Everyday safety
Festive nights out, and the easy way home.
December fills up the evenings: a Christmas market after work, the office party, drinks with friends that run later than planned. None of it calls for being on guard. A few habits set up before heading out are enough to enjoy the night fully and get home without thinking about it. Here they are, from the crowd between the stalls to your own front door.
In the crowd: bag in front, phone tucked away
Christmas market aisles are made for wandering, and the crowd is thick. That is exactly where pickpockets work, using a jostle or a friendly question to draw attention away. The answer is simple and spoils nothing.
Carry a small bag zipped and in front of you rather than a backpack. Keep your phone and wallet in a closed inside pocket, never in a back pocket and never left on a stall counter or a high table. And carry little cash: most stalls take cards.
- A zipped bag, worn in front of you
- Phone and wallet in an inside pocket
- Nothing left on counters or high tables
- A polite wariness of the sudden jostle or the distracting question
Agree on a meeting point
In a group, it is easy to lose each other between two rows of stalls, and the mobile network can struggle when everyone is in the same place. Picking a landmark when you arrive saves the evening from becoming a search: the big wheel, the church door, the fountain.
The rule is short: if you get separated, go there and wait. It works at the end of the night too, when the group drifts apart: meet at the agreed spot before leaving, so nobody heads off alone without the others knowing.
Mulled wine and your glass, without the paranoia
Mulled wine is part of the fun. It warms you up quickly and goes to your head a little quicker still, especially outdoors, in the cold, on an empty stomach. Eating something and alternating with water or a hot chocolate keeps the evening pleasant to the end.
At a bar or an office party, the habit is the same as anywhere else: keep your glass where you can see it, and get a fresh one rather than finishing the one that was left waiting. If someone in the group suddenly seems far more affected than what they have drunk, do not leave them alone, and say something straight away.
Plan the way home before you leave
The way home is easier to decide at 6 pm than at midnight. Before going out, check the time of the last train or bus, and decide what you will do if you miss it. A plan made in advance is not up for negotiation with tiredness.
If you take a taxi or a ride-hailing car, check the registration, the model and the driver’s name before opening the door, and ask who they are there to pick up. Often the simplest option is going home together: sharing a taxi, a detour to drop a friend off, staying over rather than crossing the city.
In December, darkness falls early. The route that looked obvious on the way there, in daylight, looks different on the way back: stick to lit, busy streets, even if they add a few minutes.
- The time of the last train noted before you go
- A plan B if you miss it: taxi, ride, a sofa to sleep on
- Registration and driver checked before getting in
- Going home together whenever possible
Share your location for the journey
Live location sharing replaces the “text me when you’re home” that gets forgotten half the time. You start it as you leave, one trusted person watches the dot move, and you stop it when you arrive.
Charge your phone before going out: cold drains batteries faster, and the phone is what carries the sharing, the call and the ticket home.
When someone pushes it or follows you
Someone who will not take no for an answer at the bar, a wandering hand in the crowd, footsteps that stay behind you on the way back: the feeling that something is off comes before the explanation. Follow it. Head for somewhere lit and busy, a stall, a bar, a petrol station, and call someone, saying out loud where you are.
Speaking up, turning to a bystander, going to stall staff or a security guard if there is one: anything that makes the scene visible works in your favour. In an emergency, 112 is free and answers everywhere in the EU, Ireland included.
An alarm on your keys adds one more move to that list. With OYA, you pull the loop with one hand: a 130 dB siren, measured at 30 cm, and a light go off, and pushing the loop back in stops everything. With a linked phone, paired over Bluetooth and with its SOS set up, the same pull also starts that phone’s own SOS, which calls the emergency number and alerts your chosen contacts, with no OYA app to open.
Any questions?
Are Christmas markets safe?
Christmas markets are busy, friendly places, and the main thing to watch for is pickpockets in the crowd. A zipped bag worn in front, a phone in an inside pocket and a meeting point agreed with your group cover most of it.
How do you avoid pickpockets at a Christmas market?
Wear a small zipped bag in front of you, keep your phone and wallet in an inside pocket, and leave nothing on counters. Carry little cash and be wary of a sudden jostle or a question that pulls your attention away.
How do you plan getting home after an office Christmas party?
Decide before you go: the time of the last train, a plan B by taxi, or a shared ride with colleagues. On the way, share your live location with one trusted person and stop sharing once you are home.
