Protecting Your Belongings in Hotels and Cars

Protecting Yourself and
Your Belongings in Hotels and Cars


Whether you travel for business or pleasure, you will probably spend a lot of time in hotels and rental cars. It's always a good idea to take extra precautions to protect yourself from pickpockets, muggers and scam artists.

Number 1
Avoid ground-floor rooms and check that all the doors and windows to your room lock securely.

Number 2
Find out in advance if your room has a security peephole, a dead bolt or a safety chain on the door. If not, you may want to bring along a portable door alarm.

Number 3
Leave expensive or heirloom jewelry at home, along with other valuables that you don't need to have with you. Don't bring anything you can't bear to lose.

Number 4
Store your valuables in the hotel safe, if possible, rather than carrying them with you.

Number 5
Keep your hotel information ' especially your room number ' private. If you want to make a date or set up a meeting with someone you don't know well, suggest a nearby café or landmark as a rendezvous point.

Number 6
Check to see who is outside before you answer the door of your room.

Number 7
Clear out your rental car completely when you park it. If you have to leave something in your car, store it in the trunk where it is out of sight.

Number 8
Review your car rental insurance policy carefully to make sure you understand what types of damage and loss coverage you have. If necessary, take out extra insurance.

Number 9
Drive with your purse or wallet on the floor, rather than next to you on the seat, and lock the car doors while driving. This reduces the likelihood of a 'smash and grab'-style robbery.

Safely Use Free Wireless Internet at Motels

Safely Use Free Wireless Internet at Motels


One of the amenities offered by even the cheapest motels is free Internet access. For anyone who needs to check their email, check up on their work or business or just wants to surf the Web when bored, this makes Internet access convenient for the hotel guest. However, there are things that you should do to keep yourself safe when using the Internet access at any motel.

• Install a firewall on your computer. A firewall helps keep intruders and malicious software from entering and damaging your computer. You can purchase a firewall online or at a local electronics store.
• Make sure that the network you are connecting to at your motel is the one run by your motel. Many people will create fake networks to try to scam information out of people. Call the front desk and ask which network to connect to if you are unsure.
• Configure your Web browser to connect to a proxy server. A proxy server routes any website or file you interact with through the server before sending it to your computer, reducing the ability of others to detect your Internet searching. Many proxy servers are available online, and you can set up proxy access through your browser's settings.
• Minimize the entry of personal information such as credit cards, usernames and passwords or email addresses.