Keep your pasport to yourself

Make sure you read this. Especially the Dutch people.

A special team is investigating about the way the hotels work by taking in the pasport or using a copy of your passport. They say most people do not know what their rights are. Travellers SHOULD NOT give their passport away, NOT even a COPY. Just fill in the form, NAME, PROFESSION, PLACE OF LIVING, Kind of ID!!!! NOT the NUMBER. And ARRIVAL and DEPARTURE DATE. That is It!!! Not anything more.


Today on the radio there was a warning about travelers leaving the passport in the hotel reception because the hotel orders so.(for checking in).
The dutch government warns people NOT to give the passport away. You are always responsible for your own document.(you can proof that, it is written in the passport) So make a copy of it, and you can give that to the hotel reception. Another tip: give your travbuddy a copy of your document and you keep a copy from his or her document.
Another tip from Jos; scan your document and send it to your hotmail or your own website.

We had a problem in Turkey and Bulgaria about our passports. The hotel did not want to give our passport back. They only would give it back the next day to the touroperator. We did not agree with that. The manager of the hotel had to join our "Fight" so we could have our passport back. Their excuse was: It is dangerous in Istanbul! What a noncense, if you are careful with your belongings it is not a problem.

For instance: you go on your own into the town, something could happen, or you get lost and your touroperator is leaving without you. This could happen. Than you need your passport. You could be involved in an accident, you need your passport. So do not agree with their rules. Claim your passport back! It is even forbidden to give it away! It may take you some time to convince them, but stay at the desk as long as possible.

On the internet i found a tip. Mislead the hotel owner and tel him you need your pasport for a document or visa you are going to collect. Or you need it to change your traveller cheques.

Of course, after a tip from adrian, Russia is a totally different story!