WE WERE ROBBED IN ECUADOR | Our worst travel day story…
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- čas přidán 19. 04. 2024
- On Todays Adventure, we tell the story of how we lost our Sony camera and gear worth $6,000+. What started out as an exciting backpacking trip to the Quilotoa Crater ended in the worst travel day in our 3+ years traveling full time. We explain in detail our full story and hope this video helps you avoid making the same mistakes we did. Thanks for being here and sharing your own stories. 🫶🏼
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00:00 Welcome to Ecuador
#quilotoaecuador #robbed #ontodaysadventure
In buses in Ecuador ALWAYS keep your valuables on your lap. And don't trust anyone, especially not the employees of bus companies.
This is so true!
You were spot on about the body language and the mimics of the guy. They were involved, however I am sure they have a secret hiding spot inside the bus to hide stolen items. God bless you both
I think you are right! We will never truly know. Thank you
Yeah I feel ya. Me and wife were in Argentina and motorcycle guy came right behind us and swooped up her new iPhone pro. Okay it was just a phone but yeah it’s really emotional to have some unknown MF just steal from your hands right in front of you.
And also to lose an iPhone is very scary because you never know if they are able to hack your phone. Fortunately they couldn’t and it’s very hard to get into. BUT to lose a camera. that’s it. You lost it all including all photos. And the robber can sell it for much much higher than an iPhone.
That is a crazy story! Totally agreed it’s just sad to know someone acted poorly at your expense. Some people are not very nice. Luckily for us, I had backed up all of our footage before it was stolen. I am so glad we did! In fact our video on Cotopaxi was the last thing we recorded before it being stolen.
Why do they only focus on Latin America, what about the United States? It is not safe either, it is even worse than Ecuador frr
Corrupted cop got on the bus and id say either he scored the camera and the guy gets let off or they wemt in it together.
It’s hard to know exactly what happened and we’ll never know for sure but that’s a really good theory. However the camera is large and there’s no way the cop physically took it off the bus.
My thinking exactly, that's why that cop drove them to the bus in the first place. Otherwise, why act like they care?
I have to wonder how 'liquid' an item like that is in Ecuador. Meaning, how easy/hard is it to find a buyer who can pay what it's worth. In the heat of the moment, it's hard to know what to do. My Monday Morning QB take: Offer a reward of $50 bucks, no questions asked, and then walk back to cop car so the thief doesn't have to identify themselves. Maybe your camera crawled out of your pack and hopped the seat to accidentally fall into someone else's bag?
We did offer much more than the $50 to everyone involved. We tried all the things you’ve said but unfortunately it just didn’t work that day. :(
We also know from other conversations with locals that the camera probably exchanged hands 5 or 6 times before it made its way to Quito over the span of a few days. It’s very common and they know how to move these items quickly and cheaply - it was sold for probably just $200 at first.
It can be sold in Peru or Colombia.
I live in Ecuador, and, regrettably, your experience isn't unique. Thank you for taking the time to post this -- it may do some of us expats some good when it comes to safeguarding our valuables on public transportation.
@@jeffschinsky8936 exactly. Unfortunately this is common and our goal is to teach others through this mistake in hopes that they won’t have a similar outcome
@@OnTodaysAdventure I run a local facebook group for expats in Ecuador, and I'm always trying to educate them on stuff like this. I hope it's okay if I post a link to your video in the group.
Started following you guys back when you were exploring Kauai as Kauai is a favorite destination for my wife and I. So sorry to hear this happened to you guys! We're hoping you guys keep posting on CZcams!
Thank you Ryan, we will keep posting and won’t let this stop us!
What a story and very sad that this happened to my favorite traveling couple. Be grateful it was just some merchandise and not your life/lives. It could have been much worse.
Can't wait for your next video!
We are incredibly grateful that it is just a physical item that can be replaced. We hope people can learn from our story and prevent it from happening to them as well. Next video we will be in Machu Picchu!
Hi you two. Sorry for this incident. I can't believe how brave you are to get into the cop's car, following the bus...no one in Ecuador does that. As you know Ecuador is going through a rough time with theft and other crimes. Going hiking may not be a good idea. One other item, Amazon delivers to Ecuador much faster than their U.S. deliveries. You can give your hotel address for delivery
Best wishes on the rest of your trip.
thank you🫶🏼 we just had to do everything we could to try & get it back, but of course once it got too dangerous we stopped.
Bus pickpockets have always been common throughout South America. I saw the exact same thing happen in Colombia 5 years ago. You'll notice that half of the locals wear their backpacks in front on their stomach where it is in view for just this reason
Bags on the front when you’re walking around is a must!
Thanks for your story.
I went to colombia on holiday.
Only thing that happened was this taxi driver overcharging me.
But l could feel the tension from the locals.
Wich made me feel tension and keep my guard up.
And it definitely effected my holiday in negative way.
I still had fun and met interesting people.
But would l go back . No negative vibe.
I love to travel , and have a lot experience.
And l learned to trust my instincts.
Thank you for sharing this, so many people need to understand these things and as experienced travelers it’s so great to hear stories like yours. Safe travels in the future! :)
Glad you guys are safe. First world problems traveling with so much equipment. Travel light and be ready to lose anything you travel with when world traveling.
@@SkinnyStreets our jobs involve traveling with equipment so it’s a risk we must take. We just wanted to share our story so others can learn from our mistakes
I am sorry that this happens to you guys I am not from Ecuador, originally from Perú but I lived in ecuador ( cuenca Ecuador). We left Ecuador from different reasons but one of them was safety plus we have kids and we didn't feel safe to take trip inside Ecuador the way how it is now sadly. Ecuador is beutiful country. Other thing is really not a point to put a police report because the police don't do nothing to be honest plus on those rural areas they will make more money on selling the camera then their salary, sadly is the true, as southamerican we know this, you complain amd never get anything solve. Please when you go around southamerica be carefull traveling in rural or isolated cities or town because of safety reasons. Wish you guys best of luck.
Ecuador is a truly beautiful country and we totally understand everything you are saying. It is so sad that it is like this but the best we can do is share our experiences and hope with time and with more humility in the world things will change.
Thanks for watching 🙏🏼
Thank you for sharing. I'm going to Santiago, Chile, for 2 weeks & then to Cuenca, Ecuado for 2.5 months.Your suggestions for travel safety gave me quite a few changes I will make!
I'm so sorry this happened to you, but thank goodness you were not robbed of everything &/or at gunpoint & you're alive & ok!
Blessings for your future journey ❤😊❤
Didn't like Santiago,
But was in southern Brazil 🇧🇷 and had a good experience
Thank you for your kind words and I hope you have an amazing trip in South America! It’s a beautiful place to visit and there’s so much to do!
A little confused about the travel insurance part. Usually the start date corresponds with your travel date so it's really strange that this theft wasn't covered.
Agreed, it makes no sense. The insurance company we used did not have a good response. They are not a good company.
@@OnTodaysAdventure You should name them so that others are aware and don't use them
please tell us who the travel insurance company is so we don't use them!
Very well explained - especially all the emotions that go with this experience. I just had a backpack with cash/valuables stolen from almost right in front of me and I didn’t even see it so I completely identify. What I also learned from you is Occam’s Razor likely applies…ie the simplest explanation…in your case the bus driver’s assistant …in my case I believe it was an individual very near where I was sitting who I normally would not suspect because of the way he looked. My loss by theft occurred here in Atlanta…but I just returned from a wonderful trip to Ecuador myself lol. What a coincidence. It is such a beautiful country and thankfully I didn’t have any security issues. Anyways keep up the good work. I’m subbing.
@@mikeboyle5375 thank you for sharing your story - the truth is this happens and it does feel emotional and so personal in those moments. We are thankful it was just our possessions but it’s hard to explain the way it makes you feel. It can really be the people you least expect and also be the truth that the most obvious answer is probably correct. We hope others can learn from this mistake!
Happens everywhere, just keep your stuff safe
Agreed!
😢 I’m so sorry you had such a bad experience in my country 😢 Make sure to always get advice from locals of trust about where not to’s what not to’s and how not to’s. This breaks my heart 💔
Talking to locals is really the best way to understand what to do. Unfortunately it was the people we trusted that took the camera and we definitely learned our lesson. Ecuador is such a beautiful country and we know we will be back in the future!
@@OnTodaysAdventure that’s awful 😞. Hopefully that never happen again
I am more afraid to go to the USA with all the guns and racism.
The racism is extremely exaggerated by the media.
It's probably too late for you guys, but check your credit card benefits. A good credit card will offer a reimbursement for items purchased within a year that are either stolen or broken during that time period. You need your receipts and a police report.
Good idea but unfortunately it was over a year ago when we purchased the camera and other items :(
In an extended cut of the talking head we talk about this for a few minutes and how we tried the credit card angle but were not successful
Im sorry guys thats this happened to you!
Thanks, we appreciate that🙏🏼
Yes. Unfortunately..this incident has happened in some incident..sorry what happened please stay safe w purse or money. ,🇪🇨
I'm so sorry for y'all, but my country is the most dangerous country in Latin America, y'all must've understood that firstly...
thank you but theft and pick pocketing happens everywhere and as travelers we know that this is a possibility everywhere we go, unfortunately it happened in Ecuador but we did not feel unsafe at any moment. It happens and we learn and grow from it :/
@@OnTodaysAdventureSurely in another country there are no robberies 🤡What good propaganda you make to my country, we have almost zero tourism due to crime, many countries have banned their citizens from coming to Ecuador, thanks to the publicity. Come back What good propaganda you make to my country, we have almost zero tourism due to crime, many countries have banned their citizens from coming to Ecuador, thanks to the publicity. Come back soon 🧐😐
Unfortunately, a textbook pick-pocket case.
It really is!
Hey guys, I'm from Ecuador. Sorry to hear this happened to you, the truth is you can't trust the police in my country and there's a pretty big chance that the police man that went into the bus before you made a deal with the thiefs. I'd even go as far as to say that it's very common to see entire families of criminals that have a police man in the family who helps them get away with this kind of stuff, specially in those really small towns where everyone knows each other. The best thing you can do to in this type of situation is to simply not let your stuff out of your sight even for a second and do not trust the police as they are quite literally, useless.
@@Zenless it’s so sad that this is the truth in Ecuador. I really appreciate your comment and sharing the truth, we hope others can learn from it!
Sry to hear 😢 just wondering how could it happen if you were watching your bags? Did u guys fall asleep and were the bags locked?
@@tha_177z2 we explained in the video a bit more but the bags were right next to us, they are just so good at what they do. The bags did not have locks and were not our typical bags for transporting our gear - but we explain this in the video since it was supposed to be the start of a 3 day backpacking trek
totally sucks ! Being robbed isn't fun :( Keep your heads up!
Thank you for the kind words! Unfortunately it happens :(
yeah, when we traveled in no mans land in northern ecuador we only bought our cellphone and small bill cash on those buses. no issues. Only issue was a greedy unofficial taxi guy. wanted .50 cents more than agreed for a two minute trip. I gave him 15 cents more and walked away:). U guys already thought of an airtag so your good
Thank you for sharing your story! It’s really interesting to hear what has happened to others
I recently watched your stairway to heaven video and loved it ! Earlier I watched the Hawaii (foot pump) and enjoyed that video so much that even as tired as I am ill check out one more and again...I thought it was really good even tho the circumstances were not. I despise theives and liars but I also live by karma and believe that when it comes around it will be either much better or much much worse depending on the action so the camera was a great steal for the thief but down the path a much bigger loss awaits. For the two of you , to be content I wish you both! Pillow bound Gn
Thank you so much for being here & watching some of our videos! It truly means the world to us that you enjoyed them that you wanted to watch more🥹 We agree with you on karma, and all we can do is be grateful it was purely material! Thanks again for your kind comments😊
Never travel without your bag between your knees on the bus. If they try and get you to put it somewhere else just refuse. It looks like that cop that got on the bus before y'all searched it got his little bribe from the driver and then they all were on the same page by the time you all got on the bus to search, in my opinion.
@@jerrisgibbs161 I think this could definitely be what happened but we will never know :(
In three social networks, Ecuador is destroyed by a camera that in the end was covered by insurance 😢
never once said anything bad about Ecuador, we love it there & it’s some of the most beautiful landscape we’ve ever seen. would still recommend people go but hoping to help future travelers be safer :)
Ecuador is destroyed by its own people. Viveza criolla, remember?
@@lvovodessa Dude, Ecuador is ranked 96th out of 116 countries in relation to tourism, in tourism level, do we need them to continue giving us more bad publicity?? The country is already destroyed by crime, tourism has dropped to low levels, I don't want to cover up the reality but let's stop a little, have mercy on Ecuador 😢
Never go to the cops, never fall asleep on the bus, always mind all of your belongings. Didn't Lonely Planet indicate any of this?
we didn’t fall asleep, we were just shouldn’t have been as relaxed.
Sorry this happened to you guys. Next time take a taxi to places please. Those cops are known to help their own people for bribes. I’m Ecuadorian myself. I’ll try to make a vlog for you guys to see.
@@Jasonr1999 we appreciate your kind words and you’re right, one of the tips we give in the video is to use private transportation in areas that you don’t feel comfortable to make sure this doesn’t happen to you. Let us know when you post your video we would love to see it!
The cop ended up with your camera.
@@ulisesrocha721 we will never know!!
My girlfriends friends daughter got stopped traveling Ecuador by car at night at gunpoint and stole all their belongings.
That is so scary! These things do happen.
Unwise to travel by car at night
You're next trip must be The Philippines!!!!
we really hope to make it there soon!!
I am so sad this happened to you. Then to find out your insurance was of no help either. Crime is real there.
Unfortunately these things happen and we just wanted to share our story. Insurance is always a hit or miss in the US. It’s pretty sad that they won’t cover what they promise!
if losing an expensive camera to corrupt Ecuadorians is the worst travel day you have ever had, after being in 35 countries.........you are lucky. - its stuff, money,- not your freedom your health or a crippling bus accident that you experienced.
This is so true. We are incredibly thankful that it was only losing our physical possessions.
GIRL IS SO PRETTY HAHAH
thank you🫶🏼🫶🏼
It's just a camera guys, not so dramatic
Our gear cost over $6,000 to replace - it’s not just a camera. We are thankful it’s just a physical thing we can replace but being robbed is a terrible feeling, and it’s personal. I hope you never experience something like this.
Your reaction is a natural response when feeling violated. Experiencing theft of something you're connected to can be hard to comprehend. If you've experienced personal belongings or space being violated through theft, it's natural to have a strong emotional reaction when it occurs. I believe you both handled the confusion and frustration admirably.
@@OnTodaysAdventure you guys not have travel insurance?
@@jamesgoatcher5397 we talk about this in the video
@@OnTodaysAdventurethey never mentioned the one month period when you bought the insurance? Sounds like a scam, that’s an important thing to know
Sry, but don't leave your stuff alone, ever... Hard to feel sry for you when you did it to yourself.
@@CA-lg1do we didn’t leave our stuff alone and we aren’t asking for you to feel sorry for us. We want to share our story and offer advice for others and as many others have commented they have had a similar experience
It's common knowledge that Eucador is the most dangerous country in South America.
That is not true at all. No need to spread misguided views.
@@OnTodaysAdventure It is 100% true. Ecuador has one of the highest per capita murder rates in the world. These videos are so ridiculous it boggles my mind... you travel to a dangerous place and then act surprised that you were victim of a crime? I mean seriously? You should visit Haiti next ;)
Petty theft is not dangerous, I have lived and traveled in South America, lived in Venezulea for a few years, no problems at all. But stories like this are common, just a camera from a bag
I always lock my bags on the bus, and usually lock my bag to my seat
“The most dangerous” is not Ecuador. Every country has crime, we chose to not let that deter us from visiting beautiful places that also have beautiful local people. I feel sad for people like you