Rplx

I’ve got extreme anxiety about the potential for someone to plant “items” in my checked baggage and getting caught with it in SE Asia.

It’s so bad that I’ve bought a hard sided latch suitcase with an integrated lock. I’m also adding to this with a large cable tie that wraps around the bag so that it would be obvious if someone has tampered with the bag at my final destination.

But even with that, what if I got to the carousel and noticed the cable tie is gone. Then what? Report it to customs/police at the airport and run the risk of them finding something in the bag? In this case I’d still be screwed

im so paranoid about this happening that I’m considering cancelling my trip and going to America instead

TPACjv

I suppose the best you can do is post a video of you packing your bag, sealing it with a zip tie, then dating the seal with a tag.

BinSabai

beside checked luggage, are you aware about all other occasions, someone could plant something into your belongings?
- in your hotel room (by maids, maintenance etc.)
- into your shopping bag when you pay at the cashier
- in crowded shopping centers or markets into your bags, clothes
- into your beach bag while swimming in the pool or in the sea
- on your seat in the taxi
etc.

bitterproffit

Wrap it in plastic. Not sure where you are flying from, but many airports have a luggage wrapping service. Or, do it yourself. Also, welcome to FlyerTalk!

https://www.cntraveler.com/story/eve...g-your-luggage

travelinmanS

The risk of anything like this happening is so very very small. If you get anxious about this, I’m not sure if traveling around the world is going to be a very relaxing or enjoyable experience.

billp

Baggage is x-rayed and security may open suitcases to examine anything that shows up as suspicious. If necessary, they’ll break open your special lock and cable tie.
Have you thought through the possible motivation of anyone planting something in your luggage? If that really were a thing, they’d have to find a way not only to plant the object, but subsequently to identify your case among thousands and then retrieve the object somehow from you at the airport (?) or at your hotel (?). Doesn’t make any sense.
The “planted in my luggage” defense has been attempted in drug smuggling trials. In each and every case that I’ve ever heard of, it turned out the person who got caught was knowingly acting as a mule ie had agreed to smuggle the drugs for a payment.

Rplx

Yes, I understand that it's an irrational fear. But that doesn't make it any easier to get over.

I only really pack clothes in my checked luggage so I doubt anything would ever flag as suspicious. Lots of suitcases have built-in TSA locks and I've never heard of security smashing them open?

eqeqeqx

But how did every one of those cases "turn out" that way? I assume the police or the judge decided it, regardless of the protests of the accused, protests which in some cases may have been legitimate. Sometimes justice is unfortunately not fair.

I remember a few years ago there was a real problem with staff planting bullets (ammunition) in luggage at MNL airport before the x-ray check, and subsequently extorting passengers for large sums of money there and then. Problem big enough to be well publicised eventually, but a lot of people paid up before that. I'm sure it could happen with drugs too. Unfortunately I do not think there is much one can do in advance, except make ones own suitcase a slightly harder target than the average suitcase by at least having some lock on it.

SKT-DK

Well, luckily Thailand is not the Philippines...

I would suggest the OP not to travel internationally with this kind of fear - cannot possibly be a pleasant experience for them.
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bwiadca

Your fear should be at the very bottom of fears to have in Thailand. I have never thought about things like that.
You should fear the taxi ride to and from the airport at BKK. That is a real fear. I think only Egypt tops the taxi drivers in Thailand.

BinSabai

tell us a bit about your horror experiences and your fears.

i think the taxi experience in Bangkok is pretty average...if you have bad luck, you can get an awkward driver like at many other destinations...

it is for example more difficult to use a taxi in China: impossible if you do not know the name of your hotel in chinese (and can pronounce it that it sounds somehow similar) or have it written in chinese. And you can not communicate with the driver at all unless you speak a few words mandarin
also South Korea can be difficult; no English at all; hotels are pronounced sometimes very differently and house numbers do not exist

SKT-DK

I cannot relate to these horror experiences either… And that is after living in BKK for six years and coming here frequently before that… Maybe some people are used to be living in their own little bubble dream world

bwiadca

Maybe you were living in a bubble while staying in BKK for 6 years, and became desensitized to their driving style. I'm not talking about going from Nana station to Chitlom, I'm talking about flying at 4am from west Bangkok to BKK airport.
Unfortunately Thailand has one of the worst taxi drivers. There is zero regards for the law, unless there is uniformed officer in the vicinity. Other than that it is just chaos.

SKT-DK

If living in a bubble means driving my own car as well as taking taxis around on a daily basis then maybe you are right. I do not go to Nana, but if going from there to Chidlom one would surely take the BTS

And your example of 4am sounds very specific - have you considered asking the driver in that case to slow down of your were not comfortable?

Anyway, enough air time for the sensationalist statements - taxis are usually fine…

Kacee

I'm not sure "fear" is the right word, but the drive to and from the airport is often the statistically riskiest part of any journey. And you're correct that it's even riskier in Thailand, which has horrible traffic safety statistics (just below African countries, with a fatality rate nearly 3x the US and more than 20x Singapore or Switzerland).
There's no need for snark. Riding in a Bangkok taxi may well be the most dangerous thing a western tourist does in Thailand.