Travel money belts are still a good way to carry cash. They're common, and thieves know of them, but it isn't easy to tell if your belt has a hidden compartment, and it isn't easy for a robber to get at it quickly. It is a good way to carry some of your cash when you travel. Here are some more ways.
There are travel options other than money belts for hiding cash and important papers. Use several of them, rather than putting everything in one place. Don't carry too much cash. It's easy now, almost everywhere, to access your money using an ATM, so carry enough for a few days, or a week at most.
There are pouches that hang under your shirt to carry your passport and other papers. They're obvious if you're wearing a light shirt, but then it is always hard to thoroughly hide a passport on your body. In any case, it isn't easily accessible to pickpockets.
I cut a pocket from some old pants and used a safety pin to attach it inside my travel pants. This has worked well on several trips. It's not noticeable, and would be difficult for a thief to get at without taking off my pants. However, it is inconvenient when I'm asked for my passport, since I have to reach into my pants.
Hiding Travel Money In Shoes
If the inner soles of your shoes are removable, put twenty dollars under each one for emergencies. This works well for me, but then I don't have expensive shoes that could themselves be a target. It is just another place, and you should always have several different places to hide cash when traveling.
Think creatively. Roll up a bill and put it in the handle of a disposable razor. Just don't throw it away by accident. Find or make other hiding places. If your money is in several hard-to-find places, it will take a persistent thief to find all of your cash. Make robbers truly work for their living.
Hiding money in your hotel room requires some thought. There are many good places. Ask any thief, and he'll tell you the best ones. Just choose a safe hotel and be careful. Of course, hiding things will at least reduce the temptation for bad employees and lazy thieves.
I once had a wallet stolen from a zippered back pocket. It was a decoy wallet, so the pickpocket's skill earned him a few pieces of paper. Another time I had to drag a robber off a bus and wait for police, but his accomplice escaped with our money. Travel is about adventure, but fortunately we can hide our travel money and documents well enough to avoid this kind most of the time.