Have you ever come up with an idea and then later if turns out that you were not the first person to think of it? Yeah I just found out that I did not invent the Travel Wallet but screw it, I’m going to tell you my idea anyway.

I keep a load of non-essential stuff in my normal Wallet, things like a national insurance card, a key fob for work, just junk like that. It’s stuff you don’t use all the time but if you were to loose it, it would be a pain in the neck to replace. So that’s the reason I first started using a travel wallet. Its just a beat up old leather wallet for only the essentials. That way if it gets stolen, I know what I’ve lost and what I’ve lost is not too much. But that’s not the only advantage of using a travel wallet, here’s a couple of other things you can do with one.

The deposit card

A lot of places ask for an ID card in place of a deposit. Most people hand over a passport or drivers licence for this but that’s quite a big ask. A passport for a $50 surf board? If like me you’re a bit paranoid, then you could always keep some alternative ID in your travel wallet. I’m not suggesting you go make a fake ID but I often give an expired train card as an ID deposit. Legit establishments will probably notice the difference and ask for something else but for slightly dodgy vendors, it works pretty well. If the place tries to hold your ID as ransom, well no big loss. 

Receipt storage

When I get back from a trip I look at my bank account and say “Dayyyym, where did all my money go?”. If you take every receipt you get on your trip and put it in a travel wallet, you can check your finances when you get back, make sure everything adds up and then ditch the receipts. If things don’t add up, at least you have a chance of figuring out who has over charged you. With my normal wallet I get fed up with receipts and bin them but thats where the travel wallet comes in.

Function over fashion

A wallet in normal life has to look respectable. When I’m traveling, function gets promoted above appearance. Having a Kevlar, duck taped, padlocked travel wallet means you can leave your Dolce and Gabana, alpaca scrotum satchel at home. The bulletproof eyesore is less likely to get stolen and is easier to replace so it makes sense. I’ve seen some sites which show you how to build a travel wallet from duck tape, who’s going to steal that piece of junk? Its perfect.

 So yeah I know I didn’t invent the travel wallet but hopefully I’ve given you some more ideas as to what it is capable of. If you’ve got any suggestions, maybe a booby-trapped money bag then let us know below.

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