Passport: carry it?

That topic comes up pretty regularly and you’ll get a variety of answers. I carry mine with me. If I actually ever needed it, it would likely be a situation where it would be inconvenient to go back to my hotel room to get it.

I also carry mine on my person at all times. For security, it stays in my money belt tucked into my pants, never in my purse or anyplace outside my clothes.

I think Valerie makes a good point...if needed in an emergency, it should be on you, not in a distant hotel room. I follow the same routine while on the flight for the same reason. Passport and credit cards remain inside my clothes, as does my phone.

I take it if I know a place will ask for it otherwise it stays in the hotel safe and I have a copy.

In 20 years of travel, I've never been randomly asked for my passport and no one in my family has either.

I guess I'm the slacker--I leave it in my room, safe or no. When we are driving around tiny villages and such, we take it with us.

On my very first trip to Europe this past Sept, my sister and her husband were both asked for their passports on the train by the German police. So, I will continue to carry mine in my money belt.

I leave it in my room unless I know I need it, I don’t use a money belt either. My driver license can at least show who I am if I’m incapacitated

I carry it. I don’t use the safe in my hotel room for anything. If I leave anything it is in my suitcase. I always have a credit card and my passport and a few days of meds on me. This way I can leave the area immediately no matter where I am. My purse is pretty secure, but when traveling solo I might keep back up finances in another location on me. I don’t worry about losing my passport as it is a lot easier to replace than a credit card.

I have been asked for my passport, btw, most recently in England, but still several years ago.

If you carry it or not is a personal decision. But if you want to comply with the law of your host country many countries do require it. I researched it about 3 years ago and things may have changed, but Belgium and all of the former Soviet Bloc countries required that you carry it; I dont think Spain did. But check me on that.

Many countries require you by law to carry identification. For foreigners, this means a passport.

I don't carry it.

And yes, I usually leave it in the room's safe.

Indeed, this is always a controversial question. On one hand, carrying the passport with you can be dangerous, if you loose it or it's stolen, getting a replacement can be a pain in the neck, on the other, local law requires carrying a valid ID to prove your identity should you be required by a Police officer.

In Spain, as well as in many other European countries, in principle, LEGALLY SPEAKING YOU HAVE TO CARRY A VALID ID form with you AT ALL times. There's a mistaken belief (hoax) among some residents that say you don't, but the Ley Orgánica 4/2015, de Protección de la Seguridad Ciudadana, also known as "Gagging Law", clearly states so.

If you're resident from one of the EU-member states that may mean the National ID Card (if it exists in your country of residency), an EU-issued driving license or a passport. For non-EU residents that means the PASSPORT (no driving license -especially from the US-, no SS card, no library card no nothin' else!!!). A photocopy IS NOT a valid form of ID and it's not legally accepted.

HOWEVER, and despite being allowed by law, the Police will rarely perform random checks in the street unless (1) you've been involved in an "incident" or (2) there has been a terrorist event [...or (3) you look like Dany Trejo in Machete, LOL!]

What would happen if you're stopped and you cannot produce a VALID ID? If the reason for stopping you is strong enough (f.e. you've been involved in a brawl or you're suspected to have committed a crime) you might be taken to the Police station until you can prove your ID by presenting a VALID document -as mentioned earlier- or you can be identified by other means (f.e. fingerprints). At present, being yourself a non-resident, I am not sure if a fine -for not carrying a valid ID with you- would be issued too.

So now you can decide what to do knowing the facts.

Personally, when I travel, I tend to leave the passport in the hotel safe and carry a photocopy (or another form of ID) with me. Even though these are not legally accepted forms of ID, should the need arise I could at least prove bona-fide to the Police officer, which in turn might (or might not) save me a trip to the Police station and a fine.

Enric, does that apply only to tourists, or to Travelers as well?

To everybody, residents too.

Carry it. No difference than carrying your ID back home in case you need to show it there.

Someone farther above said that "in 20 years of travel, I have never been asked for my passport randomly.." Well, I have -- not literally "randomly," but unexpectedly. The more recent occasions I recall were on long-distance buses, but fortunately I had my passport right on my person, not deep in my luggage. I could just imagine the angry passengers all staring at me, as the police spend time digging out my luggage, and I spend even more rummaging through it.

I've told this story before. We were in Madrid, walking around. A police officer stopped us (it appeared to be randomly) and asked for identification. When we told him we were from the US, he asked for our passports. We told him we left them in the hotel safe. He told us that we could go, but that we should be carrying our passports to show upon demand.

Been to Europe on 4 occasions, Italy, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Spain and Greece. Never once asked to show my passport except for checking into hotels. We leave ours in the room.

We generally carry ours with us.

As a general rule hotel room safes are safe to use. However, watch out for one’s that are not bolted in place as somebody could just walk off with it. Also, if choosing to use a room safe keep in mind that one or more employees working at the hotel has the device to open the hotel’s safes. Once, at Madrid’s Hotel Europa, the room’s previous occupant locked the safe and a gentleman at the front desk came to the room and had it open in 20 seconds. Safes are good places to keep items you don’t want to disappear during room cleaning or carry with you while going to dinner, be aware of their limitations when considering storing valuables. We’d put passport copies in the safe.

We carry ours, don't use a money belt (mine is in my front pocket with enough other crap so the pickpocket would have to dig deep to get it and it's not coming out too easy ... wife keeps hers in her bag that crosses her body so it can't be pulled off her shoulder) ... have copies in the room, don't use the safe

I lock mine in a safe if there is one or leave it my bag under the bed. I carry a copy of my passport instead. The only time I carry it is if I’m making an expensive purchase with my credit card.

I've lived in Europe for 15 years and have NEVER been asked, in any of the many countries I've been to, for an ID document. We always leave our passports in the hotel room as the risk of losing it while moving around a city is far greater than losing it in the hotel room. I also do not plan on getting into any fights or breaking any laws.

Just be aware that there are places in Spain where you will need to show your passport for entry (the Alhambra is one example, or to board some trains, or to prove age if you might receive a senior or student discount at a museum). We always carry ours in Spain in case we need them -- and we have pulled them out on several occasions.

I carry mine in a neck wallet. I am super forgetful and am quite sure that I would leave it in my hotel safe.

Good lesson Bill!
I will carry it!

Wow Bill - I've book marking your stories for the next time someone tells me I'm silly to carry my passport with me at all times when out of my country!

In Spain i carried my passport with me at all times. I forgot whether I ever left my passport in a locker in a hostel, in another country, or whether I only thought about doing this. I have always or almost always carried my passport with me on other countries too. The staff asked for it at the Alhambra. I might have had to show it to ride RENFE trains. I might have been asked for my passport somewhere else. You should always carry proper identification. Outside the USA your state issued driver's license or state identification is not recognized or doesn't count as acceptable identification. I have never made a copy of my passport. You should take your passport with you every time you go outside your hotel. You will not loose it because you are a responsible adults and you don't loose your other important stuff (like wallets, identification cards, passports, hotel keys, tickets, and so on).