The following post information was drawn from actual personal experiences beginning an eleven day Vegas vacation to relax in the warm desert sun.
The idea to share this information comes on the heels of a recent post on the Reviewers Only board.

My frustration that day began after I made my way through the long line at Logan Airports security checkpoint. As always, I placed my shoes, belt, silver wristwatch, cellphone, credit card and pocket change into the gray plastic bin and gave it a push into the scanning x-ray machine. I was then instructed to walk through the "everybody" scanner portal. When I did not set off an alarm I smiled at the agent and headed for my belongings. The agent then put his hand on my shoulder and led me into a plexi-glass enclosure where I stood all alone waiting for the next step in my experience.

Passengers passed me by gawking and thankful that it wasn't they who was standing on the painted foot prints that I occupied. I remember thinking that it must be how animals in the zoo must feel. All I needed was for someone to throw a peanut over the top or maybe stand their four year old daughter in front of the glass in order to take a quick photo with me while I scratched myself.

I heard agent number one say to agent number two that my ticket was marked for a "Random" scan.

I was then led to the infamous "nude scan" machine.

SHIT !!!... I have a real problem with that technology but I also have a secret that no one else knows.... up to now anyway.

I was carrying in my pants pocket a wad of cash. It was all neatly counted and bundled with paper bands marked in thousand dollar increments of mostly Benjamins that was nearly "brick like" in size.

It was a sum that was lower than the $10,000 guideline set by the US Government which by the way will put you into a whole new security experience altogether. My "grand" total wasn't all that far from that magic number.

Agent number two asked me " What is the bulge in your pocket"? I explained in a low voice as not to attract any more attention than I already had that I was on my way to Vegas and was carrying a lot of cash. He instructed me to empty my pocket and hold the cash in my left hand high above my head while the scan was in effect. My hesitation irritated him as evident in his next reply. "Either you comply or we do a full body pat down and search of your suitcase". I decided not to piss anyone else off any more than I was at that very moment so I removed my cash and held the brick high above my head for all passing travelers to witness.

Once the machine operator whether male or female had sufficient time to check out my ass and my junk I was then escorted by agent number three to the next check point where my hands were wiped down and the towel placed into another machine searching for trace elements of explosives.

Agent number three then said his "Thank You" and "Have a Good Day" before I was free to be on my way.

I have been traveling to Vegas three or four weeks a year for years now and always bring what I consider to be sufficient amounts of cash for playing. I never had a problem until the new "see through, nude scanners" came on line.

If you wont pack the cash you bring along on vacation in your checked bag and don't trust it in your carry on, if you refuse to place it in your gray plastic tub but feel vulnerable holding it high in the air for everyone to see, then what do you do?

The answer is NOTHING.

The casino will gladly accept your wired monies directly to their casino cage. This service is free however, with any transfer, you are only allowed to use 15 % of the deposit as cash. The remaining must be used in the form of markers to be gambled on their casino floor.
For instance, an $8000.00 deposit direct to the casino will allow $1200.00 cash for lady entertainment or otherwise. The remaining $6800.00 is then earmarked for gaming.

Now I'm not your overboard gambler so my monies would be split up quite the contrary to the casinos hopes. In a weeks stay in Vegas I might throw away up to 15% of the total on gaming but the rest would be earmarked for REAL ADULT PLAY.

Lets hope this bull shit "Nude Scanning" becomes a thing of the past and not only for instances as described above but also for the sake of our wives and daughters who also travel.

No visible bulges to explain

Lina

Now DDD I would definitely volunteer to see you go through the " naked x ray machine " and get to witness you in all of your glory.

Oh wait, I think I already did.

I once won the lottery for a random search leaving Vegas with $50K in my shaving kit. It didn't even raise an eyebrow. I mean it, not a single comment from the TSA agent, she continued rifling through my bag looking for scissors or other weapons of mass destruction. lol

Truth be told, I have never had an issue carrying cash through any airport, of course I do comply with the $10k limit when traveling internationally, and I travel a lot. I typically have to clear customs about twice a month and go through regular screening on average about twice a week. I will probably go through screening 8-10 times over the next week or so.

...someday when returning from a successful tour.

I really haven't found a solution to my situation.

Wiring the casino money and then being allowed to use just 15% of that total for other entertainment while being expected to spend 85% of it on the casino floor is not my way of vacationing.

I will continue to carry the money on my person and hope that I don't get "Nude Screened " or robbed.

Good Luck to you Elizabeth !

-- Modified on 11/21/2010 8:13:18 PM

Lina, you could carry LOTS of $$$ in there!

Carrying large amounts of cash, even just a couple of thousand, has always bothered me on some level.  I'm used to it but I'm always worried about experiencing just what you did.

But often, especially when out of town, getting to a bank is time consuming and costly.  Guess that is just part of the whole.  But it still doesn't make me feel any more comfortable about it.

Glad that you've found a solution that works for you, though.  Thanks for the informative topic!

Sincerely,
Elisabeth

I will volunteer to do your pat-down.

in my sports coat inner pocket which goes through the XRay.

No problems so far.

If you go through an airport that has these new devices working, you have to assume that you will go through them even if they aren't screening everybody that way.  It is easier to empty your pockets completely and send whatever you have on the belt in your carry-on.  Never carried much more than $1.5K but when I did I put it my carry-on.  

You can't hide anything anywhere from these devices so putting it in your bra would just end up in a TSA groping.  

Yes, there is concern with leaving it on the belt but many of us carry a lot of valuable things such as laptops, cameras and so forth that would be expensive to replace.  The key is to clear any screening quickly and get back to your stuff.  TSA does not notice, or seem to care, about cash you carry.  If you take steps to get through, you will be with your stuff before anybody else gets through the line.

I just keep it in my purse, as far as I'm concerned I don't owe them an explanation for why I have money...For all they know I'm just going on a holiday, I've always thought if I put it in my bra or something and then got searched and they felt it in my bra, they would prob be more suspicious as to why I was trying to hide it...I fly so often and honestly have never had a problem with it...The only time I am careful is when I fly to Europe, and as someone said before, I wouldn't bring in more than 10k cash...

Also, there are a lot of banks now that have ATM's that let you deposit your cash/checks after hours, I utilize those a lot a well...

just my .02!

Opening an account with a small balance at a LV bank and wire yourself the money in the future.

......and I thought it was a great idea.

Thanks !

Just remember what is sent to Vegas stays in Vegas!

where a man being questioned by TSA about $4,700 cash he was carrying.

LE baggers people all the time about anything they want. They where actually on the nice side compared to some interrogation I have heard about. They didn't even threaten to take his kids. LE did that to a friend of mine when she was busted. She talked. She was found guilty so they locked her up for a 110 days and did take her kid away. If she would have STFU they had nothing on her. Those TSA agents were playing softball, they could have lied, or made real threats more than your going to the FBI. They did with my friend.

mine was a large roll of condoms that I forgot in my back pocket - the screener smiled and said "Good Luck"

I don't mind carrying a lot of cash thru the airport, but you know how I am with planes and catching them ontime.

at a $500.00 limit per day it would take me sixteen days to get the right amount of cash out.

Thanks Crallo !

my checkbook, inside of which is my cash.

I routinely carry $5-10,000 with me and have NEVER been questioned, either inbound or outbound.

Of larger concern to ME is the fact that I live in a very small city and happen to know some of the TSA agents.  I'd really prefer they didn't know I tote around that kind of loot.