Pickpocketing in Europe is a real and persistent problem, but it is also one of the most preventable crimes you will encounter while traveling. Professional pickpockets are skilled, organized, and target specific areas where distracted tourists congregate. Understanding their methods and high-risk zones will keep your valuables safe without making you paranoid.

The Highest-Risk Areas

Certain locations in Europe are notorious for pickpocket activity. In Barcelona, Las Ramblas and the Gothic Quarter are ground zero, along with the metro system and Sagrada Familia entrance queues. In Paris, the Metro (especially Line 1), the area around the Eiffel Tower, Sacre-Coeur steps, and the Louvre queues are hot spots. Rome’s Termini station, the Colosseum area, and crowded buses (the 64 bus to the Vatican is legendary for theft) are problematic. Prague’s Charles Bridge, Old Town Square, and trams are well-known targets. London’s Oxford Street, Westminster, and the Tube see regular activity.

The common thread is crowds. Anywhere tourists bunch together, stop moving, look up at something beautiful, or squeeze into public transit is prime territory.

Common Techniques to Recognize

The Distraction: One person spills something on you, bumps into you, or asks you a question while an accomplice lifts your wallet. The spill scam is particularly common since someone stains your jacket with mustard or ice cream and helpfully tries to clean it while their partner works your pockets.

The Petition: Someone approaches with a clipboard asking you to sign a petition, often claiming to be deaf. While your attention is on the paper, accomplices go through your pockets or bag. This is extremely common at Paris tourist sites.

The Crowd Squeeze: On metros and buses, pickpockets create artificial crowding at doors, pressing against you during boarding or exiting. A group might block the door while one member works the crowd. They often strike just as doors are closing so they can exit immediately with your property.

The Friendly Group: A group of children or young people surround you, sometimes holding up cardboard or newspapers as a visual shield. While you are confused by the commotion, your pockets and bags are being emptied. This is common around Rome’s major attractions.

Practical Prevention

• Use a crossbody bag worn in front, ideally with a zipper and a flap. Backpacks are the easiest target because you cannot see or feel someone opening them in a crowd.
• Keep your phone in a front pocket or zipped bag compartment, never in a back pocket or on a restaurant table.
• Distribute your valuables. Carry only one credit card and limited cash when out for the day. Leave backup cards and your passport in the hotel safe.
• Be especially alert during transitions: getting on and off trains, entering tourist attractions, navigating through crowds.
• If a stranger initiates unexpected physical contact or creates a commotion near you, immediately check your belongings and move away.

Money Belts: The Reality

The traditional money belt worn under your clothes is effective but cumbersome. Most modern travelers find that a secure crossbody bag or a jacket with zippered interior pockets achieves the same protection with less hassle. If you do use a money belt, it should hold your backup credit card, extra cash, and a photocopy of your passport, not your daily-use items. Constantly lifting your shirt to access a money belt in public actually draws attention to where your valuables are hidden.

What to Do If You Are Robbed

If the worst happens, act quickly. Cancel credit and debit cards immediately using your banking app or by calling the number you saved in your phone or email. File a police report at the nearest station, not because your items will be recovered, but because you need the report number for insurance claims and to replace a stolen passport. Contact your embassy or consulate if your passport was taken. Most travel insurance policies require a police report filed within 24 hours to process theft claims.

Keep perspective. Pickpocketing is a crime of opportunity and convenience. You do not need to be the most secure tourist in Europe, just not the easiest target. Basic awareness and simple precautions reduce your risk to near zero. Millions of people visit these cities every year without incident. Stay alert, keep your belongings secure, and enjoy your trip without fear.