Why wear a moneybelt over the hotel room security box when in Amsterdam, Paris or London?

Question

Everyone always says that you should wear a moneybelt to carry your passport and important documents when travelling through Europe.
Why is this a better option than storing these items in the hotel security box in the hotel room?

I can understand a moneybelt when carrying large amounts of cash or in transit to the hotel. But why a moneybelt when you have a saftey box to use?

Thanks.

Answer 1

Not all hotels have a safe in the room, in some it is expensive to use it, or you do not trust the owner of the place not having a second key.
Furthermore, you are supposed to have an ID on you all the time in most countries, specially if you are a foreigner, and that does include tourists, in some countries only your passport is acceptable for that, because you need proof of your visa too.
Money belts are also great places to have your tickets, credit cards and so on, specially those you do not want to use all the time.
Having big amounts of cash on you is never a good idea, take small amounts out of the wall (ATM) and you run little risk.
Get a card that is free to use, or has a token fee at most.