Vacation season is here, which means you may be getting excited for your next road trip, trip abroad, or your flight in the States. No matter where you travel to, it’s important to consider your safety, both at home, on the road, and wherever your destination may be. This blog will discuss travel safety tips before and during your trip to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience.
Before You Leave
Before you leave for your next excursion, make sure you’re prepared to secure your home, car, and wherever you’re staying. Here are several safety tips to ensure you’re ready before you leave.
Plan Your Route
Driving to the beach or the mountains, perhaps? Make sure you map out the route to your destination before hitting the road. Consider what route works best for you, whether that be the fastest route, routes that include interstates and avoid secondary road travel, or routes with the fewest turns. Also, consider traffic and detours as you map out your route.
If you plan to make stops along the way, consider mapping the most populated locations so you are stopping in a secure and well-traveled place.
Check for Travel Alerts
Learn about your destination before you travel, especially if you are traveling abroad. Visit https://travel.state.gov to view a list of U.S. Embassies and Consulates, what the Department of State can do during a crisis, health risks, and more.
Have Important Documents Handy
Make sure you have important documents, and copies, handy before you travel. If you’re traveling by car, make sure your stickers are up to date and have your insurance cards and registration in an easily accessible location.
Also make sure to have your driver’s license or passport readily available.
Prepare Your Vehicle
Make sure your vehicle is in adequate condition before you leave home. For example, make sure your tires are aired up to the vehicle manufacturer’s recommended inflation pressure. Has your oil been changed recently? It may be worth taking it in for a tune up before you hit the road. Your mechanic should check your batteries, headlights, brake lights, wiper blades, and more.
Don’t forget we are in the dog days of summer. So, make sure your air conditioning is in proper working order.
Stock Your Vehicle
You never know what can happen on the road. It’s important to have an emergency kit and other items stocked in your vehicle before you leave. Here is a list of items you should consider bringing with you on the road, courtesy of the United States Department of Transportation.
- Cell phone and charger
- First aid kit
- Flashlight
- Flares and a white flag
- Jumper Cables
- Tire Pressure Gauge
- Jack and ground mat to change a tire
- Work gloves and a change of clothes
- Nonperishable food, drinking water, and medications
- Extra windshield wiper fluid
- Maps
- Emergency blankets, towels, and coats (especially during the colder months)
Securing Your Home Before You Leave
What’s worse than coming home from vacation to a break-in. flood, or fire. Here are several things to consider that could protect your home from these threats before you leave for vacation.
Lock Doors and Windows
It may seem like a simple and obvious task, but with everything you have to prepare for before you leave for your trip, locking the door or securing your windows can be easily missed. Make sure you’re securing all doors and windows before you leave for vacation. Bonus tip: Consider installing a home security system with window and door contacts, so you receive an alert whenever a door or window is accessed.
Notify a Neighbor
Before you leave town, let a trusted friend or neighbor know you won’t be around to keep an eye on your home. An extra set of eyes and ears is always helpful to ensure your home is protected. If you have a CPI Smart Home Security System, you can also give your confidante their own unique code to access your home if need be. The best part is, you can adjust the settings so they are only able to access your home during certain times and you can disable their access as soon as you get home.
Stop Mail
Nothing lets a burglar know that no one is home like piled up mail or packages on the front porch. If you’re going to be gone for a significant amount of time, it’s best to temporarily stop your mail from arriving with the United States Postal Service. If you won’t be gone long, ask a friend or neighbor to pick up your mail for you. And don’t forget with your CPI Video Doorbell Pro, you can be alerted to package deliveries and retrievals in real time, even if you aren’t home.
Automate Lighting
Make sure your home is well-lit before you leave for vacation. This can deter bad actors from targeting your home because it gives them fewer places to hide. An even better way to deter thieves from targeting your home is by automating your lighting to make it appear someone is home, even if you’re not. For example, you can program your CPI Smart Security System to turn on a lamp when someone rings your doorbell.
Secure Valuables
Before you leave for vacation, make sure your valuables are safely secured. Don’t leave cash, jewelry, designer purses, and other valuables in plain sight. Instead, secure them in a safe and consider securing the safe to the floor so brazen burglars don’t make a break for it with your entire safe.
Arm Your Security System
If you have a security system, make sure you’re arming it. If someone attempts to break into your home, your alarm will trigger and CPI Security Central Station Operators can respond on your behalf, which is especially helpful since you’re out of town.
Though we recommend you always arm your system, your system does not have to be armed to trigger a fire alarm. If you’re out of town and smoke is detected by your Smart Smoke Detector, CPI’s Central Station Operators will dispatch the fire department for you which could save your property or at least mitigate the damage.
During Your Trip
While you may be taking a holiday, safety is not. Make sure you’re staying vigilante while you’re traveling, to ensure the best experience possible.
Lock Hotel Room Door
Secure your hotel room door with a deadbolt and swing bar door guard, door guard, or chain door guard.
Don’t Leave Valuables in Your Car
Lock your car doors and make sure valuables are removed or at least out of plain sight.
Park in Well-Lit Areas
Make sure you park your car in a well-lit and populated area.
Keep Watch on Your Wallet
It’s best not to carry large amounts of cash while traveling. And keep a close watch on your wallet and valuables. It’s best to utilize your hotel room’s safe, if applicable.
Check in with Friends and Family Often
Check in with friends and family often. This can even include sharing your location with them temporarily, so they can know where you are located in case something was to ever happen.
Remotely Monitor Your Property
One of the best benefits of having a CPI Security System is that you can remotely check your property, even if you aren’t there. You can periodically check your cameras, make sure you lock the doors, shut the garage door, etc. Or don’t even bother to check in. Your CPI Security System will alert you whenever there is activity detected around your property. So, you can enjoy your vacation worry free!
Finished reading this blog? Great! Now you’re all prepped and ready to go for your vacation. At least to ensure that it’s a safe and secure one. For other safety and security tips to enhance your lifestyle, visit our blog. And of course, if you’re interested in installing a CPI Security System, don’t hesitate to call a member of our team today.
