Traveling abroad - what to expect

[clocktick]

I'm going to England in March and plan on using my Bank of America debit card, Cap One CC and possibly my Paypal CC.  I will be calling all 3 to let them know ahead of time.  Does anyone have any specific knowledge with any of these cards as to whether I'll have issues while abroad?  I'd really prefer not to carry cash, however, I do not want to run into any problems or denials while in a different country.

Any input is appreciated. 

[Anonymous]

One of the benefits of Capital One is 0% foreign transaction fee.  Use that card for every purchase you can because most other cards charge anywhere from 1%-3% in fees.  Also, if you want pounds, try and wait until you get there and withdraw the cash from an ATM because you should get better exchange rates.  

Message Edited by Allen123 on 12-29-2008 10:08 PM

[clocktick]

I wasn't aware of that, thank you!  Won't the ATM fees be high considering you're taking cash from a CC as well as an ATM?

[Zar]

Hello,

Before going there, call the numbers on the back of your cards and let them know you will be using the cards abroad. They'll ask you the dates of your trip and probably the cities in which you will be... also they could ask you how much you will be spending... but normally we don't know exactly how much we are going to spend.

For ATMs use your Bank of America debit card. They have always charged you a fee abroad though (~$5). Somewhere I read that if you use it at a Barclays Bank ATM you are not charge fees but that's not my experience.

As for the Capital One card, I don't have one but the fact that they don't charge fees abroad is a great advantage over many other cards. Bank of America and the vast majority charge 3% for using the card abroad.

Also, it's not a bad idea to carry some cash just in case... just the necessary for anything that you might need and that can't be (sometimes) paid with cards (taxi, a snack, airport fees or any thing).

Good luck and have a nice trip!

Zar

[Anonymous]

The exchange rate depends on what the rate is that day, not whether you're taking it from an ATM or not.  And unless you can see the future and tell what the exchange rate there's no way to know if it's going to be better or not doing it at the ATM, versus your bank, versus the exchange centers in airports. 

You're also going to be taking a cash advance fee by getting it out of the ATM, and the rate of that will depend on what your particular card's cash advance fee, exchange rate, and whatever the ATM's fee is for taking money out, unless you're using a BoA card at a BoA ATM.  

My personal opinion, if you have the money already available to you would be to do the exchange with your own money, either ahead of time or when you get there, versus taking it out of an ATM and paying all those fees.  And higher interest rates.

[Scamp]

My method for saving on fees when I travel overseas is to have most or all of my travel money in my checking account before I leave, and then just use my debit card to pull out a few largish chunks of cash, so that I'm only paying fees on a very few cash withdrawals instead of on dozens of small purchases.

May not work for everyone, depending on length of trip, etc., but it's saved me loads.

Travel safe and have a good time!

[MidnightVoice]

I use a debit card for cash and a CC for as much as possible.

And boy will I be glad when the UK uses the Euro!!  It is fabulous to be able to change countries without changing money all the time

[rubaty]

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@MidnightVoice wrote:

I use a debit card for cash and a CC for as much as possible.

And boy will I be glad when the UK uses the Euro!!  It is fabulous to be able to change countries without changing money all the time

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I miss the old days when every country had it's own money!  It was fun to collect the paper money from the various countries, now the closest thing they have is that the Euro coins have different backs for each country.

[MidnightVoice]

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@rubaty wrote:

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@MidnightVoice wrote:

I use a debit card for cash and a CC for as much as possible.

And boy will I be glad when the UK uses the Euro!!  It is fabulous to be able to change countries without changing money all the time

---

I miss the old days when every country had it's own money!  It was fun to collect the paper money from the various countries, now the closest thing they have is that the Euro coins have different backs for each country.

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Yeah, but it was pain if you werte hitting several countries.  I remember being stuck in Stockholm at 4 in the morning with English, French, German and Norewegian money, and I needed Swedish Kroner to get a cup of coffee!morning

[haulingthescoreup]

OP, my daughter was in Ireland this summer with side trips to Paris and to Wales (UK.) She used a BofA Visa, a USAA MC, and my American Express gold. No problems with any of them.

I did read advice to not take only Visas or only MC's, as you'll be stuck if the network crashes.

And she used her debit card a lot, especially to pull cash.