Valuables

[Issy T]

Is it safe to wear a bum bag with your valuables or should you wear something under your clothing. What do other pilgrims do to keep them safe. I leave in 9 days and was going to go with the bum bag but am overthinking it and not sure what is best. If you wear a bag under your closing does it rub and chaffe.

 

[mspath]

IssyT,

Scan these recent Forum threads on securing valuables and keeping your passport

A bum bag might only serve to announce IMPORTANT STUFF INSIDE; TAKE ME!!
Discretion and no bling might be surer protection. However, never leave unwatched what you can't afford to lose. Like many other pilgrims I sleep with any valuables within my sleeping bag and NEVER tell anyone where and what they are!! A few years ago in Trinidad de Arre an actor from LA who was bunked next to me asked anxiously "Where do you have your money?" As if on cue I rolled my eyes and answered "Why in the bank! And you?"

For further advice read this Forum thread with useful tips on camino security.

Buen Camino,

MM

 

[celtictrekker]

IssyT,

Scan these recent Forum threads on securing valuables and keeping your passport

A bum bag might only serve to announce IMPORTANT STUFF INSIDE; TAKE ME!!
Discretion and no bling might be surer protection. However, never leave unwatched what you can't afford to lose. Like many other pilgrims I sleep with any valuables within my sleeping bag and NEVER tell anyone where and what they are!! A few years ago in Trinidad de Arre an actor from LA who was bunked next to me asked anxiously "Where do you have your money?" As if on cue I rolled my eyes and answered "Why in the bank! And you?"

For further advice read this Forum thread with useful tips on camino security.

Buen Camino,

MM

Good advice thank you, my journey begins June 1st..

 

[puravidadarlene]

Im almost done my camino and my bum back did just find...you just have to be aware of whats going on around you.....I usual never take of or leave it alone...but that was me

 

[CaminoKris2013]

Pretty much my "bum bag" as you call it will only contain my daily funds, my iPhone and stuff like blistex for my lips, suntan lotion and my reading glasses. Otherwise I have important stuff like passport and debit card in a safe location.


Sent from my iPhone using Camino de Santiago Forum

 

[scruffy1]

A bumbag will work unless you want to take a shower and can be a real pain in the bum in the WC - I always have a pouch worn under my clothes by a neck strap - a days expenses and one credit card in my wallet the rest in my pouch plus the other credit card if one is really worried it can be worn while sleeping at night or stashed next to your feet in the sleeping bag

 

[backpack45]

I wear one of the "security waist wallets" inside my clothes. Since the thing gets sweaty if it's around your waist, put your cash, papers, and cards inside a baggie first. And I agree with the others--don't ever leave it unattended. That said, I once put mine under my pillow, left the refugio and walked downhill (from Somport Pass) for about an hour and then had to retrace my steps in the rain. We phoned ahead and the owner retrieved my wallet and everything was safely intact.
This is also an opportunity for me to remind you to photocopy important documents (passport, etc.) and leave a copy with someone trusted back home and to notify your credit card holders that you will be traveling so that they don't put a hold on your accounts while you are gone.

 

[David]

Not about money but documents - I take a phone with me. I don't phone out or receive calls but do switch it on once a day in the evening to check if there are any important messages or emergencies.

My passport number, driving licence number and health insurance policy number are in my phone with the numbers needed to contact should I lose documentation. I also have the numbers of my two children (very adult children) in there under ICE - "in case of an emergency" - just in case I get knocked on the head - it is the first thing uk police and ambulance people look for .... not too sure such a code would be any good in Spain!!

 

[Anniesantiago]

Also, since I started carrying this iPhone, I take photos oft receipts and leave the paper behind.

 

[OTH86]

I wore this under my shirt for daily things - "dual-pocket runner's belt" with 2 expandable zippered pockets. Worked better than the pockets on the waist belt of my pack since I could wear it ALL the time (except in shower - put in zip lock bag for that) without noticing it much. And since I've a bit of a roll around the waist anyway (at least at the beginning of my Camino!), the belt was (I think) hardly noticeable by other eyes.

 

[Mark Lee]

All your valuables (passport, cash money, credit cards) should be able to fit into a wallet or similar type carrier and should be small enough to fit in a pocket of your pants or shorts, otherwise you are carrying too many valuables.
I used a nylon type travel wallet that could also hold my passport. It had two grommet holes in it through which I put a length of nylon cord, and looped that cord through a belt loop on my shorts/pants which meant that my pertinent valuables never left my side. Since I slept with my shorts on, the wallet was with me and I put them in a waterproof bag which went with me to the showers. It may sound like a bit of overkill, and I know there are those out there who figure "oh well" if their stuff is stolen, but personally I don't feel much like finding my way from The Way to a consulate or embassy to get a new passport as well as contacting family to wire me cash to Spain.
Here is a photo of the type I carried. There may be other brands of similar products out there, but this one worked great for me and I have used it for five years of travelling and working overseas.
I had a smaller pocket wallet which I kept spending cash and coins in and kept that in my front pocket for when I went to cafe's, restaurants, etc. I kept just enough money in it for the day. The rest stayed in the bigger wallet with my passport.

 

[tpmchugh]

The only valuables I carried were my passport and credencials. Cheap watch, cheap camera, prepaid cash card, nothing I would worry about losing. The passport and credencials I kept in a travel wallet in the cargo pocket of my trousers. I was never concerned about theft in the least, more concerned about my own stupidity and losing something like leaving shorts on a clothes line somewhere

 

[AMDG56]

Is it safe to wear a bum bag with your valuables or should you wear something under your clothing. What do other pilgrims do to keep them safe. I leave in 9 days and was going to go with the bum bag but am overthinking it and not sure what is best. If you wear a bag under your closing does it rub and chaffe.

last year on camino frances I had a document wallet with CASH , and passport under my clothing. I even slept with it. I had a small purse in pocket for day to day spending. I was paranoid about even opening the wallet in view of others.
I didn't look glamorous in photos! but I had no other problem.
I didn't have a bum bag. I did have a small light bag that camera etc went in when I was not carrying pack.

"he who tempts a thief, shares half the sin"
Antoinette

 

[november_moon]

All your valuables (passport, cash money, credit cards) should be able to fit into a wallet or similar type carrier and should be small enough to fit in a pocket of your pants or shorts, otherwise you are carrying too many valuables.

If you are a man. Women's pockets aren't usually as generous. I can only think of 1 pair of pants that I own that have a pocket large enough for my passport. And I don't think I have ever carried my wallet in my pants pocket.

My plan to carry my valuables is the same for pretty much all my travel - a small hand bag that is large enough for my wallet, passport, phone, sun glasses, and a few odds and ends. When walking with my pack, this bag will be inside the pack. When I leave my pack someplace, I can take the handbag out and take it with me. It can come with me to the bathroom and shower, to the store, to restaurants and bars. Very easy.

 

[Rambler]

...more concerned about my own stupidity and losing something like leaving shorts on a clothes line somewhere

Hmmm. That sounds familiar. I did that. Realized it when I got to the next albergue and had a extra pair of "pants legs" and no pants.


Rambler