What exactly should one do with a money belt when spending time on the beach? We will be staying in hostels which have lock-out periods, and so would not really want to be without passports, money, etc.
But those money belts don't exactly fit well into bikinis :)
It's tough. I've used my shoe. But I haven't felt terribly secure.
You can get clear plastic, waterproof camera cases about the size of a passport with a long cord. Wear it around your neck when in the water and lay it under the blanket when on the beach.
I don't take my money belt to the beach. I carry enough cash for snacks or lunch while the money belt stays in my hotel room safe. If I don't have a safe, it goes in the hotel's safe. If that isn't available, I would use a locker at the train station. I wouldn't keep it locked in my rental car either.
The only way your money belt is safe at the beach is if you don't leave it alone. Either someone stays with it, or you put it in a water proof bag and have it with you all the time.
European beaches are just like American beaches (I grew up in San Diego), cars in parking lots get prowled and people who leave their valuables alone find them missing.
I just checked out the "Splash Caddy" Frank recommended. Thanks Frank, we do alot of boating and things get wet. It looks like a great idea. I would never leave anything alone on a beach. If someone can't stay with your valuable, there are no safes in the hostel, and you are not near a train station locker, it seems like a great way to keep things safe with you and dry.
another place to look with a variety of choices is http://www.safetycentral.com/watpouc.html
REI carries a selection of drypak pouches
I travelled around europe for months with a friend when younger,, we never left anything alone on the beach, we also never walked around with our passports and airline tickets. We always left stuff in hotel safe, and only carried a days worth of cash with us. This was before e tickets and email .. losing stuff then was really inconvenient.
On Paros you could get these little boats that take you out to secluded beaches for like 35 cents( this was a long time ago, LOL ) so you could literally be alone on a small beach. We then hid our money by digging a small hole in the sand under our towels and burying our stash. Since beach was deserted we would notice if anyone came along and just get out of water.
