Leaving your valuables in your room while lodged in a hotel can be very disconcerting. Whether you have placed it in a safe as most hotels would suggest or you have put it safely in your luggage, you can never be too sure. How safe is the safe really? How trustworthy is the staff? Is the security as tight as acclaimed? An option would be to always keep your valuables with you, but then that might not be convenient as there is the chance of you getting mugged or you misplacing the valuable, especially if you are visiting a new city.
The solution would, therefore, involve a situation where you are in charge of security and in that regard, Jumia Travel, Africa’s no. 1 online hotel booking service, has put together pointers on how to keep your valuables while lodged in a hotel.
The safe is never safe
Digital or manual, never succumb to the temptation of the hotel’s safe or locked storage area. Doing that would imply relying on the accommodation staff. A number of things could happen, the locked safe could be broken into or stolen entirely or the safe could get jammed and your valuable would be trapped. Again, never use a safe that requires a key provided by the hotel, as there may be untold numbers of key copies circulating among staff and former guests.
Lock your suitcase
Always lock your suitcase either with numbers combination or with a key lock and ensure the key is with you at all times. Yes, there is a slim chance that someone could steal the entire suitcase, but that is extreme.
Use the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign
If you care more about your valuables than about your room being cleaned, simply leave the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door and if possibly, leave the TV on when you are leaving for the day. This will discourage people from entering your room when you are not there as they would think you are occupied inside. If you must invite room service, do so when you are available to monitor their activities.
Find hiding spots
There are so many places in your room where you can hide valuables from prying hands. You can hide money and important documents under the carpet corners, taped to the bottom-side of drawers, within a small bag and pin between double drapes, you could even go as far as unscrewing ventilator grates and hiding valuables inside. Basically, the idea is to choose areas of the room that are either not cleaned regularly or are so obscure people won’t think to search them. Also, avoid putting all of your valuables in the same place. If you split them around the room, you are much less likely to lose everything if someone happens to find one of your hiding places.
Set the stage
Keep the room and your items very tidy so that any disorder would be conspicuous. This is not to say that you should now leave any valuable items out in the open. Also, while you are rearranging the room, you don’t want to damage or disturb things or areas in your room as you may end up paying to fix what you broke, thereby losing some or even all of the money you were trying to save.
Nkem Ndem is a PR Associate at Jumia Travel.
