a lot of people are genuinely scared of pig pockets in Paris and I understand why but don't be scared be aware awareness is the key so in this video we're going to tell you the classic dumb mistakes tourists keep making when they are in the metro in Paris we'll tell you what to look for what to avoid and the stuff you shouldn't do and at the end we'll give you a couple of important tips on first mistake that people make is not having a money built when they're in the metro in Paris big buckets are not a parish thing you'll find pick pockets in all the major European cities including London Barcelona and Rome a money belt is Step number one in securing your valuables the money belt goes under your shirt and will secure your cash credit cards phone and any valuable stuff you need to carry with you and don't wait until you're here to think about that there are plenty available online I'm going to put a link in the description to my favorite one look big pockets are very skilled at what they do don't let those best ruin your vacation put your valuables where they can't get their slimy hands on it and that is a money BT one of the most frequent questions we get is do I have to carry my passport with me when I'm out and about in Paris and the straight answer is no for any place that could require identification your driver's license with a picture on it should work losing your passport in Paris is a major deal you'll probably spend a couple of days going back and forth between the consulate and Embassy to get a temporary passport so you can go home and trust me I have gone through getting new passports at the consulate and you don't want to do that so don't carry your passport with you leave it in a safe in your hotel room and if you come up with any reason why you want to carry it with you when you're out and about put it in a money belt under your shirt or bury it deep in your bag so nobody can get it another mistake tourists make in Paris is carrying all their cash around with them first of all you hardly ever need any cash in France cuz most places even food stands and Fresh Markets will have a touchless credit card machine and people ask us all the time how much should I bring with me we've heard people say they were walking around with €500 in cash and they took most of that home with them it's always a good idea to have cash with you for tipping or those just in case moments like needing coins for the toilet but you really won't need much and if you're carrying it around with you put it in a money belt under your shirt where no Thief is going to get to it another mistake that people do in the Metro is having a backpack on you probably don't need half the stuff you carry with you and putting the backpack in the front looks super uncomfortable and kind of silly that's why I have a sling that can be right in front of me without being too cumbersome my rule is if it doesn't fit my sling then I probably don't need it and you don't need to carry a water bottle with you this isn't the Grand Canyon there are cafes at every street corner and carrying a water bottle with you is a sure way to tell Pig Pockets that you are a tourist so carry your sling and use your backpack for travel days only another mistake that people make is using the Metro during peak hours when everybody is crammed together often times we'll skip one or two Metro until one shows up with less people also there may be more people in the front of the train and less in the back people tend to cram the wagons near the exit Halls walk to the other hand and see if there are less people in that wagon big Pockets love love love when everybody is cramped together so they can get their Sticky Fingers and do their dirty work without anyone noticing on that note beware of pig Pockets with a coat over their arm or the ladies with the large empty canvas bag they use it to hide their hands bottom line avoid the Metro when it's cramm with people that's the most vulnerable position to put yourself in use a different line or take a detour if needed but we avoid that at all cost by the way Antoine and I travel all the time including close to 30 times back and forth between the US and France in the last few years so we know a thing or two about how to pack what to pack and obviously what you need for the essentials in Paris so we put a link in the description below to some of our favorite must have items so you can check it out and see if any of those are something that you need for your trip another mistake people make is carrying their shopping bags from luxury stores and department stores on the Metro with them that's a great way to become an instant Target when people see you walking around with all those bags it just says I have stuff that you want to take and stuff that you can turn into liquid cash they'll grab it and run so if you're going to the trouble and expense of buying some nice expensive gifts and souvenirs to bring home splurge on a taxi it cost you a little bit more but you can also have some good peace of mind and by the way when it comes to those plain white unbranded bags everybody knows about those now there's too many Instagram reels and silly things about that they're going to expect if you're walking around with an unbranded plain white bag that you've got good stuff in there too don't fall for the false confidence of that take the taxi just trust me another mistake that people make is being on their phone when they're in the Metro this is not the time to be checking your Instagram account or getting distracted do you want to know what pickpockets love it's distracted people in the Metro put the phone down place it in your money belt and pay attention yes many parisians around you will be on their phone but they know where they are and they know where they're going and especially what to look for and you probably don't another mistake people make is getting on the train and sitting or standing right by the door as soon as you get in try to find a spot that's away from the door because near the door is a favorite spot for pickpockets so they can grab your stuff and make a quick exit the further you are away from the door the better your chances are that they'll choose another Target instead of you I also like to have my back against the wall so I don't have to worry who's behind me and if you can't get Space around you because it's crowded Antoine and I will go face to face and watch each other's back and with our valuables in between us we feel safe especially since we know what to look for in a pickpocket but we'll talk about that later and whatever you do don't let anyone get between you and your travel partner and if you don't feel safe just get off and wait for the next train cuz it's usually only 3 or 4 minutes later the next mistake is not to know what to look for or specifically who to look for big pocket travel in group of at least three people they'll have empty bags or coat over their arm which is there to hide their hand also look for people on the platform regular Travelers will be on their phone talking to a friend and minding their business if you see three people together without backpacks and looking at the passengers on the platform that's a dead giveaway Pick Pockets look for easy targets they scan the crowd and Search for distracted tourist they may be by the ticket machines or in the hallways with the multi P directions or on the platform sometime they're young female sometime they're older male just look for suspicious behaviors and be alert remember they're looking for an easy target don't look like one now this one may seem obvious but wearing expensive jewelry or carrying around the latest iPhone probably not a good idea cuz if you're flashing those things around you're just asking for it every woman in Paris knows to cover her jewelry under her shirt or in the Metro and the same is true for anything a thief could grab and run away with and the latest iPhones are a prime target because they can make a lot of money on those really quick your phone will be sold on the black market before you're done filling out a police report just keep it zipped and resist the temptation to flash your expensive gear it's just not worth it so here are a couple tips that we promised you at the beginning of the video the first one is if you catch a thief with their hands in your pocket do not get physical or violent with them it's most likely going to end up being a bad idea for you one of the reasons Europe has so many pick pocket is because of our laws the presumption of innocence is first and foremost and if someone attempts to steal from you it does not give you the right to beat them up and if you do you're going to end up at the police station and you will face battery and they'll be back on the street and the second tip is to have a backup plan and a copy of all your documents with you getting your belonging stolen can be a major bummer when you're on vacation these days most people are Vigilant but we still hear once in a while from someone dealing with replacing credit cards and passports and that sucks have a backup copy of all your legal documents in digital format that you could quickly get printed if needed and always have a backup credit card back at your hotel just in case also have a printed list of important phone numbers on a sheet of paper paper in your hotel honestly I don't know Colin's phone number by heart if someone stole my phone I wouldn't even know her number so I could call her but it's type on a document that is uploaded in the cloud in an encrypted server that I know the login and password by heart in the worst case scenario I would be able to get a hold of people bottom line have a copy of everything back at the hotel in this video we showed you the mistake that people keep making in the Metro next I would watch this video about the best street food in Paris