I was a big fan of traveler's cheques (checks) after my hotel room was broken into while vacationing in Hawaii years ago. A call to the police, who issued a police report which I took to the nearest bank and I had my cash back in my hand within a couple of hours. But unfortunately traveler's cheques seem to have gone the way of the Brontosaurus.

I use to travel with a mix of cash, traveler's cheques and my bank card along with my credit card for backup, just in case of emergencies. I always found that worked really well. I still do the same today, minus the traveler's cheques.