How to protect your things when travelling

A tropical downpour. A packed Eastern bazaar. A night on a train full of strangers. You don't need an armoured suitcase. A decent pack, a few clever tricks and a bit of foresight will do. The tips below aren't from an airport lounge. They're from a muddy hillside, a damp shelter and the frozen steps of a bus station.

Tough pack Dry bags Hidden pockets Money, documents Locks, nets Digital data

Be ready for trouble

A journey isn't just getting from point A to point B. It's a clash with weather, time, surroundings and strangers. Sometimes with your own absent-mindedness too. When it's pouring, your sleeping bag has to stay dry. When you fall asleep on a train, your documents and money have to stay safe. When you connect to public Wi-Fi, nobody else should get hold of your data.

Man in outdoor clothing sitting in the doorway of an abandoned hut, packing a yellow jacket into a Rab Hyperon hiking pack.

What's worth protecting

Documents and money

from pickpockets and your own forgetfulness

Digital data

from losing your identity, photos and access to your accounts

Clothing and electronics

from weather that never asks first

When to make a warranty claim

A warranty claim only covers manufacturing defects – that is, faults in materials or workmanship. It doesn't apply to normal wear and tear or damage caused by improper use.

What can you claim for?

Boots coming unglued after a few hikes.
A jacket zip breaking after brief use.
A seam starting to come apart after just a few months.

What isn't covered?

A sole worn down after several years.
Trousers ripped in a fall on rock.
Socks worn through after hundreds of kilometres.

On the seller's liability

Under Section 2167 of Act No. 89/2012 Coll., the Czech Civil Code: "Rights arising from defective performance do not apply … to wear and tear caused by the normal use of the item."

A pack that survives the world

Your pack is your basic survival unit. You carry clothes, food, a sleeping bag and sometimes your very identity in it. So it can't be some flimsy thin-nylon rattle. And when we say "a tough pack", we mean a whole jigsaw of details. They decide whether you arrive dry, relaxed and with everything where it should be.

Woman with a Rab hiking pack and trekking poles walking through mountain scenery on a forest trail.

Ripstop

A fabric with thicker threads woven into it in a grid. If the pack tears, the grid stops the rip from spreading. It works against branches, rocks and airport conveyor belts alike.

Denier (D)

A unit that indicates the thickness of the fibre. The higher the number, the greater the durability – and the weight. 200–300D is fine for the city. 400–600D can take some punishment.

DWR finish

A treatment that repels water. Droplets roll off the fabric instead of soaking in. It wears off over time – but you can restore it with a reproofing spray.

Reinforced base

You throw your pack on wet ground, drag it over rocks, sit on it. The base has to be made of tougher fabric – higher denier, rubberised or Cordura.

Reliable zips

The zip is the weakest link. When it bursts in the rain on a ridge, the improvising begins. YKK zips are the benchmark of quality. They run smoothly, don't snag and don't split open.

Tough buckles

Duraflex or ITW Nexus. These are buckles that won't crack easily – not in the frost, not even if you accidentally step on them.

Ripstop

A fabric with thicker threads woven into it in a grid. If the pack tears, the grid stops the rip from spreading. It works against branches, rocks and airport conveyor belts alike.

Denier (D)

DWR finish

A treatment that repels water. Droplets roll off the fabric instead of soaking in. It wears off over time – but you can restore it with a reproofing spray.

Reinforced base

You throw your pack on wet ground, drag it over rocks, sit on it. The base has to be made of tougher fabric – higher denier, rubberised or Cordura.

Reliable zips

The zip is the weakest link. When it bursts in the rain on a ridge, the improvising begins. YKK zips are the benchmark of quality. They run smoothly, don't snag and don't split open.

Tough buckles

Duraflex or ITW Nexus. These are buckles that won't crack easily – not in the frost, not even if you accidentally step on them.

Packs from Rab

Guaranteed to work

Things happen. A yak treads on your buckle, you rip your pack on an ice axe or an ember burns a hole in it. Rab gear can be repaired – just send it in. You can order spare parts to your home. And on top of that – you get a lifetime warranty. Free repair of manufacturing defects even after two years.

Dry bags

Man in outdoor clothing and a head torch setting up a sleeping bag on rocky ground in a misty mountain forest.

When you're in the mountains and your sleeping bag gets soaked, you're not on a trip any more. You're in trouble. It doesn't matter how tough your pack is – when a tropical downpour hits or a wave sweeps you off your feet at a river crossing, water will find a way in. A dry bag is your insurance. The difference between "everything's drenched" and "everything's fine".

What goes in the bag?

A dry bag usually has a roll-top closure – you fold the top over several times (at least 3x) and clip it with a buckle. Simple, reliable, waterproof. But don't put sharp objects in it – it isn't indestructible.

Clothing – base layers, socks, a fleece.
Sleeping bag – unless it has its own waterproof stuff sack.
Electronics – phone, head torch, e-reader, power bank.
Documents, cash – anything water mustn't ruin.

Lowe Alpine Drysack

Thanks to its Nylon Cordura ripstop fabric it weighs next to nothing – and yet it's tough. With taped seams, not a drop gets inside. Each size has its own strap colour – from 2.5 to 20 litres. And the light-coloured fabric helps you find things even in the gloom.

Stay dry

Hidden pockets

Losing your wallet is annoying. Losing your passport in the middle of the Tian Shan is a disaster. And losing everything while sleeping on a train? A story that's great to tell, but not one you want to live through. Keeping your things safe isn't just about locks. It's about spreading the risk. If you lose something, make sure it isn't everything.

Hidden money belt

A flat pouch that you fasten around your waist and hide under your T-shirt. Ideal when travelling, at the airport, or entering places with security checks. Comfortable even with a pack on – it doesn't dig in or get in the way.

Neck pouch

A flat fabric pouch worn under your shirt or T-shirt. Great for sleeping on a bus or train – your passport and money are literally "close to your heart". Some also have RFID protection – against wireless card skimming.

Inner zip pocket in your pack

Your personal safe zone. For a backup card, a copy of your passport, cash in another currency. Things you don't take out often and want to keep safely hidden.

Rab Muon

Days, weeks, maybe months. Travelling light. By carefully choosing the materials, Rab brought the weight of this pack under one kilo. And they kept an uncompromising carry system and exceptional durability – thanks to Spectra® fabric, which resists both tearing and UV radiation.

Travel light

Money, documents

Your passport, card and cash are your tickets to the world. Lose just one – and a relaxed trip turns into a game of chess with your own fate. Things get lost – and stolen. You change your jacket, leave your pack unattended, someone goes through your pocket. If you have a plan, you're not a victim.

Digital copies

Passport, visas, bookings – scan them, save them to the cloud and download them for offline use. Ideally, also email them to yourself. In a crisis you'll be able to get at them from any device.

Emergency cash

It doesn't matter how much. What matters is where. A banknote under your shoe insole. Small change in the toilet roll. Euros in a ziplock bag next to your sleeping bag. One day it'll save you. And it'll be the best investment of your life.

Backup card

Ideally linked to a different account – and from a different issuer (Visa vs. MasterCard). Keep it somewhere other than your main one. And definitely not in the same wallet. Not in the same pocket.

Rab Expedition Kitbag

Halfway round the world by plane. Along roads carved into cliffs. Across glacial valleys on the back of a yak. For this expedition bag Rab chose the toughest, strongest materials. The main zip can be locked, and the loops on the straps are handy for lashing the bag down – on that yak's back, for instance.

Young man with a hiking pack getting out of a worn blue van while travelling in Asia.

Get ready for the wild

Woman in a red jacket sitting in a sleeping bag on a rocky cliff, drinking from a thermal mug at sunrise over the mountains.

Locks, nets, a good night's sleep

You're sleeping in a hostel, a bus or a shelter. You close your eyes – but your head keeps racing: "What if someone goes for my pack?" Maybe nothing will happen. But you never know. So it's right to send a signal: "This won't be easy." Often that's all it takes – and the thief leaves you alone.

TSA lock

A classic. A small combination padlock to secure your zips. Handy when travelling by plane, bus or train. A TSA lock has one particular feature – airport security can open it without breaking it. But don't worry – the thief in your hostel won't have a TSA key.

Security net

A braided metal mesh cover for your pack. Lock it – and chain it to a hostel bed or a tree on the beach. Then you can go for a swim, a hike or into town. Your pack will wait right where you left it.

Karabiner + hair tie

Sometimes a little is enough. A small karabiner to clip the zips together. An ordinary hair tie threaded through the sliders. If a thief reaches for the zip and can't open it straight away, they often give up.

TSA lock

Security net

Karabiner + hair tie

Wrap up for the world

Rab Escape Kit Bag

It waits folded into a small package. Unpack it and give it some air out in the world. You can carry it on your back like a pack, or in your hand like a classic holdall. The tough, water-repellent fabric is well prepared for the pitfalls of a world without borders.

Smiling woman in a red Rab jacket and cap holding on to her hat in the wind while hiking in the mountains.

Protecting your digital data

Your phone is the key to everything. When you lose it – physically or digitally – it's not just a piece of electronics. It's about access to your email and everything linked to it. Your phone holds banking apps, your passport, visas, insurance, tickets. And, last but not least, your photos and videos.

Strong passwords, 2FA

Forget passwords like "dogsname2020". And definitely don't use one password for several different apps. The basics are a password manager (Bitwarden, 1Password) and two-factor authentication via SMS or an authenticator app (Google Authenticator, Authy).

VPN on public Wi-Fi

Free Wi-Fi in a café? Then you're sharing the network with anyone at all. Without protection, someone can watch what you're doing, redirect you to fake websites or grab your data. A VPN (e.g. Proton, NordVPN) encrypts your traffic. A small investment – great peace of mind.

The important stuff in the cloud

Photos, documents, passwords, notes. Set up automatic backups – to the cloud and offline. Google Drive, iCloud or Dropbox for documents and photos. Obsidian, Notion or Evernote for offline access to notes or copies of documents.

A plan for losing your phone

Turn on the Find My Device feature. It can locate your phone, lock your data or wipe it remotely if your phone is gone for good. And if you have a cloud backup? You get a new phone, log in – and within minutes you're on your way again.

A travel email

Keep your travel world separate from the rest of your life. You use your email to log in to all sorts of apps. So create a separate email address just for travelling. If someone hacks it, your digital world won't come crashing down.

Testing sleeping bags in the mountains – outdoor gear warranty claims

Packs that serve you well

Rab makes gear for people who don't stop at the car park. You can rely on their packs – sleeping under the stars or bumping along on a bus to the next village. Light, tough, well thought out. No frills. Designed so that your travels bring more experiences – and fewer worries.

See where they'll take you