where you stash your money

[Nanc]

In light of recent posts on thefts, this is more of an opinion pole on the options. We know you have recommended carrying cash and cards on you at all times.

I do not have any skirts etc that would have a deep hidden pocket like some, but i do have 1 pair of zip off with a couple of smaller zipped pockets.

I was planning on using a neck passport pouch RFID. But forgot to try it out on my training hikes. Thinking on it rubbing on my neck for hours has made me question that decision.
The alternatives include a waist belt- but how hot is that when you're already belted with a back pack?

What is the most comfortable safe place to carry critical papers?

(And I do have an ultralight weight day pack/stuff sack for moseying around town. )
thanks Nanc

 

[Patty R.]

I used a neck passport pouch on two Caminos and never had an issue with it rubbing or being uncomfortable - even with sunburn on my neck. All of my money, credential and US passport all fit as well as my cellphone and chapstick. Good luck. Buen Camino!!

 

[jo webber]

I think having your cash, cards spread out in different places when you are walking would be the best way. If you are robbed you give the person one card and some cash. Then you have a card or two and some cash in reserve. When you go out or to the shower take everything with you. Keep a copy of your passport, credit card numbers and call info in your backpack or some place else (no passwords or codes).

Regardless of how you stash things, most robbers know about neck pouches, belt money holders etc. Just give them what they want and let them leave. Walking in sight of others is probably the only thing that will keep a robber away as they are cowards.

Pickpockets look for opportunities. Being alert, not having your wallet where it can be easily gotten to usually means you are not a target.

 

[C clearly]

I was planning on using a neck passport pouch RFID. But forgot to try it out on my training hikes. Thinking on it rubbing on my neck for hours has made me question that decision.

If you wear the neck pouch across your body, it might be less annoying. Or you can remove the string and safety-pin the pouch inside your pants. (Use diaper pins so as to not stab yourself.) Then keep the day's cash (and maybe one card if you might need it) and your phone more accessible - I use a slim cross-body pouch that I never take off during the day.

 

[SYates]

I use something like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B014LOP3WA/?tag=casaivar02-20 under my clothing to keep my main stash of money, cards, papers etc. and carry only my daily budget or so 'openly'. Buen Camino, SY

 

[Jodean]

I wore a silk money belt which worked great. Very comfy, never noticed it at all after the 1st day or so. Slept with it, took it to the shower with me. Kept my debit card, health ins. card, and my big money in there. Passport was in my hip pack with my pilgrim pass, both in a plastic cover that I got from this website. This slept next to my pillow with me.
Putting things in multiple pockets and spread around your pack makes it easier to lose them or forget them.

 

[jo webber]

I found a possible solution.
women https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K0WZ8UU/?tag=casaivar02-20

Men https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F9H8QBY/?tag=casaivar02-20

There are other styles available.

 

[FionaClarke]

I have been trialling (with great success during this heatwave) an oldfashioned money belt made of heavy cotton with a soft elastic strap. I stick on an Always Ultra pad - the ones with wings - and wear it with the pad against my skin in the small of my back. It soaks up all the sweat that runs down my back. It is so great, that I'm planning on keeping it as part of my home hiking kit for the summer months.

 

[SYates]

Now I have heard of and used sanitary pads as emergency insoles, but this is new even to me - genius! Buen Camino, SY

 

[kayagee66]

I had one of those waist money belts with an elastic strap. I don't like it around my waist so I extended the strap to its fullest and had it across my shoulder under my top. In my pockets I kept what I needed for the day.
Don't be complacent, but certainly don't worry. At no point did I feel uneasy in my surroundings anywhere. Robbery against an individual (mugging) must be so rare that it's virtually nonexistent. The best reason to have such an item containing your passport, cards, money etc isn't to prevent robbery, it's to keep them on you at all times without filling up your pockets.

 

[HalfDomeOrBust]

I use something like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B014LOP3WA/?tag=casaivar02-20 under my clothing to keep my main stash of money, cards, papers etc. and carry only my daily budget or so 'openly'. Buen Camino, SY

I also do exactly what SY does. I use the RFID holder under my shirt and carry a daily $ amount in zippered pocket for quick use. Three Camino's and this has worked for me well. Buen Camino. Ed

PS By the way, I put this on when I leave my house in the USA on my way to the Camino. I do not wait till i get to Madrid or Paris. I start at home.

 

[mspath]

Like many other pilgrims I sleep with any valuables within my sleeping bag in a pouch beneath my feet and NEVER tell anyone where and what they are!! A few years ago in Trinidad de Arre an actor from LA who was bunked next to me asked anxiously "Where do you have your money?" As if on cue I rolled my eyes and answered "Why in the bank! And you?"

For further advice read this recent Forum thread with useful tips on camino security
and also here.

 

[Nanc]

thanks all, it was more the comfort of carrying i was looking at rather than the fret of security
and , yes FionaClarke, ingenious idea!

 

[Stephen]

I found a possible solution.
women https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K0WZ8UU/?tag=casaivar02-20

Men https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F9H8QBY/?tag=casaivar02-20

There are other styles available.

It they were well filled they might raise a few eyebrows.

 

[Albertagirl]

I found a possible solution.
women https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K0WZ8UU/?tag=casaivar02-20

Men https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F9H8QBY/?tag=casaivar02-20

There are other styles available.

@jo webber
I am imagining myself with the women's underwear version of this in an albergue check in lineup with the hospitalero insisting, "Yes, we need to see your passport."

 

[KristinK]

In light of recent posts on thefts, this is more of an opinion pole on the options. We know you have recommended carrying cash and cards on you at all times.

I do not have any skirts etc that would have a deep hidden pocket like some, but i do have 1 pair of zip off with a couple of smaller zipped pockets.

I was planning on using a neck passport pouch RFID. But forgot to try it out on my training hikes. Thinking on it rubbing on my neck for hours has made me question that decision.
The alternatives include a waist belt- but how hot is that when you're already belted with a back pack?

What is the most comfortable safe place to carry critical papers?

(And I do have an ultralight weight day pack/stuff sack for moseying around town. )
thanks Nanc

Stashed money...I am using a fanny pack, an ibuprofen bottle, my first aid kit, the hem of my pants, and the waist band of my shorts. A seam ripper and some imagination are key! It's everywhere!

Currently on the journey,

Kristin

 

[Icacos]

.....The alternatives include a waist belt- but how hot is that when you're already belted with a back pack?

I can't speak for a man, but as a woman a money belt sits on the waist. The pack's straps sit on the hips. One should not interfere with the other. Yes, a money belt can get sweaty at times but, unlike my clothes, it is one of those items that got washed when I got home.

I think there was a fun thread a while back about what items didn't get washed on Camino.

 

[naplesdon]

I met a pilgrim years ago who had one of the bags on string around his neck, someone cut it off of him when he was in a very deep sleep in Cizur Menor. I had a friend who traveled with an expired passport, expired credit cards and photo copied currency in his pocket which if he was robbed was willing to hand over in an instant.

 

[Malabar Circle AS]

A bit off the track but i use one of those fishing vests made of perforated mesh and therefore cool enough. it has something like 27 pockets, most are hidden on the inside....just a thought.

 

[AyerPair]

I bought a runner's waist belt by GoVivo on Amazon that holds my iPhone 6 Plus, and will also hold valuables and my allergy medicine for easy access. It is soft and very lightweight and I like the idea that it will always be on me. I have worn it outside my clothes, could also be worn underneath. Like others have said, I will also split up cards and cash to carry in other places. I wore the belt in front with my pack on yesterday for a hot and humid 10 mile hike through the woods and it was so comfortable that I forgot I had it on until I wanted to take a photo.
Karen

 

[Malabar Circle AS]

if i may, i would like to suggest the use of a gps tracker to be hidden in the pack. It can make a lot of difference. It has a proximity alert so if they move the pack beyond a certain perimeter it will ring your phone and start mapping its location.....

 

[alaskadiver]

RFID anything is a waste of money. Unless you have one of the few cards still on the market with contactless technology (radio transmitters) your chipped cards are not transmitting. Totally different technology. Passport covers have all the blocking you need to protect them. There is a whole industry out there profiting from the irrational fears of travelers who never bothered to research anything and believe the marketing hype.
How do you know if you have one of these contactless cards? Simple. If you have a card that you don't swipe or insert in a machine, and you can leave in your wallet-basically just bring the card within a few inches of the card reader. That's a card that needs an RFID blocking sleeve (a sleeve-not a whole wallet).

 

[gracethepilgrim]

@Nanc, as you live in Aus you could take a look at these fantastic Aussie tech/travel bags. The ‘Link’ model is perfect for the camino http://www.stmbags.com/collections/annex-collection/link-ipad-shoulder-bag.html

I have used this brand on all my caminos (and other travel adventures) since 2003. As technology has changed, so has the shape of their bags. This one could hold an ipad as well as all your valuables.

On a camino it never leaves my person, it’s comfy and it has oodles of pockets.

As @biarritzdon has already mentioned, it is a nifty idea to have an ‘second’ little purse in a pocket with ‘fake’ (expired) cards and a small amount of cash. If you are in a situation where you need to ‘hand over’ your valuables you hand over this purse.

 

[JRO]

In light of recent posts on thefts, this is more of an opinion pole on the options. We know you have recommended carrying cash and cards on you at all times.

I do not have any skirts etc that would have a deep hidden pocket like some, but i do have 1 pair of zip off with a couple of smaller zipped pockets.

I was planning on using a neck passport pouch RFID. But forgot to try it out on my training hikes. Thinking on it rubbing on my neck for hours has made me question that decision.
The alternatives include a waist belt- but how hot is that when you're already belted with a back pack?

What is the most comfortable safe place to carry critical papers?

(And I do have an ultralight weight day pack/stuff sack for moseying around town. )
thanks Nanc

I also didn't want something on my neck. So, my pants or my jacket usually had at least one pocket. I would put my passport (or sometimes the passport card/copy), and my debit card plus a bit of cash, in that pocket. Then I had a small (probably 4 x 6") little bag on a shoulder strap (mine was almost just a string) that I loaded with my additional cards, my phone, more cash and lip balm, comb, and kleenex that I placed in the top pocket of my pack. When we stopped and the pack came off, the bag went cross-body and into the bar/cafe or wherever. That way I always had the most important things close, kleenex for bathrooms that were out of paper, etc. And all of it was ON me so I couldn't lay it down and forget it. If your clothing pockets don't zip, I recommend pinning closed with a small safety pin so you don't inadvertently lose things. You could also pin a cloth pocket (just cut the strings off of the neck one, or make one that you like) to the inside of a jacket, or even the waistband of your pants. If you wear a belt, you can get pockets that thread onto your belt. At night, everything went into the bag and into the bottom of my sleeping bag.

I also wouldn't have been comfortable with an additional waist belt on, unless I removed it from my pack upon stopping and put it on at that time.

 

[April Jo]

I found that a neck pouch on a long soft cord under my shirt, plus an 'under the panties' soft pouch by Pacsafe http://www.pacsafe.com/coversafe-s100.html
for documents and most of my money, plus various zippered pockets in my jacket and trousers for additional cash, worked well. However, sister-pilgrims, please be warned: the panties pouch was so comfortable, I twice forgot to take it off when going through security checks.... yikes!

The first time I remembered just as I approached a very unsmiling officer in Malaysia, then had to do a very undignified 'strip' down to the panties in that very modest country (by the way, a male officer patted down ALL the women going through security!) - then before getting on Ryanair in London, I totally forgot the pouch....

I set off the alarm, then shame-faced I remembered the panty pouch.... another public "fishing out" of the pouch in public..... but in spite of my abject apologies I was classed as a VERY undesirable alien, and had to undergo three "body massages" from tip to toe (very invasive, and very embarrassing in public, but at least I could see the funny side of it afterwards).

Ladies, don't say you haven't been warned about those very comfortable and very discreet pouches

 

[xin loi]

Put cash in a "Real" old fashioned money belt that I wear everyday, even at home. Passport, credit cards are in a zippered pocket of my fishing vest. Zipper is then held with a large Safety Pin.
Not sure if there is much danger of thieves along the Camino as we thought that most villages were populated by Zombies as we rarely ever saw a live person. Cities are the only threat except for fellow travelers in Albergues.

 

[Annie Little]

I found a possible solution.
women https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K0WZ8UU/?tag=casaivar02-20

Men https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F9H8QBY/?tag=casaivar02-20

There are other styles available.

....... hahahahahaha I could think of some interesting scenarios that might come up using this . BUT I won't share them here

 

[Kiwi-family]

I have a really great secret place that I keep my spare card. It hasn't been mentioned in any thread I've seen on the topic. And I'm not about to tell;-)

 

[KJFSophie]

In light of recent posts on thefts, this is more of an opinion pole on the options. We know you have recommended carrying cash and cards on you at all times.

I do not have any skirts etc that would have a deep hidden pocket like some, but i do have 1 pair of zip off with a couple of smaller zipped pockets.

I was planning on using a neck passport pouch RFID. But forgot to try it out on my training hikes. Thinking on it rubbing on my neck for hours has made me question that decision.
The alternatives include a waist belt- but how hot is that when you're already belted with a back pack?

What is the most comfortable safe place to carry critical papers?

(And I do have an ultralight weight day pack/stuff sack for moseying around town. )
thanks Nanc

I've always used, and continue to use a 'fanny pack/ belt bag/ hip pack. I keep my credential, pen, glasses, a few tablets of Motrin, iPhone, tissue and wallet right in front of me at all times. In the evenings, this is my bag to go out...I lengthen the belt and use as a shoulder bag. I also have a tiny micro flashlight attached to the zipper which serves me well at night tiptoeing to the toilet ( and I have my tissue with me because indeed, there will be none...lol I've not found it uncomfortable at all. Both the fanny pack and backpack waist straps can be adjusted to what works.

 

[High Endeavours]

For many years travelling in lots of countries and also on camino I've put the neck type around my waist and worn at the front on the upper leg under my pants or shorts. My wife has done the same. It seems to work without problem in hot or cold weather.

 

[lissie45]

I use a neck type pouch but cut off the strap and added a short strap with a click lock I loop it around my bra strap under my armpit it’s invisible and comfortable