Travel Alert

There are various travel advisories or travel alerts that are issued around the globe from time to time. These advisories often guide you on destinations that are unsafe to visit at that particular point of time. However, the travel alert that I am focussing on here is not something that we need to heed from time to time but all the time. Safety and security has today become a burning issue and travel crimes are constantly on the rise. A traveller, no matter how frequently he or she travels, has to pay attention to detail and remain alert to a host of situations that lead to or make him susceptible to these travel crimes. I'm sure that small acts of negligence such as carelessly placed wallets or mobile phones, unattended baggage, etc is commonplace among most frequent business travellers as I have been witness to scores of such situations time and again on my travels.

For the frequent traveller, checking-in at an airport, using the lounge, boarding an aircraft, living in a hotel, baggage handling and everything that goes with it, has become nothing more than a habit. Travel itself becomes a ritual, most activities that are travel-related are taken for granted and the Complacency Factor sets in. Business travellers who jet-set the globe at the drop of a hat are in fact far more prone to acts of negligence than first-time or relatively inexperienced travellers. There is an oft-quoted phrase that ‘repetition leads to perfection’, well in this case ‘repetition also leads to complacency or boredom’. The frequent traveller is often a victim of this ‘boredom’ and tends to gloss over the smaller details that will ensure safe and hassle-free travel, and travel crime is today assuming alarming proportions.

There is certainly a case for being more awake to issues such as airport crime, baggage pilferage, hotel theft, destination safety, etc but the business traveller unfortunately more often than not tends to treat these issues with a certain callousness and casualness that only seems to add fuel to the fire. These acts are quite frequently brought on by flight delays and overall travel fatigue. The only solution to combat or reduce travel crime is for travellers themselves to be more aware of the circumstances and by paying far more attention to such detail. There really is no room for complacency here, no matter how frequent a traveller you are... therefore a careful reading of the cover story of this issue of feBusiness Traveller, which deals with travel crimes, should stand you in good stead on all your travels in future.

Have a safe journey…

Sheldon Santwan
Editor, feBusiness Traveller

Sheldon can be reached at
editor@businesstravellerindia.com