The Night I Almost Lost Everything in Prague
I was shooting B-roll for a travel documentary in Prague’s Old Town, camera bag on the chair beside me, reviewing footage on my laptop at an outdoor café. I looked down for maybe thirty seconds to adjust a color grade. When I looked up, the bag was gone.
Six thousand dollars of gear. My passport, tucked in the side pocket out of habit. Three days of footage I hadn’t backed up yet because I was going to do it “tonight.”
A server had moved it behind the counter — she’d seen someone eyeing it and grabbed it before he could. She told me afterward, flatly, that tourists don’t watch their bags, and I’d been sitting there looking like exactly that. Not a filmmaker. A mark.
I got the bag back. I did not get the thirty seconds of my life back where I genuinely thought the production was over.
Since then, I’ve worked on film projects across four continents. I’ve slept in Bangkok hostels, argued with Moroccan customs officials about whether a drone counts as a weapon, and watched a rental van nearly take off its own side mirror because nobody briefed the driver on which side of the road we were supposed to be on. None of it was dramatic. All of it was preventable. That’s the theme of this whole article.
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Quick Take: The most important travel safety tips focus on mundane preparation, not dramatic threats: back up your documents using the 3-2-1 rule, register your trip with your embassy, confirm your insurance covers medical evacuation and any professional gear, split your money across multiple locations, and share your itinerary before you leave. Most travel disasters are preventable with about twenty minutes of prep.
Why Most Travel Safety Advice Misses the Point
Most travel safety content prepares you for the wrong risks. Kidnapping and terrorism are rare and mostly outside your control. Pickpocketing, food poisoning, lost documents, and traffic accidents are common, mundane, and almost entirely preventable with about twenty minutes of prep before you leave.
In ten years of production travel, here’s what has actually derailed a shoot or ruined a trip: a crew member who didn’t check visa requirements and got sent home from the airport. A canceled credit card because the bank flagged charges from Romania as fraud. A police officer at 2 AM who needed convincing that yes, someone really did walk off with a laptop holding the only copy of an edit.
Common Travel Mistake: Assuming your regular travel insurance covers “work” — filming, freelancing, remote work on a laptop worth more than your flight. Most standard policies exclude “professional activity” entirely. If you’re shooting anything, read the exclusions section before you buy, not after a lens breaks.
On “The Camping Discovery,” our DP’s personal insurance didn’t cover international equipment rental. We found out when a rented lens got damaged on location — a roughly $4,000 mistake, split between the DP eating some of it and the rental house eating the rest, because nobody had confirmed coverage before we left. One phone call to the insurer beforehand would have settled it in five minutes.
According to the CDC Yellow Book, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of nonnatural death among U.S. citizens abroad — well ahead of crime or terrorism. Nobody plans for crossing the street. Everyone plans for a scenario they saw in a movie.
Travel safety isn’t sexy. It’s reading the exclusions page on an insurance policy. It’s a backup of your backup. The most dangerous assumption you’ll carry abroad isn’t about a person or a place — it’s the assumption that everything will just work out because it usually does.
The Planning Paradox: Why We Prepare for the Wrong Things
The Planning Paradox: the more excited you are about a trip, the less likely you are to plan for what could go wrong. Researching camera angles feels productive. Researching “what if my passport gets stolen” feels like inviting bad luck, so most people skip it entirely. Information overload doesn’t help — forty different “travel safety tips” lists make people default to the easy stuff (travel-size shampoo) and skip the actual work (reading what the insurance policy excludes).
Before shooting “Noelle’s Package” in Vancouver, I spent three weeks building shot lists and exactly zero minutes confirming the crew’s health insurance covered us on location. It didn’t. Found out when a crew member needed stitches after a mishap between takes. The bill ran into four figures, entirely avoidable, and the only reason it happened is that “confirm insurance” felt less urgent than “block the next scene.”
Film sets solve this with a call sheet: one page, emergency contacts at the top, a handful of rules everyone actually follows — not a hundred-page manual nobody reads. Your travel safety plan should work the same way: short enough that you’ll actually do it.
The Six Non-Negotiables (Your Pre-Trip Checklist)
Before any international trip, six things get confirmed regardless of destination: legal contacts, document backups, real insurance coverage, a money split, a communication plan, and a medical baseline. Skip any one of these and you’re one bad afternoon away from a very expensive lesson.
✅ 1. The Legal Lifeline
On the “Married & Isolated” shoot, a location dispute nearly became a legal problem. Having an entertainment lawyer on call — a number, not a hope — is what kept it from becoming one.
For travel, save three contacts before you leave: a lawyer who handles international issues (some credit cards include a legal hotline as a benefit — check yours), your destination’s embassy number, and a local emergency contact if you have one.
The U.S. State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) lets you register your trip so the embassy knows you’re there and can reach you in an emergency. Equivalent programs exist for the UK, Australia, Canada, and most other countries. Check your government’s actual travel advisory page — not a tourism board site — close to your departure date, since advisories change.
Reality Check: Embassy wait times for emergency travel documents typically run one to a few business days, not “immediately,” which is exactly why registering ahead of time and keeping document backups matters more than the passport itself.
✅ 2. The Document Backup System (3-2-1)
Learned this after Prague. Three copies, two formats, one person. Physical copies of your passport, license, and cards live in your bag, in your luggage, and with someone at home. Digital copies go into cloud storage, an email you send to yourself, and your phone.
It sounds like overkill until Thai customs wants to see a yellow fever certificate and you can produce it in thirty seconds instead of missing a connection.
For gear, do the same with serial numbers and rental agreements — you cannot file an equipment theft claim without them. Also keep digital copies of insurance policy numbers, hotel confirmations, flight itineraries, prescriptions, and blood type/allergy info.
✅ 3. Insurance That Actually Pays Out
Read the actual policy, not the marketing page. Most travel insurance sounds comprehensive until you learn it excludes “high-value electronics” or has a deductible higher than the item you’re claiming.
Look for coverage that includes medical evacuation (this can run into six figures if you actually need it), trip cancellation, lost or stolen belongings at replacement value rather than depreciated value, and a 24/7 assistance line. World Nomads, Allianz, and SafetyWing are common providers — compare current policies directly, since offerings change.
Skip Verdict: If you’re traveling with gear worth more than a few hundred dollars, skip any policy that doesn’t explicitly name equipment coverage. A cheap policy that excludes your camera isn’t a deal — it’s a bill waiting to happen.
✅ 4. The Money Strategy
Never keep all your cash and cards in one place. I watched a pickpocket lift a wallet from a distracted tourist in a Barcelona metro station in under three seconds — the victim never felt it. If that wallet had been the whole trip’s money, the trip was over.
My system: primary card in the wallet, backup card hidden in the bag, emergency cash split between a money belt and a separate compartment. Notify your bank of the specific countries you’re visiting, not a region — “Europe” got my card flagged in Prague after it worked fine in London. Use credit over debit abroad; fraud protection is stronger.
ATM rules: use machines inside bank branches during business hours, cover the keypad, check for loose card readers, and don’t count cash in public. When our production coordinator’s card was compromised on “Blood Buddies,” having backups meant we lost zero shoot days instead of an afternoon at a foreign bank branch.
✅ 5. The Communication Plan
Someone at home should have your itinerary — not because you expect a kidnapping, but because if you go quiet and something has actually happened, someone needs a starting point.
A shared document with flight numbers, hotel addresses, a rough daily schedule, and check-in times covers it. It doesn’t need to be daily — it needs an agreed rhythm your contact will actually notice is broken.
On the connectivity side: a local eSIM (Airalo or Holafly cover many countries) beats relying on international roaming, and downloading offline maps before you land — not after you’re lost — is worth the five minutes it takes.
✅ 6. The Medical Baseline
| Task | Done | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| STEP (or your country's equivalent) registration | ☐ | Do this close to departure, not months out |
| 3-2-1 document backup | ☐ | Physical + digital + one copy with someone at home |
| Insurance exclusions read | ☐ | Confirm gear coverage + medical evacuation |
| Bank notified of specific countries | ☐ | Not "Europe" — actual countries |
| Vaccine/medication timeline checked | ☐ | 4-6 weeks minimum |
| Itinerary shared with a contact | ☐ | Shared doc with check-in times |
Day-to-Day Safety That Doesn’t Suck
Daily safety habits are less about vigilance and more about removing decisions you’d otherwise have to make while tired, jet-lagged, or distracted. Pack assuming loss, secure your devices before you leave, and stay aware without treating every stranger like a threat.
Pack Like a Paranoid Producer
Valuable items — laptop, camera, drives — stay in the carry-on, always. Checked luggage goes missing more often than people expect, and a lost lens is recoverable; a lost laptop with unbacked-up footage is not.
Luggage tags get an email address, not a home address — no reason to advertise that your house is empty.
First aid basics worth packing: bandages, pain reliever, anti-diarrheal medication (don’t skip this one), antihistamine, prescriptions in original bottles, motion sickness tablets, and a digital thermometer.
What NOT to Bring When Traveling Internationally
Skip anything illegal at your destination, even if it’s legal at home; excessive cash over $10,000 undeclared; original irreplaceable documents or photos; and anything that could be mistaken for a weapon. Research your destination’s customs rules before you pack, not after you’re detained.
I once watched a photographer bring the original negatives from a twenty-year project “for inspiration.” They were stolen within the week. Bring scans. Leave the originals at home.
Secure Your Tech
Strong passwords, encryption on, remote tracking active, auto-lock at one to two minutes, updated software. On public Wi-Fi, don’t check bank accounts or enter passwords — use a phone hotspot or a VPN instead. PureVPN and NordVPN both work in most countries, though it’s worth checking VPN legality at your specific destination — some countries restrict them.
On “Closing Walls,” call sheets and shot lists lived entirely in the cloud — the same workflow habits covered in our travel filmmaking workflow guide. When a laptop died mid-shoot, we lost zero data. Cloud backup for anything that would hurt to lose isn’t optional anymore.
Stay Aware Without Being Paranoid
Keep bags zipped and in front of you in crowds. Walk like you know where you’re going, even when you don’t — lost tourists staring at a phone are an easier target than someone who looks oriented. Trust your gut; the uneasy feeling is doing its job.
A DP I worked with put it simply: don’t look like a victim. Confident body language and not flashing gear does more preventative work than any gadget.
Travel Scams: The Quick Version
Travel-related fraud rose 18% at summer destinations and 28% at winter destinations in 2024, according to the Mastercard Economics Institute, with taxi and rental scams alone accounting for up to 66% of reported fraud in cities like Jakarta. The most common versions: a “broken” taxi meter, a stranger claiming an attraction is closed and redirecting you to a shop, fake police demanding your passport on the street, and ATM skimming.
The short version of how to avoid all of them: use ride-share apps or agree on a price before getting in, verify closures independently, never hand your passport to anyone without a station and a badge, and use ATMs inside bank branches. For the full breakdown — all seven scam types, city-specific patterns, and what to do if you’re targeted — read the full guide to spotting and avoiding travel scams.
Transportation Safety: The Real Risk Nobody Plans For
| Transport | Best For | Main Risk | Quick Mitigation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rideshare apps | Most cities with coverage | Driver identity mismatch | Confirm plate/name before entering |
| Metered/regular taxi | Areas without rideshare | "Broken" meter, long routes | Agree price first, track route on Maps |
| Rental car | Longer trips, remote areas | Wrong-side driving, insurance gaps | Verify coverage, test brakes/lights before leaving lot |
| Scooter/motorcycle | Short local hops, experienced riders | Injury from unfamiliar traffic patterns | Skip it if you're not already comfortable riding |
| Public transit | Budget travel, short trips | Pickpocketing at crowded stops | Bag in front, sit near driver at night |
Accommodation Safety
A safe hotel room takes about two minutes to confirm: working locks, a known exit route, and a safe you don’t fully trust with your passport. Research the neighborhood, not just the reviews — a well-reviewed hotel in a rough block is still in a rough block.
On check-in: test the locks, locate the exits, use the safe for lower-value items (most hotel safes have maintenance override codes, so keep your passport and laptop on you instead), and note the nearest hospital. For shared accommodations, a small combination lock on hostel lockers and TSA-approved locks on luggage cover the basics.
Solo Travel Safety
Solo travel changes the risk calculation but doesn’t eliminate the trip — it shifts the prep toward not advertising that you’re alone and having a way to draw attention if something goes wrong. Arrive in daylight when possible, use app-based transportation with a trip record, and keep emergency numbers one tap away.
Female crew members and collaborators I’ve traveled with have flagged a few patterns worth knowing: local norms around dress and interaction vary more than guidebooks suggest, and a friendly gesture at home can read very differently somewhere else. None of this means the underlying concern isn’t valid — it means the concern has a workable answer: research ahead, trust instinct over politeness, and don’t broadcast that you’re alone to strangers.
Food and Water Safety
Food poisoning derails more trips and productions than equipment failure. Bottled water with an unbroken seal, food that’s still hot, and busy vendors with high turnover cover most of the risk.
On “Chicken Surprise,” half the crew got sick from street food in Mexico City. Two shoot days gone, one boom operator working through symptoms because we were down a body and behind schedule. The lesson wasn’t “avoid street food” — some of the best food on that trip was from a cart. It was “check turnover and heat, every time, no exceptions when you’re tired and hungry.”
Carry hand sanitizer, peel fruit yourself, and if you have food allergies, a translated allergy card is worth the five minutes it takes to make one. A LifeStraw or water purification tablets are a reasonable backup for areas with uncertain water quality.
Health, Medical & Emergency Basics
Beyond the vaccine timeline covered in the Medical Baseline above: bring extra medication in case of delays, carry a doctor’s letter for anything that could raise questions at customs, and research clinics recommended by your embassy or insurer before you’re sick, not while you’re sick. If you’re heading above roughly 8,000 feet, build in acclimatization time — headache, nausea, and dizziness are early signs to slow down, not push through.
If you’re traveling somewhere with a real hurricane, monsoon, or wildfire season, that seasonal risk is worth a five-minute check before you book, and it’s worth confirming your insurance actually covers it — some policies treat “natural disaster” as an exclusion, not a covered event. A small go-bag (document copies in a waterproof pouch, a portable charger, a flashlight) covers the basics if you’re staying somewhere with real seasonal risk. For a deeper packing list, see our emergency go-bag guide.
Cultural Sensitivity and Local Laws
Getting detained abroad over a law you didn’t know existed is preventable with about fifteen minutes of research: photography restrictions, alcohol and drug laws, dress expectations, and any laws around relationships or speech that differ from home. On “Watching Something Private,” what we could film — and where — turned out to be a real constraint. I won’t get into the specifics here, but the lesson stuck: fifteen minutes of research before you shoot (or before you photograph anything a local might object to) saves a lot of trouble after.
What to Do When Things Go Wrong
If something is stolen or lost abroad: file a police report within 24 hours, contact your embassy the same day for a passport, freeze compromised cards immediately, and document everything with photos for the insurance claim.Do this in order, not all at once — the police report is usually the piece insurance and the embassy both need first.
On “In The End,” a piece of equipment failed in a remote location. What actually solved it wasn’t panic — it was having the rental agreement, insurance policy, and emergency contacts already documented, so the problem became a phone call instead of a crisis.
Post-Trip Safety (The Part Everyone Forgets)
Some illnesses have incubation periods — if you’re sick within a few weeks of returning, tell your doctor exactly where you traveled. Watch your accounts for unusual activity if you used cards or ATMs abroad. File any insurance claims promptly while receipts and details are fresh, not months later when you’ve forgotten the specifics.
The Gear I Actually Trust (And Why)
Key Takeaways
- Mundane risks — pickpockets, food poisoning, traffic accidents, lost documents — cause far more trip disruption than dramatic ones
- The 3-2-1 document backup rule (3 copies, 2 formats, 1 person at home) takes fifteen minutes and prevents the worst version of a lost passport
- Most travel insurance excludes "professional activity" and high-value electronics — read the exclusions before you buy, not after a claim
- Notify your bank of specific countries, not regions, to avoid fraud-related card blocks
- Vaccine and medical prep needs a 4-6 week runway, not a last-minute check
- If something goes wrong: police report → embassy → frozen cards → documentation — in that order
Common Travel Safety Questions Answered
What are the most important travel safety tips?
Back up your documents using the 3-2-1 rule, register your trip with your embassy (STEP for U.S. citizens), confirm your insurance covers medical evacuation and any expensive gear, split your money across multiple locations, and share your itinerary with someone at home before you leave.
What not to bring when traveling internationally?
Skip anything illegal at your destination even if it’s legal at home, undeclared cash over $10,000, original irreplaceable documents or photos, and anything that could be mistaken for a weapon. Research your specific destination’s customs rules, since they vary significantly by country.
Is travel insurance actually worth it?
Yes, if you read the policy first. Look for medical evacuation coverage, replacement-value (not depreciated-value) coverage for lost or stolen items, and confirm “professional activity” or gear use isn’t excluded if that applies to your trip. A cheap policy with a high deductible or major exclusions isn’t a deal.
How do you avoid common travel scams?
Agree on taxi fares before getting in or use rideshare apps, verify attraction closures independently rather than trusting a stranger’s tip, never hand over your passport on the street, and use ATMs inside bank branches during business hours. See the full scam breakdown here.
What's the biggest risk while traveling abroad that people don't prepare for?
Road traffic accidents. The CDC Yellow Book identifies motor vehicle crashes as the leading cause of nonnatural death among U.S. citizens abroad — well ahead of crime. Most people prepare for the dramatic, unlikely scenario and skip the mundane, likely one.
Wrap-Up
Travel safety isn’t about eliminating risk. You can’t, and trying to turns every trip into a chore. The goal is making the boring decisions ahead of time — documents backed up, insurance actually read, money split — so that when something does go wrong, it’s an annoying story instead of a trip-ending one. That Prague café is still the story I tell, mostly because the ending was fine. My camera bag has had a strap clipped to the chair leg ever since. Small change, permanent habit.
Here’s the honest version: some of this will feel like overkill until the one time it isn’t, and you won’t know which trip that is in advance. That’s the whole trade — a few hours of unglamorous prep against a small, real chance of losing a trip, a production, or a few thousand dollars. Not every precaution here applies to every traveler, and skipping the go-bag for a weekend trip to a stable, low-risk destination is a reasonable call, not negligence.
Best for: international travelers carrying anything expensive, replaceable, or hard to explain to a customs officer — filmmakers, freelancers, remote workers, and anyone traveling somewhere the health and legal systems work differently than home. Skip if: you’re doing a short domestic trip with nothing irreplaceable in your bag — most of this scales down to “back up your documents and tell someone your plans.” Next step: before your next trip, do the 3-2-1 document backup and read your insurance policy’s exclusions page. Those two take under an hour combined and cover the two mistakes that actually end trips.
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About the Author
Trent Peek is a filmmaker, writer, and producer based in Victoria, BC, and the founder of PeekAtThis.com. His production credits include set decoration on Netflix’s Maid, and writing/directing Going Home (2024 Soho International Film Festival) and Noelle’s Package (48-hour festival winner, shot on smartphone). He’s also a former President of Cinevic, Victoria’s Society of Independent Filmmakers, and works as a doorman at a four-star hotel — a job that’s taught him as much about reading people under pressure as any film set has.
When he’s not writing articles, testing gear, or working on film projects, Trent enjoys traveling, reading, exploring new technology, and developing future film ideas — many of which may never leave the notebook stage.
P.S. Writing in the third person still feels weird.
Trent recently appeared on the Pushin Podcast — listen to the full episode — where he discussed independent filmmaking, directing actors, production challenges, and lessons learned from working in film.
