Can anyone give me some advice about traveling without a credit card, just a debit

[tvguy]

I'd check with your bank to see if there are any daily spending limits, and make sure you are comfortable with that limit. My cousin and her family came all the way from Canada to Disneyland with just a debit card, and a little cash. I think her daily limit was $200. Hard to feed a family of 6 in Disneyland and pay for a hotel on $200 a day.

I would consider taking a little cash, and some travelers checks as backup just in case there is an issue. And make sure both you and your spouse have some of those travelers checks in each of your names. I only carry 1 credit card, and 1 debit card and DW and I never travel without $500 each in travelers checks just in case of a problem.

 

[sunshinehighway]

I'd consider getting a credit card for vacations. I don't know how long it's been since you had one but most companies make it so easy to pay now. You can just pay the balance as you go along if you want.

If you want to go the prepaid route, Amex has a fee options with very low fees. Someone else said AAA and that's a good idea too. Depending on where you are, AAA will offer different products. My AAA no longer has the trav et like card. They have a prepaid Amex portion you can activate on your membership card

 

[Nayan]

I ended up getting a secured CC. It makes it much easier to grab a room on the run, if I need to rent a car in a hurry there's no hassle and I don't have to worry about my actual cash not being available.

 

[luvsmickeymouse]

We, too, are living without cc....is it possible to rent a car without one? Avis says that they do not accept cash....

I just got back from Florida, and I rented a car from Enterprise with a debit card with a visa, my regular bank card. They put a hold of 20% of the price of the rental and as long as I showed them my return flight info, I was fine. I didn't have it on paper but I had a picture of it on my phone and they accepted that with no problem. It was very easy.

 

[DumboDash2006]

Finally responding, sorry, life got kind of crazy there.

Thanks for all of the advice. I'm ok with a credit card, but dh still isn't comfortable with it. So that's a no go.

I think we will do a combo of things. We have a savings account at another bank so I think I will open a checking account there also with a debit card and just use that for withdrawing cash as we go for meals/hotels/spending. I won't tie the savings account to the checking account but will be able to get online and transfer funds if needed. We have enough in that savings account to transfer online if needed for any problems etc. I will ask about daily limits, I think they will override that if you ask in advance.

Still thinking of getting an American Express traveller's check for the hotel in Hilton Head and then stopping and cashing it at a participating bank before we check in so we can pay cash and avoid any holds etc. I guess it wouldn't be big deal but that's a lot to hold so I think I'm more comfortable with this.

 

[michellelovesthemous]

Don't forget to put a travel notification on with your bank so they don't shut your card off thinking it may be fraudulent activity! How about using Disney gift cards as alternate money at WDW just make ure you use it all! I also would concur with a CC too but if that isn't an option WDW does accept travelers cheques I use them there too all the time. If you do use a prepaid READ THE FINE PRINT look for usage, ATM, inactivity, lost/replacement FEES! Whatever you choose have a wonderful time!

 

[luvsJack]

I have a prepaid debit card that I use for everything traveling and at home. I have never had a problem with it at all.

Have never had anyone put any kind of hold on the account, except one bill I was paying online and it was $1.

I have never rented a car, so can't answer that one but we like using the prepaid debit card. And that is what I would suggest to someone not wanting a credit card.

I noticed that several banks are now offering prepaid debit cards in addition to account debit cards to their customers. The reasoning they give on the literature is that it can used online or away from home with the risk of anyone gaining access to your full account or your credit card.

 

[aliceindisneyland]

If you are set on using a debit card, I suggest never using your PIN except at an ATM; run everything through as "credit". The one time DH used PIN at a gas station, we had $800 in charges from another state the next day! I know in our situation that's weird that our info was stolen in one time using a PIN, but it does happen.

Keep in mind you'll have daily withdrawal limits if you want to pull cash as you go; plus the hassle of finding a free/compatible ATM.

If it were me, I would show my DH info that shows the security of using a credit card for travel vs. using a debit card. Credit cards offer excellent protection against fraud, and you have more time to dispute (like up to 90 days for credit card as opposed to 48 hours for debit card!) - and your liability with a cc is limited to $50.

If you were the victim of fraud while using debit, it could totally upend your trip and future budget. You will have to check all charges daily while you're on vacation, and as many pps have noted, you will tie up a lot of your funds with holds. Most hotel/car rental holds have stayed on my credit card for a week after I've cashed out.

You could solemnly swear to each other that the credit card would be used only for the budgeted vacation amount - and you could even close it after your trip if you're worried you'll fall off the wagon.

But it seems short sighted to put worries about overspending on a trip you've likely budgeted carefully for above the protection and hassle-free convenience of a credit card.

You could even use the credit card only for the holds (you can pay with cash or debit when checking out and the hold will just be on the cc until it falls off), but then you'd still have to check for charges on the debit card daily.

What's the worst that could happen with a credit card? Fraud, and they put a hold on your credit card so you have to fall back on your debit (and then you're subject to the "worst case scenario" below. I'd actually get 2 credit cards from 2 banks for the trip.) The most you can lose is $50.

What's the worst that could happen with a debit card? Fraud, and they put a hold on your debit card so you have to fall back on your other debit card, and you may not be able to pay your bills while you are disputing the charges with your bank. Depending on how long it takes you to report the fraud and your bank's practices, you could end up losing some-to-all of the money taken by the thief forever.

 

[puffkin]

I would absolutely get a credit card. It is soooo much safer than a debit card. You can just cancel it after you get back from the trip.

I would suggest having a seperate account for vacations and things like that. I have a checkbook app on my phone that I use and update my balance. So say you have $2000 saved in that account. Go on vacation and as you spend on the credit card, make entries in the check book and it will track your spending. Then when you get home, just pay the credit card bill from the account (you've already been deducting the amounts, so you know the money is there). You can't really overspend because you are still tracking it like a debit card, but there are so many benefits and safety over a debit card.