foreign transaction fees, and other randoms like LS and that AMEX

[quest208]

im going overseas and was looking for a card without foreign transaction fees.  i called a friend and he said "there's no such thing as no foreign transaction fees...they'll find a way to hit you with a fee."

so whats the bottom line??!?  if i go to London, and i walk into a clothing store with an amex platinum (i dont have that card, just asking) and say something cost 100 euro and i charge it to my amex platinum, when i get back to the states all i will see is a charge for 100 euro, no other fees?  (well, 100 euro coverted to us dollars.. whatever that total amount is.)

and if i was using a card that HAS foreign transaction fees, difference is i would see a charge for 100 euro, then see an additional foreign transaction fee?

speaking of AMEX, .....holy crap LS i see you finally got an amex card!!  wooooohoooooooo congrats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   LMAO im just as excited as you are.  i havent been on here in weeks, months and before i logged on i said to myself "i wonder if LS applied for an amex again and i hope he has an amex by now."  LMAO

congrats LS, i want one too.

as always, this board is wealthy with information and good people, its always fun to be here.

my destination is china and i dont have a card that has no foreign transaction fees but i want one.  i need to pay down my balances before applying, still in garden mode

[Anonymous]

CSP has no foreign transaction fees. You just pay the dollar equivalent, no extra fees.

[Anonymous]

I know that Cap 1 Platinum has no foreign transaction fee.  I used it in China and Japan and there was no hidden fee.

[quest208]

remind me again:  CSP is citi or chase product?  i tend to forget

[Anonymous]

CSP = Chase Sapphire Preferred.

[SwiftTone]

I used my Capital One in Asia a lot and didn't get hit with any fees. Actually, the exchange rate was actually favorable compared to the daily published rates, but only minimal, but you still come out on top

[Anonymous]

Another vote for Chase Sapphire Preferred here.

You can sign up with the 40,000k point bonus promotion currently going on which nets you $400 (or ~$500 of airfare/travel booked through their rewards site).

$400 sign up bonus, no foreign transaction fees, 1% back on all purchases, and 2% back on airfare, hotel, and all restaurants more than makes up for the $95 annual fee. Also the fee is waived for the first year.

https://creditcards.chase.com/sapphire/credit-cards/sapphire-preferred-card/

[Smerri1029]

I love my Chase Sapphire Preferred. Used it in Barbados, just paid for my item (after price was converted) with no additional fees.

[CreditMuppet]

Just bare in mind these two things:

1. Having a forex free card is not the only dependancy in Europe as most european countries now have chip+pin rather than swiping a traditional credit card.  Some US card

    issuers are issuing chip+signature which is simular but in some instances still wont be very useful.  You can however still swipe a card in many places.

2. If your in the UK, the currency will be pounds sterling, not the euro - might be worth noting for currency comparision reasons.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Another vote for Chase Sapphire Preferred here.

You can sign up with the 40,000k point bonus promotion currently going on which nets you $400 (or ~$500 of airfare/travel booked through their rewards site).

$400 sign up bonus, no foreign transaction fees, 1% back on all purchases, and 2% back on airfare, hotel, and all restaurants more than makes up for the $95 annual fee. Also the fee is waived for the first year.

https://creditcards.chase.com/sapphire/credit-cards/sapphire-preferred-card/

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You forgot about the most important feature of the CSP: It's partially made of metal, so all the Starbucks baristas will comment on the coolness of your card, which makes you feel special.

I'm of course being facetious. Another highly useful feature of the CSP is the ability to transfer points 1:1 to airline partners. With Southwest, for example, points are worth ~2x the cashback equivalent.