You’ve saved up your money, you have saved up your holiday time and now you can get ready for that trip you have been planning over the last while.
Asia, the Americas, Australia, Europe or Africa - each has its own unique environment and culture filled with activities for any traveler to explore.
The adrenaline and excitement people get from traveling are one of a kind. And it can all be interrupted if you don’t have the right types of handbags and backpacks for travel.
Key Takeaways
Thieves are in every country and in every city. Travelers are an easy target with their belongings constantly at reach for days on end, even months.
But there are ways to protect yourself.
Make sure to prepare for a stress-free journey by investing in an anti-theft bag.
How Thieves Pull it Off
Before we start to dive into the different features to look out for when buying an anti-theft bag, let’s go over the different, ingenious ways thieves operate. Theft can happen without you even noticing.
They can take a knife and slash your bag open and they can cut a strap so quickly you do not have time to react. They can take a blunt instrument and pry open a locked zipper and they can pickpocket in a matter of seconds by bumping into you and distracting you.
Compact & Private
It is best to have a bag that is even on all sides making it easier to carry and divide the load. This avoids bulky areas at the top and at the bottom.
Front-load backpacks enable the traveler to open their bag and find a particular item without having to open from the top and show everybody what's inside as you dig everything out.
This makes them the perfect bags for travelers who constantly need to get something like a camera, or a book. If you get the right size, you can buy an even front load bag that can easily fit under the seat on the plane.
Zippers and Metal Locking
Anti-theft bags have zippers that lock into place and that require pressure to open them again.
The added difficulty in opening them makes you less of a target for theft.
The zippers are also designed in a way that makes penetration from blunt tools difficult.
Some bags even have eXomesh, a term used to show that metal is running through the bag.
This means that thieves cannot slash the bag open.
You can even have a steel lock on the bag so that you can attach it to a metal bar on a train or bus.
You best bet is to keep it safe and locked somewhere in your room that doesn’t have a locker.
You can go even further and invest in a wire mesh that wraps around your bag and locks to a place you have chosen to keep it.
The wire mesh makes it almost impossible for thieves to cut through unless they have the right tools. Handy if you are sleeping in a hostel or where people can easily access your things while you sleep.
Protect Your Data
Cybersecurity is a growing concern for everybody. Thieves can come close to you, use a scanner and retrieve any important data from credit cards or your phone making it easy for them to hack into your accounts and take your money or assets.
Many of the anti-theft bags come with RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) blocking material. It prevents thieves from getting sensitive information.
This protects you from both types of theft: physical and technological.
Crossbody Bags
Leave the backpack behind you at the hotel or hostel and bring what is necessary for a day out. Crossbody bags are perfect to take with you while roaming around the city.
It hangs close to you where you can see it at all times and can easily reach whatever you need. This is perfect for when you need to use public transport or to get out of your wallet easily and pay your museum tickets.
It has all the same bits and bob listed as features of anti-theft bags including eXomesh, thick straps that cannot be cut and zippers that lock. Just remember to close the bag with the zipper! Even if you have the most secure handbag or backpack, it can be easy to forget to close your bag properly.
In most cases, petty theft is reserved for the easiest target. Investing the time and money to make yourself less noticeable or less attractive to a thief can save you lots of time, money and stress. Definitely worth it - that gives you more time to worry about which attraction you will go next.
