One of the biggest travel safety mistakes many people make when they're staying at a hotel on a vacation or business trip is thinking that their hotel room is safe and secure when they leave the room. You should never assume your hotel room is a fortress against theft because hotel theft happens, at both run-down or economy motels and fancy five-star resorts. You do need to know a few simple tips so that you will not be the next victim of hotel theft.
After booking a hotel room online at together at Expedia.com,you want to be safe and smart during your stay to make the most of your vacation.
1. Leave TV turned on when you leave hotel room. A great travel safety tip is to leave your TV or radio turned on in your hotel room when you leave. It needs to be just barely audible from outside the room if you lean in close to the door so it will sound like someone is in the hotel room.
2. Place "privacy tag" on hotel door when you leave room. You should always hang your "Do Not Disturb" door tag on the hotel room door when you leave the room throughout your stay. If you need to get extra towels and other things, just grab them from the maid's cart or get them from the Front Desk. I even empty my own hotel room trash so that no one needs to come into my room. You should never allow strangers access to your room and your things and placing the "privacy tag" on the door gives the impression you are busy inside, working or sleeping. On a similar note, hanging a "Clean This Room" tag on your hotel room door when you leave is like advertising you're not in the room.
3. Lock up valuables (like laptops, cameras, jewelry, etc.) when you're not in hotel room. Though there is some controversy regarding exactly how secure hotel room safes are, it's one of the best ways (and only ways) to secure your valuables while you're on vacation or on a business trip.
On one hand, placing valuables in a safe only tells people, "Valuables Inside," but on the other hand, where else can you secure items like laptops, cameras, jewelry, credit cards, passports and travel documents when you travel? You certainly don't want to leave them out in the hotel room, but some travel experts insist that you should put these valuables in the hotel safe.
I found this video online so it's a good thing before you place valuables in the hotel safe that you check out to see if the default password was changed or not changed (like demonstrated in this video).
Use your discretion but understand the risks of not putting your valuables in either the hotel room safe or the hotel safe.
4. Thieves work in teams & distract a hotel maid to loot a hotel room. This doesn't in any way imply that maids will steal from you, but they do prop open your hotel room door while cleaning compromising your travel safety and someone else can walk right into your room. The maid will not assume that the person is NOT the proper hotel guest. How could the maid possibly know? Thieves count on this type of thing.
5. Pack some simple items for peace of mind. I have found a couple of items that you may find helpful for increasing the security of your stay in a hotel that includes a door stop alarm, a door jammer bar and garment hideaway designed to look like a woman's tank top that contains seven clear zippered pockets and one file-sized compartment to hide cash, jewelry, passport and travel documents. All items are available through Magellan's.
Additional Personal Safety Tips.
• Read the fire safety instructions.
• Always meet your visitors in the lobby of the hotel.
• Keep your door locked at all times when you're in the room with the dead bolt lock and chain or hotel bolt.
• You may want to let someone in the hotel, like the concierge or front desk know what time you should be expected back if you go out for the evening (especially single women).
So the next time you stay at a hotel, implement these hotel room security tips for your travel safety.
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You're packed and ready to go on vacation, so now comes the most important issue at hand: avoiding jet lag when you arrive at your destination. A survey by Conde Naste said that 93% of travelers get jet lag but you don't have to be one of them if you use my tips. ~Marianne Schwab
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~Marianne Schwab
Top Travel Mistakes to Avoid Now
I have put together a list of the top five travel mistakes people make that translate into paying too much for a vacation no matter where you book your trip (through a travel agent, airline or online). ~Marianne Schwab
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About Marianne Schwab
TV Travel Show Producer
For over twenty years, TV Travel Show Producer, Marianne Schwab, has been collecting money saving travel tips as a travel producer for high profile television programs. She has flown all over the world and produced live television productions on location from Caesar's Palace on the Vegas Strip to the beautiful island of Oahu. Read more
