Ask the Expert - Spring Break SafeTY by Neil Huotari

StaySafe on Spring Break

We are coming up on spring break. For many students, with or without family, this means a vacation abroad.  Do you have an emergency plan?  Trip Insurance?   Who will get to you if something happens? Have you left a power of attorney with your parents to advocate for your healthcare if you are over 18?  

Spring Break Safety Tips:

• Register your trip on the US State Department so your embassy consulate knows where you are and can reach you if necessary.
• Avoid all demonstrations or other civil disturbances; leave the area
  immediately if caught in an impromptu assembly
• If you are staying at a resort, use a shuttle, do not rent a car. If going on tours, work with the resort to set up transportation.  DO NOT just flag down a cab.  Resist traveling at night, especially alone.
• Be aware of your surroundings on a busy streets, city parks, or at a shopping mall.
• If traveling with children, your levels of security awareness and supervision need to be heightened.
• Take note if someone is paying a lot of attention to your children or your family.
• Limit cellular phone and technology use to avoid being distracted.  Keep cellular phone charged to report suspicious activity.
• Petty thieves prey on travelers, especially on those who appear lost, confused or alone in an unfamiliar environment.
• Avoid carrying a purse or wallet. You will often be in crowded areas that are prime hunting grounds for pickpockets and purse snatchers. If you need your wallet keep it in your front pocket. Keep valuables locked in a room safe.
• Deal only with authorized agents when you exchange money, buy airline tickets or purchase souvenirs. Change currency at a bank, or use a debit card.
• Make a copy of your passport and keep the real passport in the room safe.
• Avoid walking alone at night. If you must: A) Don't take shortcuts or go off well-traveled roads, B) If disorientated, ask directions only from individuals of obvious authority, C) Do not accept rides from strangers or new acquaintances.
• If you are traveling outside the US, you should spend time researching the region, city and neighborhood you are going to be staying in.

I have stated many times in my travel security seminars, “Going to Germany is much different than going to Mexico.” At a minimum, look at the following risks: violence, civil unrest, corrupt or reliable police, terrorism risks and past/present health conditions of the area. Once you pick your location, then it is time to do homework - as we say in the security business, Intel gathering.

A week ago, I completed a trip security report for a couple going to an exclusive resort approximately 30 miles from a city in Mexico. I looked at Mexican electronic area news media outlets, free private security reports, State Department websites and other country government Internet sites to get a feel of what has been happening there recently.

Particularly in Mexico, or any other potentially dangerous vacation spots, you need to know - extremely well - what the security climate is. These Internet sites told me there were 2 drug cartel hits in the area this past year.  No tourists were targeted or hurt in the crossfire. I also discovered most crime was non-violent and committed at night, so be aware of pick-pocketing and the need to lock up valuables in your hotel room safe.  There are cases of hotel rooms being broken into where electronic devices, credit cards and money are stolen.

CHECK OUT "UP MY STREET" in the Resources tab.

What to Look for in a Safe Hotel

• If possible, select a hotel with modern electronic guest room locks. The majority of these locks automatically change the lock combination with every new guest so there is little chance of someone having a duplicate key to your room. If you lose or misplace your key, ask to have your room re-keyed immediately.
• Is each room equipped with a dead bolt lock and a peephole?
• Are fire sprinklers in hotel rooms, hallways, and meeting rooms? Likewise for smoke detectors, escapes and extinguishers? A sprinkling system could save your life abroad.  You don’t want to rely on a foreign fire department to get out of the hotel in case of fire!
• Rooms above the eighth floor cannot generally be reached by fire department escape ladders.
• Each room telephone should allow outside dialing.
• Guest phones located in hallways and lobbies should not allow direct room dialing. Anyone using the phone should have to call the operator and request a room by guest name, not room number.
• Secure locks on windows and adjoining doors.
• Well-lit interior hallways, parking structures and grounds.
• Hotels that limit access. Generally the more limited the access the less likely a trespasser will enter.
• The parking garage should not have elevators taking passengers to guest floors. It should stop only at the lobby.
• Does hotel provide personnel trained in guest security that are available for escorts to rooms and auto when requested?
• Are the balconies to code?  Many Americans die abroad from leaning over unsafe balconies.
• Is the hotel located in a high crime rate area, especially when traveling overseas? Check with the US Embassy's Resident Security Officer in that country and they can alert you of areas to stay away from.
• On Arrival & Check-In
• If you arrive in a bus or cab, stay with your luggage until it is brought into the hotel lobby.
• Keep a close eye on your luggage, purse, etc., when checking in. If the lobby is busy, thieves will often take advantage of the distractions to take your things with them.
• If you are staying in an older room which still has the older guest door locks with metal key, one of first signs of how a hotel treats the issue of security is to observe how hotel room keys are controlled. If it is checkout time and a pile of metal room keys are laying on the front desk, the hotel is not too concerned about your security. Anyone can take and key lying on the desk. This is not a big concern if the hotel is using electronic key cards but is if the metal keys have the room number embossed on it. You will find this more prevalent overseas.
• Ask the front desk personnel not to announce your room number. Rather, tell them to write it down or point to it. If the desk clerk should do this, explain the problem and asked to be given another room. You never know who is listening. Your room number is a matter of security, and the fewer people that know your whereabouts, the better. There’s no need to announce it to the entire hotel lobby.
• When registering, sign only your last name and first initial. Don’t use titles or degrees. Makes it harder to determine gender, marital status or profession. If you are a women traveling alone, you might consider booking your room as Mr. and Mrs.
• Don't leave your credit card lying on the check-in counter while you complete your registration. Also make sure the credit card that is handed back to you by the hotel clerk is really yours.
• Instruct the desk not to give out your name and room number and ask for them to call you if someone inquires about you.
• Immediately upon check in, get two business cards or matchbooks with the hotel name and address on them. Place one by the phone in the room so you know where you are and keep the other on you when you leave so you know where to come back to. If you get lost, you have the address and phone number handy.

Before you go – click StaySafe tab and read more.