Traveling with caution

Terrorist threats. Political demonstrations. Late-night muggings. Pickpockets.

Travel is supposed to be fun, right? But the first time your cash and credit cards are pilfered on a London street corner, or you find yourself caught in the middle of a crowded protest in Mexico City, you may wonder why you didn’t just stay home.

In some situations, you can take precautions – hide your cash in a money belt, leave your expensive jewelry at home – but others are difficult to predict.

There are ways to protect yourself and make sure your vacation isn’t spoiled. Travel experts say most of us don’t take enough proactive steps to make sure we’re not victims, or don’t do things to navigate around possible trouble.

But a little knowledge can go a long way.

“When I hear stories of things happening to people, it’s typically those who aren’t taking care of themselves,” said Helen Baldovinos of Let’s Travel in San Jose, Calif.

“I tell people, ‘Know your surroundings, stay within tourist areas, don’t draw attention to yourself. Travel smart.’ “

Before Tamara Alvarado and her boyfriend left for a planned vacation to Mexico City in July, they made a point of informing themselves about current events there.

Hearing that protesters were gathering in the city’s zocalo, or public square, in support of defeated presidential candidate Manuel Lopez Obrador, Alvarado checked the government’s Web site for information, then called her hotel to ask if it was safe to travel there.

Assured the situation was calm, they decided to visit. And despite the fact that protesters had set up camps in an area between the city’s historic center and Paseo de la Reforma, where art galleries and upscale hotels sit, their trip was not interrupted. Although traffic was in a constant stall, they were able to see and do the things they wanted.

“We went to the zocalo right away,” Alvarado said. “I was interested in what was happening. We talked to a lot of different people, but we always felt comfortable. We weren’t front and center with the protesters and their megaphones.”

Still, experts say it’s best to steer clear of political gatherings, especially in Mexico – where the constitution prohibits political activities by foreigners, who can be detained by police and deported if they take part.

Mexico’s tourism industry, which generated an estimated $11.8 billion last year, has also sustained an economic hit in Oaxaca, the southern colonial state capital where demonstrators are trying to oust the state governor and teachers have joined in to demand higher pay. City officials were forced to cancel July’s popular Guelaguetza festival, a $60 million loss.

The U.S. Embassy in Mexico City recently issued a warning to U.S. citizens in Oaxaca that “the possibility for violence continues and the situation remains tense. Vandalism, arrests and injuries continue to result from the ongoing confrontations.”

Protesters have set up checkpoints outside the zocalo, and two men have been fatally shot.

Safe to visit? Probably not right now.

“In terms of going to places like that, I don’t want to say it’s OK, but you can certainly travel to a politically unstable environment and not have any problems if you’re savvy about the way you travel,” said Greg Benchwick, a commissioning editor at Lonely Planet guidebooks.

“Any time you go into a protest area, you run the risk of it escalating. Places like that are pressure cookers, and any small thing can send a protest into a riot.”

Americans, in particular, should be aware of their surroundings, in part because of possible negative reaction to the military conflict in Iraq. Experienced travelers say it’s easy to spot an American in a crowd – we’re the ones in sneakers, T-shirts and baseball caps.

Better to try to dress like the locals, travel agents say.

Cindy Tacci of The Travelsmiths in Cupertino, Calif., advised: “Leave your U.S. flag shirts at home, or anything that would obviously point you out” as being American. “Maintain a little bit of a low profile.”

Even that can be tough to do sometimes, said Marion Morris, an agent for Cardoza-Bungey Travel in Palo Alto, Calif.

“Americans look like Americans no matter what they try to do,” she said. “It’s a certain style. North Americans just look different.”

If you can’t look the part, make sure to follow local traditions, Morris suggested. Don’t go into a church in South America wearing shorts and a halter top, for example.

“Have respect,” she said. “If you dress conservatively, you won’t offend anyone.”

Americans traveling to Great Britain may have concerns following the recent discovery of a plot to use liquid explosives to blow up airliners flying to the United States. Last summer, explosions on a London double-decker bus and three Underground trains killed 56 and injured more than 700.

Although no statistical information is available, Paul Chibeba, a spokesman for VisitBritain, the official tourism board, said there have been few trip cancellations by Americans. Visitors who are afraid of traveling by subway or bus have other transportation options.

“London is a great walking city,” Chibeba said. “People with any fears about traveling should know that there are plenty of ways to get around. But London is very much a safe destination.”

Theft, from armed robberies to purse snatchings, can also spoil a trip – like the San Jose Boy Scout troop whose van was broken into in Hawaii recently. Or the rock singer who awoke in his Honolulu hotel room to an intruder stealing his wallet, cell phone and credit card.

You don’t have to cross the border to be a victim of crime.

Juergen Amend, a retired sales manager from Menlo Park, Calif., was visiting Savannah, Ga., with his wife last year when they were robbed at gunpoint while returning to their rental car from the Olde Pink House restaurant in an upscale neighborhood. They lost their money, a digital camera and his wife’s expensive handbag and its contents.

Amend complained to the restaurant that it should have had valet parking for diners, but he admits he made mistakes.

“One thing we definitely screwed up on was wearing jewelry,” he said. “In this case, my wife wore a diamond ring, and I had a ring with a diamond in it. But they were going after our money, not jewelry. Otherwise we would have lost that.

“Now I wear a pouch inside of my shirt” to store cash, he said. “The key is using ATM machines. You don’t want to carry a lot of money or jewelry. And I wear a cheap watch.”

In many cases, street crime can be avoided. Stay off dark or dimly lit streets. Avoid carrying large sums of money. Hide cash and credit cards in a money belt inside your pants or skirt.

And never take your personal safety for granted.

“Going some place with your eyes wide open is always wise,” travel agent Tacci said. “Anything can happen anywhere …

“Passersby get harmed being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Don’t let your guard down.”

Knowing a few words and phrases in the language of the country you’re visiting could be just the thing to escape trouble or find a museum or cathedral you’re looking for.

“It helps when you speak the language,” said Mexico traveler Alvarado, who is fluent in Spanish. But even if you don’t, she said, “learn a few phrases, map out where you want to go, write it down on a piece of paper and learn how to ask, ‘How do I get there?’ “

Nothing, though, should deter you from having a good time, whether you’re in Paris to dine in great restaurants, in Mexico to visit archaeological sites or in Hawaii to work on your tan.

“I try not to be afraid,” Lonely Planet’s Benchwick said. “I’m smart, and I protect myself and watch my back.

“But I try not to let any type of fear hinder my exploration of a culture of a country. It’s a shame to go to a place as incredible as Mexico City or Oaxaca, to spend all this money, and you’re afraid all the time.

“Allow yourself to enjoy it.”