Successful travel depends on being safe in other countries. Before you depart consider these tips for your safety:

• Plan to dress conservatively; don’t wear expensive looking jewelry or other items that mark you as a tourist.
  
  
• Carry the minimum amount of valuables necessary for your trip. Your passport, cash, and credit cards are most secure when locked in a hotel safe. When carrying them with you, consider concealing them in several places instead of putting them in one wallet or pouch.
  
  
• Avoid handbags, fanny packs and outside pockets that are easy targets for thieves. One of the safest places to carry valuables is in a pouch or money belt worn under your clothing.
  
  
• To avoid problems when passing through customs, keep medicine in original, labeled containers.
  
  
• Bring travelers checks and one or two major credit cards instead of cash.
  
  
• Pack an extra set of passport photos along with a photocopy of your passport information page to make replacement of your passport easier in the event it is lost or stolen.
  
  
• Put your name, address and telephone numbers inside and outside of each piece of luggage.
  
  
• Use covered luggage tags to avoid casual observation of your identity or nationality. If possible, lock your luggage.
  
  
• Don't bring anything you would hate to lose such as irreplaceable family objects, unnecessary credit cards, Social Security card, library card, or other items you may routinely carry in a wallet.
  
  
• Leave a copy of your itinerary with family or friends at home in case they need to contact you in an emergency.
  
  
• Make two photocopies of your passport identification page, airline tickets, driver's license and the credit cards that you plan to bring with you. Leave one photocopy of this data with family or friends at home; pack the other in a place separate from where you carry your valuables.
  
  
• When you leave the United States, you are subject to the laws of the country where you are. Before you depart, learn what you can about the local laws and customs of the places you plan to visit. Your Interlachen Travel agent is a good resource.
  
  
• Find out if your personal property insurance covers you for loss or theft abroad. More importantly, check on whether your health insurance covers you abroad.

To learn more about being safe while traveling abroad, contact your Interlachen Travel agent or visit the U.S. Department of State web site.