foreign currency conversion fees

[award101]

Heya. Just made a payment to wdw towards my trip in dec through my ta and got slugged $80 fees for the privilege. .. does wdw have bank details we can tranfer funds into? Can you use a travel card to do this with? Trying to pay down my holiday without paying another few hundred in fees. Also want to avoid fees whilst there. I use a nab visa debit card. Tia.

 

[LisaAJ]

I've made all of our deposits so far on my CBA Travel Card and haven't been charged any conversion fees.

I've paid to DCL, WDW, universal and various hotels using the Travel card.

 

[orion2185]

You will need to speak with your bank. As each is different and based upon what product/service you have with them.

However, if using an Aus based debit card...you will most likely be charge a foreign transaction fee for using your card. This is in ADDITION to exchange AUS dollars to US dollars. Your bank will do exchange at current rate minus a few points. So you "lose" money based on the current exchange rate.
Foreign transaction fee is usually around 3% of the amount paid. Again this will differ by bank and what product / service you have with them

There are a number of ways to reduce your cost when paying for items overseas in a different currency.
Also your budget will play a role in what's your best choice.

If you can only pay in smaller amounts over time ( you will most likely pay more in overseas fees and lose more money due to conversion)
Vs paying everything in one lump sum (doing do when you think the exchange rate is in your favor. )
No matter what it's always a gamble with the exchange rate. Wandering if it will go down or up and when.



What's best for you...is up to you
But no one likes to "lose" money ..so,finding a solution to minimize these costs is key

Perhaps you should look into the loadable travel cards. These allow you to "lock" in the current exchange rate. Meaning once you load aus dollars onto card you can have the,funds as a balance on your card in US dollars. So you really pay the exchange rate when you load money.
But when you use the card your card has US dollars. So your paying US dollars not Aus dollars. No conversion cost (as you did it up front)
There are so many and they all are different and fees they charge are all over the place.
There are some that don't add an extra overseas fee. Since your paying in local currency. And your first time,loading money onto the card is free. But each time after they charge a fee. You will have to find what's best for you

 

[orion2185]

Sorry forgot to add

No Disney does not have an account that accepts forgiven currency

All amounts paid must be paid in us dollars

 

[Tashinwdw]

We found the same thing on our last holiday, so this time we did what the others have suggested. We used the amex travel card because they have an office at our local post office and we also get our US cash from them as well. It has cut down on fees and charges to zero. Definitely recommend you get a travel card from either bank, post office or qantas/virgin and use it. Just make sure you read up on it and make sure it doesnt cost to load money onto it as some do charge.

 

[ssour]

If you're looking for credit cards 28 degrees is designed specifically for foreign currency and has minimal fees. I also believe bankwest's platinum card has minimal fees too.

 

[BecBennett]

I usually pay for everything with my travel money card, so you avoid those fees.

 

[elphaba91]

When you pay using Australian dollars, the bank will exchange it at a pretty decent rate and then add the international fee of about 3%. So, when I booked my Book of Mormon tickets in USD it was $534.24, which came to $580.60 plus $17.40 conversion fee - a total of $598.

If I had charged this on my travel card, I would be charged the conversion fee at the time I put the money on my card, instead of at the time of purchase. For my Load and Go Travel card the rate is therefore about 4c different - if I were to put $1000 AUD on it when the exchange rate was 94c, I would only get $900 USD. So if I had put money on my card then booked my tickets that same day, I would have paid about $602. This is based on just adding 4% to the rate the bank used, but it was probably a smidge lower than that. Basically I would have paid the same amount either way.

However, if I loaded the money onto my card when the rate was better, then I would have locked in the money at that rate, meaning I would have saved money by using the travel card. So, just say it was 1c higher when I loaded it, the tickets would have been $596.

On the other hand, the rate might have been higher when I loaded the card than when I booked the tickets. If it was 1c lower, then the tickets would have been $607.

Alas, without a crystal ball or time machine, it's impossible to say what is going to be best!

 

[award101]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I might have a look at the travel cards. They sound good for what I'm after. When you are paying thousands as opposed to hundreds I think it may make a difference.

 

[ssour]

I usually pay for everything with my travel money card, so you avoid those fees.

The fees are usually built into the exchange rate they offer when you load your card, so you just don't see them advertised as a fee. When you pay with your credit card the exchange rate is set by Visa, MasterCard or American Express. The bank then charges their fee so they make some money. When they sell you the USD for the travel card or cash they just build the fee into their lower rate. If you are loading as you go to make specific payments then you're probably not any better off using a travel card. If you're loading up while the dollar is good and planning on sitting on it for a while then you may come out better off, just depends what the dollar does, which is anyone's guess.

 

[hellosue]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I might have a look at the travel cards. They sound good for what I'm after. When you are paying thousands as opposed to hundreds I think it may make a difference.

 

[marvel]

As the others mentioned best option is 28 Degrees and Bankwest platinum, no conversion fees at all and No annual fees. And accepted everywhere. Whilst travel cards are good, they can be a pain to use for hotels, or car hire, and a mutlitude of other occassions, such as with Disney.

 

[bern1992]

I've recently opened a new Citibank Plus account, which comes with a Visa Debit card, and is entirely fee-free including international purchases. The only money you'll "lose" is in the exchange rate.

Check it out online, many people find it very useful for travelling.