Can anyone share their experiences good & bad?
Starting Score: FICO TU 591 FICO EX 581 FICO EQ 555
Since you already have a card with NFCU, you could PC that to one of the cards with no foreign transaction fees. Or just apply for a second NFCU card. Both Flagship and GoRewards offer no fees outside of the USA. Flagship does have an annual fee, though, and the rewards are not really that special.
Aside from that, you might be able to get a card with Capital One. Those don't have foreign transaction fees either.
My current main cards for use in Europe are the BoA Travel Rewards and the Chase Sapphire Preferred. The Travel Rewards is like a Quicksilver, 1.5% on everything. And I use the CSP for my travel and dining expenses. I like the fact that they have EMV chips, even if only chip and signature, because this at least saves me from having to explain that "i have a swipe card" and hand my card to the merchant before every transaction. Though few and far between, I have been to some places that don't even have a reader to process a swipe card.
EX:694 TU:744 EQ:777
@DaveSignal wrote:Since you already have a card with NFCU, you could PC that to one of the cards with no foreign transaction fees. Or just apply for a second NFCU card. Both Flagship and GoRewards offer no fees outside of the USA. Flagship does have an annual fee, though, and the rewards are not really that special.
Aside from that, you might be able to get a card with Capital One. Those don't have foreign transaction fees either.
My current main cards for use in Europe are the BoA Travel Rewards and the Chase Sapphire Preferred. The Travel Rewards is like a Quicksilver, 1.5% on everything. And I use the CSP for my travel and dining expenses. I like the fact that they have EMV chips, even if only chip and signature, because this at least saves me from having to explain that "i have a swipe card" and hand my card to the merchant before every transaction. Though few and far between, I have been to some places that don't even have a reader to process a swipe card.
Yes But that capital one cards can be useless depending on what parts of Europe he or she is visiting and I would say even a Citi Thank you preferred card is much better even with the 3% FTF then any capital one card. If OP is staying in tourist areas then it should be fine for 95% of the time but if your going to venture out side of tourist area you might only find EMV chip readers. Personally I would say the CSP is perfect . No AF for the first year and has 0% FTF. OP can always PC it to the Chase sapphire before the AF hits or the Freedom.
Just returned from a couple weeks in Spain yesterday. Based off my experience, Barclays Arrival+ is really all you need. The chip with sig was enough for 99% of transactions - cabs, restaurants, ticket offices, hotels, souvenir shops, etc. The fact that it was MC made it accepted anywhere credit cards were taken. Then for unattended kiosks like gas stations and metro stations, the PIN worked flawlessly. I had to use a PIN maybe 5 times and there was never a problem.
Of course, several places were cash only so a debit card was a must as well, and it's wise to have a backup card just in case but the Arrival+ was the only CC I used for the entire trip. So convenient, and without any extra forex fees.
