Rick Steves Silk Money Belt, Natural

I bought this money belt for a two-week trip to India last month. I wore it everyday at my waist in the front. While the belt was too long, the money belt itself was light and created no bulk underneath my clothing.

I used this recently and found it to be comfortable, durable and the plastic insert kept money and passport dry. Washed it a couple of times and it dries quickly for wearing the next day.

In theory, this is a fantastic product... it's light, it's unobtrusive, it has pockets to separate your cash and credit cards, it comes with a plastic sleeve to protect your money from getting wet...

This might have been my first clue. As other reviewers have stated, the first order of business is to trim down the excess strap to your size. Once that is done, it's not too bad, as long as you remember to keep out enough cash to spend for the day - especially if you wear it on your lower back where it's most comfortable, it's difficult to get in and out of without drawing a ton of attention to yourself. I struggled with the credit card issue, and finally ended up keeping one out, buried in a zip pocket in my pants... I decided I'd rather have it stolen then be trying to get in and out of a money belt in crowded stores.

It did it's job in terms of keeping our passports safe, as well as our excess cash. Unfortunately, these little guys get VERY nasty VERY quickly. Within 2 days, it smelled like a dead animal, and on more than one occasion, I placed our passports on the wrong side of the protective plastic sleeve, and they actually started to get warped and damp from the sweat. It was kind of gross, and a bit embarrassing handing that to the immigration people. I finally started washing it every night in the sink, which helped with the smell, but didn't stop it from getting filthy by the end of the day.

In summary, for our 2 week jaunt through Europe, this helped me feel very secure about our passports, and as far as money belts go, it did what it was supposed to do. However, be prepared for a gamey experience when you take it off at night, and unless you want to be blatantly obvious that you have the thing, keep out whatever you'll need for the day, and keep this guy on your lower back while you travel around.

This is the best money belt for the price. The best features are that it is very lightweight and has plenty of room to keep money, passports and tickets. It wraps easily around your waist and conforms to your movements--not restrictive at all. Because it is made of silk, it washes and dries very quickly. Perfect for traveling. You will not be disappointed.

I used this product during a trip to India. The belt provided is too long. I had to have the excess belt rolled up and this made it rather uncomfortable. The bigger issue however is that there is a plastic liner but it is not sealed so this is not an ideal product for hot days - many of which I encountered in India. Having the belt so close to your body means that sweat will get on the product. I thought the plastic liner would protect the money and passport copies I had place in it but was surprised to find that since the liner is not sealed (ie, zip lock or some other enclosure) excessive sweat will get inside the liner. After a few days of finding soaked money and copies, I stopped using the product.