With summer coming up, many of you are probably planning a vacation.  The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office offers the following travel and tourist crime prevention tips. Follow these tips to help you stay safe while traveling, and click here for a complete list of tips.

Preventing crime during family travel starts with making sure your home is protected while you’re away. The key is to make it look like you never left (i.e. stop mail and newspaper delivery, keep blinds in their normal position…).

Planning ahead can decrease the chances of crime joining you on your journey. Clean out your wallet and take only essential credit cards. Pack as lightly as possible and in inconspicuous bags so as not to draw attention. Keep a separate record of the contents of checked luggage and keep valuables (medicine, jewelry) in a carry-on that stays with you.

While you and your family are traveling, it’s important to remember that tourists make tempting targets for thieves. Often lost or distracted, weighed down with bags, and carrying cameras, plane tickets, money, and other valuables, unsuspecting travelers can attract crime like a magnet. The best advice for you and your family is to do all you can to blend in with the crowd and don’t act like a tourist (i.e. check the map before you go out). If you are traveling with children, come up with a plan in case anyone gets lost or separated.