Top 20 Travel Safety Tips for Women

Traveling as a woman, especially solo, has many risks but they can absolutely be minimized for you to enjoy your solo vacation. The goal is to make you aware, not to scare you. It’s the difference between being educated and …. So many times I’ve seen people get “vacation brain” and they do things like leaving items laying around that they’d never do at home! Sometimes it takes you making the mistakes to learn from them. But that is what advice is, learn from other’s mistakes so you don’t have to! Here’s my advice for all you women travelers out there.

Top 20 Travel Tips for Women to Stay Safe While Traveling

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #1: Get travel insurance.  If you are going to a third world country, get Travel Insurance. If you are going …. get Travel Insurance.  It is affordable and can help with so many things from luggage to medical needs.  Click here to read more about Travel Insurance. I will never forget being in Vietnam and walking over a long bridge where I saw an ambulance broken down right in the middle of it. As I was walking I kept thinking, please let there be nobody inside it…and there was. I have no idea about the situation but that always comes to mind when I think about the security that Travel Insurance brings.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #2: Give friends & family your itinerary. Always make sure to give friends or family a copy of your itinerary including the hotel names and numbers in case anybody needs to get a hold of you in an emergency and they can’t reach you via your cell phone.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #3: Have a useable cell phone. Make sure your cell phone is useable in the location you are going. It is a huge safety to have a working cell. Rent a SIM card at the airport when you arrive if you need it. Make sure to put the following numbers in your phone: Local police, local medical, your Travel Insurance policy information, phone number of your lodging, photo of your passport photo page with ID#. With all that on your phone, you should protect it by always making sure there is a) a passcode on it and b)

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #4: Research the location beforehand. Always research the place you are going, the city and the areas you are interested in visiting. Even if you’re going for business, this is information you should know. How are you going to get around the place where you are going? Some cities have great taxis, others, you need to avoid so this is information you should know before arriving.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #5: Stay at a reputable lodging.

For your hotels or lodging, read all the reviews and make sure to read the bad reviews as well as the good. If the same issue comes up over and over, listen to it. Just reading the 5 star reviews doesn’t give you the full story so take a few minutes to read them. I like to stay at places with a 24/7 Reception so I know somebody can’t just walk through the lobby and be unnoticed. Most places have some type of security whether it’s a security guard, a buzz-in front door or putting your key to get the elevator to move. I personally always ask for a “high floor, away from the elevator”. That gives me the best sleep and if kids are up early out at the pool, for example, I can still stay in bed because I’m far enough away from it. This used to be a bit of a shlep when I overpacked but lightening the luggage helped with that. Also I do not like sleeping on the first level, ever. It’s just something that i have in my head that somebody could just walk right up to my door or window so I don’t sleep well on a first floor.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #6:  Observe cultural & acceptable clothing. Be aware if there are any cultural or clothing observances that you need to know. It’s not only about being respectful it’s also about standing out as a tourist which an opportunistic con man can see you from a mile away.  I’ll never forget being in Sicily, I was at a laundromat doing laundry and walked down a couple of streets hoping to find a place to get some change as the change machine was broken. There were a bunch of taxi drivers and they started cat calling me like crazy, it made me feel really unsafe. What I thought was CRAZY is that i was not dressed in any way sexy. I had a tank top and shorts that went to above my knees. What I didn’t understand was that women walked around with their boobs literally pushed up to their chins and skin tight jeans. What I realized later is that nobody was wearing anything that showed their legs even though what they were wearing was much sexier than me, I didn’t understand the cultural difference.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #7: Don’t wear flashy or expensive looking jewelry. Even if it’s not expensive, if it looks like it is, it’s not worth it. When I go to 3rd world countries I use a lot of shell necklaces, beaded bracelets etc vs. silver and gold. I’ll also buy something locally which is fun to do and a nice souvenir.  in addition, I leave my wedding ring at home, I just use a simple band when traveling 90% of the time. If i’m going to a resort, that’s the exception of when I may wear my ring & nicer jewelry. Imagine losing a favorite piece of expensive jewelry on your holiday, it can really put a damper on an otherwise amazing adventure so it my mind, it’s just not worth it.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #8: If you can avoid it, try not to take a ton of photography or videography equipment.

I used to travel with my big DSLR, lenses and the rest. Not only does it attract a lot of attention, but it is a stress in itself. I was always worried about it and it definitely made me stand out which made me feel more nervous than if I didn’t have it. Now I travel with a compact camera that honestly does everything I need it to, both photo and video and it uploads photos via an app to my phone, I never leave home without it. You can take a quick shot and put it back in your purse quickly. Here is my favorite camera now to travel with: Canon PowerShot SX740 Digital Camera 

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #9: Be aware of your surroundings. Listen to that feeling you get if you feel somebody is watching you or something doesn’t feel right. If something doesn’t feel right or you say No and somebody is trying to talk you into a yes…have confidence in yourself and your decision.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #10: Look like you are confident and know where you are going. Don’t stand around with your head down looking at a map or a phone if you can help it, go into a cafe, have a coffee and “regroup” yourself if you are feeling lost.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #11: Always take a business card from the hotel or lodging address.  This is key you are staying at so if you get lost, you can just hand it to a taxi and they’ll get you home. If you are staying at a place such as an AirBnB, make sure to write down the address & neighborhood so you have that on you if you get lost. I remember being in Tokyo and I literally walked around the blocked and was feeling overwhelmed. I couldn’t tell if what I was walking by was a restaurant, hotel, everything was symbols and glass that was hard to look into. i went back to the hotel and got a business card because the thought of getting lost made me nervous. Normally I learn a language before I go for work but Japanese was very difficult. I learned coffee, please and thank you and not much more than that. So having to try to tell a taxi driver where I was stying, that was something I was not going to win at!

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #12: Make sure to pack light. If you can easily handle your luggage by yourself without having your hands full, it’s a liberating feeling. You don’t want to be bogged down. Read how to travel for Carry On Only HERE (Link to another of my blog)

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #13: Do your best to not walk at night if you can help it. I’ve taken a taxi for just a few blocks once because I didn’t feel safe. I know it might sound silly but I can’t tell you how many dark streets, alleys, etc that I’ve walked down my life with friends and thought that I was happy I was with them.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #14: Ask you hotel for advice. If you’re going out to explore the city, ask your hotel reception if there are any areas you should be wary of. Everybody knows in Barcelona, for example, Las Ramblas walk street has a HUGE pickpocketing scene. If you know that, you can be prepared. I walked that street several times without incident because not only was I aware, but I was prepared. Even if you are staying in a home, most times they leave you a guest book with valuable information as they want you to enjoy your stay so read up!

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #15: Never leave your drink unattended. As a solo traveler I know how it is that when you get to a restaurant, whether you are sitting at the bar where they normally want to sit singles, or a little table. Even as a young woman at a bar, when I would go out to dance, I would never leave a drink unattended…it’s just not worth the risk. Especially i tourist areas, you never know and it’s better to be safe than sorry. I’d rather be paranoid and have nothing happen. If you want to be sure, there are products on the market you can use, I haven’t used them but I think they are a great idea.  Here is a Drink Testing Kit you can purchase online. LINK: https://amzn.to/3lYmf7Z  In the UK they’ve started making them in a wrist band, same idea…two dots. Great idea. Sad that we have to think about these things.

I tend to drink the same things so I know how drinks affect me as a byproduct of that.  I really don’t like feeling out of control so I tend to not drink too much as a general rule. Traveling for work all the time I had to make sure I was always “with it” and did not feel bad the next morning for work.

Only once did I have one drink and feel SUPER buzzed but it wasn’t being drugged, I realized I was extremely dehydrated so the alcohol just went right to my head. But the feeling I had was very scary and thankfully I was not alone and got home safely. I can usually have quite a few drinks before feeling like that so it definitely threw me for a loop. But since I knew that nobody had spiked my drink, I was fine. So that’s another one, stay hydrated so that doesn’t happen to you!

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #16: Use a quality anti-theft purse. 

I highly suggest you invest in a Travelon purse, I currently have 4 and use them on a daily basis  You can read all about why I like the Travelon Anti-Theft Purse along with photos. All can be worn cross body style so you’re hands free and they all have RFID protection and are cut proof.  I am not a backpack person and the whole “wearing your backpack on your front so it doesn’t get pick pocketed” just seems crazy to me.  Travelon Purses on Amazon

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #17: Keep your purse on you. When you are at  cafe or sitting anywhere, keep your cross body purse on. Do not ever hang it on the back of your chair or put it on the ground, it’s too easy to get grabbed that way.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #18: Be aware of telling people where you are staying.  Be aware of saying your hotel room name or number out loud. Again I know it may seem paranoid but just beware that you are giving out personal information of where you are staying AND your room #…that’s not something you’d give out freely is it?

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #19: Keep your items near you. If you are traveling by train, subway, etc, make sure you can have all of your luggage with you or by you. You do not want to have to put a big bag far from you as it makes it easy for somebody to grab it and leave the train before you can even get to it. This goes back to #12, travel light.

Women’s Travel Safety Tip #20: Lock up items in your room.

Last but not least, always lock up your items when they are not with you. i’ve used the hotel safes for years but many people don’t trust them. I keep most of my valuables on me, of which I don’t take a lot. But often I do leave my laptop in the room as it’s not convenient to take with me. Also if I go to the beach, I will take nothing so I can go for a swim and not have to worry about my items on the beach. Many times people bring a bag to the beach and it’s an easy theft spot for opportunistic thieves. If I go to the beach, I’ll take just a towel…if I want photos, I’ll go back and take photos, not try to do it all at once. With  nobody to watch your items for you while you’re in the water, consider your items gone. In Costa Rica, it might not be people that take your things…but the monkeys or raccoons!  I watched a guy across the beach have his pants stolen by a raccoon!

The only things of value I travel with are my passport, wallet, camera, cell phone and laptop. I normally put my laptop in the safe or in my locked luggage when I go out. This is also why the anti-theft purse is so important as the key items are all in my purse. For my laptop,  if it did get damaged or taken I’d be able to recover all of my documents from the cloud. Replacing a passport, credit cards, ID, etc are harder to replace.

When I sleep in a room by myself, I always use the door latch but if there is no latch or it doesn’t work well, I like to put something inside the door that if the door were to open, I would be notified.  They do make alarm devices for the doors which I used  once or twice and I think just knowing they were there helped me sleep soundly.  Overall I tend to make sure I book into places that are reputable, are in a nice area and have security.