Keeping Your Travel Gear Safe During Your Travels
One in 20 bags is lost or stolen during travel, costing the industry a whopping $2 billion a year. Some of the most expensive items include chargers, sunglasses, and transit cards or tickets. All these items are relatively easy to replace, but the same cannot be said for more expensive gear such as cameras, phones, and tablets. Often, the reason for loss is tiredness, disorganization, and forgetfulness. On rarer occasions, activities undertaken during adventure travel can make it easier for items to fall and land in inaccessible spots. There are many strategies passengers can use to keep their treasured items safe and enjoy their holidays with the security of knowing that everything they need is exactly where they left it.
Protecting Your Devices
If you know you will be in areas where your family and friends’ cameras, tablets, or phones can get wet or fall, it pays to invest a small amount in protective, waterproof cases designed for your device’s make and model. If photography is your hobby or profession, consider using a roller case to carry your cameras, lenses, and tripods. If you will be out and about in the Great Outdoors, backpack cases offer optimal comfort and ease of access. If you will be taking photographs and using lightweight equipment, consider crossbody cases for ultimate comfort. For phones, consider using a crossbody lanyard or strap to prevent snatch-and-grab thefts. If you are worried about credit card theft or misuse, choose an anti-theft handbag with hidden pockets and RFID-blocking layers to prevent unwanted scanning or reading of your cards. Even keeping credit cards in RFID-blocking envelopes can help protect data.
Prioritizing Item Identification and Prevention
Most travelers think about ways to prevent theft, but it is also beneficial to have a plan in place for situations where items are misplaced, especially in busy transit environments. Tools such as asset tags provide a simple way to label and link gear to its owner, making it easier for lost-and-found departments to ensure items are correctly returned. These tags typically contain barcodes, QR codes, or RFID technology, which provide real-time information on location, maintenance history, and ownership. When it comes to prevention, useful strategies include being aware of one’s surroundings and keeping flashy, expensive gear out of prying eyes. Those traveling in groups can consider splitting valuable items among travellers to prevent all expensive items from being stolen at once.
The Value of Organization
Things can get lost or fall out of one’s bags when they are stored messily or hurriedly. When you purchase a bag, it pays to take time to study the best place for each item, and to create a consistent system for packing and unpacking. Commonly used items such as wallets, chargers, documents, and vital accessories should always be kept in the same compartments or pouches so you know where to find them at all times. It also pays to create routines for whenever you leave a location. When storing items, take time to do so in an organized way. For instance, keep your cables untangled and use packing cubes or tech organizers to keep things extra neat and accessible. Take a look at your seat, the surrounding power outlets, the overhead compartments, and the netting on the back of the seat in front of you to ensure you haven’t left something small but vital behind.
Taking Time to Back Up Data
In this digital age, physical backups are only one part of the puzzle. Most travelers keep documents, photos, and work files on their devices. As such, regularly backing up one’s data to cloud storage or external drives ensures that information remains secure, regardless of whether one loses the physical devices used to access it. It can also help to enable remote locking or wiping features on devices, just in case sensitive information goes missing.
Losing items or experiencing theft is all too common during travel. Therefore, it is important to take proactive steps to keep items safe. Top strategies include investing in optimal storage, organizing items well, and backing up data. It also pays to take extra steps with tagging and tracking technology, which informs users of their whereabouts at all times.
