How to Keep Track of Your Passport While Traveling
Few things are more panic-inducing while you are traveling then realizing that you have lost track of your passport. You need your passport to cross borders, board planes, ships, and trains, and prove your identity.
You want to be absolutely sure that you won’t lose your passport while you’re traveling, but you also need to keep it readily available to show when necessary. Here are some tricks to keep track of your passport while you’re traveling.
Make Copies
Before you embark on your trip, make several copies of your passport. Each copy should be in a different place. Keep one at the bottom of your luggage or even in every piece of your luggage.
Ask people who you are traveling with to carry a copy for you and carry a copy for them as well. Leave a copy at home as well, so in the worst-case scenario, it could be mailed or photocopied to you.
Also, be sure that you leave one with an emergency contact. It’s a good idea to bring copies of your passport photos so that if you need to replace your passport on the go, you’ll have them available.
Imagine de Gerd Altmann de la Pixabay
Protect Your Passport from Thieves
Your passport may be very valuable to thieves. Be sure that you treat it like a precious commodity. Your hotel should have a safe available. If your room doesn’t have one, ask if one can be brought to your room.
Keep your passport in the hotel whenever you are leaving and don’t need to carry it with you. If you can’t put your passport in a safe, it’s a good idea to keep it with you and keep it concealed. Make sure that nobody can easily reach into your pocket or bag and pull out your passport without you noticing.
Protect Your Passport from Weather
Usually, when you’re worrying about protecting your passport, you’re thinking about thieves, but weather can also do damage to your passport. A sudden storm or even excessive humidity can make your passport illegible or cause it to rip easily.
Use a quality passport holder to keep your passport from being easily damaged, bending, or ripping. Here are some things to look for in a quality passport holder:
- Extra storage. Your passport isn’t the only thing that you need to be able to get to easily while you’re traveling. Choose a passport holder that can also carry your credit cards and ID.
- Quality make. You want a well-made passport holder that will protect your passport and also look great when you pull it out. Choose a full-grain Italian leather. A pebble texture makes it easier for you to hold onto your passport holder.
- Water-resistant. You need your passport holder to keep the casual storm off of your passport.
- Style. Choose a passport holder that matches your style by buying from a maker who offers a variety of color choices.
Check Frequently
The best way to recover your passport if you do misplace it is too frequently check to make sure that your passport is with you. Check for your passport when you leave a restaurant, when you are finished packing at a hotel, and any other time that you are changing locations where you may have lost the passport.
Keep Track of Your Passport on Your Next Trip
If you follow these steps, you’ll be much less likely to lose your passport or have it stolen from you on your next trip. By making sure you have extras available and keeping the original in a quality passport holder, you can set your mind at ease about being in a foreign place without your passport.
Author: Jacob Maslow
nice post, lot to learn