Pickpocket

When you finally decide to do a teach abroad program in Spain or study abroad, it is very normal that you start wondering about the safety of the country. In this blogpost, we are going to talk about people who want to teach English overseas. There are many of you who are considering ESL because you recently obtained a TEFL certificate or maybe you just finished your bachelor’s degree and would like to teach English overseas. However, you are still on the fence about whether Spain is a good country to teach English abroad.

Look no further! Spain has been ranking #31 in the list of safest countries. That is really good! But let’s talk about what type of things you might encounter when teaching abroad. Most of the “criminal activity” happens in the main cities such as Barcelona and Madrid. This is mainly due to the number of pickpockets. These thieves usually do not confront people violently, but rather they take advantage of people who are not taking care of their belongings while eating or walking. Or, perhaps, they are distracted with pictures and leave their bags on the floor.

Tips for Staying Safe in Spain

These inconveniences can be dramatically reduced by just following some good tips when teaching abroad in Spain:

  1. When being in the cities, try to put your phone in a safe pocket or bag. Many pickpockets take advantage of the small pockets in jeans, and they just pull the phone from people because they are barely inside. This is especially true of jeans made for women.
  2. Try to have your backpack in front of you when going on any public transport, but especially metros or trains.
  3. When eating in a restaurant, make sure to place your bag in between your feet and try to secure the bag by putting the strap around one of your legs.

Be Cautious and You Will Be Safe

With these things you will be fine and will undoubtedly have a blast when you arrive to Spain for a teach abroad program or study abroad program!