More of a travel question

[maxiesmom]

I know this is not transportation related really, but I thought you would be the people to ask. I have a friend who is flying to Scotland Monday. She has just found out that there will be a 3% fee on all credit card transactions while she is over there. And as she is very tight with her money, this is making her a bit crazy.

What is the best way to make purchases overseas? Cash? How are the ATM fees then? She tried to buy travelers checks, but has been told they are out of date and no one will take them. Should she just travel with a wad of cash and be very careful how she holds onto it?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[gmeh1]

I know this is not transportation related really, but I thought you would be the people to ask. I have a friend who is flying to Scotland Monday. She has just found out that there will be a 3% fee on all credit card transactions while she is over there. And as she is very tight with her money, this is making her a bit crazy.

What is the best way to make purchases overseas? Cash? How are the ATM fees then? She tried to buy travelers checks, but has been told they are out of date and no one will take them. Should she just travel with a wad of cash and be very careful how she holds onto it?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Have her consult her bank regarding ATM fees while out of the US. Either by phone or actually reading the website. Personally, I would take the hit for the 3%, better than risking losing cash.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

It is a little late to be looking into this as she has basically no options

1. The ATM she does the withdrawal from probably won't charge anything. Her bank is the charger. Tell her to ask. Then try not to do daily $50 withdrawals. Go buy a money belt, withdraw big sums and strap excess cash to your body. (don't carry all your cash in your purse if loosing it will upset you)

2. No, she should not travel with a wad of cash. Conversion rates on cash are worse then ATMs and when she looses it, then what

Next time plan ahead. There are credit cards without this 3%, but if she doesn't already have one it is too late.

 

[merina888]

Yes, you put money on a bank card that you can purchase. Essentially it's a prepaid bank card with a VISA/Mastercard/Discover/Amex logo on it. It's is refillable. Most of them have some sort of insurance against loss or theft just like travelers checks. I know that AAA has them (that's where my husband and I got ours for our honeymoon). I'm sure other places have them too. Those are accepted almost everywhere.

 

[usd2bmd]

At this point her best bet is probably to just use the credit card and eat the fee that is charged. She may be able to take US currency over there and convert it (I believe they use the Euro) once she arrives, but I don't think she will find a lot of places that accept US currency.

This is probably something that she should have checked into before now.

 

[maxiesmom]

This is probably something that she should have checked into before now.

This is a very last minute trip. As in she has planned and booked it all within one month. And been in the process of buying a house at the same time. Along with a family emergency and working full time, so she has been a little busy. I'm sure if she had been planning for months she would have been able to do a bit more research. Hence my coming here for help. Apparently along with a side dish of criticism.

 

[Tara]

Scotland is not on the Euro but rather British pounds. My advice would be to go to the Travelex counter and use her credit card to buy a Travelex chip & pin Cash Passport...basically a pre-loaded credit card. There are no fees associated with this whatsoever if you conduct the transaction at a US Travelex desk. I've used them extensively (thanks to the hassle that I've sometimes encountered trying to use a non-chip and pin credit card in Europe) and never had any problem at all with them. You can use them like a credit card or to get cash at ATMs.

http://www.travelex.com/us/products/cash-passport/

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Scotland is not on the Euro but rather British pounds. My advice would be to go to the Travelex counter and use her credit card to buy a Travelex chip & pin Cash Passport...basically a pre-loaded credit card. There are no fees associated with this whatsoever if you conduct the transaction at a US Travelex desk. I've used them extensively (thanks to the hassle that I've sometimes encountered trying to use a non-chip and pin credit card in Europe) and never had any problem at all with them. You can use them like a credit card or to get cash at ATMs.

http://www.travelex.com/us/products/cash-passport/

I use one of these cards as well.

There are credit cards which do not charge a foreign transaction fee; Capitol One is one of these.

I am surprised the friend was not aware of these fees.

At this point her best bet is probably to just use the credit card and eat the fee that is charged. She may be able to take US currency over there and convert it (I believe they use the Euro) once she arrives, but I don't think she will find a lot of places that accept US currency.

No, as stated, they use £s in Scotland. Also, if you convert your US $ in Scotland to the local currency, you will also lose money.