Security in the UK

Muggings on tourists are pretty rare but pickpockets congregate where easy targets congregate. That's why they are busy by the Trevi Fountain and Termini and the Spanish Steps in Rome, by Notre Dame, Trocadero, Eyefull Tower and the Métro in Paris; the Tower of London, the Changing of the Guard, and the Underground in London.

The Queen won't be pinching purses. She has her own nice black patent leather handbag which never leaves her side.

Just don't make yourself a target. A backpack with nice easy to open zippers behind your back where you can't see or feel it in a tight crowd of tourists (or other places) is an open invitation to nefarious types.

If you are with another person and come upon a hungry grumpy grizzly in a forest and kick it you don't have to be able to run faster than the bear. You just have to be able to run faster than the other person... (joke)

I am 69 years old, and have lived in England for all of those years. I have visited Paris, Barcelona, Florence, Rome, Siena, Berlin, Prague and many other places, but in all that time have never worn a money belt and have never been pick-pocketed. My only security is that I generally buy clothes which have zipped pockets.

As you travel around Britain, on the tube, on trains, and on buses, you will see large numbers of people, young and old, all using electronic devices as they travel. These are the same products that you have at home, they are just as common, and they have the same value. Few local people take special precautions. If I need to take my passport with me at any time, it goes in my coat pocket, as do my credit cards, my phone, my car keys and my wallet.

Obviously, theft does occur, and occasionally it may be violent theft. The consequences may be worse for a tourist than for a local, and a tourist is likely to be less sure about their surroundings. My advice would be to take special care in crowded places, especially at tourist events like watching the changing of the guard when your attention is on something else. You should also be careful about leaving valuable items in a parked car, especially if there are few other people around, such as a lay-by on a country lane. The vast majority of people you will meet are honest.

Well, your backpack isn't "likely" to get pilfered, in the sense of a 50+% chance, but you're still taking a big risk. As someone just posted on another thread, a backpack is like a smorgasbord for pickpockets. I'd never carry anything valuable in one, except on flights. Ditto for the ever-popular fanny-pack, though I have one that rides on my left side where my hand is always on or near it. A lock on a backpack should protect the locked part from pickpockets, but would be like a neon "snatch me" sign if you put the bag down on a table or bench, or hang it on the back of a chair.

Why not keep the smartphone in your front pants pocket? Probably the safest place since you will have a hand either in or next to that pocket most of the time. Or in a buttoned shirt pocket. Or, to revisit the popular subject of travel vests, in an inside pocket of a vest or jacket. Your wife will have to be careful with that purse, wear it across her chest with the flap facing in, hopefully with a zipper or multiple snaps or such.

I don't think Britain is as bad as parts of the Continent for pickpocketing, but I'd defer to others with more experience. (My only experience with this kind of theft was actually in Washington DC.) I hadn't heard that Buckingham Palace was especially risky, presumably that would be out in the crowds at the changing of the guard when people are distracted, as opposed to having tea with Her Majesty. ;)

In general, watch out for distractions (a fake fight, someone who wants you to buy or sign something, someone who wants you to show them something on your map, someone who spills something on you) and crowded places (trains or subways, especially the doors).

I don't know whether Europe's "age" is why there's more pickpocketing there. I just figured Americans weren't smart or patient enough to learn how to do it well. Or maybe we have more opportunities to steal in other ways. Or maybe fewer crowded places. Or .....?

Don't worry too much, basic precautions will go a long way and help you worry less! Have a good trip.

Thanks for the responses. I was referring to the changing of the guard, outside the Palace, not the Palace itself. :)

It occurred to me that I will likely be wearing a light jacket in early June, so that will take care of the phone issue right there.

l should have probably started by asking if there are any big Edinburgh or London attractions where I'll be asked to leave a backpack at the door? I'm pretty conscientious of keeping hold of the backpack when I'm on trips and have always held it in front of me on the subway in major US cities. I'm sure I sound paranoid now. ;)

Just before I traveled to London last year, for the first time in many years, I chanced upon a video that Rick had posted. It was about a group of individuals who will attempt to hand you, the unsuspecting tourist, a small flower or piece of greenery. After pressing it upon you, they then demand a small payment. They can get very, very pushy about payment, engaging the tourist in an argument. Much of the time, this is a cover for another person to pick your pockets. The video focused on a site in, I think, Italy or Spain, but it was interesting, so I watched it. Thank goodness. I got the rush right outside of Westminster Abbey. I was able to quickly alert my traveling companion from taking the flower that was shoved in her hand, offer a stern "no" and move on, with a firm grip on my cross-body bag.
Also, I don't use a money belt. And I don't let my wallet fall to the bottom of my cross-body, so it can't be removed by knife slit in the bottom of the bag. And I don't take my bag off whilst sitting at a dining table (mind you, I don't eat in "fancy" spots!) And, when in any crowded situation, I keep my hand on my cross body. A purse will not get "yanked"--instead, the strap will be carefully cut and the bag will be slipped away into the crowd.

I am well aware of the fanny meaning difference. ;) Thanks ladies!

London is one of the most touristy places on the planet, so it's pickpocket central. Wearing a money belt type device is smart. But, they're not designed to hold smartphones so your pants pockets will have to suffice. The Leicester Square/Trafalgar Square/Covent Garden area is where the most robberies occur. As long as you are keeping cash/cards/passport is your money belt or hotel room safe your good to go; nothing else to worry about.

We have been to Europe almost yearly for over a decade. My husband usually carries everything in a zip front pocket, he likes the travel type shirts you buy at REI. I usually carry a small purse that unless it is hot weather I can wear under a jacket or sweater. But the biggest problem I see is the distraction con. In Paris a women says she finds a ring is it yours? And totally distracts you, or the women dropping the baby. You really have to be careful not to get sucked in by these people. Most of us want to help people so it is easy to happen. Just back out of big crowds. We have stepped off a subway train and then taken the next one when it is too crowded or we just get "that feeling"

Just one thought - I'm not sure what you're planning on using from your backpack throughout the day, but if you eliminate the backpack you can eliminate some of your concern about being an easier target and having to possibly check the bag at museums and such. When I travel with my husband I carry a medium sized purse, cross-body, one that I can fit my wallet, our camera, etc, in. When he did need to carry his own bag around (carry his notebook for class, for example), he chose to use a messenger bag instead of a backpack. In crowds it's easier to keep in front of you and keep an eye on. He didn't typically bring it out sight-seeing though. For your wife and her purse - keep a hold on it, especially through crowds. I like to hold my hand on the strap right at the zipper - with my hand right there it's less of an easy/quick target. I'm not saying I couldn't be pickpocketed of course, but when you don't look like an easy target they're less likely to try.

Klecser,

Welcome.

you must live on the edge of a town somewhere.

This is how i see it.

If youre walking on the street of the USA and someone wants your $$/stuff, they will stuck a knife/gun in your face and demand it or take it.

When outside of the USA (not inc mexico and south) they will just do a "snatch n grab" or try to pick pocket you.

So, what you need to do is to keep the loose hands out of your pockets or to keep the stuff you wont want to loose out of your pockets.

for your wifey. you will see women carrying purses, but they will have a hand/arm over it and its sure aint OPEN for everyone to dip out of either.

Pickpocketing is TOLERATED more so because its targeting TOURIST, not locals. At least thats how i see it. its no different than here. Its okay for it to happen to the other guy until it happens to you and then its not right.

I use a "backpack" for my stuff and so far no one has sliced it or tried to open it for anything. everything that is of any value is on me. I have used the luggage racks at the end of the train cars too. No problems. It all depends on how safe you feel. If you dont want to have your luggage out of your sight, then dont. you can put it overhead if it will fit, between your seats or on a seat next/across from you. ive seen it all done. If the train is full, chances are you wont be able to do it, but you will be sitting on it.

happy trails.

I have spent a great deal of time in Europe, most major cities and also in the countryside. I always use a regular purse that zips that I can tuck under my arm and hold on to in crowded places. I've never used a money belt or taken extraordinary precautions. I behave just as I would at home making sure I am not unaware of my surroundings. Put on your city face, walk with assertiveness, and enjoy the city!

Others have already said as much, but it bears repeating - just take the same precautions you would in any large city (for example, New York, as you did in the past) and you should have no worries at all. Be aware of what is happening around you - as you would in any other city in the world.

Good point! You are right to bring this up.

All the advice you have been given is pretty good. At the moment the current threat in London is from pick pockets and slashers...slashers are people who when you are sat next to them or on the escalator in front of them slash your bag or pocket with a scalpel blade or similar.

There is also the distraction technique someone asks you the way or for change or the time. So any interaction may be perfectly harmless but just think security?

Have you heard of a US company called 5.11? Have a look at their covert cargo pants they have zips on hidden pockets. Rohan a UK company sell clothing with hidden zip pockets for travellers. You can find them in covent garden

have you thought about carrying a dummy wallet maybe put some old cards old tickets in it make it look like your normal wallet put a five pound note in the front...so normally attacks are over in seconds and unexpected so ....someone shoves a knif in your ribs demands your wallet and they are off running...they just got a worthless wallet with five pounds in it!

Finally, people who are alert and looking around tend not to be targeted .... Remember two points 1. Absence of the normal presence of the abnormal ....2. Every attack has some form of surveillance, you are generally watched before being attacked even just for a minute, if you are alert and switched on the attacker will look somewhere else.

I traveled through the most "pick-pockety" places in Europe last summer (Italy, Greece, Eastern Europe, former soviet republics), didn't carry a money belt, and didn't have a problem.

I know Rick highly recommends a money belt and, while I see his point, they are a darned nuisance. I kept my passport and credit cards in the hotel safe. I stuffed enough paper Euros for the day in one front pants pocket of my trousers and put my Euro coins in the other front pocket.

That way, if I only needed coins, I went into one pocket and if I needed bills, I went into the other one.

My theory is: If they can't see anything's in the pocket, they aren't going to put their hands in the pocket.

PS - I'm not that good looking, so women don't usually put their hands into my pocket for no good reason. If you are really good- looking and in in Greece or Italy, you might find all kinds of women and men willing to...