How to Avoid Pickpockets in France
Josh okungbaiye
Although Paris is generally known to be a very safe city, pickpocketing remains a problem in the French capital, particularly in crowded areas like the metro and around popular tourist attractions such as the Eiffel Tower and the Sacre Coeur in Montmartre.
1) The first tip is to take only the bare essentials while sightseeing. In order to avoid theft, leave most of your valuables including your passport in a safe at the hotel or apartment where you're staying. Take along an alternative form of identification and bring along only a copy of the key pages of your passport. Furthermore, unless you're wearing a money belt, I recommend you take no more than 50 or 60 euros in cash a day.
2) As ATM machines are considered one of pickpockets favourite spots. Stay extremely vigilant when withdrawing cash and do not offer help to anyone who wishes to "learn to use the machine" or who engages you in conversation while you are entering your pin code. Furthermore, if you can't figure out how to use the machine, never accept "help" or advice on how to use it.
3) Pickpockets love to see an open bag, especially if it's slung over the back on a crowded Metro. Therefore, by only using bags that zip up and have a lock, pickpockets will find it harder to steal your belongings.
4) A very smart tip is to be aware on Line 9 of the Metro. Line 9, which runs from Boulogne in the west to Montreuil in the East, and passes through Trocadero and the Champs Elysées, is known for its pickpockets. When travelling on this line, make sure to keep your belongings close to you.
5) Lastly, if someone approaches you with a ring or a string bracelet, do not accept either of them as they are common scams which are very difficult to refuse on placed on your wrist and finger. They will pretend they don't want them, and try and sell it to you really cheaply. That ring is not gold and the bracelet is NOT free.
Follow these tips and you will have a theft free trip in Paris!
Nicole Fernandez Medina