Timothy (Tim) Maleck serves as a financial associate for a large New York City-based asset management firm, where he provides financial analysis for team members and financial performance reports for investors. Outside of work, Tim Maleck likes to travel.
Regardless of how safe a travel destination is generally, all travelers should be wary of pickpockets. One proposed solution is a money belt, a belt you wear under your clothes that you can use to store cash, cards, and other valuables. While the idea sounds convenient, the money belt might not be your smartest option - here’s why.
The purpose of a money belt is to hide your valuables while still giving you access when needed, but when it comes time to pay for something, you have to fiddle with your clothing and likely lift your shirt to access the necessary items. Simply accessing your cash or plastic ruins any discretion your money belt provided and alerts any nearby pickpockets to the location of your valuables, which you have unfortunately stored all in one place.
Instead, consider dividing your valuables and distributing them among multiple locations. Leave the majority of your cards and cash in your hotel safe, if available, only taking what you will need each day. Divide the funds you do take into different pockets. This helps to ensure that, should a pickpocket target you, he or she will only get a small portion of the money you're carrying.
