain is not Rome. Pickpockets would starve if they had to rely on "bumping into" enough people in small villages to make a "living."I ask this question because in Rome pickpockets we’re everywhere.
I agree with your fiancéeHiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
I’m with @Gringazolana … the bra safe is where my spare credit card and emergency cash go. Someone would have to do a full body search to get to it!I started out with an under-the-clothes money belt but abandoned it because I get too sweaty! Ended up keeping passport and daily money with cell phone in fanny pack/bum bag, with copy of passport and rest of cash in a “bra safe”, which is a little pocket that clips onto the bra. I also kept a spare €50 rolled up in a sock inside my pack. I also brought along socks with a little zippered pocket.
I ended up having to caribiner the little pocket to my bra shoulder strap and then tuck it inside. If someone is that desperate (or friendly?!) to access my stash there, they probably deserve the cash and so much more!I’m with @Gringazolana … the bra safe is where my spare credit card and emergency cash go. Someone would have to do a full body search to get to it!
Here it is, enjoying a fabulous view over the back of the Royal Albert Hall in London on a beautiful summer evening -
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Ladies - buy one - they’re a great investment. The lads could use this ‘safe’ too by having a tab sewn into the inside of the waistband and looping the ‘safe’ through that.
Lots of options out there … this one has worked for me VERY successfully.
Cheers from London -
Jenny
It is hard to pick a pocket that is hanging off your waist in front of you. My fanny pack (very light North Face bag) is strapped on first, my pack goes over the straps at the back, so can't be accessed from behind, and my pack straps go over the front straps and leave only the bag hanging right in front of me which is impossible to get to without my awareness. Sure, I can be robbed at knifepoint, but it won't be by a pickpocket. My light bag fits my credentials, a tiny purse that fits a credit card and folded over Euros, my passport, and my phone which is also my camera. When I put down my pack, my fanny pack stays on. And to the coy advice that Brits/Aussies don't use the word fanny because that is our euphemism for the vaginal area, it doesn't stop us from using the word fanny pack if it hangs from the front but we tend to prefer the word bum bag if it hangs from the back, and yes, a bum is a bottom!I ask this question because in Rome pickpockets we’re everywhere.
I ask this question because in Rome pickpockets we’re everywhere.
Indeed I guess it’s lTrue, but rural Spain is not Rome. Pickpockets would starve if they had to rely on "bumping into" enough people in small villages to make a "living."
Some great contraptions here! I am all for precautions but the chances of getting pickpocketed on camino seems very remote outside towns and cities . People can’t just ‘rub past you’ like they do on the subway.Well, at least now I know where to go to access everyone's stash of good stuff. Seriously though, I used a waist pack for my absolute essentials, but always kept another hidden stash somewhere else.
I do the same, but my essentials are in a crossbody bag. The hidden stash has my backup credit and debit cards which I "turn off" in my banking app. If something should happen to my primary cards I can turn them off and turn on the backups.but always kept another hidden stash somewhere else.
Here here! Walked the whole of Camino Francés last year, never a whiff of trouble in or outside of Albergues. Walking from Lisbon to Santiago in September this year, and will do exactly what I did last year, money & phone in a small pack on my backpack shoulder strap, passport in my backpack.The only place in the WORLD where I've had any problems with thieves is within the borders of the US.
Best to stop listening to the propaganda you hear at home, and enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the rest of the world.
Buen Camino
Good advice- and …Scan all your documents and email them to yourself and save them on a USB. Then, if you do lose them, you have access to copies. You should obviously look after your stuff while you are travelling, but you surely look after your stuff while you commute to work, go shopping or go to the pub etc. I use a small shoulder bag (from Decathlon) with phone, camera, ID and wallet. This works so far in big cities. I keep the strap short and keep one hand on it. At night, I take it to bed with me and I can pop it into a small drysac while I shower. Once on the camino, the chances of being robbed are significantly lower, just don´t leave stuff lying around.
I would not carry a fake wallet on a Camino, on the very remote chance that someone will order me to hand over my wallet. Instead, I would hand over the modest amount of cash and one credit card that I have accessible. (I would then cancel the credit card as soon as possible.) With the complications of real wallets and fake ones, it is far more likely that I would have my backpack stolen, or would misplace the real wallet.I carry a Throwdown billfold with a bunch of old expired IDs and 100 euros. I put my real billfold and passport in the backpack. I have walked five different Caminos never used it yet?
I use a fanny pack which ever comes off unless I am in the shower. With two of you it should work even better.Hiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
I wore 2 exact pairs of Columbia quick dry pants that zipped off into shorts. I kept my passports-(pilgrim and travel), in a ziplock bag in my left zippered pocket on thigh. My wallet in my left front pocket and my phone in my right front pocket. Never had an issue from SJPP to SDC. Used a Sea to Summit dry bag along with a Hero Clip to place my clean clothes, wallet, phone and passports when using showers. You don’t need to do the dry bag move if you take turns showering. I walked solo so I took no chances. Buen Camino.Hiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
I kept my passport and pilgrim passport in a neck wallet. it was easy access for getting stamps. Wallet and phone in waist pack. easy access for pictures and eating at bars. Never worried about a thief because I always wore them, even around town.Hiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
Yup I was of the same mind and have always used a 'fanny pack' (sorry that sounds soooo wrong to UK ears) for passport, money and cards. All easily to hand and all in the one place. Pretty secure against thieves ON the camino. BUT not so clever getting to the Camino I was recently pickpocketed on the metro from the airport into Porto. Not much fun finding yourself with virtually no cash, no credit cards and no passport - and on a Sunday . So I'm rethinking my security for public transport.Hiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
You can always call it a waist pack, since that's where it's worn!Yup I was of the same mind and have always used a 'fanny pack' (sorry that sounds soooo wrong to UK ears
I brought a fanny pack which I used only at my destinations. I out all my valuables in it and wore it over my shoulder and across my body.Hiking the Camino in May. My fiance' and I were discussing is how do we carry things like, passport, cash, ID, cell phone, etc..? She thinks a fanny pack is the way to go. To me that sounds like one stop shopping for a thief. What do you do?
It is pretty safe HOWEVER if you are like me and you sweat a lot…you have bills, money that tend to be wet.Wearing a money belt with your bank cards and big money is wise to do in some cities known for having a lot of pick-pockets. Worn under your shirt, it is pretty safe.
Clever, and as is always the case with such (blindingly obvious) good idea’s, leaves me scratching my head- because I can’t believe that I’d not thought of it!The picture which comes up on my ‘phone when switched on (whilst on Camino) shows me, in my typical walking outfit, holding a card on which is written my email address and Mrs HtD’s ‘phone number. Not my ‘phone number, obviously, as this