Travel Safety: 5 Rules that Can Save your Life

Throughout the years I’ve survived: a mugging (left bloody and bruised in Arusha, Tanzania), an attempted mugging (Ulan Bator, Mongolia), an attempted kidnapping (Saigon, Vietnam), being held at gun point (Berkeley, CA), and witnessing a shooting (Hong Kong).

This collection of misadventures, combined with my current plan to hit the road on a 2-year around-the-world trip, have led me to create a list of the 5 most important travel safety rules.

Here are my 5 Travel Safety rules to live by (perhaps quite literally):

Travel Safety Rule #1 – Speak up, Yell, Scream. It works.

Use your Voice: We often underestimate how powerful our voice can be as a weapon to ward off unfavorable attention.

For instance, while walking down the street at 9:30 am in Ulan Bator, my friend and I were surrounded by 4 young men who made a grab at our bags. My friend let out a blood curling scream, followed by warnings for the men to “get away” and “stop.”

These screams froze the young dudes in their tracks. This gave us time to run out into the street (and oncoming traffic, but only one death defying crisis at a time). Attempted mugging thwarted.

Travel Safety Rule #2: Whistle till you weep.

Carry a Whistle: I carry two whistles with me and while I’ve never used one, I think it’s a really good idea to have them along.

My father bought me my first whistle when I was 15 years old and going on a multi-day island trek off the coast of Auckland, New Zealand. I was with my buddies the whole time and the only danger was the threat of being trampled by sheep, so I didn’t use the whistle.

Nevertheless, it is good to have one on hand. It’s louder than your voice, will attract attention (no language barrier here!), and will project even if you’re almost out of breath.

Travel Safety Rule #3 – Don’t be afraid to hit. Girl style.

Protect your Space: Be very protective of your physical space. Now, this can be a particular challenge overseas when “personal space” has a wide interpretation.

In preparation for my upcoming trip, I recently took a 3-day full-contact self-defense course which taught me to defend my physical territory. The message here was to strike first and apologize later.

We practiced eye gouging, palm strikes, elbow jabs, and knee thrusts — all very useful techniques in warding off a physical attack.

Travel Safety Rule #4 – Unless you’re trained in assault techniques, drop that weapon.

Drop your Weapons: I used to travel with a buck knife and mace. In fact, on my recent trip around the Western U.S., I slept with my knife under my pillow (especially when I was camping out in a tee pee by a lonely Montana lake).

But since then, I’ve been convinced that I’m in more danger carrying a weapon because I’m not skilled at using them. (I’ve never even tried to fire off my mace.) So in a worst case scenario, my attacker could easily disarm me and use the weapon against me.

Travel Safety Rule #5 – Know when flight isn’t possible and a fight is your only alternative.

Fight to the Death: The weapons that you can safely use are your eyes, hands and feet (for kicking).

If anyone ever tries to take these “weapons” from you – this is the point to begin fighting to the death (since these aggressive actions portend a bad outcome). Even if you’re not trained in self defense, you can “act like a 3-year” and just continue to squirm, making it difficult to tie you up.

These are the 5 travel safety rules that I’ve promised my family and friends that I’ll remember as I begin my solo journey on New Year’s Eve to 7 continents and more than 70 countries. Feel free to follow along with me on my trek as see how I’m faring!

Erin Michelson is a social entrepreneur and world traveler. A self-styled Adventure Philanthropist, Erin is embarking on a 2-year global giving adventure called Erin Goes Global. Starting in Fiji on New Year’s Day 2011, Erin Michelson will travel to more than 70 counties on 7 continents during 2011-2012. Along the way, Erin will be volunteering with global non-profit organizations, including working with the Hari tribes in Papua New Guinea, building wells in Uganda and Tanzania, and tutoring young girls in Bangladeshi boat villages.